Whether or not Torrey Smith plays another down in a Ravens uniform is anyone’s guess at this point. Smith has expressed his desire to stay, and the Ravens have made it known they’d like to keep him, but it’s a tricky situation.
Most people were surprised to hear that Smith had turned down $7 million annually over five years prior to last season. The Ravens offer was generous, but like Joe Flacco, Smith thought he could do better. Unfortunately for Torrey the outcome wasn’t the same, and after falling shy of 800 yards in 2014 that number will likely decrease when the Ravens put their next offer on the table. Smith probably can garner that type of salary from someone, but it likely won’t be Ozzie Newsome and Pat Moriarty.
In the event that Torrey does walk for more money no one should be mad. It’s the biggest contract he’ll ever sign and sets his family up for life. It’s tough to knock a guy for that.
From the Ravens perspective they don’t overpay anyone, they never have and never will. It’s a formula that’s worked and there’s no reason to stray from it. But if the two sides can’t find a common ground the Ravens will need to make bold moves in the draft or free agency to have continued success on offense.
Joe Flacco is a really good quarterback, there is no debating that. However, he needs weapons around him to be successful. In 2013 when the Ravens traded Anquan Boldin for a bag of marbles and Dennis Pitta went down in training camp with an injury that sidelined him for most of the season, the Ravens offense was left in shambles. Sure the patchwork offensive line and lack of a running game didn’t help, but aside from Torrey Smith the Ravens had no playmakers to keep a defense honest. When Torrey was double teamed and taken out of a game the offense sputtered.
In 2014 the Ravens knew they needed more weapons for Joe. Steve Smith was a welcomed addition and Owen Daniels played a key role when Pitta went down again. The offense thrived and finished 8th overall and had one of the most prolific offenses in team history under Gary Kubiak. Now with most of their impact playmakers on offense set to hit the free agent market the cupboard once again is looking fairly empty.
Fortunately for the Ravens they have a blueprint of what works and what doesn’t. In 2013 the Ravens counted on their franchise quarterback who could carry an offense with complementary pieces like Jacoby Jones, Dallas Clark and Marlon Brown. After finishing 8-8 and missing the playoffs they realized that formula wouldn’t work.
In 2014 the Ravens made it a priority to surround their high priced quarterback with better weapons. Joe Flacco had a career year in nearly every department. While the offense still hit some rough patches it was clicking on all cylinders by the time January arrived. Despite an early exit the offense scored 61 points in two playoff games.
If Torrey Smith does leave, the Ravens need to be careful not to revert back to their formula from 2013. While young players like Kamar Aiken, Marlon Brown and Michael Campanaro have shown promise they are complementary pieces at this point, and Joe has shown he needs more in his arsenal of weapons to be successful.
If the Ravens want to make it back to the Super Bowl in 2015 they need to upgrade their wide receiver corps, or at the very least keep the one they have intact. Anything short of that could result in the offense taking a step back after it just took a major step forward in 2014.
