Baltimore Ravens former first-round pick Breshad Perriman will get a chance to battle for a job during training camp.
The Ravens plan to pick up Perriman's $649,485 roster bonus, which is due on Saturday, ESPN's Jamison Hensley reported.
There was some thought that Baltimore might decide to jettison the disappointing receiver rather than pay the roster bonus to a player not guaranteed to make the roster.
With the Ravens set to open practices on Thursday, Perriman sits behind a trio of newcomers in Michael Crabtree, Willie Snead and John Brown. The former first-round receiver will have to battle with the likes of Chris Moore and rookies Jaleel Scott (fourth round) and Jordan Lasley (fifth round) for snaps during camp.
After being selected with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, Perriman has been a massive failure. He missed his entire rookie campaign due to injury. In the past two seasons -- 27 games -- he has a paltry 43 receptions for 576 yards and three TDs. After showing small glimpses in 2016, the Ravens hoped Perriman would bust out of his shell. The speedy wideout, however, regressed in 2017, catching just 10 passes in 11 games for 77 yards and zero scores.
Perriman's struggles are part of what caused GM Ozzie Newsome to overhaul his receiving corps. Newcomer Snead intimated on Wednesday that he believes part of Joe Flacco's problems the past few years came from a less-than-stellar pass-catching core.
"I think that's all he needed was weapons," Snead said of Flacco, via the team's official website.
The Ravens gave Flacco more weapons. Whether one holdover from last year sticks around remains to be seen.
If Perriman doesn't improve during training camp and preseason, Baltimore could cut bait on their former first-round pick, saving $1.62 million on the salary cap. For now, however, they'll pay the wideout his roster bonus to see how the next month shakes out.
