“He’s always played well, ” The Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said about safety Ar’Darius Washington, which proves the youngster’s determination and toughness. Washington’s life has been a roller coaster ride, of defeats, grit, and, above all, proof of his value. For Washington, getting to the NFL was no pink carpet. He had never been drafted by any team in his TCU career and was lost on the planet of football. “Not being drafted, it kind of just sent me into a dark place,” Washington candidly admitted. “I was kind of down for about two months or so, but then, when I got here, all I wanted to do was prove myself.” But he made his way onto the Ravens’ roster against all the odds and slowly made his way to the starting spot.

But let’s backtrack a bit. The Ravens’ linebackers in 2024 were a puzzle without any pieces. Tackle Morgan Moses? Gone. Defensive backs Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson? Thanks for the nostalgia but they marched free-agent. Baltimore had to rebuild the unit that was supposed to keep Lamar Jackson safe and that was the rest of it, a patchwork puzzle that started slowly and somehow ended in masterworks by the playoffs.

Key Star trashed

But it has not been all rainbows and roses for Washington. He was fined the first infraction of his career during the Wild Card Round against the Pittsburgh Steelers — $5,472 for unnecessary roughness. It was a fumbling play late in the third quarter, 5:14 left in the game. Steelers running back Najee Harris was getting into the defense on a quick 3-yard run when Washington hit wide receiver Ben Skowronek. His helmet during the tackle earned him the yellow and then the fine.

A comparison is that fines like this are 1.89% of all NFL play and, as you can see, these penalties are extremely rare. This isn’t something Washington will write on his wall, but it is a moment that makes Washington’s narrative that much better.

But the fine is nothing but a blip in an otherwise fantastic 2024 season. Washington has been an anomaly, The evidence for his influence is in the numbers. The Ravens have been a defensive monster since Week 11 of the 2024 season when Washington was a deflection machine. Baltimore has surrendered the league’s least points (16.3) and yards (267) per contest. … It is like the opposing quarterbacks would have better off playing blindfolded with the NFL-low passer rating they have been able to generate against the Ravens. Starting 10 of 17 games and sitting out the entire season with stats as if he’s in a defensive paradise: 42 solo tackles, 19 assisted tackles, 1 sack, 8 passes defended, 2 interceptions for 33 yards return, 1 forced fumble. It’s a play a front office can’t help but salivate over and when Washington faces limited free agency, the Ravens will be happy to keep him in purple and black. 

Washington’s ascent is the Ravens’ story — hard-nosed, relentless, underrated until proven otherwise. The story of Ar’Darius Washington reminds us, as Baltimore heads into their Divisional Round matchup with the Buffalo Bills, that where you start is not where you finish in football. “I just wanted to play ball and prove myself,” Washington said. “Now I’m here.”

And “here” is just where the Ravens—and Ar’Darius Washington—appear to want to be.

Keeping Lamar safe

The Baltimore Ravens are not averse to the hard knocks, but this season the tough stuff wasn’t just on the football field. First, there were the penalties — yes, those which make your wallet drool. Then, the offseason roster shakeups. Oh, and there’s that Wild Card stuff. It’s been a ride and, as is typical for a Raven’s story, they had all of us on our toes.

Patrick Mekari, the Swiss Army knife of the family, came in very handy. Need a tackle? He’s your guy. Guard? He’s got that too. Then there’s Andrew Vorhees, a 2023 seventh-round selection who was out for his rookie season rehabbing a torn ACL. Call it a return because, by the time he went to the field, he was a star at guard. And who could forget Daniel Faalele, the 6-foot-8, 380-pound monster who moved inside to fill out the front? Add in rookie tackle Roger Rosengarten, who went undrafted in the second round, and you’ve got a group as weird as it was good.

None of this happened, of course, without stern meetings at the front desk. The Ravens went all in on QB Lamar Jackson and LB Roquan Smith so the offensive line budget didn’t get a good boost. General Manager Eric DeCosta had no soft spot for the plan. “You can’t have 10 players making $20 million a year,” he explained. “We try to be balanced across the board and pay our best players as much as we can, understanding that sometimes we just can’t keep every single player.”

But the line wasn’t a happy accident – it was a byproduct of grit, mobility, and good coaching. By that time, Lamar Jackson knew he had a pocket he could believe in (most of the time), and the Ravens had an offensive line they could believe in.

As for the fines? Those little extra man penalties are a small price to pay for a playoff run that feels like fate in advance. The controversy surrounding a referee or defensive play will be a referee issue or a defensive battle, but one thing is certain, the Ravens are prepared for the storm – and maybe even thrive in it.