Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely offered thoughts on free agency, which are very telling about where he may end up.
The Baltimore Ravens are entering an important offseason, and one that may see some favorite players have to join new teams. One of those players is tight end Isaiah Likely.
While Likely and Lamar Jackson have developed some huge chemistry, Likely did not have the breakout year he was supposed to have due to an injury. Now, he has opened up on free agency, and his comments on it are very telling.
The issue with being able to afford a new contract for Likely means the Ravens have to give Jackson his extension, along with center Tyler Linderbaum. Those are two players that of the utmost importance, so Likely could be the odd man out.
Likely joined Jon Gruden on "Gruden Goes Long" to discuss the upcoming free agency, and the tight end was honest about the business of the NFL.
When Gruden brought up Jackson, Linderbaum, Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, and Mark Andrews, his simple question was whether or not the team can afford Likely.
Likely laughed off the question, but also offered some honest thoughts on the question of a new contract.
"I love Baltimore, because they took a chance on me when 31 teams didn't ... at the end of the day, business is business," Likely said.
Likely is simply being honest, and many players understand that the NFL is a business. Players get traded, cut, and released likely more often than they expect to be, but a lot have also clued into that and do not harbor hurt feelings on being moved.
Likely also revealed the next team he may or may not go to needs to be a place where he can blossom.
"I just wanna be able to blossom. I feel like the last couple years I've had a great vet in Mark Andrews. He's taught me everything to be a star-caliber tight end to the point where it's like now, I feel like I just wanna be on a team where I can get out there and help a quarterback put up as much points as possible," Likely said.
It sounds as though Likely might believe that he will get a better chance on a new team, and it ties into his comments on the possibility of getting a contract with Baltimore.
Gruden brought up a point earlier in the talk about the Ravens having a stacked tight end room with Andrews, Likely, Patrick Ricard (who is sort of like a tight end), and Charlie Kolar.
Likely may be on the outs when everything is said and done. He remains a young and ascendant player and would be a huge pickup for most teams needing a stalwart tight end.
The Ravens might also not allow him to walk, as they are known for keeping the players they draft. However, bigger contracts looming may lead general manager Eric DeCosta to make some very tough choices ahead of free agency.