Reactions to Ravens’ Initial 53-Man Roster

On Tuesday, the Ravens pared down their roster to the required 53 (mighty?) men. RSR staff react to the cuts and the keeps here.

We have made the following roster moves: pic.twitter.com/fPRj1pjASO

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 29, 2023

Kevin McNelis

A few names pop out to me as surprising cuts, but I suppose something has to give when you cut from the high 80s down to 53.

Chief among the names that surprised me to see cut were rookie Kyu Kelly and veteran QB Josh Johnson. Johnson was less surprising given the amended rule about adding a Practice Squad QB on a game day, so I expect that there may be some roster gymnastics. Kelly, on the other hand, surprised me in how much the front office hates sacrificing draft picks, especially in a year when they had so few drafted rookies. I’m not shocked to see Arthur Maulet earn the spot, but hopefully Kyu can sneak onto the Practice Squad and use this year to grow.

You’ve gotta feel good for the UDFAs cracking the roster in Malik Hamm and Keaton Mitchell. Hamm figures to get some time filling in as a SAM LB with Tyus Bowser still on the mend, and hopefully the hometown guy continues to impress. In my mind, Keaton Mitchell’s sky is the limit. Between his potential and some possible turnover in the RB room after this season, he may very well have worked himself into a long-term position in town, made all the more impressive by earning the spot over a veteran back in Melvin Gordon III.

Don’t fret about guys like Brent Urban and Daryl Worley, either. Once some guys hit IR, they should be back. EDC and Company definitely aren’t done yet.

Rob Shields

There was not a lot of unexpected drama with the Ravens roster today. With the team needing some cap space, some wondered if Pat Ricard or Devin Duvernay would be cut, but that was always unlikely.

A few vets were cut that are expected to re-sign and be put back on the 53 in a few days: Brent Urban, Josh Johnson and Kevon Seymour. They will be brought back once a few guys get put on the IR.

There is also always a chance a trade is made or the Ravens try to pick up someone that was cut. That is worth watching the next few days.

The biggest name on the cut list is probably 5th round pick Kyu Kelly. The Ravens do not usually cut draft picks and they value 5th rounders. Call this a big miss by them, especially in a draft where they didn’t have a lot of picks. This was viewed as a weak draft, so they probably just took a shot on someone who had some tools they liked, but once they saw him play, they clearly didn’t think there was much to work with.

The Ravens enter the regular season as healthy as they have been in a while (the Marlon Humphrey injury notwithstanding, and judging by his recent interview, it sounds like he could be back sooner than we thought) and with a roster as complete as we have seen in a decade.

Let’s get the season started and make C.J. Stroud wish he had stayed in Columbus.

Darin McCann

Looking at this “First 53,” a few things stood out.

• Looking at the receiver room, I have complete faith that the offense can run at pretty-close-to-efficiency with any of the top five receivers out on the field. And that sixth guy, Tylan Wallace, earned that spot this summer, and by carving out a place on special teams. It’s probably as confident as I’ve ever been with the entirety of the receiver position.

• If reports hold up, Laquon Treadwell could be signing on for a spot on the practice squad. It’s a good move by Treadwell, who has had a nice camp. He could definitely be “next man up” if a receiver goes down.

• Tyus Bowser will be out at least the first four games, and that probably makes the signing of Jadavean Clowney that much more important now.

• Del’Shawn Phillips is another player who earned his spot with his play all summer.

• He didn’t come out of nowhere, but Ar’Darius Washington locked up his spot on the field in practice and preseason games. He’s going to get a lot of snaps this season. He’s earned them.

• Keaton Mitchell and Malik Hamm have both had their supporters since joining the team, and both were rewarded with roster spots (though both are listed as injured).

• We didn’t see much of this defensive line in the preseason, but it’s been making its presence felt at camp. If they hold up in the regular season, those young edge rushers will get a lot of help in seeing one-on-ones.

Tanner George

There were certainly a few surprises found in the Ravens’ final roster decisions, and within them I found three key takeaways…

Monken’s system prioritizes speed at RB. Cutting Melvin Gordon, more of a north-south back, leaves room for UDFA Keaton Mitchell as RB4. Mitchell definitely impressed in training camp and preseason, and it quickly became clear that he’s a hard guy to tackle. Kudos to him as the undrafted streak lives on!

Wallace takes WR5. Long live the myth of James Proche—we too wish your practice highlights translated to Sunday afternoons. He truly had his worst summer as a Raven, culminating in that awful missed touchdown against the Commanders. Not to take away from Tylan Wallace, however, who used his standout preseason and back-shoulder catches to beat out Laquon Treadwell and hometown kid Dontay Demus Jr.

Thin defense gets thinner. Perhaps the most surprising cut of all was CB Kevon Seymour, whom many considered a roster shoo-in due to his outstanding preseason play. Many expect him to be back later this week, however. While DL Trey Botts and LB Kelle Sanders, who both showcased solid performance, were cut, I expect EDC to try to bring them back on the practice squad. DL Brent Urban should be back on the roster soon; his cut was likely nothing more than an “under the table” move.

All in all, this marks the end of a pretty solid offseason for the Ravens.

Jared Pinder

The 53–man roster is pretty much set at this point and there were some surprises for me. At quarterback, the only question was would the Ravens carry another QB with Tyler Huntley‘s health in question. At this point it looks like the Ravens are going to carry just Lamar Jackson and Huntley, but that is probably going to change soon with Josh Johnson or someone else making it three.

As for the running backs, the Ravens made the correct move in cutting Melvin Gordon for undrafted Rookie Keaton Mitchell. Apparently they might bring Gordon back on the practice squad but Mitchell needed to make the team so good on the Ravens for not letting their love of veterans get in the way of this one. The receivers weren’t surprising either but it meant the end of James Proche in Baltimore. He could also be a practice squad candidate, but the guy needs a change of scenery and more importantly an opportunity, something he can’t get here. Laquan Treadwell was also signed to the practice squad. The tight end room remains loaded, but it meant saying goodbye to Travis Vokolek. He might not be back due to his strong preseason and he will probably be a hot name on the Waiver wire. Shout out to my guy Charlie Kolar for making it.

When it comes to the offensive line, the only surprising move was seeing Sam Mustipher get cut in favor of Ben Cleveland. Cleveland did show good tape at right tackle, so I wonder if that is the move going forward. The Ravens will carry nine offensive linemen going into the season.

Let’s get into the defense. The OLB room’s biggest question was what was going to happen to Tyus Bowser, who has been practicing these last couple of days but looked headed for the PUP. Considering that another UDFA in Malik Hamm made the roster, it seems like Bowser won’t be ready to start the year. Another UDFA making it always awesome though. The defensive line did have a surprise cut in Brett Urban, but he likely has a handshake deal in place to return. Outside of him, no surprise cuts or guys who shouldn’t have made it. Inside linebacker saw the Ravens choose Del’Shawn Phillips over Kristian Welch. Outside of that decision, par for the course with Malik Harrison also making it. Kevon Seymour was released at CB, but again the vested vet option will allow him to make the roster another way. No move other than Seymour was surprising though, as the Ravens will rely on their young depth while Marlon Humphrey gets healthy.

Safeties saw no surprises with Ar’Darius Washington being the only player really on the bubble but with his great preseason, he will not be going anywhere. Love that for him, as I was a huge fan of his.

Chad Racine

The initial 53-man roster these days is merely a rough draft. Eric DeCosta has cleverly used the rules to maximize roster flexibility. The opening day roster will have a handful of changes and maybe a player from another team.

No major surprises here but maybe a couple minor ones. There’s always players we hate to see get cut and some of them may unfortunately get claimed from another team.

– Keaton Mitchell was one of the undrafted free agents I thought would make the team. The Ravens learned after losing Tyler Badie last year to the Broncos and he was a draft pick. I think the Ravens have also learned to go with the younger running back and chose to cut Melvin Gordon. I’m glad that trend is ending of keeping past-their-prime backs.

– Malik Hamm was one of two UDFA’s to make the roster. Hamm being a local product who grew up a Ravens fan makes you particularly happy for him. He’s played well in camp and in preseason. The team lacks depth behind Tyus Bowser at the SAM linebacker position. I didn’t expect him to make the roster but I’m glad he did.

-Kyu Kelly getting cut is surprising only because he’s a draft pick.  I think it’s clear he’s not quite ready for live NFL fire just yet. I hate to say I’m happy he didn’t make the cut because that sounds heartless and I understand life long dreams are at stake. However, he needs some time on the practice squad and these 53 spots are too valuable to keep him just because he’s a draft pick.

– Travis Vokolek was a player I selfishly wanted the team to keep for the future but the numbers game was against him. I think his blocking already looks better than Charlie Kolar’s has. Hopefully he doesn’t get claimed and makes it to the practice squad.

A few names I expect to see back in the next few days are Brent Urban, Sam Mustipher, Kevon Seymour and Daryl Worley.

Aidan Griesser

– There weren’t too many surprises for me on Tuesday. While I was fully expecting Keaton Mitchell to make the roster, I wasn’t sure if the same would be true for Malik Hamm. That said, the former Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year has a lot of potential that could grow quickly alongside the likes of Jadeveon Clowney, Justin Madubuike and company.

– I was surprised not to see Kevon Seymour, but do think he’ll be on the first bus back, along with Brent Urban at least. I thought Seymour had a strong case to make the roster in a depleted CB room, but maybe Baltimore will opt for waiver options like Bradley Roby, instead. Losing a draft pick in Kyu Kelly doesn’t help the situation, either.

– Although I had no doubt Baltimore would only keep two, not having a third QB means Josh Johnson is let go despite an extremely strong summer. I fully expect him back but feel for the guy, he put the backup QB role in question this year.

– The team is super strong in my eyes, but I still feel EDGE is a big question, especially after a lackluster set of preseason games from David Ojabo. Once the secondary gets some guys back, that looks to be the only real hole. If Ojabo doesn’t live up to his potential this year, though, where does the pass rush come from? Don’t be surprised if Baltimore engages Philly about Derek Barnett.