The Baltimore Ravens were able to make one of the best moves of 2021 free agency by signing outside linebacker Justin Houston to a one-year, $2.075 million deal. The 10-year veteran waited for the right opportunity to present itself, and now Houston is in a great situation with a team that is competing for a Super Bowl.
For Baltimore, the move was a no-brainer. Houston has 97.5 career sacks in his 10 NFL seasons, and with the team losing edge rushers Matthew Judon, Yannick Ngakoue and Jihad Ward during the offseason, Houston will help replace some of that production. However, the move was apparently also an easy decision for Houston himself.
On his “Football Morning in America” writeup, Peter King of NBC Sports recently shared a story of how Houston ended up with the Ravens, detailing some of the conversations between Baltimore general manager Eric DeCosta and Houston’s agent Joel Segal.
“Houston’s agent, Joel Segal, called DeCosta a couple of times after Houston’s time in Indianapolis ended last winter. DeCosta told Segal the Ravens just didn’t have the cap money to go after Houston. Make an offer, Segal said. I don’t want to insult a guy who will be a Hall of Fame candidate one day, DeCosta said. Meanwhile, cornerback Marcus Peters, one of Houston’s good friends, texted DeCosta in all-caps one day: JUSTIN HOUSTON. Finally, DeCosta told Segal he’d make an offer. One year, $2 million. DeCosta felt almost embarrassed, and for a player coming off a two-year, $18-million deal in Indy, the offer was a major comedown. Houston settled for a year and $2.075 million. He just wanted to play for the Ravens.”
King’s story has multiple takeaways. For one, DeCosta seemingly never felt like he could make the right offer for a player like Houston due to the fact that the veteran is a future Hall of Famer. That shows how much respect the Ravens’ general manager has for players who have earned it throughout their time in the NFL, and is a representation of who he is as a person.
Cornerback Marcus Peters was also big in bringing his former Kansas City Chiefs teammate to Baltimore, as is evidenced by his all-caps text to DeCosta. Once DeCosta finally put something on the table for Houston to consider, the two sides were able to get a deal done in the ballpark of the offer, which shows just how badly the edge rusher wanted to play with the Ravens.
Getting a player like Houston for the amount of money that he signed for is an absolute steal. However, the deal will also benefit the veteran, as he can play a big role for a defense that is expected to dominate in 2021.
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