David Ojabo’s Redemption Year: Can the Ravens’ Linebacker Finally Unleash His Potential in 2024?
After Thursday's season-opening loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, there were several notable takeaways that head coach John Harbaugh and the front office can look at heading into the rest of the 2024 NFL season. One of the biggest takeaways from the game, in spite of the defeat, was the glimpse of promise from linebacker David Ojabo, who came into the season with high expectations. Entering his third NFL season, Ojabo was able to start the year with a performance that was impressive to watch. Near the end of the first quarter against the Chiefs, Ojabo recorded his third career NFL sack as he pursued Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on a third-down by beating his blocker with a speed rush. After an inconsistent start to his NFL career, Ravens fans and the team itself are wondering if Ojabo can finally have his breakthrough season and show off the skills that initially got him drafted in the first place.
Since being selected in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the 24-year-old linebacker's first two NFL seasons have been marred by injuries. Ojabo, who played at the University of Michigan, tore his Achilles tendon during a drill at his NFL Pro Day, just before the start of his rookie season. With the injury, Ojabo's NFL career was set back, as he was limited to only two games and missed most of his 2022 rookie season. However, Ojabo showed his promise in the regular season finale game against the Bengals that year, recording a tackle and strip-sacking Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, which raised optimism for the upcoming season. Yet, Ojabo continued to have dismal luck with injuries in his second season, appearing in just the first three games before needing surgery to fix a partially torn ACL.
After dealing with multiple severe injuries in back-to-back seasons, obvious concerns and questions were beginning to emerge about whether Ojabo could ever get back to his former pass-rushing self that saw him have 27 total tackles, eight sacks, four forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery in his junior season at Michigan. Despite Ojabo's injury on his Pro Day, the Ravens selected him with the 45th overall pick in 2022 due to the excellent skill set he showed in his last season at Michigan. Due to the fractured orbital bone suffered by fellow linebacker Kyle Van Noy in the Chiefs game last week, the Ravens will now need to rely on Ojabo to build on his strong start to the season and become a breakout player for a defense that lost several starters in the offseason, including veteran edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney and linebacker Patrick Queen. If Ojabo can put everything together and stay healthy for the first time in his NFL career, the Ravens' defense would benefit greatly for the rest of the season.
