Justin Madubuike, a Pro Bowl defensive tackle heading into his prime, agreed to a record-breaking four-year, reportedly $98 million contract on Friday night.
Five lessons about Madubuike and the agreement can be found here:
The Ravens acquired a unique skill.
Considering his pass rush output, Madubuike is already in elite company at just 26 years old. He shot to rarefied air with his 13 sacks from the previous season, the most of any defensive tackle in the league.
According to TruMedia, Madubuike’s 21.5 sacks over his first four seasons in the NFL rank as the seventh most by an interior defensive lineman this century.
Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald amassed an incredible 39 sacks in his first four seasons in the NFL, but he never finished a season with more than 11. With 20.5 sacks in his fifth year, Donald went off.
Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs has amassed even more sacks in the last four seasons after recording 33 in his first four. He has never even come close to matching Madubuike’s record of 33 quarterback hits from the previous season.
The Ravens are placing their bets on Madubuike’s future potential.
If Madubuike had had a second consecutive excellent season, the Ravens could have kept him on the franchise tag and looked again at a long-term contract the following year.
Rather, they have faith in Madubuike’s future. Over the last three seasons, he has increased his sack productivity by a minimum of double, and even more. During that time, his pressure rate increased from 5.1% to 6.5% to 13.1%, according to Next Gen Stats. Every year, he even became more explosive off the line of scrimmage.
The Ravens are optimistic that Madubuike’s trajectory will stay upward, with the hope that it will soar to the same heights as Donald and Jones. The arrow is clearly pointing in that direction.
At all three levels, the Ravens defense is secure for the long run.
This offseason, Baltimore’s defense will lose a few free agents, but Madubuike on the defensive line, Roquan Smith at linebacker, and Kyle Hamilton at safety will all still be Pro Bowl mainstays.
Baltimore’s defense is strong in the middle and will remain so for a considerable amount of time. If the Ravens choose to exercise Hamilton’s fifth-year option, all three of those players will remain under contract through the 2027 campaign.
The signing of Madubuike frees up almost $10 million in salary cap room.
The Ravens would have spent $22.1 million this season against the salary cap if Madubuike had been used as a franchise player.
Three days before the start of free agency, the Ravens freed an estimated $10 million in cap space by agreeing to a long-term pact. The complete terms of the deal were revealed by Pro Football Talk.
The Ravens aren’t compelled to make as many moves as they would otherwise have to in order to free up salary cap space, but they still have to make some.
Now that it has more options, Baltimore can decide how active it wants to be in terms of bringing back more of its own free agents or upgrading at running back or offensive line.
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