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Ravens announce deals for long snapper Cox, defensive tackle Bilukidi

Luke Jones

The Ravens announced a pair of re-signings on Tuesday, coming to terms with long snapper Morgan Cox and defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi. General manager Ozzie Newsome reportedly struck a deal with Bilukidi a couple weeks ago, but the signing had yet to be announced. The defensive tackle had been scheduled to become a restricted free agent. Cox has served as the Baltimore long snapper for the last five seasons, but the second anterior cruciate ligament tear of his career limited him to just seven games in 2014. It was unclear whether the Ravens would re-sign the unrestricted free agent after tendering a contract to exclusive-rights free agent Patrick Scales. Because the 28-year-old suffered the season-ending knee injury in Week 7 of last season and has already been rehabbing for several months, he will likely be ready for training camp, but the presence of Scales does provide insurance as well as competition while Cox works his way back to 100 percent.

Former Ravens safety Stewart finds home in Denver

Luke Jones

The Ravens’ free-agent exodus continued Friday with safety Darian Stewart becoming the latest to depart by signing a two-year contract with the Denver Broncos. Stewart started 14 of 16 games last season after signing a one-year, $1.3 million contract with Baltimore last season. The 26-year-old was drawn to the Ravens because of his relationship with former secondary coach Steve Spagnuolo, who worked with Stewart when he was the head coach of the St. Louis Rams. Stewart collected 53 tackles, an interception, a forced fumble, and three pass breakups during the regular season and secured an interception and a key pass breakup in the wild-card win over Pittsburgh. He joins defensive tackle Haloti Ngata (Detroit), wide receiver Torrey Smith (San Francisco), linebacker Pernell McPhee (Chicago), tight end Owen Daniels (Denver), and quarterback Tyrod Taylor (Buffalo) as Ravens players to depart this past week. Though considered one of the more reliable in a group of safeties that saw playing time in 2014, Stewart’s loss isn’t considered a major one with the Ravens needing to improve at the position next to starter Will Hill. The problem will be finding that upgrade as this year’s draft class is not impressive beyond Alabama safety Landon

Ravens reportedly re-sign cornerback Levine to two-year deal

Luke Jones

After electing not to tender restricted free agent Anthony Levine ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, the Ravens have reportedly re-signed the cornerback and special-teams standout. The sides received an agreement on a two-year deal, according to The Sun. After serving strictly in a special-teams capacity in his first two seasons with the Ravens, Levine was thrown into the secondary mix after a plethora of injuries at the cornerback position last season. The 27-year-old appeared in all 16 games including three starts and finished the season as Baltimore’s No. 3 cornerback behind Lardarius Webb and Rashaan Melvin. He collected 29 tackles and four pass breakups while also finishing third on the team with six special-teams tackles. The deal is reportedly worth $2.4 million, which includes a $400,000 signing bonus and incentives, which averages out to a lower annual salary than the lowest tender of $1.542 million for restricted free agents. This continues the Ravens’ pattern of awarding more affordable two-year deals to certain restricted free agents such as defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi, linebacker Albert McClellan, and long snapper Morgan Cox in recent years. Baltimore gave a second-round tender ($2.356 million) to restricted free agent kicker Justin Tucker and the low tender to

McPhee reportedly set to sign $40 million contract with Chicago

Luke Jones

Of all the Ravens’ free agents scheduled to officially hit the market on Tuesday, linebacker Pernell McPhee was always considered the least likely to return. It appears McPhee has found a new home with the Chicago Bears by agreeing to a five-year, $40 million contract that includes roughly $16 million guaranteed, according to multiple reports. The deal won’t become official until after the start of the new league year on Tuesday afternoon. Despite playing in less than half of the Ravens’ defensive snaps in 2014 while backing up outside linebackers Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil, McPhee emerged as one of the most efficient pass rushers in the NFL by finishing with 7.5 sacks in 540 snaps. The 26-year-old earned the highest grade of any Baltimore defensive player in 2014 from Pro Football Focus and received the website’s second-highest grade of any 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL behind Kansas City’s Justin Houston. With the Ravens dealing with salary cap woes and having a number of other positions to address, McPhee was considered a luxury the organization would not be able to afford. The 2011 fifth-round pick is just the latest in a long list of young defensive players in Baltimore

Jarret Johnson to sign one-day contract to retire with Ravens

Luke Jones

After announcing his retirement from the NFL last week, Jarret Johnson is coming home to officially finish his career where it started. The former Ravens linebacker will sign a one-day contract to retire with the organization that selected him in the fourth round of the 2003 draft. The 33-year-old Johnson spent nine years in Baltimore and was one of the most respected players in franchise history for his toughness and durability as he played in 129 consecutive games to conclude his Ravens career — once a franchise record — before departing to sign with the San Diego Chargers in 2012. Johnson’s departure from the Ravens was amicable but difficult as he saw his former team go on to win Super Bowl XLVII while he spent his first season in San Diego. Though not as flashy on the field as former teammates such as Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, the University of Alabama product earned the respect of Ravens fans for his blue-collar approach while becoming a permanent starter in 2007. He finished his run in Baltimore with 382 tackles, 20 sacks, three interceptions, and nine forced fumbles in nine seasons in addition to setting a franchise record for consecutive games

Ravens pass on using franchise tag for 2015 season

Luke Jones

As expected, the Ravens elected not to use the franchise tag on any player for the 2015 season. Limited salary-cap space and the lack of an ideal candidate made it a foregone conclusion that the Ravens would not use the franchise or transition tag on any player before Monday’s 4 p.m. deadline. This marks the third consecutive offseason in which the Ravens have not used the designation with former running back Ray Rice being the last Baltimore player to be tagged in 2012. The five NFL players to be designated as his team’s franchise player were Denver wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, Kansas City linebacker Justin Houston, Dallas wide receiver Dez Bryant, New England kicker Stephen Gostkowski, and New York Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul. Miami tight end Charles Clay was given the transition tag, which is cheaper than the franchise tag but only gives the Dolphins the right to match any offer sheet to which Clay might be signed by another team and does not award them two first-round picks like the non-exclusive franchise tag does. A look ahead to next offseason provides a pair of intriguing franchise tag candidates in cornerback Jimmy Smith and kicker Justin Tucker. For a

Ravens cut cornerback Victor Hampton after DWI arrest

Luke Jones

(Updated: 12:55 p.m. on Monday) The Ravens announced Monday that they’ve cut cornerback Victor Hampton after he was arrested Saturday in Charlotte, N.C. and charged with driving while impaired. Signed to a reserve-future deal in January, the 22-year-old was charged with driving while impaired, speeding, reckless driving to endanger, and violating an open container law. He was released after posting $2,500 bound, according to the Mecklenburg County sheriff’s office website. According to WSOC-TV in Charlotte, Hampton’s car was stopped after being clocked at 100 miles per hour in a 55-miles-per-hour zone. His blood-alcohol level was 0.10, higher than the legal limit of 0.08 in the state of North Carolina. Two passengers in Hampton’s car were also cited for carrying concealed firearms. Hampton was not selected out of the University of South Carolina in the 2014 draft and spent time with the Cincinnati Bengals in the preseason and on the New York Giants’ practice squad last fall. After seeing five players arrested last offseason, the Ravens have pledged to hold their players to a higher standard, which made Hampton’s fate all but sealed after the news broke on Sunday. He was unlikely to compete for more than a spot on the

Ravens reportedly re-sign defensive tackle Bilukidi

Luke Jones

On the same day veteran defensive end Chris Canty was released, the Ravens reportedly re-signed defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi to a two-year contract. According to The Sun, Baltimore will retain the restricted free agent, who appeared in four games for the Ravens after being claimed off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals in September. Bilukidi finished the season on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury in mid-October. The 25-year-old was originally a sixth-round pick by the Oakland Raiders in the 2012 draft. At 6-foot-5 and 320 pounds, the Georgia State product played in 13 games in 2012 and appeared in seven contests in 2013 while splitting time between the Raiders and the Bengals. Bilukidi has collected 16 tackles, one sack, and one pass breakup in 24 career games in four NFL seasons.

Seven takeaways from "State of the Ravens" press conference

Luke Jones

The Ravens’ brass met with reporters Tuesday to review the 2014 season and look ahead at the offseason priorities for 2015. Below are seven takeaways from what was discussed: 1. The Ravens made it clear they’re more than willing to walk away from wide receiver Torrey Smith. You got the sense from general manager Ozzie Newsome and owner Steve Bisciotti that the organization is not willing to break the bank for the 2011 second-round pick as the latter even mentioned how much the Miami Dolphins regretted paying speedy receiver Mike Wallace a couple years ago. You wonder if the Ravens were trying to show Smith some “tough love” negotiating tactics as he’s a couple weeks away from hitting the open market but has repeatedly expressed his desire to stay in Baltimore. 2. Running back Justin Forsett might be a higher priority than we thought. Forsett will be 30 next season and many have wondered how much of his success was a product of an improved offensive line, but Newsome mentioning what kind of mentor the running back has been in his career was interesting with questions about how he’d be valued on the open market. The Ravens will look to

Forsett's son arrives during Valentine's Day storm

Luke Jones

An unforgettable year became a little crazier for Ravens running back Justin Forsett over the weekend as his wife gave birth to their second son. Planning to see a Lauryn Hill concert to celebrate Valentine’s Day, Forsett instead had to drive his wife to the hospital to give birth to their son, Zion. It wasn’t until Sunday, however, that we found out how close the 29-year-old Pro Bowl selection came to possibly needing to deliver the baby in the car. On Instagram, Forsett explained the timing of his wife going into labor and how it coincided with Saturday’s snowfall. “S/O to my wife @michellekole it took her 4hrs from start to finish to deliver our son Zion,” Forsett wrote. “I thought I was going to have to deliver the baby myself in the car on the way to the Birthing Center it happened so fast last night. Driving in that snow storm definitely added a different element to the experience as well but it all worked out. Best Valentines Day Gift ever! So Glad to have Zion J. Forsett home!” Forsett is set to become a free agent next month, but he and his family continue to spend this offseason

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