2023 All-Pro Gets Franchise-Tagged
It has been reported that Justin Madubuike has been franchise-tagged by the Baltimore Ravens. 2023 All-Pro Justin Madubuike had many questions about his future in the league after having a quiet start to his career. Although a breakout year this past season where he totaled 13.5 sacks has made him a huge target this year in free agency. Proving people wrong is nothing new for Madubuike. Coming out of Texas A&M in 2020 many scouts didn't know how dominant he could be on the NFL level on the defensive line due to some lack of production in college. However, Madubuike had a dominant combine running a 4.83 40-yard dash and putting up 31 bench press reps. For someone 6-3 290, these numbers jump off the charts. His Combine performance shot him up draft boards.
On the Ravens, the 2023 All Pro, more than doubled his sack career high. His previous best was 5.5 in 2022. The trends of growth seen in Madubuike is huge for the Ravens as they now have a budding superstar for years to come. On top of that Madubuike has learned from some of the all-time greats in his time with the Ravens. Calais Campbell and Justin Houston both who will be Hall of Famers most likely were huge in the growth of Madubuike.
The real question for the 2023 All-Pro is if he can turn the corner and enter the conversion as one of the league's best defensive linemen. Calais Campbell said in an interview the major turning point for Madubuike was actually Campbell’s departure from the team after the 2022 season. It gave Madubuike a chance to really be “the guy” and that's when he truly became dominant. After a heartbreaking loss to the Chiefs in the AFC championship Madubuike will look to once again have a great year and hopefully lead the Ravens defense to the championship.
