Nnamdi Madubuike took another step toward recovery on Sept. 3, returning to team drills as head coach Jesse Minter described him as day-to-day ahead of Baltimore’s season opener. The Pro Bowler will likely need some time to shake off the rust, but if he can return to his previous form, he could form a dangerous partnership with one of the Ravens’ biggest offseason additions.
A Dangerous Pairing
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Given that he spent the previous five seasons terrorizing Baltimore from within the AFC North, the Ravens should know exactly what Trey Hendrickson is capable of. His 2025 season was cut short by injury, but in 2023 and 2024 he established himself as one of the league’s premier pass rushers, recording 17.5 sacks over back-to-back seasons.
Pairing that kind of edge production with Madubuike’s interior pressure could give the Ravens one of the more dangerous pass-rush combinations in the league. Madubuike also missed most of 2025 with injury but earned Pro Bowl honors in each of the previous two seasons. His best statistical year came in 2023, when he recorded 13 sacks and 56 combined tackles.
Jesse Minter could utilize this duo to play the style of defense he prefers: a zone-heavy scheme with minimal blitzing. His Chargers defense used four-man pressures on 72.6% of snaps last season while blitzing just 21.4% of the time, the third-lowest rate in the NFL, according to Next Gen Stats. If Hendrickson and Madubuike are both near their best, Baltimore could generate pressure without consistently sending extra rushers, allowing Minter to keep more defenders in coverage.
