They have already acquire Trey Hendrickson to generate pressure off the edge, but the Baltimore Ravens are now showing interest in a “top” free agent who once made Hendrickson’s job easier.
Mammoth veteran nose tackle D.J. Reader visited with the Ravens on Thursday, March 26, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, who labelled the 31-year-old “one of the top defenders available.”
Reader and Hendrickson spent three seasons together with Baltimore’s AFC North rivals the Cincinnati Bengals. Including when the 2021 Bengals reached the Super Bowl.
That team’s defense benefited from a complementary double act of sorts up front, between Reader and Hendrickson. The latter put heat on quarterbacks, while Reader focused on playing over the ball, occupying double teams and moving the pile to disrupt the running game.
He continued the same approach with the Detroit Lions the last two seasons, but Reader is still a natural fit for the Ravens as a capable deputy to rising star Travis Jones.
Reader is also a run-stuffing foil for more dynamic two-time Pro Bowler Nnamdi Madubuike, who is looking increasingly capable of staging a full recovery from the neck injury that wrecked his 2025 campaign.
D.J. Reader Would Answer Sneaky Need for Ravens
There’s room on the Ravens’ depth chart for an interior defensive lineman with Reader’s niche skills. Loading up on big bodies for the middle of the front seven has long been a happy habit for the franchise, one reason why the team acquired ageing John Jenkins to replace a retired nose guard last season.
Jenkins was a good fit for what the Ravens like to do over the ball, but he’s also 36 and isn’t the force Reader can be at his best. Few zero-technique D-linemen can hold the point of attack as effectively as the 6-foot-3, 330-pounder.
Reader also offers underrated versatility, a quality explained by The Baltimore Banner’s Jonas Shaffer. He pointed out how “Reader started 32 of 34 games over the past two seasons for Detroit. He lined up as a nose tackle and 3-technique and played about half of the Lions’ defensive snaps.”
Being able to slide between a guard and offensive tackle means Reader could get onto the field with Jones and Madubuike. They would form a formidable trio for the 3-4 base defenses new head coach Jesse Minter has usually favored.
Even if Reader was assigned a more rotational role, he would still add the depth the Ravens are missing. Particularly when defensive tackles Brent Urban and Taven Bryan remain on the free-agent market.
Getting bigger and better along the interior will also give Hendrickson the platform he needs to dominate.
Trey Hendrickson Being Counted on to Dominate
If Hendrickson is going to make the Ravens forget about the ill-fated trade for Maxx Crosby, he’ll need to face multiple one-on-one matchups. That will happen if the big men in the middle command double teams.
Turning Hendrickson loose can give the Ravens the clutch pass-rusher they have lacked in close games. His pedigree as an All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler shows Hendrickson remains a consistent force collapsing the pass-pocket, but he’ll need help to maintain those levels in a new home.
Putting a key and capable former teammate next to him can position Hendrickson to deliver the way the Ravens expect.
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