Tavon

Young

Based on a now-deleted tweet, Young seemed perplexed when he landed on injured reserve at final cuts, so it is not surprising he is leaving Chicago with an injury settlement. Still a solid option in the slot, he will likely land with another team in the near future.

Young missed most of camp due to what coach Matt Eberflus called a “lower leg injury.” Usually being placed on injured reserve at final cuts means you are out for the season, but it is possible Young is released with an injury settlement in the coming weeks.

Young was cut by Baltimore as a cap casualty earlier this offseason. He missed most of the 2020 season with a torn ACL and left multiple games with injuries last year, though he did make an appearance in all 17 contests. He started seven games for the Ravens, totaling one interception and five pass defenses. He also added two sacks to his stat line. At 5'9/185, Young can’t be trusted to cover outside receivers, but he is still a capable option in the slot, where he spent most of his time while in Baltimore. The deal is a solid signing from a rookie Chicago front office that has mostly kept quiet this offseason.

Young was inked to a three-year, $26 million extension in 2019. His release gives them $5.8 million in cap space while leaving behind a $3.3 million dead cap hit. Young played roughly half of the Ravens’ defensive snaps while operating as a slot corner last year. He logged three pass defenses and one interception. Young will draw some interest in free agency, but his best season came all the way back in 2018. He may look to rebound on a one-year deal before seeking a better offer next offseason.

The Ravens are entering the offseason without much cap space, though some of that could be alleviated via an extension for Lamar Jackson as he’s currently carrying a $23 million cap hit. Villanueva will turn 34 in September and was not the spot starter the Ravens hoped they were getting. Tavon Young (currently on a $9.18 million cap hit), Ben Powers, and Miles Boykin are other Ravens players that Zrbiec could see becoming cap casualties, trade targets, or restructure candidates.

The Ravens signed Young to a thee-year, $26 million extension in 2019, making him the highest paid slot corner at the time. With a $9.2 million cap hit in the final year of his contract, Young will likely need to take a pay cut to remain with the Ravens. Baltimore would save $5.9 million in cap space from Young’s release this offseason.

Young is the latest member of the Baltimore secondary to go down to injury. The Ravens have been forced to use practice squad players while defending against Aaron Rodgers.

Not good news for a player who missed most of 2020 with a torn ACL. Young has been far from a dynamo in the slot this season, but the Ravens’ struggling pass defense is hurting for depth in the secondary. Young will presumably undergo an MRI on Friday.

Nose tackle Brandon Williams and outside linebacker Justin Houston were among the notable names from Baltimore’s front seven that missed practice Wednesday. Safety DeShon Elliott and cornerback Tavon Young were also sidelined. That’s four defensive starters sidelined to start the week but at least a few of them should resume practicing by Friday. Luckily for Baltimore, even if they are missing some defensemen for Week 3, they should be able to cobble together a starting unit that can keep Jared Goff and the Lions in check.

QB Trace McSorley, CB Tavon Young and DB Khalil Dorsey have also been activated. Also dealing with an ankle issue, run-stopper Williams has not practiced since Nov. 15. If he’s active, he probably won’t see too many Week 12 snaps on Wednesday against the Steelers. Williams was averaging 35-40 before going down.