After a surprising release from the Kansas City Chiefs, wide receiver Jeremy Maclin is expected to join the Baltimore Ravens. According to NFL media insider Ian Rapoport, he will sign a two-year deal with the team. The Buffalo Bills were also in the running for his services, and running back LeSean McCoy was heavily involved in trying to recruit him to Buffalo.
Free agent WR Jeremy Maclin is expected to sign with the #Ravens to a 2-year deal, source, said. A late, big-ticket addition.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 12, 2017
Jeremy Maclin To Sign Two-Year Deal With Baltimore Ravens
Maclin was taken by the Philadelphia Eagles at 19th overall in the 2009 draft. He was a teammate of McCoy for six years and was part of the prolific offense in 2013 under Chip Kelly that took the NFL by storm but was not able to be sustained after that season. After the 2014 season, he left Philly and followed Andy Reid to his home state, signing with the Chiefs.
His best season was in 2014 under Kelly when he caught 85 passes for 1,318 yards and ten touchdowns. After signing a five-year, $55 million deal with the Chiefs he caught 87 balls for 1,088 yards and eight touchdowns as he was part of the Chiefs first playoff victory in over 20 years during the 2015 playoffs.
2016 was a bit of a step back for Maclin. He dealt with a groin injury that caused him to miss four regular season games. As a result, he finished with just 44 receptions, 536 receiving yards and two touchdown catches. All three totals were career lows.
While not having burning speed, the 29-year-old Maclin has great skills in route running in the short to intermediate and soft hands. His experience in the west coast offense should make him a valuable weapon for quarterback Joe Flacco. He joins a receiving corps that includes veteran Mike Wallace and third-year player Breshad Perriman.
The Ravens showed improvement last season, finishing 8-8 after a 5-11 campaign in 2015. But the franchise has missed the playoffs in three of the previous four seasons. In 2017, they will be looking for a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
