What Ellerbe’s Tender Means For McClain

As expected, reports emerged yesterday evening that the Ravens offered tenders to cornerbacks Lardarius Webb and Cary Williams and linebacker Dannell Ellerbe before free agency officially opens at 4 p.m. today.



And, as expected, Webb reportedly got a first-round tender while Williams was assigned a second-round tender.

What was not expected – at least for ESPN’s Jamison Hensley – was that Ellerbe also received a second-round tender, which could mean the Ravens have doubts about their ability to re-sign fellow linebacker Jameel McClain.

“By giving such a high tender to Ellerbe, it says to me that the Ravens don’t expect to keep unrestricted free agent Jameel McClain,” wrote Hensley. “The second-round tender virtually guarantees that Ellerbe will return and will be given a shot at starting next to Ray Lewis. Ellerbe, though, has been one of the biggest underachievers on the team.”

Signing with the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2009, Ellerbe surprised many with his raw talent and immediately entered a tight competition with McClain for the starting role next to Lewis.

McClain edged Ellerbe out for the starting job, and then further solidified his role last season as Ellerbe struggled with a hamstring injury and concussion, missing a total of seven games.

Ellerbe’s stats dipped with less playing time, recording just 17 tackles, the lowest of his three-year career. But 11 of those tackles came when Ellerbe showed he still has potential to be a starter while filling in admirably for the injured Lewis during a three-game stretch.

Targets For Second Wave Of Free Agency

Unless Ben Grubbs surprises pundits and re-signs with the Ravens before the market opens today, yesterday’s reported tender offers might be the most significant free-agency news you hear coming out of Baltimore for a few days.

Teams with more salary-cap space will make headlines as they enter high-priced bidding wars over big names like Peyton Manning, Vincent Jackson, Randy Moss [who reportedly already signed] and Mario Williams.

In the meantime, General Manager Ozzie Newsome will wait and watch the market unfold.

“They’ll be one of the teams patiently sitting back, focused on re-signing a couple of their own unrestricted free agents and waiting for the market to calm down before they enter the bidding,” wrote the Sun’s Jeff Zrebiec. “When they do, they’ll be looking to fill a couple of specific needs and add to the core of a perennial playoff team.”

As such, analysts are shifting their speculation to players the Ravens could target in the second wave of free agency.

Here are a few names that emerged yesterday:

Center Jason Brown: After the Ravens drafted him in the fourth round of the 2005 draft, Brown was lured away from Baltimore four years later by the Rams when they made him the highest paid center in the game. But now, Brown is available again. “[Brown] was cut by the St. Louis Rams on Monday, and could be an intriguing alternative to Birk. He might be too expensive considering he left the Ravens for a $37.5 million contract that included $20 million in guaranteed money,” wrote the Carroll County Times’ Aaron Wilson. “The Rams cut him rather than pay him a $5 million base salary in 2012 as he carried a $7.2 million salary-cap figure.”

Receiver Pierre Garcon: The Ravens are looking for a No. 3 receiver to complement Anquan Boldin and Torrey Smith, but Head Coach John Harbaugh said at the combine that the team won’t pursue a high-priced receiver. Zrebiec sees Garcon as the right player for the right price. “I still think free agent and former Indianapolis Colt Pierre Garcon would be a good fit,” he wrote. “I just don’t see the Ravens ponying up the money for one of the top guys, like Vincent Jackson or Marques Colston. I’d be a little surprised if they went after an older receiver like Reggie Wayne particularly after the Lee Evans’ situation this past season.”

Receiver Eddie Royal: Once declaring Wayne a perfect fit for Baltimore, Hensley has backed off that idea after Harbaugh’s comments on high-priced receivers. A less expensive option could be in Denver. “The Broncos’ Eddie Royal would be a solid addition, because he would fill the role as the No. 3 wide receiver and punt returner (the team would probably like to reduce Lardarius Webb’s snaps on special teams),” wrote Hensley. “Royal’s receptions have dropped off heavily since his 91-catch rookie year in 2008, but that happened to be his final season with quarterback Jay Cutler.”

Guards Steve Hutchinson or Bobbie Williams: The futures of Grubbs, Matt Birk and Andre Gurode are still cloudy, making the Ravens’ interior offensive line a team need. Vikings Pro Bowl guard Steve Hutchinson or Bengals 12-year veteran guard Bobbie Williams could be brought in to help. “The Ravens are expected to bring back Birk and draft their center-in-waiting next month (Wisconsin’s Peter Konz is the favorite),” wrote Hensley. “But General Manager Ozzie Newsome likes to fill major needs before the draft. If Baltimore adds a guard, its track record suggests a veteran one like Steve Hutchinson or Bobbie Williams.”

Waiting For Potential ‘Predator’ Team

Webb is feeling both grateful and anxious after being assigned a first-round tender.

“I’m very very blessed to get a first round tender!” he tweeted last night. “I guess everything is up in the air now! #controlwhatican”

Webb will have to wait with the rest of us to see if another team will try to make a move for him.

CSNBaltimore.com’s John Eisenberg and PFT.com’s Mike Florio have both speculated that corner-needy teams could look to steal Webb from the Ravens by giving up a first-round draft pick and offering him a deal the Ravens won’t match. Both specifically named the New England Patriots as a potential “predator” team.

Some have their doubts about any team actually giving up so much to secure Webb.

“I’m not going to rule out the Patriots going after Webb, but I don’t think it’s going to happen,” wrote Hensley. “The Patriots have quickness at cornerback with Kyle Arrington and they have decent size if Ras-I Dowling can stay healthy. What New England needs is a veteran presence. Look for the Patriots to pursue someone like Marcus Trufant, who was recently released by the Seahawks, instead of Webb.”

Salary-Cap Update

As of yesterday morning, the Ravens were reportedly $14.4 million under the salary-cap limit of $120.6 million.

They added $1.6 million later when the NFL punished the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys for violating a directive about dumping cap costs during the uncapped year. Then, if reports prove true, the Ravens will have to subtract $6.6 million for the cost to tender Webb, Williams and Ellerbe.

Thus, the Ravens are now about $10 million under the cap, says Wilson, which could even go down more because of a series of minimum base salaries for exclusive-rights free agents.

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