Wednesday, May 2, 2018 was a busy day for NFL teams because it was a day that several of the league's teams decided not to pick up options on some players. One of these player was Ravens wide receiver Breshad Perriman. Ryan Mink a beat writer for the Ravens wrote, "The Ravens have reportedly opted not to pick up Perriman's fifth-year option," per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. This isn't surprising considering he hasn't played much since being drafted, and when he has played, he hasn't been very good. Breshad Perriman was drafted 26th overall in 2015 by the Ravens and he's been hampered by injuries, dropped balls, and terrible production.
This past season he had 10 catches for 77 yards, not the production a team wants for a first round draft pick.
Multiple drops, including two that led to interceptions caused Perriman to be a gameday inactive in the final few games for the Ravens last season, despite the fact the Ravens were playing with depleted group of receivers to begin with. Another reason for Perriman's lack of production has been his injury history. He missed his 2015 rookie season due to a PCL knee injury. In 2016 he suffered from a partially torn ACL that kept him out of many of the team's offseason practices. 2017 saw his injury history grow larger, when he suffered a hamstring injury that sidelined him for the Ravens training camp.
General Manager Ozzie Newsome had this to say about Perriman, "What we found out that sometimes the development of the receiver can be retarded because they're just not on the field. Some of the success of the receivers we've had have all have all had durability, have all been able to be on the field. That way they can develop.
If they're spending a lot of time off the field - they can't develop." Newsome called this season a "make or break" year for Perriman. Newsome is absolutely right. The Ravens receiving core consists of three veterans, Michael Crabtree, John "Smokey" Brown and newly acquired Willie Snead IV. Also on the roster are receivers Chris Moore, Tim White, Quincy Adeboyejo and DeVier Posey, as well as 2018 fourth-round draft picks Jaleel Scott and fifth-round pick Jordan Lasley.
Ravens may release often injured wide receiver
The Ravens are going to use training camp and possibly the preseason to evaluate all its young talent, but with this evaluation comes cuts. Breshad Perriman could be one of these cuts, and he should be released. He was drafted to replace Torrey Smith who left for free agency in 2014. While Smith had his share of drops, he was instrumental in helping the Ravens win their second super bowl and was much more reliable than Perriman. In fact, Torrey Smith went on to win his second super bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017.
To show how bad Perriman has truly been look at his statistics. He has 43 receptions for 576 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Ravens running backs have more catches, yards, and touchdowns than Perriman.
Buck Allen, a running back, has been in the league since 2015 and was a fourth-round selection by the Ravens. He has more receiving yards (618) and receiving touchdowns (4) than Perriman does for his career. While some would say it would be wise for the Ravens to keep him for this season, his numbers and injury history show otherwise.
Other notable players that had their options declined
The following 2015 draft picks had their fifth-year options declined by their teams:
- New England Patriots Defensive Tackle Danny Shelton
- New England Patriots Defensive Tackle Malcolm Brown
- New England Patriots Wide Receiver Phillip Dorsett
- Chicago Bears Wide Receiver Kevin White
While there were many more draft picks from 2015 that had their options declined, it's interesting that Kevin White is on the list.
Kevin White, like Perriman was a failed experiment by a team looking to add a speedy receiver. Both White and Perriman have missed significant time, and really haven't done much when they've played. So with their options being declined it goes to show that general managers can be wrong when they scout a player, draft him, and have high hopes for how the player can help their respective team. The Breshad Perriman draft pick is a pick I'm sure Ozzie Newsome would like to have back. It shows that even a great general manager can make a draft mistake.
Hopefully, when the Ravens release Breshad Perriman, he realizes that due to his injuries and dropped passes, he will have to make the most of his next chance, if he gets one.
The Ravens may look to try to trade Perriman away instead of releasing him, but I don't think any team would want to trade for him. The Ravens best opportunity would be to release him, but the Ravens would be slated to endure a $9.4 million cap hit in 2019. Decisions need to be made. With Ozzie Newsome remaking the Ravens receiving core, Perriman is going to have to battle with all the receivers on the team, including himself, to have a chance to make the roster and to play. Plus with the Ravens adding two pass catching tight ends in this years draft, more pressure is being put on Perriman. This is truly going to be a "make or break year" for Breshad Perriman.
