Ravens Set to Release Veteran DE Calais Campbell

The Ravens will release longtime defensive end, Calais Campbell, the team announced on Monday, ending his three-year stint with Baltimore.

Campbell joined the team after being traded from the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020 for a fifth-round pick, and since then, he has been a key piece of their defensive front. The 36-year-old has been in the NFL since the 2008 season when he was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals out of Miami.

Calais Campbell spent over a decade in Arizona before heading to Jacksonville. In his three seasons with the Ravens, he racked up 11 sacks, two forced fumbles, and a Pro Bowl appearance in the 2020 season. Over that period, he started 40 games, and as such, this will leave a hole for them to fill.

Just four weeks ago, Campbell announced that he would return for the 2023 NFL season. However, the Ravens had to make the move to save some cap room with Lamar Jackson’s franchise tag hitting the books soon enough. As such, Campbell will look find another home for the 2023 season.

Campbell might not be the star that he was once as a six-time Pro Bowler, but he should still have a strong market for his locker room presence and ability to help on the field in a rotational role. It will be his 16th NFL season since coming into the league in 2008.

Campbell, who will turn 37 this September, would have been under contract with the Ravens for 2023 but said after the end of the 2022 season that he wanted to take time to decide if he wanted to come back. Now, he will be on the move to find a new team as result of the move.

Campbell did not play in the rematch on New Year’s Day in Baltimore, which the Steelers won, 16-13. He missed four games with a knee injury, but returned for Baltimore’s final regular season game and playoff loss to Cincinnati.