The Baltimore Ravens made tight end Benjamin Watson their first addition in free agency, another move that the team hopes help solve its ongoing and nagging problem at that position.
No team has spent more at the tight end position than the Ravens, and it has nothing to do with their decision-maker being a Hall of Fame player at that spot. Injuries and suspensions have forced Baltimore and general manager Ozzie Newsome to allocate 9.5 percent of its cap to tight ends.
At the start of free agency, seven tight ends have combined for a cap figure of $14.534 million, which is $2.5 million more than any other NFL team, according to the ESPN Roster Management System. This is what happens when a team must address the same position for the fourth straight offseason.
In 2013, the Ravens gave $16 million guaranteed to Dennis Pitta, thinking he was going to be a top-five tight end for an extended period. Then, fourth months later, Pitta suffers his first of two fractured hips, which now put his future in doubt.
In 2014, Baltimore used a third-round pick on Crockett Gillmore to bolster the position due to Pitta's health. Last season, Gillmore was limited to 10 games because of calf, shoulder and back injuries and underwent surgeries on both shoulders this offseason, which puts his availability this season in question.
In 2015, the Ravens selected the first tight end in the draft (Maxx Williams) in the second round and Nick Boyle in the fifth round. Boyle has since been suspended twice for using performance-enhancing drugs, which led to him being banned for the first 10 games of 2016.
That led coach John Harbaugh to say tight end is once again "a priority," and the Ravens' actions this week backed that up.
Watson became the first free agent from another team to reach an agreement with the Ravens in the four-year history of the negotiating period. He struck a two-year deal with a maximum value of $8 million that includes $3 million guaranteed.
The bigger surprise was that the Ravens put a low tender on tight end Chase Ford. That means Baltimore will pay $1.671 million to a player who was signed off the Vikings practice squad last season and spent 13 days with the Ravens before going on injured reserve. The Ravens chose not to tender wide receiver Marlon Brown and leading special teams tackler Brynden Trawick but did so with Ford, which is an indication of the team's level of concern at tight end.
The Ravens are expected to reduce the cap number for their tight ends. Baltimore will likely release Pitta with a June 1 designation, which will create $5 million in cap space this year.
But once the season begins, it's not about the money or cap space devoted to tight ends. The Ravens need Watson, Williams and whoever else can contribute to make this a position of strength.
