Ravens place franchise tag on standout defensive tackle Justin Madubuike

With free agency set to begin next week, the Ravens are making sure Pro Bowl defensive tackle Justin Madubuike isn’t going anywhere. 

A few hours prior to Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline, Baltimore announced it was placing the non-exclusive franchise tag on Madubuike, which would pay him $22.102 million for the 2024 season. The tag all but guarantees another team won’t try to sign the talented 26-year-old since the Ravens would have the right to match any offer sheet and would receive two first-round picks from the competing team if they elected not to match. Some offseason projections had Madubuike fetching a free-agent deal approaching $100 million on the open market. 

“We were unable to agree on a contract extension with Justin before the deadline and will use the franchise tag,” general manager Eric DeCosta said in a statement released by the team. “Justin is a great player and person, and we will continue to negotiate a long-term deal with him.”

DeCosta will now have until July 15 to strike a deal to avoid Madubuike being required to play on the tag for the 2024 season, which would be more prohibitive to the salary cap. According to OverTheCap.com, the Ravens had roughly $12.5 million in cap space prior to Tuesday’s tag decision, meaning DeCosta will need to create additional space just to be compliant for the start of the new league year on March 13.  

A 2020 third-round pick out of Texas A&M, Madubuike is coming off a career year that included 56 tackles and 13 sacks, the most registered by a Ravens defender since Terrell Suggs collected 11 in 2017. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound defensive lineman also led Baltimore with 33 quarterback hits while Pro Football Focus credited him with 77 pressures, second on the team behind only edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney (78). That production more than doubled Madubuike’s previous career highs in sacks (5 1/2), quarterback hits (nine), and pressures (32) set in 2022. 

In addition to setting a franchise record by registering a full sack in six consecutive games in 2023, Madubuike’s 11 straight games with at least a half-sack tied for the longest single-season streak in NFL history. His 13 sacks not only led all NFL interior defensive linemen, but the total tied Trevor Pryce (2006) for the fifth most in a season in Ravens history. Pro Football Focus graded Madubuike 17th overall and 12th in pass-rush grade among qualified interior defenders last season. 

Not only does Madubuike provide premium pass-rush ability from an interior spot, but the Ravens wanted to make sure they didn’t lose him with three others finishing in their top five for sacks in 2023 — Clowney (9 1/2), Kyle Van Noy (nine), and Patrick Queen (3 1/2) — set to become unrestricted free agents next week. Baltimore’s top-ranked scoring defense led the NFL with 60 sacks last year. 

This marks the second straight offseason that the Ravens have used the franchise tag after placing it on two-time NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson last March. Of course, DeCosta eventually struck a five-year, $260 million agreement with Jackson that avoided him playing on the tag and concluded a two-plus-year negotiating saga. 

“We’re trying to get a deal done. We’ve had discussions with Justin,” DeCosta said at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis last week. “He’s a guy that obviously has put himself in a fortuitous position this year by the way that he played. He had a great season for us. He’s a valued player on the team, and we’re hopeful that we can get a long-term deal done.” 

Madubuike is the ninth player in Ravens history to receive the franchise tag, a list that also includes Matthew Judon (2020), Justin Tucker (2016), Ray Rice (2012), Haloti Ngata (2011), Suggs (2008-09), Chris McAlister (2003-04), and Wally Williams (1998). All but Judon and Williams eventually signed a long-term contract to remain with the organization. Ngata was the only other defensive tackle to be tagged by Baltimore and ultimately signed a five-year, $61 million deal early in the 2011 regular season.