Just two days after hosting him as a tryout, the Ravens are indeed adding a veteran to their pass-rushing group. The team announced on Friday that they have signed defensive end Steven Means. 
The 31-year-old spent one season with the Ravens in 2014. He stayed on the team’s practice squad for all but one game, and was waived before the start of the 2015 campaign. That led him to Philadelphia, already the third team in his career after he was drafted by the Buccaneers. He carved out enough of a role with the Eagles to earn an extended stay with the team, but he remained primarily a special teamer with them.
That began to change in Atlanta, his most recent home. He registered the first four starts of his career with the Falcons in 2018, not surprisingly setting a new career-best in tackles along the way. His workload continued to rise in each of the past two seasons; after playing 332 total defensive snaps entering the 2020 campaign, he saw the field for 1,335 plays across 2021 and 2022.
That increased usage came after an Achilles injury cost the former fifth-rounder the entire 2019 campaign. His return to health earned him significant playing time, although he has yet to record more than three sacks in a season. In Baltimore, he will likely take on a rotational role within the team’s edge group which, if Tyus Bowser is unable to start the season, will include a number of much less experienced players.
This deal lessens the chances of the Ravens landing free agent pass rusher Jason Pierre-Paul, who visited the team recently, and could affect the future of Justin Houston, on whom the team used the UFA tender. In any event, Baltimore has a familiar face to add to its front seven.
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