With Pro Bowl cornerbacks Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle, along with safety Ed Reed, manning the Ravens? defensive backfield, it?s amazing to think there are any question marks for the unit entering this season.
But with safety Will Demps signing with the New York Giants in the offseason, there is an open competition for that final starting defensive back slot. The person with the apparent early lead for that roster spot is a familiar face: four-year veteran Gerome Sapp. The 6-foot-1, 216-pound safety, a former Notre Dame standout, rejoined the team June 19 after being traded by the Indianapolis Colts.
“It feels good being back,” said Sapp, who was originally drafted by the Ravens in the sixth round of the 2003 draft. “I started my career with them and it feels like I?m coming home.”
Although Sapp is ahead of other potential starters like B.J. Ward and Dawan Landry, he is not taking anything for granted.
“The competition is what it is,” he said “I would be naïve to think that just because I started here that I?m going to end up here. When I come out here everyday, I?m practicing like I?m fighting for this job. Even though I?m penciled in as the starter, there are other people out there fighting for this job.”
Ravens head coach Brian Billick said Saturday that filling the second safety opening is something he would like to do as soon as possible.
“There?s an immediacy,” Billick said “We?ve got 25, 28, 29 practice opportunities, so the clock is ticking for those who want to be on this team and want to be in a position to contribute.”
Reed said he?s confident that whoever wins the safety competition will fit nicely into the Ravens? defensive backfield.
“We have a lot of guys and a lot of talent,” Reed said. “You miss that with Demps because that chemistry was there with me and him after playing four years straight, and it?s something you have to build up to at this point. But, we have a lot of guys with great talent. It?s just a matter of somebody stepping up and saying they want the position.”
DB NOTES
» Reed, Rolle and McAlister have a combined seven Pro Bowl appearances between them.
» Ward is in his second year in the NFL after signing with the Ravens as a free agent out of Florida State University in 2005.
» Landry joined the Ravens as a fifth-round pick this year out of Georgia Tech.
