Isaiah Likely made waves in March by signing a three-year, $40 million deal with the New York Giants, leaving Baltimore after spending his first four NFL seasons with the Ravens.
The loss of Likely will be felt in Baltimore. In four seasons with the Ravens, the 6-foot-4, 241-pound tight end totaled 1,568 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns. In 2025, Likely caught 27 passes for 307 yards and one touchdown in 14 games.
Likely joined fellow teammates Daniel Faalele, Patrick Ricard, Jordan Stout and Ar’Darius Washington in following ex-Ravens head coach John Harbaugh to the Giants, who finished last year with a 4-13 record and turned over the coaching staff.
“Coach Harbaugh [is] just keeping the culture that he’s always had, trying to instill a winning culture, a winning atmosphere, a winning attitude,” Likely said on Glenn Clark Radio May 29.
“Coach Harbaugh is a winning coach,” Likely continued. “He has one of the top win percentages in NFL history … and the philosophy and the culture he brings year in and year out. When he was with the Ravens, I’d say the mantra was making the playoffs and trying to get to the biggest game possible. When you don’t do that, that’s when the city goes on fire.”
Despite all the similarities between the Giants and the Ravens, there still comes change. Likely goes from Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry and Mark Andrews to Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo and Theo Johnson.
“All the relationships I made in Baltimore, those are my brothers,” Likely said. “They know at the end of the day if they call me I’m there for them, from LJ to [Zay Flowers to Tyler Huntley] to Derrick Henry, but at the end of the day, business is business. I let my agent be the businessperson and take the relationships out of it to be able to put me in the best situation for my family and my situation to put the best ball I’ve got on film.”
Likely’s departure came on the heels of Andrews signing a three-year, $39.3 million extension with the Ravens in December. The move indicated that Likely was probably headed elsewhere in free agency.
When asked about those who criticize Andrews’ on-field performance, Likely said Andrews has plenty of good football left in him.
“It’s crazy to me because at the end of the day Mark is still young, I’d say,” Likely said. “Thirty years old and he’s still moving around with the COVID babies. Some rookies are coming in at 25, 26. He’s still right there with them at their ‘young age,’ just reminding them [he] will be where he’s got to be at all times and he’s going to make the plays that he makes. I always tell him he’s All-Pro Mark. At the end of the day, when he gets in that mode and when everybody sees that, he’s untouchable.”
Because he left for the NFC, Likely won’t get many chances to face his former team unless, of course, it’s in the Super Bowl. In fact, the Ravens’ first Super Bowl victory came from beating the Giants in January 2001.
With that in mind, Likely commented on a potential Super Bowl matchup against the Ravens.
“I love Baltimore and everything and I know when I see y’all in the Super Bowl when y’all get there I’m going to have a lot of jersey swaps to do with my brothers,” Likely said.
For more from Likely, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the New York Football Giants