Were you shocked Ravens Nation when you heard yesterday that the Ravens traded fan favorite and beloved defensive tackle (DT) Haloti Ngata to the Detroit Lions?
While the move by the Ravens might have shocked and even upset some fans, it is a reminder that the NFL is a business.
The Ravens have a history of making sound business decisions which is why they have been so successful in their first 19 years with 10 post season appearances and 2 Super Bowl trophies.
Let me remind everyone that what makes the Ravens so successful is that they stick to their beliefs of ‘right player-right price’ and the ’80/20’ rules (80% of the production of an established veteran for 20% of the cost).
Both of these beliefs were practiced in the case of the negotiations with Ngata and the decisions that ultimately went into the price the Ravens set for a new contract.
The Ravens had the upper-hand in their negotiations with Ngata based upon the amount of depth at the DT position.
While Ngata was serving his suspension the last 4 games of the regular season, both Timmy Jernigan and Brandon Williams filled in very effectively and the Ravens continued to win games.
No, neither of these guys are a direct replacement for Ngata. But both of these guys alone can give the Ravens at least 80% of his production at 20% less of the cost of Ngata.
We have seen the Ravens apply the ‘80/20’ rule numerous times through the years when veteran players came up on their next contract.
Players such as Derrick Mason, Todd Heap, Adalius Thomas, and, another beloved Raven & future Hall of Famer, Ed Reed to name a few. They all left to play for other teams while many Ravens fans panicked wondering how the Ravens were going to manage.
In Ngata’s case, it was not that he was a free agent, but that with one year remaining on his contract, it was his contract that was a financial albatross that handcuffed the Ravens from making necessary moves to improve the team within the salary cap.
The Ravens tried last offseason and this offseason to restructure Ngata’s contract.
At the end of the day the two-sides could not reach an agreement on a new contract that was mutually beneficial.
At the ‘State of the Ravens’ press conference address (full transcript at the link at the bottom), when asked about whether the Ravens can gain enough room to get some difference makers, GM Ozzie Newsome said:
“I will begin by saying that we will exhaust every avenue that we have to use and to get as much cap flexibility as we can, so that I can, hopefully, have us set up to move toward the draft with the best football team that we can have.”
With less than $2 million dollars of salary cap room prior to trading Ngata, it was flexibility GM Ozzie Newsome was seeking.
For the second straight offseason the Ravens restructured the contract of Terrell Suggs to gain some cap relief. But even after their latest restructuring of his contract, the Ravens still needed more room.
While still negotiating the restructuring of the contract with cornerback Ladarius Webb, (we’ll see the outcome of these discussions in the coming weeks), the Ravens continued working to find ways to open up salary cap space.
When Ozzie stated he would ‘exhaust every avenue’ to gain cap space, making a trade was an avenue that presented itself.
Now the Ravens are known more for trading draft picks than players. It is rare for the Ravens to trade a position player.
However, leaving no stone unturned, Ozzie found a perfect trade partner since the Detroit Lions did not resign the NFL’s top DT Ndamkong Suh.
After the Lions let Suh test the waters of free agency (he has unofficially agreed to a deal with the Dolphins for $114 million), they needed a replacement at DT.
The contract Suh signed with the Dolphins set the market for Ngata’s agent and allowed him to set Ngata’s price. A price that Ozzie was not willing to pay.
The groundwork was laid in place for the two-sides to make a trade.
The Lions have now effectively replaced Suh with an older veteran DT at a cheaper price than it would have took to re-sign Suh and only gave up a set of 2015 draft picks (a 4th round and a 5th round).
The Lions needed a dominant DT like Ngata, who commands double-teams, since they face a slew of powerful RBs in the NFC North that include Eddie Lacy (GB), Matt Forte (Chi), and Adrian Peterson (Min) (assuming he remains with the Vikings).
The Ravens got much needed salary cap room and gained two draft picks that they can use to address some of the depth issues they have at certain positions (e.g. cornerback, safety, and tight-end).
This trade ladies and gentlemen can be classified as a WIN –WIN for both organizations.
We all can breathe a collective sigh of relief along with Ozzie that the Ravens have much needed salary cap room to make a few moves.
Ngata, no question, is an iconic Raven. The Ravens will one day honor him for his exceptional play over his 9 seasons.
He will be missed.
But the silver lining is that Ozzie Newsome can do a little ‘fishing’ for free agents now.
Who will he ‘reel in’?
