The Baltimore Ravens season may not have ended the way they wanted in 2019, but the team has a lot to look fondly upon when reviewing their decade.
As winners of four AFC North titles, including the last two back-to-back, and Super Bowl XLVII, Baltimore has been one of the model franchises in the NFL over the past 10 years. The Ravens have won the seventh most regular-season games and fourth-most playoff games over the decade while registering the third-best point differential. A number of impressive players have come through the Ravens’ facilities over the decade with a select few on their way to entering Canton.
This is the defense for the Baltimore Ravens All-Decade team of the 2010s.
Baltimore Ravens All-Decade Team 2010s: Defense
Defensive Tackle: Haloti Ngata (2006-2014)
When you think about the identity of the Ravens defense post-Super Bowl XXXV, there are a handful of players that come to mind. On the defensive line, the largest name is probably Ngata. Ngata was one of the best interior defenders from the time he was draft by Baltimore through the season in which he was traded to the Detroit Lions. He was so coveted by the Ravens coming out of college that they actually did something they typically never do come draft time. Traded up — and just one pick.
Ngata stepped onto the field in 2006 and made an immediate impact, being named to the NFL all-rookie team in his first season of action. He was then selected to five Pro Bowls (all from 2009-2014), was a two-time first-team All-Pro, three-time second-team All-Pro, and won the Super Bowl as a Raven in 2012, playing parts of nine years in Baltimore. As a Raven, Ngata ranks third all-time in quarterback hits, fifth in tackles for loss, and seventh in sacks. The ferocious play-style of Ngata was part of what made the Ravens defense so fearsome throughout the decade and will deservedly be inducted into the Ravens Ring of Honor next season.
Second-team: Michael Pierce
Defensive Tackle: Brandon Williams (2013-Present)
While Williams is not a player whose stats will jump off the page at you, he has quietly become one of the NFL’s best run stoppers. He was one of the reasons the Ravens were comfortable moving on from Ngata though he still had multiple years left in the NFL. After his rookie season in 2013, Williams was able to step up into his expanded role and has started 88 of the Ravens last 98 games. With the way Williams is able to stuff the run and take up space, it was only fitting that he made his first Pro Bowl last season in 2018. The Ravens defense has been able to be so strong for so long because of the consistency of players like Williams.
Second-team: Timmy Jernigan
Pass Rush: Elvis Dumervil (2013-2016)
Before 2019, the Ravens had not had a first-team All-Pro on defense since 2014. That All-Pro was Dumervil. A surprising feat considering the team has finished inside the top-five in total defense three of the last ten seasons. Though Dumervil only played 55 games as a Raven, Dumervil’s 2014 season was maybe the best pure pass-rushing season any Baltimore player had over the decade. He was the main factor in the Ravens finishing the year with the second-most sacks. His 17.0 sacks on the season set a new Ravens record and were the most any player had recorded in Baltimore since Terrell Suggs’ 14.0 in 2011 — when he took home NFL Defensive Player of the Year. The two-time Ravens Pro Bowler may not have been on the field as much as many of the players on this team but he made a big difference when he was.
Second-team: Paul Kruger
Outside Linebacker: Terrell Suggs (2003-2018)
Suggs is one of the five most iconic Ravens of all-time no matter how you slice it. It was unfortunate that he split off from the organization after the 2018 season, but his 16 years as a Raven are some of the best by any player throughout the 2000s.
The Ravens selected Suggs with the 10th-overall pick in 2003 and never looked back. Since entering the league, he has accomplished everything an outside linebacker can think of. Suggs has won Defensive Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, a Super Bowl in 2012, made seven Pro Bowls and has been named an All-Pro once on each the first and second-team. He also holds the Ravens records for career sacks and forced fumbles. Many numbers on Suggs’ long list of accomplishments are very impressive but perhaps the one that best demonstrates his dominance is how he is the all-time NFL leader in tackles for loss with 202. Though the stat has only been recorded since 1999, the next closest player, Julius Peppers, sits 27 TFLs back of Suggs.
Seeing Suggs exit the tunnel in his gladiator mask is one of the great images in Ravens’ history. If Suggs decides to hang up his cleats after playing in his second Super Bowl, it will only shorten the time until he is inevitably inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Second-team: Matthew Judon
Middle Linebacker: Ray Lewis (1996-2012)
Maybe the greatest linebacker of all-time only played three seasons in the 2010s, but any list would feel empty without Lewis. Most importantly, 2012 was the season Lewis collected his second Super Bowl ring. It was his final season in the NFL and he could not have gone out in a greater fashion.
From 2010-2012, Lewis made two Pro-Bowls, one second-team All-Pro, and finished sixth in tackles in 2010 — his only 16-game season of the three. His 139 combined tackles were the highest single-season total any Ravens had throughout the 2010s. While Lewis’ numbers took a sizeable hit the next two years due to injury, he was still the same motivator and integral to the Ravens appearing in back-to-back AFC Championship games in 2011 and 2012. Seeing Lewis exit the Ravens’ tunnel in the 2012 Wild Card round and his final home game is a moment that will stick in the minds of Ravens fans forever. It was the start of a magical run in which the Ravens and Lewis felt a team that was destined to win it all. He is also one of just two players to ever record 30.0 sacks and 30 interceptions.
Lewis is undoubtedly the all-time face of the Ravens and made an impact on the team until the day he retired.
Second-team: Daryl Smith
Middle Linebacker: C.J. Mosley (2014-2018)
Finding a replacement for Lewis post-2012 was never going to be easy, but bring in Mosley was as good a replacement as you could hope for. He was taken with the 17th-overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft and had one of the most impressive rookie seasons a middle linebacker has ever had. Mosley showed his versatility by registering 133 total tackles, eight pass defenses, three sacks, and 12 quarterback hits. The only player standing between Mosley and a Defensive Rookie of the Year award was Aaron Donald.
Over his five seasons as a Raven, Mosley was debatably the best overall player, on either of the ball, in multiple years. Only six players have registered more combined tackles than Mosley since he entered the league and Mosley missed 14 games in 2019. He was selected to four Pro Bowls and made second-team All-Pro each of the corresponding years, in four of his five seasons in Baltimore. However, in that short time, Mosley was still able to climb the board and finish fourth all-time in tackles as a Raven.
While Eric DeCosta wasn’t able to extend Mosley past 2018, maybe to his dismay, he was an elite player during his time as a Raven.
Second-team: Jameel McClain
Cornerback: Jimmy Smith (2011-Present)
When you look at the Ravens secondary in 2019, it’s easy to forget that for the majority of the decade, it was typically inconsistent. There were even years in which it was the weakest position group on the team. The only constant in the unit was usually Smith.
Smith was drafted in the first round of the 2011 draft and has been the Ravens number-one corner, almost every year since. Over the decade, he’s started the most games of any defensive player for the Ravens, even though he’s run into some injury problems along the way. Smith’s best season came in 2017, as he allowed a passer rating of just 49.2 and did not give up a touchdown in coverage. The relatively recent acquisitions of both Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters forced Smith to play a somewhat subdued role in 2019, but he has been great throughout the decade. The fact that he has never been selected to a Pro Bowl is mainly a result of him only playing two full seasons so far in his career.
While the middle of the decade was a rough time for the Ravens secondary, Smith was the lone bright spot. There were times when you would see Smith go down hurt and think the Ravens will automatically fold as a result. His importance to the team could not be understated and his proven consistency, now through age 31, will always be appreciated.
Second-team: Carey Williams
Cornerback: Marlon Humphrey (2017-Present)
While Smith may have been the stopper holding the Ravens secondary together post-Super Bowl XLVII, Humphrey has been the player that has brought it back to prominence. Humphrey was the first corner taken in the first round by the Ravens since Smith in 2011.
Since entering the league, Humphrey has played at an elite level. He had some growing pains as a rookie but firmly established himself as a top-10 corner in the NFL post-2017. With Smith missing four games in 2018, Humphrey was asked to expand his role. He filled in well and exceeded expectations. His cover-corner ability was on full display as his 22.5 percent forced incompletion rate ranked third in the NFL per Pro Football Focus. Then in 2019, he was selected to his first Pro Bowl and became the first Ravens defensive back – along wth Peters – since Ed Reed in 2010 to receive All-Pro status. Humphrey’s forced fumble and recovery against the Pittsburgh Steelers were telling of the way he carried the Ravens’ defense throughout the first five weeks of the season.
Humphrey is on pace to becoming maybe the greatest corner in Ravens’ history and has established himself as one of the best in the NFL over his tenure.
Second Team: Corey Graham
Safety: Ed Reed (2002-2012)
Reed, Like Lewis, is one of the all-time faces of the franchise. He may have only played three seasons in the past decade but he’s such an important figure that the list would be incomplete without him. In those three seasons, he was listed within the top-20 on the annual NFL Top-100 Players list each year and made three consecutive Pro Bowls. 2012 was also the year Reed collected his elusive first Super Bowl.
Reed is one of the top-five NFL safeties of all-time. He holds the NFL record for interception return yards, multi-interception games, and is third all-time in interceptions amongst safeties. The only two players – Charles Woodson and Rod Woodson – ahead of him played corner the majority of their careers. His ability as a leader was also integral to the Ravens’ sustained success. Though sometimes outshined by Lewis, Reed played with as much passion as will find from a player. Those kinds of leaders have been part of the reason the Ravens never missed the playoffs between 2008 and 2012. Reed left his stamp on the Ravens as the greatest defensive back in their history.
Second-team: Tony Jefferson
Safety: Eric Weddle (2016-2018)
Weddle may not have been a Raven for a large amount of time, but he played with a swagger that made him feel at right home. After playing nine seasons with the San Deigo Chargers, Weddle came over to the Ravens via free agency during the 2016 off-season. He made three consecutive Pro Bowls in each of his seasons in Baltimore and became one of the biggest faces of the team over that period. Weddle was an integral part of the secondary that led the NFL in interceptions (22) in 2017 while posting a team-high six picks on his own.
The loyalty of NFL players is always tested when they’re lured away from their last team, but Weddle earned huge points in the hearts of Ravens fans during his first season as a Los Angles Ram. “I could tell them a lot of stuff, but that’s just not who I am,” the safety said in reference to potentially sharing Ravens’ intel with Weddle’s new team. This came as a surprise to a lot of people in the pro sporting world but still showed the love in Weddle’s heart towards the Ravens. The now 35-year-old was a model-Raven and will hold a place in history because of it.
Second-team: Bernard Pollard
Defensive Back: Lardarius Webb (2009-2017)
A third-round pick in 2009, Webb played each of his nine NFL seasons in Baltimore. He was one of their most consistent defensive backs over the first half of the decade and though he never made a Pro Bowl, played at a high level in multiple seasons. Webb has recorded two of the top-five seasons in pass deflections (2011 and 2013) in Ravens history. He was injured for the Ravens Super Bowl run but would’ve largely been considered the best corner on the roster during that 2012 season. It is also important to remember his versatility as a punt/kick returner throughout his first three seasons.
As much as Weddle proved to be a loyal Raven over his three years in Baltimore, Webb is probably the picture of loyalty to the franchise. He was asked to take a pay cut to remain a Raven going into the 2015 season and came to a surprising comprise with the team — a rare sight in this era of the NFL. Webb may have not been an elite defensive back when looking back at his career, but his commitment to the team was paralleled by very few.
Second-team: Marcus Peters
