Three important decisions the Ravens must make before regular season

The Baltimore Ravens are again entering the 2024 season with championship aspirations after falling just seven points short in the AFC title game to the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Despite still having one of the most talented rosters in the league, they did lose several key free agents this offseason.

With that in mind, here are three important decisions the Ravens must make before the start of the regular season.

What is the perfect offensive line combination?

Baltimore lost starting guards John Simpson (Jets) and Kevin Zeitler (Lions) in free agency and traded right tackle Morgan Moses to the New York Jets this offseason. That means the team will have three new starters along its offensive line in 2024.

Deciding who the best five starting offensive linemen are may be the Ravens' most important decision behind keeping two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson healthy.

Ronnie Stanley is a lock at left tackle, while Tyler Linderbaum is the clear center, but the position beyond those is up for grabs.

Patrick Mekari, Daniel Faalele and rookie Roger Rosengarten are all competing for the right tackle job while Andrew Vorhees, Ben Cleveland, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu and Josh Jones battle for the guard spots.

Is the wide receiver room good enough?

Baltimore ran it back with almost the same wide receiver room as last season, with key contributors such as Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and Nelson Agholor returning.

The most notable addition to the room this offseason was Devontez Walker, a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, which is a bit of a surprising decision since the team didn't have a receiver eclipse 900 receiving yards in 2023.

The Ravens' reasoning is that they believe Flowers will elevate his game in year two and Bateman will finally reach his first-round expectations.

"Rashod's been working to make plays. To see him come out and make those catches, those are great catches," head coach John Harbaugh told reporters . "He's expected to be a top receiver in the league for us. That's what we're planning on."

If that turns out to be true, that would be great, but if not, Baltimore may want to add to the room via free agency or a trade.

Who will be the No. 2 cornerback?

Three-time Pro Bowler Marlon Humphrey is the Ravens' clear No. 1 cornerback. The 28-year-old looks like he'll have a productive 2024 season after intercepting Jackson four times in three practices.

However, who will play opposite him is still up for debate.

Baltimore has a few good options in veterans, such as Brandon Stephens and Daryl Worley, as well as first-round pick Nate Wiggins.

Stephens will get the first nod, coming off his best season yet in which he registered 74 tackles, two interceptions and 11 passes defensed. However, the Ravens have been high on Wiggins since drafting him in April.

"We're very, very excited to draft Nate Wiggins, in my opinion, the best cover corner in the draft," general manager Eric DeCosta told reporters . "Highly athletic, fantastic feet. Really, in our opinion, a guy that can grow into being a true shutdown-type corner. Ecstatic that he fell to us."