Now that Ray Lewis has a new deal, Derrick Mason wants one too. And who can blame him?
In an offense that has been anything but productive for most of Mason’s career as a Raven, the 35 year old receiver has managed to haul in 337 passes for 3,947 yards and 15 TD’s over the course of four seasons. He has been a leader, consummate teammate, extremely durable (He’s played in 64 straight regular season games) and he is Joe Flacco’s go to guy.
Mason is a prideful man and he trains religiously as part of an effort to realize his 5’10”, 192 pound frame’s maximum potential. And he has shown no signs of slowing down.
Recently speculation has surfaced that if released Torry Holt could draw the attention of Ozzie Newsome. And while such an acquisition would certainly upgrade the receiving corps, let’s not forget that the soon to be 33 year old Holt’s productivity in a Ram’s offense widely regarded as being more open and dynamic than the Ravens, hasn’t been much more prolific than Mason. On average over the course of the last four NFL campaigns only 4 catches, 140 yards and 3 scores separate the two.
T.J. Houshmandzadeh just signed with the Seattle Seahawks. The 32 year old receiver agreed to a 5 year, $40 million deal that includes $15 million in guarantees. On average he outpaces Mason over the last four seasons by 9 catches, 34 yards and 4 TD’s in a Bengals’ offense clearly more prolific than the Ravens devoid of the traditional quarterbacking issues Mason has had to deal with. Moreover, Houshmandzadeh has benefitted from playing opposite a true No. 1 receiver in Chad Johnson and with a dangerous No. 3 (when not suspended) in Chris Henry.
Cummulative statistics 2005-08
|
Player |
Catches |
Yards |
Yds/Catch |
TD’s |
First Downs |
|
Mason |
337 |
3,947 |
11.7 |
15 |
217 |
|
Holt |
352 |
4,504 |
12.8 |
29 |
233 |
|
Houshmandzadeh |
372 |
4,084 |
11.0 |
32 |
231 |
At this point in the offseason, the Ravens clearly have other more pressing needs than extending Derrick Mason’s contract. But the reality of the situation is that the Ravens and Joe Flacco will need Mason and they will probably need him beyond 2009. Perhaps he will still be their No. 1 guy going into 2010 or he may be the mentor that a 2009 or 2010 draft pick will lean on.
Either way, Mason’s productivity coupled with a body that belies his birth certificate suggests that the Ravens structure a fair extension for the veteran some time before summer camp kicks off in July.
