Ronald Darby has signed a one-year $3.2 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens. He signed with the team straight after a successful visit.
The signing comes in light of the foot injury that Marlon Humphrey sustained. Humphrey is set to undergo surgery and is projected to miss a month of action.
Darby enters a tough situation in Baltimore, with a lot of responsibility. The Super Bowl LII champion had a tough 2022 with the Denver Broncos. He played just five games due to a torn ACL injury that ruled him out for the year.
Prior to the Broncos, Darby spent time on the Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills. It was in 2017, with the Eagles, when the 29-year-old won his Super Bowl ring.
We have signed CB Ronald Darby to a one year deal‼️
Welcome to Baltimore, @realronalddarby ‼️ pic.twitter.com/iVh4R3G6jC
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 17, 2023
What Ronald Darby Offers Baltimore Ravens
Ronald Darby the Player
In 2022, through five games, Darby posted an impressive 71.1 PFF grade. He made 12 tackles, one forced fumble and allowed 10 catches (on 20 targets).
His strong season was short lived however, as he suffered a torn ACL that ruled him out for the rest of the year. His best season came in 2017 when he managed three picks enroute to a Super Bowl victory.
Over the last five seasons, Darby has allowed a passer rating of less than 90 in four of them. He has also allowed fewer than seven yards per target in three of those seasons. Since 2020, Darby has kept opposition quarterbacks to less than 55% accuracy when targeted.
Those numbers offer positive reading for Ravens fans. While Darby will not set the league alight, he is also not expected to. As a stopgap solution before Humphrey returns, Darby is more than adequate.
However, a big caveat to all of this is Darby’s health. Returning from an ACL injury is not easy. Can Darby return to his former self? The fact that Baltimore approved his signing after his visit suggests that Eric DeCosta feels comfortable with Darby’s recovery. However, it remains to be seen whether that faith is ill-placed or not.
Is Ronald Darby a Scheme Fit for Baltimore Ravens?
There are questions, however, of whether Darby is the perfect fit for Baltimore. His frame is marginally slighter than Humphrey’s, though not substantially. This has led to questions about whether Darby will be good as a true man coverage boundary corner.
It is also worth noting that the previous defensive systems that Darby has played in have not been as centered on man coverage. Other options, such as William Jackson III or Kyle Fuller, may have made more sense purely in terms of scheme fit.
However, given the strength of Baltimore’s defense, there is a good chance that Mike MacDonald will find ways of making Darby’s life easier. Baltimore have an abundance of defensive talent that MacDonald can shift around to take some pressure off Darby.
Where Darby’s arrival makes perfect sense is in his long-term value. After losing Marcus Peters this off-season, Baltimore have been desperately looking for a bonafide CB2. It appeared that Rock Ya-Sin had locked the position down, but he has been dealing with a mild injury bug of late.
Darby offers competition and upside to Baltimore’s CB2 battle. He has proved before that he can offer high end CB2 performances.
Furthermore, Darby potentially offers a solution in the slot. In 2022, the Ravens struggled against slot receivers due to a lack of an established slot corner until Kyle Hamilton stepped into the role. Hamilton was excellent but boxing him into just one position neglects his best trait: versatility.
When Humphrey and Ya-Sin return, Darby could be used exclusively as the slot corner. This would free up Hamilton to flex his versatility more, making Baltimore’s defense unpredictable. It is Darby’s long-term value as a good CB2 or slot that makes this signing a smart one.
The Baltimore Ravens Cornerback Depth Chart
With Humphrey out, Baltimore’s cornerback position became even thinner. Damarion Williams was already expected to miss time, as is new signing Ya-Sin. Arthur Maulet has also been dealing with some discomfort of late. Meanwhile, Trayvon Mullen’s toe injury means he is done for the year.
All that is to say that the starting cornerback trio for Week 1 remains up in the air. However, there is a good chance that Darby will need to lead a cornerback room consisting of Ar’Darius Washington, Jalyn Armour-Davis, Daryl Worley and Kevon Seymour.
Of those players, Darby is clearly the most accomplished. Should Humphrey and Ya-Sin both be unavailable for Week 1, Darby will need to fill in as the team’s primary boundary cornerback.
When Humphrey and Ya-Sin return, Darby will be the Ravens’ CB2/3 for 2023. However, he might be reduced primarily to slot duties, competing with Williams (when he returns).
Talk out of camp says that Armour-Davis has impressed. He has the frame and athleticism to be a better boundary corner than Darby. For this reason, Armour-Davis could be preferred to Darby as a perimeter defender by the middle of the season.
If Baltimore’s cornerback room fails to live up to expectations, do not rule out DeCosta doing some more work on the position. There remains a decent free agent pool and, by midseason, there will be some strong trade candidates. If Baltimore’s cornerbacks require reinforcement, more work can be done.
Darby with the pick, setting up the #Eagles score.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/aPzqzBAnyZ
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) December 17, 2017
Main Photo: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
