OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Cornerback Jimmy Smith will return for his 11th season with the Baltimore Ravens after reaching a one-year extension worth up to $5 million, his agent told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Thursday.
This extension includes $2 million fully guaranteed in base salary, a $500,000 signing bonus and $2.5 million in playtime incentives that are considered unlikely to be earned, a source told Schefter.
Smith, 32, had been scheduled to be a free agent at the end of the season after signing a one-year, $3.5 million extension in March. A longtime starter who has transitioned into a rotational role, Smith was having one of his better seasons before rib and shoulder injuries sidelined him the past two games. Pro Football Focus ranked Smith as the NFL’s eighth-best cornerback through the first 11 weeks.
This is the Ravens’ latest move to solidify one of the league’s deepest cornerback groups. In 2021, Baltimore will bring back Smith; Marlon Humphrey, who signed a five-year, $97.5 million extension in October; Marcus Peters, who signed a three-year, $42 million extension last year; and nickelback Tavon Young, who took a $2.85 million pay cut for next season.
This season, Smith has 27 tackles, one pass defended and one sack in 11 games (including five starts). A 2011 first-round pick by Baltimore, Smith has totaled 14 interceptions and 71 passes defended in his career.
“For a guy of his size to be able to do the things he does to play out there on the corner and on the island is amazing,” Ravens defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale said Thursday. “There is no challenge he doesn’t like.”
Smith will always be remembered for making one of the biggest plays in the Ravens’ Super Bowl victory over the San Francisco 49ers in February 2013. On fourth-and-goal, Smith broke up a pass intended for Michael Crabtree that essentially gave the Lombardi Trophy to Baltimore.