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Baltimore’s emerging force could hold secret to an unstoppable 2025 run
Philadelphia Eagles v Baltimore Ravens G Fiume/GettyImages

The Baltimore Ravens unstoppable offensive attack in 2024 was historic. They lead the league in total offense with 7,224 yards, over 250 yards more than the second-place Detroit Lions. Baltimore was also the first team in NFL history to finish the season with over 4,000 yards passing and 3,000 yards rushing. 

The attack was led by two-time MVP Lamar Jackson and one of the league’s most feared running backs, Derrick Henry. Add in the mastermind behind it all, Todd Monken and the Ravens have a recipe for success to run it back in 2025. The secret for another dominant showing this upcoming season could be second-year pro Roger Rosengarten

Roger Rosengarten is the Ravens' next breakout star

Bo Smolka of PressBoxOnline highlighted the best-case scenarios for 2024 draft selections going into year two, and Rosengarten has the opportunity to become a crucial contributor to Baltimore’s offense in 2024. 

The Ravens drafted Rosengarten in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, hoping he’d be the Robin to Ronnie Stanley’s Batman. With Stanley signing a three-year extension with the Ravens this past offseason, the duo will be together for at least the next three years, and assuming Rosengarten takes a leap going into year two, they could prove to be one of the league’s best tackle pairings.

The former Washington Husky began his career in the worst way possible, getting bullied by Chris Jones leading to a strip sack on his first career play from scrimmage. It’s safe to say it took Rosengarten some time to get acclimated to the pace of the NFL, but the 2024 rookie eventually took Patrick Mekari’s spot at tackle in the team’s week four matchup and never looked back. 

After a disastrous start to his career, Rosengarten turned in an above-average season, especially for a rookie tackle dealing with some of the AFC North’s best pass rushers. His regular season culminated with a strong showing against Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns, and he took this momentum into the playoffs, where he helped neutralize TJ Watt in the Wild Card matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

The 22-year-old must improve his run blocking to reach a Pro Bowl or All-Pro level. Rosengarten earned a 66.9 overall grade per Pro Football Focus in 2024. His pass blocking was graded at a 70, but the run blocking was below average at 60.7, which was 70th out of 140 offensive tackles. 

In Baltimore’s rush-heavy offense, Rosengarten must become a mauler in the run game. He has shown strong ability in pass protection but still needs to learn to attack and dominate on run plays. If he can unlock his full potential in both facets of the offense, there’s a chance the Ravens can put up even better numbers in 2025. The future is bright for the young star.

More Balti


This article first appeared on Ebony Bird and was syndicated with permission.

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Raiders rookie WR showing he could be steal of 2025 draft
NFL

Raiders rookie WR showing he could be steal of 2025 draft

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Red Sox Aren't Getting Standout Back Anytime Soon
MLB

Red Sox Aren't Getting Standout Back Anytime Soon

The Boston Red Sox got some bad news in the infield. Rookie infielder Marcelo Mayer has gotten a lot of time at second base and third base. Since Alex Bregman returned, Mayer has gotten most of his action at second base while also filling in as the Red Sox worked Bregman back slowly. Unfortunately, he's on the Injured List, though, due to a wrist sprain. MassLive.com's Christopher Smith shared the lastest update on Mayer from Red Sox manager Alex Cora on Saturday noted that he's "not gonna play soon." "No new updates on Marcelo Mayer's wrist sprain, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said," Smith shared. "'Just waiting for results and see specialists and all that stuff,' Cora added. 'He's not gonna play soon. So have to make sure where we're at and what the course of action is going to be.'" Losing Mayer is tough. Defense has been a question mark for Boston once again this season but Mayer has helped in that area. With Mayer out, Ceddanne Rafaela is expected to get a lot of action at second base. That helps to alleviate the logjam in the outfield, but also removes arguably the best defensive center fielder in the game. Boston isn't at full strength and Cora noting he's "not gonna play soon" certainly doesn't sound positive. Before going down, Mayer was slashing .228/.272/.402 with four homers, 10 RBIs, and eight doubles. Will the Red Sox add another piece ahead of the trade deadline? It absolutely makes sense at this point.

Top moments from 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame inductions
MLB

Top moments from 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame inductions

The 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame class had its day in Cooperstown on Sunday. This year's class included Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner, who were elected by the eligible voters from the Baseball Writer's Association of America, and Dave Parker and Dick Allen, who were elected by the Classic Baseball Era Committee. Here are some of the top highlights from Sunday's induction speeches. Dave Parker's son reads poem written by Hall of Fame father Parker's induction into the Hall of Fame was long overdue, and he sadly did not have the opportunity to enjoy the moment of seeing his name in the Hall of Fame as he died June 28. That left his speech in the hands of his son, Dave Parker II, who read a poem written by his dad. Parker spent the majority of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates where he was an MVP winner, two-time batting champion and World Series champion with the 1979 "We Are Family" team. Dick Allen's wife remembers his kindness Allen was the other veterans committee inductee, and his widow, Willa Allen, spent the majority of her speech remember the kindness of Allen off the field as much as his ability on the field. Allen is going into the Hall of Fame as a Phillie but won the 1972 American League MVP with the Chicago White Sox. He led the league in OPS four times and was the 1964 National League Rookie of the Year. A reminder that Billy Wagner wasn't naturally left-handed Being left-handed is a huge advantage (and money-maker) for pitchers, and Wagner was one of the most dominant left-handed relief pitchers to ever step onto a mound in the big leagues. But he wasn't always left-handed. Wagner was a natural-born right-handed person but taught himself how to throw left-handed after fracturing his right arm twice as a kid. It led to quite a career. Wagner made a name for himself with the Houston Astros but also spent years with the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox. CC Sabathia takes playful dig at Ichiro Sabathia accomplished a ton in his 19-year big league career. He won 251 games, won the 2007 American League Cy Young Award, was the 2009 ALCS MVP and a World Series champion. He still has apparently not gotten over the one individual award he did not win — the 2001 American League Rookie of the Year Award, which went to fellow 2025 inductee Ichiro. Sabathia made sure to make a playful dig at that. Sabathia was the only American League rookie outside of Ichiro — who also won the American League MVP that year — to get a first-place vote. He received one. The others all went to Ichiro. Ichiro stole the show Ichiro stole 509 bases in his Hall of Fame career, and on Sunday, he added one more steal to his list of accomplishments by absolutely stealing the show at Cooperstown. He delivered two of the best lines of the day, first by calling out the one lone writer who did not vote for him, keeping him from being just the second unanimous Hall of Fame inductee ever (after Mariano Rivera). His best line of the day, however, might have been when he referenced his brief time as a member of the Miami Marlins toward the end of his career. Ichiro played 14 of his 19 seasons with the Seattle Mariners while also spending time with the Marlins and Yankees.

Insider provides notable update on where Commanders, Terry McLaurin stand on extension talks
NFL

Insider provides notable update on where Commanders, Terry McLaurin stand on extension talks

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