Jimmy Smith Wants to Be a Raven for Life
There aren’t many players on the Ravens roster have been with the team longer than Jimmy Smith. In fact, Sam Koch is the only one.
But entering his 11th season in Baltimore, there’s no place Smith would rather be.
“I absolutely will not play for another team,” Smith told The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec in a Q&A. “If the Ravens didn’t re-sign me last year and I felt like I could still play, I probably would have still retired.
“… I didn’t like being out there like that [in free agency], and I passed up more money (from the Ravens) the first time to eventually take less money. This year, I was like, ‘I know I want to be here, so let me not play games.'[add] Obviously, I know I’m not going to be one of the two starters, but I know I have a role on this team. I’m comfortable with that, so it was easy for me to sign back again.”
After drafting Smith in the first round in 2011, the Ravens signed him to a four-year extension in 2015. After testing the free-agent market in 2020, Smith re-signed with the Ravens on a one-year deal. In January, Smith signed a one-year extension through the 2021 season.
“I feel pretty blessed,” Smith told Zrebiec. “I was really banged up at the end of last year with the rib break and all that — groin, Achilles, all of that stuff. I rested a lot this offseason. Due to the whole pandemic, my personal trainer left (Baltimore) actually, went to Miami and did other things. I ended up training with the Ravens, and it’s nice here. I had a great time training. (My trainer) might be back for this stretch we have now, so we can get our good work in. If not, I’ll be up at the Ravens’ facility training.”
The Ravens have one of the deepest cornerback groups in the NFL, led by Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters.
“We have two of the top 10 in the league at cornerback, and our safeties are definitely trending in the right way,”[add] Smith said. “Even the young guys who came in and nobody knows about yet — they will know about them. I’ve been impressed with some of them during this OTA period.”
