Baltimore Ravens Might Keep UDFA Rookie Streak Alive in 2025

The Baltimore Ravens have had an extended streak of rookie undrafted free agents making the team, dating for years. 2025 is no exception, as there are multiple candidates on the offensive line, secondary, and at the front seven positions who could find their name on the active roster.

With two injuries at the cornerback position and some depth needed at linebacker, along with the interior offensive line, there is one more preseason game to determine a potential spot at the 53.

Secondary Shows Its Bite with Reuben Lowery

Look, we’ve all seen plenty of interceptions in our day, but when a relatively unknown UDFA like Reuben Lowery goes full Superman in the end zone, well, that’s when you sit up and pay attention.

The Ravens’ defensive back made Cowboys quarterback Joe Milton III look like he was throwing to the wrong team with a perfectly timed leap in the endzone.

Here’s the thing about the Ravens defense: they’ve got this annoying habit of making quarterbacks question their life choices. Lowery’s pick wasn’t just good timing; it was a masterclass in reading the quarterback’s eyes and positioning yourself where the ball wants to go, not where it’s supposed to go.

The defensive back’s vertical leap showcased the kind of opportunistic defense that makes Ravens fans grin like they just found twenty bucks in their old jeans. Milton probably thought he had a touchdown brewing, but Lowery had different ideas about how this particular story would end.

Jay Higgins, UDFA LB, Forced his 2nd Turnover

Jay Higgins forced another fumble, making it back-to-back games with a turnover, stripping Will Grier. Last week, both UDFA rookie linebackers, including Chandler Martin, were highly graded against the Colts in Preseason Week 1.

Pro Football Focus just dropped their top 10 rookies from Week 1 of the preseason, and wouldn’t you know it, the Ravens managed to sneak two undrafted free agents onto that list. Higgins grabbed the seventh spot while Martin landed in eighth. Not bad for guys who were probably updating their LinkedIn profiles just a few months ago, wondering if anyone would give them a shot.

Higgins put together the kind of stat line that makes you wonder how 32 teams managed to overlook him during the draft. Three tackles, two pass deflections, and an interception against Indianapolis. But here’s the kicker, PFF had him graded as a top-10 linebacker overall for Week 1. Not just among rookies. Overall.

The Iowa product spent five years in college, racking up an absolutely ridiculous 342 tackles, along with 3.5 sacks and five interceptions. Those aren’t typos, by the way. The man was essentially a one-person wrecking crew in the Big Ten, yet somehow every team decided they had better options.

Martin wasn’t about to let his teammate have all the fun. The Memphis transfer put together his own impressive showing with three tackles and a pass deflection, earning praise across the board from PFF’s grading system. They noted he posted 70.0-plus grades in every defensive metric, which is basically their way of saying he looked like he belonged on an NFL field from day one.

Over his final two seasons at Memphis, Martin accumulated 205 tackles and 10 sacks. Again, these aren’t exactly hidden statistics. This information was readily available to every scouting department in the league, yet here we are, watching the Ravens work their undrafted magic once again.

Hometown Corey Bullock Could Make Ravens’ 53

The “former” UDFA from last year from Maryland has a shot to make the roster as a backup center behind Tyler Linderbaum. Corey Bullock has been a standout in training camp and in the preseason so far.

John Harbaugh isn’t exactly known for throwing around compliments like confetti at a championship parade. When the Ravens head coach uses words like “dramatic improvement” to describe a second-year undrafted player, you better believe people are listening.

“I would say dramatic improvement and just works so hard all the time,” Harbaugh noted, probably trying to contain whatever excitement he was feeling about finding another diamond in the rough. “It’s showing up in how he’s playing. He’s playing both center and guard positions and has just done well. I see him blocking people. That’s usually a pretty good sign.”

Here’s where the Ravens organization’s track record becomes relevant. This isn’t some franchise that struggles to identify and develop talent; Baltimore has built a reputation on finding gems in unexpected places. Remember Patrick Mekari? Another undrafted offensive lineman who worked his way up from backup center to starting multiple positions before cashing in with Jacksonville this offseason.

The Ravens clearly see something similar brewing with Bullock. His versatility to play both center and guard makes him exactly the type of player that John Harbaugh and the coaching staff covet. In today’s NFL, where injuries happen faster than you can say “offensive line depth,” having a guy who can step in at multiple positions isn’t just valuable, it’s essential.