The Baltimore Ravens officially announced the signing of Owen Daniels on Friday afternoon after the veteran tight end passed his physical.
“I have a ton of respect for the organization and the players here,” Daniels stated as one of the reasons Baltimore was the right choice for him.
“The Ravens and Texans have had so many battles over the years and back and forth with it and I have been on the wrong side of it here in Baltimore and knowing what the organization is all about, was a big factor.”
After Daniels spent eight seasons in Houston, making him very familiar with Gary Kubiak, Rick Dennison and new tight end coach Brian Pariani (who was Daniels’ biggest recruiter to join the Ravens), the move was simply a “no brainer” for the Ravens organization.
Daniels, 31, has seen action in 100 career games including 96 starts and is excited to get started here in Baltimore and working along with Dennis Pitta.
“I am excited to get to work here. I’m excited to get back on the field obviously, that’s five months away but that’s definitely a big motivating factor for me,” Daniels stated.
“Being able to play alongside of Dennis is going to be awesome. I think we are going to be a great tandem. It’s going to make it tough on defenses to prepare.”
While Daniels understands why the Texans opted to release him and knows the NFL is a business, he does come to Baltimore with a little bit of a chip on his shoulder.
“When you are with a franchise for that long and they decide all of a sudden decide you’re not good enough for them anymore and they want to go in a different direction, that definitely gives you a big chip.”
The eight-year veteran tight end hasn’t spoken with Joe Flacco as of yet. However, he does plan to be here in Baltimore when the offseason program starts on April 21 to begin working and establishing a relationship with his new quarterback.
In Houston under then head coach Kubiak, the Texans utilized a lot of two tight end sets and with the acquisition of Daniels in 2014, the Ravens could utilize him in a familiar role.
“The two tight end sets were a major part of what coach Kubiak liked to do. We got the guys to do it here as well and that always makes things tough on defenses,” responded Daniels when asked if he expects the Ravens to utilize two tight end sets and groupings.
While the one-year deal for Daniels certainly won’t change the Ravens’ draft strategy in 2014, it is a positive one in the aspect of providing the Ravens – and more importantly, Joe Flacco – another offensive weapon and chain-mover.
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