Should the Ravens consider bringing back Terrell Suggs?

The Baltimore Ravens ranked near or at the top of nearly every statistical category on defense in terms of turnovers, passing yards, and total yards allowed as well as points allowed heading into their Week Three matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football.

However, after getting carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey by reigning Superbowl MVP and generational quarterback talent Patrick Mahomes to the tune of 385 yards and four touchdowns to zero interceptions passing and another 26 yards and a touchdown rushing, their previously impressive averages will likely be going up which is bad when it comes to defensive rankings.

While Defensive Coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale’s unit was able to keep their consecutive game streak with a turnover forced and recovered alive, they were blanked in one crucial statistical category and failed miserably at another.

Despite throwing all sorts of different blitzes and pressure packages at Mahomes all night, Kansas City’s frizzy-haired gunslinger was not brought down for a sack once in the entire game.

To add insult to injury, he made Baltimore’s defense pay dearly almost every time they sent an extra defender his way instead of leaving as many in coverage as possible or tried to overload one side of the line hoping they’d get to him before he got the ball off.

Several Ravens defenders actually came dangerously close to corralling him for a sack and some even had him in their grasps and dead to rights at times but Mahomes managed to wiggle loose to either throw the ball away or complete it for a first down or worse.

As bad as not being able to get home with any pressure was for Baltimore’s defense, their performance on third down was even worse. The Chiefs converted a staggering 10 of their 13 third downs in this game.

“You win third down, you usually win the game,” defensive end Calais Campbell said after the game. “It seemed like every third down, they found a way to make a play. In the big moments, that mattered.”

Campbell was spot on with his assertion. It did not matter the distance, the side of the field, the personnel, or perceived pressure he was facing in those situations, Mahomes just found a way to extend drives, burn up the clock, score points, keep Jackson on the sideline, and exhaust the Ravens defenders at every level.

“We tried a few different things,” Campbell said. “He has great pocket presence, sees things. He’s a great quarterback. We had opportunities, but when we did, we didn’t get there.”

Raven Head Coach John Harbaugh bluntly said after the game in his post-game presser that the Chiefs were the better team and played the better game from both an execution and overall performance standpoint and his assertion was right. He and his staff got outcoached and his players got outplayed. It’s as simple as that.

Since these two teams are likely to meet again in the postseason with a trip to the Superbowl on the line, it would behoove the Ravens to have a much better game plan and or personnel packages to help better defend Mahomes and the Chiefs’ high-powered aerial attack.

An avenue they could explore to help themselves for an eventual rematch would be reinforcing their defensive roster at a position that is key at helping not only generate pressure but also getting off the field on third down and other crucial conversion situations.

One such position would be at outside linebacker where the Ravens have just four players on the active roster listed as and defensive end Jihad Ward lines up on the edge at times as well. A particular player currently on the veteran free-agent market that can still get after the quarterback, setting the edge and keep outside contain against the run that the Ravens should target is not Clay Matthews, Camron Wake, or another notable name that doesn’t have any ties to the organization.

A reunion with 18-year pro and franchise legend Terrell Suggs could help the effort towards rectifying those two problem areas for the team before they have to see Mahomes and the Chiefs for a second time this season.

Suggs is not only the Ravens all-time leader in sacks who can still bring the heat off the edge in his advanced age but he is one of the best edge setters in the league as well when it comes to defending the run, keeping outside contain and recognizing and defending running backs and tight ends in the flat.

There were multiple occasions on Monday night where the Ravens’ defensive front didn’t get home with their rush or overloaded to one side and Mahomes took off the weakside to pick up a first down on a scramble. He also recognized and anticipated several blitzes presnap and hit his running backs leaking wide open in the flat to move the chains and up chunks of yardage.

I’m not implying that the addition of Suggs would be an instant and magical solution to fixing both issues because he’s just one player and it takes all 11 on defense to stop or at least limit a potent offense as the Chiefs have. However, he would be another welcomed veteran presence in the locker room in addition to some extra help and insurance at outside linebacker.

The future first-ballot Hall of Famer departed in free agency last offseason to play in his home state with the Arizona Cardinals for most of the 2019 regular season. He was waived in December, claimed off waivers by the Chiefs days later and was a part of their run to the Superbowl.

He won his second title with Kansas City last year and his first with the Ravens in 2012. It’s still yet to be determined if Suggs even still desires to continue his playing career or is biding his time to catch on with a contender late in the regular season for a playoff push.

Suggs has not formally submitted his official retirement papers or tipped his cap to a pending announcement since hoisting the Lombardi Trophy with the Chiefs during their championship parade back in February. Picking him up now or later down the stretch of the year in time for the playoffs would still be a solid asset for the Ravens even if he isn’t still the T-Sizzle of old.

Who knows, maybe he’s a good luck charm for a title-contending team that is poised to win the ultimate prize and could use a little extra help, leadership, and championship pedigree. The Ravens only have six players remaining on their current roster from their 2012 team that went all the way (Tucker, Cox, Koch, McPhee, Smith, and Levine) and two other veteran players that have won or at least played in a Superbowl with another team (Campbell and Wolfe).

Bringing in a player that has done both twice would only help a team’s chances and add more of that unteachable experience to the mix. Especially if that player is familiar with the system, culture and is beloved by the organization and fan base in the way that Suggs still is. He recorded 6.5 sacks and four forced fumbles last season in his time with the two teams (5.5 sacks and all four forced fumbles came with Arizona and one sack came with Kansas City).

The ability to generate pressure and get sacks by rushing no more than four is critical for beating a team like the Chiefs against a quarterback like Mahomes. Whether it is now or later, the Ravens could use all the pass rush help they can get for a reasonable price if and when a rematch with the defending champions were to occur.