Baltimore almost landed a different receiver
On the day of new Ravens wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.’s introductory press conference, it was revealed that Baltimore had previously come close to completing a trade for a different veteran at the position. According to The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec, the Ravens and Denver Broncos were close to a deal that would send wide receiver Courtland Sutton to Baltimore, but the Broncos decided to back out.
“Desperate for a quality veteran receiver, the Ravens explored trade and free-agent possibilities,” Zrebiec wrote. “At one point, there appeared to be a deal to be made for Courtland Sutton, but the Denver Broncos decided they didn’t want to trade him.”
At 27 years old, Sutton is several years younger than the 30-year-old Beckham. However, Sutton has only topped 1,000 receiving yards once in a season when he caught 72 passes for 1,112 yards in 2019. Through five seasons in the NFL, Sutton has 239 receptions for 3,487 yards and 14 touchdowns in 65 games played compared to Beckham’s 531 receptions for 7,367 and 56 touchdowns in 96 games played over 9 years in the league.
No matter which player would have netted better results for the upcoming season, it is abundantly clear that general manager Eric DeCosta is trying his best to rebuild a weak wide receiver corps for the Ravens this offseason. Baltimore also signed veteran wide receiver Nelson Agholor earlier in March to go with 2021 first-round pick Rashod Bateman, Devin Duvernay, James Proche and Tylan Wallace. The Ravens also have the opportunity to further supplement the group via the upcoming draft with one of their current five picks, including No. 22 overall.