Nnamdi Madubuike
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The Baltimore Ravens can find a "monster" partner for defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike in the 2025 NFL draft.
The Baltimore Ravens are already Super Bowl contenders on paper, regardless of whether NFL All-Pro defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike returns or not.
If he does return from a serious neck injury that cost him all but 2 games in 2025, that might make the Ravens more than just contenders on paper.
Every day, it seems more and more like the Ravens are inching toward a reunion with Madubuike after his neck injury, at one point, was thought to possibly be career-ending.
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley listed the interior defensive line among the Top 3 needs for the Ravens ahead of the draft and following free agency.
“At defensive tackle, there has been growing optimism that two-time Pro Bowl player Nnamdi Madubuike will return from his neck injury,” Hensley wrote.
It’s the latest good news for the Ravens about Madbuike, who signed a 4-year, $98 million contract extension in March 2024.
“I’m hearing that retirement is not in the cards for Nnamdi Madubuike and there’s a realistic expectation he will be back in a Ravens uniform this fall,” Ravens Vault’s Bobby Trossett wrote on his official X account on February 27.
Nnamdi Madubuike Hints at Return With Posts
Madubuike seemed to give the clearest indication he might be able to return to the field in 2026 with a post on X in January which simply read: “Good News” followed by the prayer hands emoji.
It was the second cryptic, indirect message Madubuike has sent out on social media in recent months.
Madubuike broke his silence for the first time on his Instagram stories by posting a selfie on December 8, captioned with 3 crystal ball emojis.
Ravens Added Elite Edge Rusher in Free Agency
The biggest concern for the Ravens in free agency was adding an edge rusher.
“Let’s be clear, even if Nnmadi Madubuike returns next season the Ravens still need to address the trenches BADLY,” Ravens insider Hoodie Ramey wrote on X before free agency. “Maybe not R1, but it needs to be their biggest priority without question.”
The Ravens addressed the position in some pretty significant — and headline-grabbing — ways.
First, they made what looked like it was going to be the biggest trade of the offseason when they sent their 2026 and 2027 1st round picks to the Las Vegas Raiders for NFL All-Pro edge rusher Maxx Crosby, only to back out of the deal several days later.
On the same day they killed the Crosby deal, the Ravens signed NFL All-Pro edge rusher Trey Hendrickson to a 4-year, $112 million contract.
If Madubuike can truly return healthy, the combination of him playing alongside Hendrickson could end up being the most formidable inside-out pass rush duo in the NFL.
What Ravens Lost With Madubuike Out
While Dexter Lawrence, Chris Jones and Jalen Carter seem to dominate the conversation regarding who the best defensive tackle in the NFL is, the numbers show us Madubuike’s name should be in the mix.
Remember that without Madubuike, 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, the Ravens struggled to go 8-9 in 2025 and snapped a 3-year streak of making the playoffs.
“Madubuike has made the Pro Bowl the past two seasons, has 21.5 sacks since the start of the 2023 season — the most by any defensive tackle in the league,” Hensley wrote after Madubuike’s neck injury in September 2025.