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Baltimore has been defined by its defenses, but a handful of
offensive stars stick out.
21
HOURS AGO (november 6, 2023)
The Baltimore Ravens for most of this century have been synonymous with
defense. In fact, a quick list of the top 10 players in Ravens history might
feature seven or eight players from the defensive side. But what if we
eliminated those dominant units from the conversation and focused strictly on
offense?
Digging
into the offensive history of the Ravens is a little bleak in comparison to the
other side of the ball. However, a handful of stars on offense stand out as a
cut above the rest. With respect to some Ravens greats like Jamal Lewis, Todd
Heap and others who didn't make the list, here are the top-five offensive
players in Ravens history:
5. QB Joe Flacco
Flacco earned his spot here with is remarkable 2012 playoff run
where the Ravens went 4-0 and the QB tossed 11 touchdowns with zero
interceptions en route to a Super Bowl win and a Super Bowl MVP honor. In 11
years with Baltimore, Flacco started all 163 games he played. He threw for
38,245 yards with 212 touchdowns and 136 interceptions. There haven't been many
great QBs in Ravens history, but Flacco is by far the best of them.
4. K Justin Tucker
Okay, technically Tucker is a special teams player, but for our
purposes he lands under the offensive umbrella. There are more arguments to be
made than not that Tucker is the best kicker of all-time, and that's good
enough to get a spot on a team's top-five offensive players list. He's the
Ravens' all-time leading scorer by a wide margin and by the time the
33-year-old is done he might set an untouchable scoring record. Tucker is also
the most accurate kicker in NFL history at 90.2 percent overall. He's also hit
a whopping 95.5 percent of his field goals inside of 50 yards.
3. QB Lamar Jackson
There's a strong chance Jackson winds up atop this list by the time his career is finished. Health will be a factor, but he's 52-18 in his first 70 starts and in six years he already has an MVP award, an All-Pro nod and a pair of trips to the Pro Bowl. He has 110 touchdowns and just 41 interceptions in his first 79 games, along with a pair of 1,000-yard rushing seasons and 29 rushing touchdowns. There aren't many dual-threat QBs better than Jackson in NFL history. In 2023 the Ravens' QB is off to a tremendous start that could put him in line to rapidly climb the franchise's all-time list over the next several years.
2. G Marshal Yanda
Mitchell Layton-USA TODAY Sports
It's hard to hit a bigger home run than the Ravens did when they selected Yanda in the third round of the 2007 draft out of Iowa. He went on to start 166 of the 177 games he played in Baltimore and dominated wherever he played on the offensive front. Yanda was an eight-time Pro Bowler, two-time First-Team All-Pro and a five-time Second-Team All-Pro who was also voted as a member of the Hall of Fame's All-Decade team for the 2010s. On top of all that, he was an integral piece of Baltimore's Super Bowl run in 2012 when he didn't miss an offensive snap in four playoff games.
1. LT Jonathan Ogden
Any lists of all-time great left tackles has to have Ogden at or
near the top. He was a dominant run blocker who spent his entire 12-year career
eliminating pass rushers from existence. The Pro Football Hall of Famer's
resume is immaculate with 11 Pro Bowls in 12 years, along with four First-Team
All-Pro and five Second-Team All-Pro nods. Ogden was as dominant as a left
tackle comes, and there aren't many teams where he wouldn't be the No. 1
offensive player in that franchise's history.
