Ravens Facing Pressure To Extend Young DT

For the Baltimore Ravens and every other team in the NFL, deciding when to extend a player is almost as important as deciding whether or not to extend one at all.

Regardless of when a team decides to extend a player, there's always an inherent risk. If a team decides to extend a player ahead of schedule and bet on his potential, then the risk comes in that player not panning out and potentially being stuck with a bad contract. If a team decides to wait until a player has already cemented himself as a star, then an extension could be far more expensive than it would've been before.

This offseason, the Baltimore Ravens are facing that exact dilemma with defensive tackle Travis Jones.

Jones, a 2022 third-round pick out of UConn, has shown some serious potential in his three years, and at 6-foot-4 and 338 pounds, he's always an imposing presence in the trenches. However, he has just nine tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in his career. He may be someone who allows his teammates to thrive rather than stuff the stat sheet himself, but it's debatable whether or not that's worth a premium contract.

Despite that, The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec believes it'd be better to extend Jones sooner rather than later.

"Jones isn’t a priority in the same way as guys such as Tyler Linderbaum or Hamilton. However, he could be the perfect example of a 'year early rather than a year late' guy," Zrebiec wrote. "If he takes a big step in his fourth season, he’s going to cost so much more."

What complicates the situation further is the fact that Baltimore just signed fellow defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike to a four-year, $98 million extension last offseason. He and Jones may have different play styles, but would the Ravens really be comfortable spending premium money on two defensive tackles?

Ultimately, that's a question only they can answer.