{"id":766688,"date":"2026-02-21T11:42:30","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T11:42:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/766688\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T11:42:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T11:42:30","slug":"declining-ravens-veteran-is-as-good-as-gone-once-free-agency-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/766688\/","title":{"rendered":"Declining Ravens veteran is as good as gone once free agency begins"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Baltimore Ravens have a long list of players set to hit free agency this March<\/a>. That list is far longer than they\u2019d like it to be, as various impactful contributors and depth pieces need new contracts.<\/p>\n

With so many pending free agents to satisfy with new deals, many will ultimately go their separate ways and find a new home. For some, those will be agonizing departures, for others, though, they\u2019ll be more than welcomed to walk out the door.<\/p>\n

Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy is a player most Ravens fans will tell you should be on his way out in the coming months. At 34 years old, Van Noy had just two sacks in 2025, which is his lowest mark since 2016. With the team in desperate need of pass rush help, the front office should consider moving on and seeking out upgrades elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Ravens should be content with letting Kyle Van Noy leave in free agency<\/p>\n

Van Noy began his career in Charm City as one of those veterans who blossomed near the tail end of his career in Baltimore\u2019s system. He had his best years here. After coming over from the Los Angeles Chargers in 2023, he posted a career-high nine sacks for the league-leading defense in points allowed per game. He outdid himself in 2024, posting a new career-high with 12 sacks, placing fourth in the NFL, and earning his first Pro Bowl nod.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, it seems Van Noy\u2019s best days with the Ravens are over. That successful two-year stretch came to a crashing halt in 2025. Not only did he finish with just two sacks, but he also submitted a 61.7 overall grade and 51.8 pass rush grade<\/a>, per Pro Football Focus. It was a severely underwhelming season.<\/p>\n

Van Noy could be nearing retirement, but he\u2019s mentioned he still has a lot left in the tank<\/a>. Unless he comes back as a very cheap veteran, he probably won\u2019t have the chance to showcase what he has left in Charm City. A rebound would be awesome to see in 2026, but Baltimore needs to drastically improve their pass rush and not steer down the same path.<\/p>\n

The Ravens simply need to go in a different direction to provide more juice off the edge. They have 2025 second-round pick Mike Green ready to continue to blossom in year two, but he needs a more effective counterpart. Trade deadline acquisition Dre\u2019Mont Jones<\/a> could be a part of that, but Van Noy, on the other hand, there likely won\u2019t be space on the roster for him.<\/p>\n

After hiring Jesse Minter<\/a>, there\u2019s no doubt that reinforcing the defense will be a bigger priority. They\u2019ve taken a passive approach when it comes to adding to the edge rusher spot in the past, but with that philosophy wearing out completely in 2025, it\u2019s time to switch it up. That starts with parting ways with Kyle Van Noy and eyeing significant upgrades to pressure opposing quarterbacks. Whether it be via free agency, the trade market, or the 2026 NFL Draft, the Ravens need new faces in the building.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Baltimore Ravens have a long list of players set to hit free agency this March. That list…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":766689,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2052],"tags":[184,117,2282,7,6,169],"class_list":{"0":"post-766688","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-baltimore-ravens","8":"tag-baltimore","9":"tag-baltimore-ravens","10":"tag-baltimoreravens","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-nfl","13":"tag-ravens"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116108443482553389","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=766688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766688\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=766688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=766688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=766688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}