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Michael Pierce

Ravens Trade For Calais Campbell Fell Short

November 9th, 2024 at 10:18pm CST by Ben Levine

The Ravens were especially aggressive at the trade deadline as they looked to improve their defense. The team made an aggressive bid for Marshon Lattimore before landing Tre’Davious White from the Rams. If the front office had their way, they also would have reunited with an old friend.

[RELATED: Ravens Acquire CB Tre’Davious White From Rams]

According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, the Ravens were close to completing a trade with the Dolphins for defensive tackle Calais Campbell. However, the deal ultimately fell apart at the last minute.

The veteran defensive lineman had a three-year stint in Baltimore between 2020 and 2022, starting 40 of his 41 appearances. Over that span, he collected 11 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, and 36 QB hits, and he got into another three playoff games for the organization. Campbell was cut by the team at the end of the 2022 campaign and caught on with the Falcons, where he spent one season.

The 38-year-old joined the Dolphins this past offseason and has started all eight of his appearances for his new squad, collecting 28 tackles and two sacks. Despite getting up there in age, Campbell still ranks fourth on Pro Football Focus’ rankings of interior defensive lineman, an improvement from his 23rd-place showing in 2023. The Ravens could have used some DL depth with Michael Pierce sitting on injured reserve and Brent Urban dealing with a concussion.

As for the trade they did make, Breer notes that White agreed to remove all playing-time incentives to help facilitate a trade to Baltimore.

Ravens Place NT Michael Pierce on IR

October 30th, 2024 at 1:27pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Ravens have placed veteran nose tackle Michael Pierce on injured reserve after suffering a calf injury in the team’s Week 8 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

The move will sideline Pierce for at least the Ravens’ next four games, making him eligible to return as early as Week 13 against the Eagles. This is not viewed as a season-ending injury, per John Harbaugh.

Baltimore’s defensive line depth has reached alarming levels with veteran Brent Urban also exiting Sunday’s game with a concussion and Travis Jones already limited to just 15 defensive snaps with an ankle injury. That placed a huge burden on Nnamdi Madubuike and Broderick Washington, who both saw season-high snap shares but struggled to stay fresh enough to slow the Browns’ second-half comeback. Outside linebackers Tavius Robinson and Odafe Oweh even slide inside for a handful of snaps throughout the game.

The Ravens will be hoping that Urban can quickly clear concussion protocol and Jones can return to his starting role, but even with both players fully healthy, the team will need additional depth along the interior of their defensive line. The Ravens reunited with Chris Wormley in September; after a few weeks on the practice squad, he should be ready for some game day elevations in the coming weeks.

The Ravens also signed Josh Tupou to the practice squad this week after the veteran defensive tackle spent the preseason in Baltimore alongside undrafted rookie C.J. Ravenell. Both players’ familiarity with the Ravens defense could lead to playing time in the next few weeks depending on the statuses of Urban and Jones.

Pierce’s placement on injured reserve only heightens the need for Baltimore to reinforce their league-worst passing defense. While the poor play of Marcus Williams and Eddie Jackson has led to calls for safety help, general manager Eric DeCosta may now look for an addition to his defensive line to boost his pass rush and make life easier for his secondary.

Ravens Extend DL Michael Pierce

January 6th, 2024 at 9:46am CST by Ben Levine

Michael Pierce is sticking around Baltimore. The Ravens have signed the defensive tackle to a two-year extension, according to ESPN’s Field Yates.

The new two-year deal is worth $7.5MM and will keep Pierce in a Ravens uniform through the 2025 campaign. The veteran defensive lineman initially signed a three-year, $16.5MM deal with the Ravens prior to the 2022 campaign. The two sides later reworked that deal to make Pierce a potential free agent following this season.

The former UDFA spent the first four seasons of his career in Baltimore, starting 30 of his 60 appearances. He inked a three-year deal with the Vikings in 2020, but after opting out of his first season with the organization, he was limited to only eight starts in 2021. He was released by Minnesota during the 2022 offseason and quickly caught on with his former squad.

Pierce’s first season back in Baltimore was limited to only three games thanks to a torn biceps, but he’s returned to start each of his 16 appearances in 2023. This season, he’s compiled 36 tackles, one sack, and two fumble recoveries, with Pro Football Focus grading him 18th among 131 qualifying interior defenders.

The Ravens have been busy retaining their defensive tackles. The team extended Broderick Washington prior to the season, and they’ve now locked in Pierce. The last order of business would be Justin Madubuike, who is set to hit free agency after this season. Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic says it’s “hard to imagine” that the Ravens would let Madubuike hit the open market, even if it means they have to hit the defensive lineman with the franchise tag.

Contract Details: Payne, Saints, Carter, Stewart, Pierce

March 12th, 2023 at 7:50pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are some details on contracts recently signed around the NFL:

  • Daron Payne, DT (Commanders): Four-year, $90MM. The deal, according to Mike Florio of NBC Sports, creates around $9.43MM in cap space for Washington heading into free agency. Payne was set to enter the 2023 season with a cap hit of $18.94MM. The new extension applies a $28MM signing bonus spread over four years, along with a base salary in Year 1 of the deal of $2.51MM, to lower Payne’s cap hit to $9.51MM. The new move sets the Commanders up with over $20MM of cap space heading into the new league year.
  • Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE (Saints): Two-year, $5MM. The deal, according to Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football, has a guaranteed amount of $2.5MM consisting of a $1.4MM signing bonus and Kpassagnon’s 2023 base salary of $1.1MM. The deal includes three voidable years for cap purposes leading to cap hits of $1.9MM in 2023, $3.3MM in 2024, and $1.786 of dead money in 2025.
  • Juwan Johnson, TE (Saints): Two-year, $12MM. The extension, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2, has a fully guaranteed amount of $11.51MM consisting of a $5MM signing bonus and both year’s base salaries of $1.01MM in 2023 and $5.5MM in 2024. The contract includes a 2024 roster bonus of $500,000 due on the 5th day of the 2024 league year. There are $2.5MM of incentives available to Johnson in this contract for receptions, yards, and All-Pro selections. Those incentives have escalators in 2024, as well. The deal includes three voidable years to spread out the cap hit.
  • Lorenzo Carter, OLB (Falcons): Two-year, $9MM. The deal, according to Field Yates of ESPN, has a guaranteed amount of $4.25MM consisting of a $2MM signing bonus and $2.25MM of the first year’s base salary (worth a total of $3.25MM). The contract also includes an additional amount of $1MM available through incentives.
  • M.J. Stewart, S (Texans): Two-year, $6MM. The deal, according to Wilson of KPRC 2, has a guaranteed amount of $3MM consisting of a $1.5MM signing bonus and the first year’s base salary of $1.5MM. The deal also includes potential incentives of up to $1.5MM including $750,000 of playtime incentives. The contract also includes a per game active roster bonus of $14,705 for a potential season total of $250,000.
  • Michael Pierce, DT (Ravens): Restructure. The new deal for Pierce includes a new concept in Baltimore. Following the lead of other teams in the NFL, namely the Eagles, the Ravens incorporated voidable years in Pierce’s contract, a first for the franchise. In doing so, though, the team removed the 2024 season from Pierce’s deal, making him a free agent one year sooner than he would’ve been in his original contract.

Restructure Details: Armstead, Dolphins, Hill, Chubb, Chargers, WRs, Ravens, Pierce, Panthers, Moton, Jets, Cardinals, Eagles, Vikings

March 10th, 2023 at 9:08am CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have until 3pm CT Wednesday — the start of the 2023 league year — to move under the $224.8MM salary cap. With the legal tampering period beginning at 3pm Monday, teams are working to create cap space for free agency pursuits. Here are the latest maneuvers teams have made on that front:

  • The Dolphins have created more than $43MM in cap space over the past two days, being the runaway leaders on this front this week. They agreed to restructures with Bradley Chubb and Terron Armstead to free up $25MM-plus, per ESPN.com’s Field Yates (Twitter links), but they are also using Tyreek Hill‘s receiver-record contract to create room. Miami created $18MM in space by restructuring Hill’s $30MM-AAV deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Hill was due a $16MM roster bonus; that and most of his 2023 base salary have been shifted into a signing bonus. Chubb’s base salary is now down to $1.1MM in 2023.
  • Rather than trade Keenan Allen to carve out cap space, Chargers GM Tom Telesco firmly opted against that strategy. The Bolts are keeping Allen, and both he and Mike Williams‘ 2024 cap numbers will balloon. The team freed up $14MM-plus in 2023 cap space by restructuring both their $20MM-per-year wide receiver deals, per Yates. While new funds are available for 2023, Williams and Allen are now tied to $32.5MM and $34.7MM cap numbers in 2024 (Twitter links). Neither should be expected to play on those numbers, which will undoubtedly lead to more maneuvers down the road.
  • The Panthers freed up more than $11MM in cap room by restructuring Taylor Moton‘s deal, Joe Person of The Athletic tweets. This marks the second straight year Carolina has adjusted Moton’s contract. A Xavier Woods tweak also added $1.5MM to Carolina’s cap space, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
  • Michael Pierce accepted a $2MM pay cut to remain with the Ravens, Pelissero tweets. The move added $2.7MM in funds, Yates tweets. Pierce, who returned to the Ravens in 2022, can earn the money back via incentives. Pierce missed most of last season due to a biceps tear.
  • Pierce’s former team, the Vikings, took the same path with Ross Blacklock. The 2022 trade acquisition accepted a near-$700K slash which he can earn back via incentives, Pelissero adds (on Twitter).
  • D.J. Humphries missed much of the 2022 season, and while the Cardinals have a new regime in place, they are not moving their veteran left tackle. They will use Humphries’ 2022 extension to free up funds, with Pelissero noting (via Twitter) the Cards created $5.3MM in cap space with this restructure. Arizona has moved past $32MM in cap space. More could be coming via a DeAndre Hopkins trade as well.
  • C.J. Uzomah‘s three-year Jets deal became a vehicle for the team to carve out some room. The team freed up $3.6MM in cap space with a recent restructure for the veteran tight end, Pelissero tweets.
  • The Eagles also went to the restructure well Friday, with Yates noting (via Twitter) they are creating $2.5MM in space by adjusting Jake Elliott‘s deal.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/29/22

September 29th, 2022 at 5:59pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves around the NFL:

Baltimore Ravens

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Ravens’ Michael Pierce Suffers Biceps Tear

September 29th, 2022 at 8:46am CST by Sam Robinson

SEPTEMBER 29: The sixth-year veteran announced he is undergoing surgery to repair the injury, Rapoport adds (via Twitter). This will almost certainly end Pierce’s season.

SEPTEMBER 28: Michael Pierce‘s first season back with the Ravens may not end up lasting long. The veteran nose tackle suffered a biceps tear in the team’s Week 3 win in New England, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

The Ravens are not ruling Pierce out for the season just yet; the team is determining how to proceed. Pierce is weighing whether to undergo surgery or attempt to play through the injury after a rehab effort, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com tweets.

Pierce, 29, has played five of his six NFL seasons in Baltimore. After the Vikings released him in March, the Ravens brought him back on a three-year, $16.5MM deal. Of that amount, $6.75MM is guaranteed.

This Pierce injury comes nearly a year after an elbow issue shut him down for an extended stretch in Minnesota. Playing on a three-year, $27MM deal the Vikings authorized, Pierce missed nine games last season. That ended up being his only season in Minneapolis, after having opted out of the 2020 campaign.

A Ravens regular for nearly the duration of his rookie contract, Pierce has excelled in run defense with Baltimore. Pro Football Focus has consistently rated the former UDFA as a top-tier interior D-lineman. This year is no exception, with Pierce slotted fifth among inside defenders through three games. This will certainly deal a blow to Baltimore’s run defense, which is already giving up 5.0 yards per carry (28th through three games).

The team opted not to give Brandon Williams a third contract, but the longtime Baltimore D-line starter remains available. So does Ndamukong Suh, whom the Ravens pursued in 2020. Suh re-signed with the Buccaneers that year. The Ravens still roster the likes of Calais Campbell, former third-rounder Justin Madubuike, third-year backup Broderick Washington and veteran Brent Urban on their defensive front.

Latest On Ravens DL Michael Pierce

July 9th, 2022 at 12:01pm CST by Ben Levine

Michael Pierce is back in Baltimore. While he still hasn’t been seen on the practice field, it sounds like the veteran defensive lineman will be back for the start of training camp. Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic writes that the Ravens expect Pierce to be at the first day of training camp.

Pierce was a no-show during Ravens minicamp. John Harbaugh was quick to dismiss the notion that the absence was injury-related, stating that Pierce wasn’t participating because of a personal issue.

“He’s healthy, he’s good; it’s just a personal matter with his family, and that’s what it is,” Harbaugh said last month (via the team’s website).

As Zrebiec writes, there was “obviously some concern” about the player’s lack of offseason participation “given Pierce’s past injury and weight issues.” However, having played for Harbaugh, the 29-year-old should be familiar with the team’s conditioning test, so it’s really on Pierce to just come into training camp in shape.

The former undrafted free agent spent the first four seasons of his career with the Ravens, starting 30 of his 60 games. He signed a three-year, $27MM deal with the Vikings in 2020, but Minnesota only got eight starts out of him. Pierce opted out of the 2020 campaign, and an elbow injury forced him to miss the middle chunk of the 2021 season. Still, he was productive during his brief time on the field with the Vikings, collecting 20 tackles and three sacks, and that performance helped him earn a new three-year, $16.5MM pact from Baltimore.

After moving on from the likes of Brandon Williams, Justin Ellis, and Derek Wolfe, the Ravens will be relying on Pierce to provide some much-needed depth on the defensive line. Third-round rookie Travis Jones could see some increased reps at camp if Pierce isn’t ready to go.

Ravens Sign DT Michael Pierce

March 17th, 2022 at 5:29pm CST by Ben Levine

Michael Pierce is returning to Baltimore. The veteran defensive tackle is signing with the Ravens, reports NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).

Pierce will sign a three-year, $16.5MM deal with Baltimore, per Rapoport.

Pierce earned his walking papers from Minnesota earlier this week. The Vikings tried to convince Pierce to take a “moderate pay cut,” and when that didn’t happen, they tried to trade him. They couldn’t find any takers, so they ended up moving on from the defensive lineman. Pierce signed a three-year, $27MM deal with the Vikings in 2020, and he was set to have a $10.5MM cap hit in 2022. His release left behind $4MM in dead cap.

After opting out of the 2020 campaign, Pierce made his Vikings debut in 2021. He ultimately collected 20 tackles and three sacks in eight starts. He suffered an elbow injury that forced him to miss the middle chunk of the season.

Following his release from Minnesota, there were whispers that Pierce could look towards a reunion with Baltimore (via Josina Anderson on Twitter), but it was uncertain if the return of Za’Darius Smith would price the Ravens out of the sweepstakes. Ultimately, the two sides agreed to terms, and Pierce will now return to the team that took a chance on him as an undrafted free agent in 2016. The Stanford product ended up spending the first four seasons of his career with the Ravens, starting 30 of his 60 games.

Vikings To Release DT Michael Pierce

March 14th, 2022 at 10:31pm CST by Ben Levine

Michael Pierce‘s stint with the Vikings is about to come to an end. Minnesota is planning to cut the the veteran defensive tackle, reports NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter).

According to the reporter, the Vikings tried to convince Pierce to take a “moderate pay cut,” but the player clearly refused. The team also tried working out a trade, but despite “some feelers,” a deal never materialized. While the wording of Rapoport’s tweet seems to indicate that the Vikings are holding out hope for a deal, a release still seems imminent.

Pierce signed a three-year, $27MM deal with the Vikings in 2020, but that deal was pushed to 2021 after Pierce opted out of the 2020 campaign. The 29-year-old was attached to a $10.5MM cap hit in 2022, and his release will leave behind $4MM in dead cap.

Pierce made his Vikings debut in 2021, collecting 20 tackles and three sacks in eight starts. He suffered an elbow injury that forced him to miss the middle chunk of the season. The Stanford product spent the first four seasons of his career with the Ravens, starting 30 of his 60 games.

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