The Baltimore Ravens will be looking for their Geno Stone replacement at safety for 2024, and lucky for them, one prime candidate is Ar’Darius Washington. The 24-year-old entering his fourth season is slated to get more playing time, as he was mostly a backup and dealt with injuries since he signed as an undrafted free agent in 2021.
Washington has experience as a free safety and a nickel cornerback, as he would work well with star Kyle Hamilton at strong safety and veteran free safety Marcus Williams. This is only if the former UDFA rookie from TCU can seize the role over the other young players the Ravens drafted or signed as UDFA rookies this offseason.
With Baltimore rotating their safeties around, especially Hamilton in the box and covering the slot, this leaves room for a potential contributor in the secondary to step up this coming season.
The Ravens’ Defensive Back Will Be a Key Contributor
With a few young depth players, the Ravens are settled with those guys as of now to duke it out this offseason, including Ar’Darius Washington. At the minicamp press conference for Baltimore, Head Coach John Harbaugh spoke glowingly about the 24-year-old taking the next step this season.
“Ar’Darius has looked really good. I feel great about him and he’s already established himself. He’s played in the games – every game he’s played in – he’s played well. He’s looked great in practice, and let’s get him out there and get him in some more games. That’s the goal.”
Washington was behind Geno Stone when he was rotating with Hamilton and Williams, as he now will likely be Stone’s replacement. This offseason, the 25-year-old signed with the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency as their starter. The former Iowa safety was a seventh-rounder from the 2020 NFL Draft and spent time on the practice squad before emerging as a starter.
Training Camp Will Define His Role in Baltimore’s Secondary
The biggest hurdles for Ar’Darius Washington will be staying healthy with more playing time, and fending off other players looking for a roster spot. That includes seventh-rounder Sanoussi Kane from Purdue, UDFA rookie Beau Brade from Maryland, and UDFA rookie Jordan Toles from Morgan State.
This is only assuming a veteran safety isn’t added to the mix during training camp like Jamal Adams, who they met with. The former All-Pro is still available, along with notable players like Justin Simmons, Eddie Jackson, Quandre Diggs, Micah Hyde, and Tracy Walker.
In 2021, Washington suffered a season-ending foot injury and was mostly a practice squad reserve backup in 2022. In 2023, he had a chest injury and was put on Injured Reserve, playing a total of eight games in three seasons. Now with a chance to get more playing time, the former 2021 UDFA will have to seize the moment for the Baltimore Ravens as it will be a pivotal year for him.
Ar’Darius Washington Could Be an Undrafted Steal from 2021
The Baltimore Ravens are known for finding undrafted gems as rookies, and Ar’Darius Washington could be the next. Despite his lack of size and speed, Washington has the ball skills and instincts to be a draftable prospect but wasn’t, despite his five interception season in college back in 2019.
While injuries and lack of opportunity have derailed his NFL career so far, 2024 could be the year we see a breakout, similar to Stone as it took him two seasons to fully become a impactful player. Washington can be right in line with other late breakouts that stem from the Baltimore Ravens.
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