The Jacksonville Jaguars have agreed to trade defensive end Calais Campbell to the Baltimore Ravens for a fifth-round pick in the upcoming draft.  Campbell is due to make $15 million with a cap figure of $17.5 million in the final year of the four-year, $60 million contract he signed in March 2017. The trade will become official when the new league year begins Wednesday. The Ravens will sign Campbell to a contract extension through the 2021 season once the trade is official. Campbell will go down as the best free-agent signing in Jaguars history; he signed for $30 million guaranteed. Campbell had 31.5 sacks in 48 games and made the Pro Bowl three times in three seasons with the Jaguars.

Calais Campbell also was a first-team All-Pro in 2017 and was the 2019 Walter Payton Man of the Year for his charitable works. Campbell spent the first nine years of his career with Arizona, which drafted him in the second round of the 2008 draft. Campbell has 88 sacks, 14 forced fumbles and 11 fumble recoveries in his 12-year career. The Ravens’ top priority in the offseason is upgrading the pass rush, and the addition of Campbell certainly helps that. The team also placed the franchise tag on pass rusher Matthew Judon on Friday. The Jaguars, who agreed to trade cornerback A.J. Bouye to Denver for a fourth-round pick earlier this month, now have 11 picks in the upcoming draft. The pick from the Ravens was acquired in a trade with the Vikings for backup kicker Kaare Vedvik, who lasted three weeks in Minnesota before getting cut.

 

My Thoughts

We already know that the Ravens offense is as dynamic as it gets. With the league focusing on 2019 NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, the defense will need to step it up. Calais Campbell will definitely help the defense out as they will be Super Bowl contenders again. This is great for the Ravens because Campbell will add more leadership for Baltimore also.