5 post-draft veteran free agent safety options Ravens could target

There are plenty of potential Geno Stone replacements available on an oversaturated open market.

The Baltimore Ravens addressed just about all of their most glaring needs in the 2024 NFL Draft with some great value picks in the early and middle rounds. While they took a safety with their ninth and final selection in the seventh round, former Purdue standout Sanoussi Kane is more in a strong safety mold who projects best as a dime linebacker and core special teams contributor at the next level.

Reinforcing the depth chart with with someone who could backup seven-year veteran Marcus Williams at free safety and replace Geno Stone who defected to the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency. Multiple safety packages were vital to the success of the Ravens’ top-ranked defense last season and led to Stone finishing as the AFC’s interceptions leader with seven so finding a comparable replacement remains the Ravens’ biggest post-draft need.

Some may argue offensive guard is their top remaining need, but there are at least several promising recently drafted players who will be competing to fill one of the two spots that opened this offseason. However, the same can’t be said about the safety spot where they are set at the two starting spots with Williams and 2023 First-Team All-Pro Kyle Hamilton but lack proven playmaking depth with range behind them at the moment although they signed a pair of intriguing undrafted rookies in Beau Brade out of Maryland and Jordan Toles out Morgan State.

Nevertheless, the Ravens could benefit from and will likely add an experienced veteran presence at safety between now and the start of training camp or even just before or a little after the start of the regular season. They took a similar approach to the outside linebacker position in 2023 and just like last year when there were plenty of quality edge defenders available after the draft, the veteran safety market is the oversaturated market ripe for the picking this time around.

Here are five post-draft veteran free-agent safety options who can fill the void left by Stone and won’t impact the compensatory pick formula as they are projected to receive the maximum allotment of four in 2025.

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Tashaun Gipson Sr.

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The 12-year veteran most recently played for the San Francisco 49ers where he spent the last two years starting 36 of a possible 37 games including the playoffs which featured back-to-back trips to the NFC championship. From 2022-23, he recorded six interceptions, 11 pass breakups, 1.5 sacks, over 120 tackles including four for a loss, two quarterback hits and an overall Pro Football Focus grade of 73.6.

While Gipson is a former Pro Bowler who has been a full-time starter everywhere he has been during his stints with five different teams, he is slated to turn 34 years old before the start of next season and being the third safety for the Ravens is akin to being a starter given how often they deploy multiple safety packages. He wouldn’t have to worry about having to play 100 percent of snaps which could prolong his career even further while still allowing him to showcase his ball-hawking skills as another deep roamer to backup and play alongside Williams.

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Eddie Jackson

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The seven-year veteran has spent his entire career up to this point with the Chicago Bears after being selected in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft out of Alabama. He made a pair of Pro Bowls and was voted First Team All-Pro once in his first three seasons in the league and has maintained his status as being one of the better ball hawks in the league with 15 interceptions and 44 pass breakups in 100 career games. In 2023, he recorded 37 total tackles, five pass breakups, an interception and an overall PFF grade of 58.6 in 12 games.

Even though Jackson has been a career starter throughout his career like Gipson, he is not as long in the tooth at just 30 years old and not set to turn 31 until December. However, he could be allured into accepting the same lesser yet still essentially starting role pitch. In an offseason that has not been kind to experienced players at his position of all ages and proven pedigree, signing a one-year deal to play a significant role in a defensive unit for a top contender could be just the rejuvenating boost his career needs at this stage and he could parlay it into one last decent contract next March.

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Marcus Maye

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The seven-year veteran most recently played for the New Orleans Saints where he spent the last two years starting 16 of a possible 34 games. A three-game suspension and a hamstring injury caused him to miss four games in the first half of the season and a shoulder injury landed him on injured reserve, causing him to miss the remanding of the season from Week 13 on. However, when he has been on the field, Maye has been a diverse and disruptive playmaking presence in the backend who can play both safety spots. In 2023, he recorded 37 total tackles including three for a loss, a sack, two pass breakups, two interceptions and an overall PFF grade of 57.6 in just seven games.

Maye hasn’t played a full season since 2020 and just turned 31 in March. Even though he has also been a career starter every year since entering the league as a second-round pick of the New York Jets in 2017, he could be just as motivated as Jackson and Gipson to accept a lesser yet still prominent role on a contending team for one year before hitting the market again next offseason.

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Tracy Walker III

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The six-year veteran has spent his entire career up to this point with the Detroit Lions after being selected in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Louisiana-Lafayette. He has played both safety spots during his career, showing good range, open-field tackling and ball skills. While he only has three career interceptions with the last one coming in 2021, he does have 23 career pass breakups and has notched a sack and at least one quarterback hit in four straight seasons, showing he can be an effective blitzer. In 2023, he recorded 59 total tackles including one for a loss, a career-high three quarterback hits, a sack, a forced fumble, a pair of pass breakups and an overall PFF grade of 62.8.

Unlike the aforementioned seasoned safeties in this article, Walker is accustomed to being a part-time or spot starter, and like Stone the past two years when Williams has missed time, he has proven himself more than capable of contributing and even making plays. Having just turned 29 earlier this year, he is the youngest player on this list and could probably be had for half or even less than half of his previous average annual salary of $8.33 million stemming from a deal he signed in 2022 before being released in February as a salary cap casualty.

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Rudy Ford

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The seven-year veteran most recently played for the Green Bay Packers where he spent the past two seasons appearing in 30 of a possible 36 games and making 15 starts. Ford recorded five of his six career interceptions with the Packers the past two years and two of them came in back-to-back weeks this past season. A hamstring injury caused him to miss the regular season finale and both of Green Bay’s playoff games on injured reserve but he was able to finish with career highs in total tackles (71) and pass breakups (six) and an overall PFF grade of 69.9.

Ford’s time spent in Title Town would be similar to that of which he’d spend in Charm City, serving as a quality backup and rotational piece who possesses some impressive playmaking ability when it comes to finding and breaking on the ball when it’s in the air. Of all the players mentioned in this article, the 29-year-old former sixth-round pick of the Arizona Cardinals in 2017 out of Auburn might be the most affordable, realistic and ideal replacement for Stone. He is no stranger to both playing and thriving in a limited or part-time role, has a strong special teams background and could likely be had for a little above the veteran minimum given all the notable names and more accomplished players at his position who are still available.