Several veteran members of the Ravens’ Super Bowl team will be playing elsewhere in 2013, but left tackle Bryant McKinnie isn’t one of them.
The Ravens announced Thursday afternoon that they have reached agreement with McKinnie on a new two-year deal. McKinnie and the Ravens have been circling each other since the start of the offseason without too much urgency to make things happen apparent on either side. The Ravens said they were prepared to go with Kelechi Osemele as their left tackle and things remained in a holding pattern.
That changed this week as McKinnie stepped up talks with other teams. He visited with the Dolphins, received an offer from the Chargers and got some notice from the Cowboys. That was enough to spur the Ravens into action so they could secure the player who stepped in at left tackle during the playoffs to solidify the offensive line on the way to the Super Bowl.
With McKinnie back in Baltimore, Eric Winston and Tyson Clabo are the top veteran tackles on the free agent market. Both men are right tackles and both have gotten interest from some of the same teams that were interested in McKinnie. It may not be long before they find homes now that McKinnie has taken himself off the market.
UPDATE 6:27 p.m. ET: Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun reports that McKinnie’s deal, which includes incentives, has a maximum value of $7 million and includes an undisclosed signing bonus.