Isaiah Likely Gets Honest About Future With Ravens

Through the first three seasons of his NFL career, Likely was steadily on the rise to stardom, showing promising, explosive flashes as a fourth-round rookie out of Coastal Carolina in 2022 and posting better numbers in each of the following years.

Heading into a 2025 season in which he and every other member of his position group on the team were set to play on the final year of their respective contract, he was poised to break out in an even bigger way and potentially even usurp Andrews as the new No. 1.

In typically Ravens fashion, they tried to get ahead of the curve with negotiations and reportedly offered Likely an extension before the season, but he wanted to play the year out and try to further bolster his rising stock.

A broken fifth metatarsal in his foot caused him to miss the first three games, and the absence of franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson upon his return delayed his reemergence further, resulting in him finishing with career low numbers across the board with 27 catches for 307 receiving yards and just one touchdown.

Despite the less-than-ideal start to his contract year, the prevailing thought was that the Ravens would still wind up picking Likely over Andrews when it was said and done, but it didn't prove to be the case.

What's next and will the Ravens regret letting him go?

In Baltimore, Likely was nearly the offense's equivalent to All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton in the sense that he excelled as a versatile chess piece that was deployed as tight end, wide receiver and lead blocker. Wherever Likely lands, he wants to continue to be utilized in a multitude of ways that highlight his versatility as a playmaker and contributor in other aspects of the game.

"That’s something I’ve developed and pride myself on, being able to be put anywhere on the field, whether it's in the slot, in line, out wide, in the backfield, anywhere, and just letting me, you know, help the team as much as possible,” Likely said. “I feel like that's just something I'll go and look for.”

There are plenty of teams with a need for a dynamic and explosive player at the tight end position, and would not only love landing one still entering his prime but have more than enough cap space to outbid the Ravens and most other teams for his services.

One such team that falls into that category is the one he grew up rooting for and just represented the AFC in the Super Bowl with the New England Patriots. They were Likely's favorite team growing up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and currently are slated to have the 11th most effective cap space when the new league begins in a few weeks at $36.4 million, according to overthecap.com.

Another couple of possible destinations could see him follow one of his coaches from his time in Baltimore, as former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken and head coach John Harbaugh were hired to lead the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants, respectively. He was asked about both possibilities and didn't slam the door on either as a viable option.

“I love Monk,” Likely said. “I feel like they got a really good tight end, the young tight end that they have over there in [Harold] Fannin, especially what he's done his rookie year. But, I mean, there's a lot of places. Baltimore, split up everywhere. We got Harbs out there in New York, Monk out there in Cleveland. So who knows?”