Bengals expected to steal Ravens' breakout defender

The Bengals have made their first move of the NFL free agency "tampering" period as they are expected to steal a breakout defender from their AFC North division rival Ravens.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Cincinnati has agreed to terms on a two-year, $15M deal with safety Geno Stone, a seventh-round pick by Baltimore in 2020.

Stone is coming off a breakout year where he had the second-most interceptions (seven) in the league along with a career-high 68 tackles and nine passes defensed.

Losing Stone is a tough loss for the Ravens. In fact, general manager Eric DeCosta recently said that he believes Stone is "the best seventh-round pick in Ravens history."

However, it seemed unlikely they were going to be able to retain him with $180K over the salary cap, per Over The Cap.

As for the Bengals, they add Stone to an already young and talented secondary, which includes CB Cam Taylor-Britt and safeties Dax Hill and Jordan Battle.

Where Stone fits into the mix is to be determined, but Cincinnati is certainly paying him like a starter, which means Hill or Battle's snap count will likely decrease in 2024. However, having too many talented players is always a good problem to have.

As for Baltimore, it still has safeties Kyle Hamilton and Marcus Williams holding down the back end of its defense. Depth is a concern, but the team will be able to add cheaper options in the latter part of free agency as well as the 2024 NFL Draft.

Stone having the opportunity to stay in the AFC North and face his former team at least twice a year was likely a factor in his decision, but there doesn't seem to be any bad blood.

"Baltimore, Thank you for the past four years," Stone posted on platform X shortly after the news broke.