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It’s good news for Baltimore Ravens fans that Lamar Jackson doesn’t believe he’s peaked yet. And Jackson said this year’s roster is loaded. However, here is one surprising Ravens player who could make or break the team’s 2025 NFL season.
There’s little doubt that the Ravens will run the football with authority. So all that needs to happen for the team to vault itself into the NFL’s best team is for the receivers to provide threats week in and week out. That would make the Ravens’ offense almost unstoppable.
And the surprising player who could lift the receiver room is Rashod Bateman.
Ravens WR Rashod Bateman could be difference-maker
The Ravens have a good WR1 with Zay Flowers. He should continue to get better as he moves into year three in the NFL. They also have a good WR3 in DeAndre Hopkins, along with a pair of dynamic tight end threats in Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely.
But life in the NFL is tough. And Bateman has to be a standout WR2 if the Ravens are going to reach their goal of the Super Bowl.
Batment enters his fifth season. The Ravens grabbed him in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. However, Bateman hasn’t posted first-round statistics. Still, he proved to be much more effective in 2024, totaling career highs with 756 yards receiving and nine touchdown catches.
If he can up the receiving yards to 900-plus and still find the end zone consistently, the Ravens’ offense is going to hum like an engine.
The praise is already coming Bateman’s way, according to a post on X by Kevin Oestreicher.
Rashod Bateman earns HIGH praise from @RickRitterWJZ
“Rashod is as talented of a No. 2 WR in this league as you have anywhere else…DeVonta Smith, Tee Higgins, Davante Adams, Rashod is in that category”
And that’s exactly what the Ravens need from Bateman. If he provides elite WR2 play, defenses won’t know who to focus on. Do they worry about Henry pounding them? Jackson running circles around them? Flowers getting free all day? They can’t focus on Bateman, and that’s why he always needs to be ready for the killer blow to a defense.
Big money gives WR Rashod Bateman a comfort zone
The Ravens know the importance of Bateman. That’s why they gave him a three-year, $36.75 million extension this summer. Also, he received $20 million guaranteed.
Bateman said the contract matters, according to espn.com.
“I just know I can play ball, and it's like everybody knows that now, and I'm not here to prove that to nobody,” Bateman said. “I work for the Ravens; I work for Lamar Jackson, technically. If these guys are pleased with what I'm doing and my work ethic and all of that, then I feel like, as a team, that's important to me. So I've done that. And I'm definitely looking to continue to build off of that for sure.
“It's kind of how this league works. You get paid if you're doing the right things on and off the field, and it's a respect thing. It's showing that the organization believes in me. It's showing that I believe in them. So hopefully this thing keeps on trucking in that direction.”
Bateman said he knows his job is tough.
“I just think, for me, it hits different when it's a receiver here,” Bateman said. “We all know the perspective here. And we've been through a lot. We go through a lot.
“We continue to go through a lot when it comes to facing backlash here and there. Or wherever it may be. But it definitely, I'll just say it means a lot to be able to start something new here, something fresh when it comes to the receiving room.”
Rashod Bateman has statistics in his corner
Bateman’s 16.8 yards per catch last season ranked No. 3 in the NFL behind Alec Pierce of the Colts and Jameson Williams of the Lions.
This year, Bateman said he wants to lead the Ravens to the promised land. He said it will take being good at the details, according to nytimes.com.
“As cliché as it sounds, coaches always tell us from a young age that it’s all about the little things,” Bateman said. “I think we’ve proven that we can play with anybody. We have some of the best players. I just think in the important times, in those clutch moments, all of us have to lock in and do everything right.
“(Last year) there were a lot of missing variables for us as a team. For us, (as) an offense, we didn’t (perform) to the best of our abilities, and it cost us at an important time. We know that. We know that we have to be better in certain areas, and that’s been our focus. The coaches are demanding perfection out of us, and we’re demanding perfection out of each other. I think we’re heading in the right direction with that.”
