They say his time will come. They are wrong.

To spread the word, Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens stuck his head into an interview given by Ar’Darius Washington.

“Now his time has come,” Stephens said.

Washington, who is in his fourth NFL season competing for the Ravens’ third safety spot, has already had a strong training camp. The day after Stephens made that statement, Washington backed it up with a pick-six on backup quarterback Josh Johnson. The day after that, Washington intercepted reigning MVP Lamar Jackson. The next week, he had fans gasping for air when he outdueled Nelson Agholor on a jump ball for a great pass defense.

Before the 2024 NFL Draft, the situation at the safety position seemed pretty clear. Marcus Williams and Pro Bowler Kyle Hamilton were the expected starters. Washington was the only other safety on the roster. The biggest question was how Washington would look after two consecutive season-ending injuries early in his career.

The Ravens drafted safety Sanoussi Kane in the seventh round of the 2024 draft. They also signed undrafted rookie free agent Beau Brade. And after a minicamp where coach John Harbaugh praised Washington’s play, they signed veteran safety Eddie Jackson.

Suddenly there is a competition for the third security job.

But Washington is no stranger to challenges and is not discouraged by them.

Meet the player who could be next in the Ravens’ impressive defense.

He was always the smallest

Washington can’t remember a time when he played on a team and wasn’t the smallest player at his position. His mother, LaShuma Daniels, can’t remember one either.

“He was always one of the little guys,” Daniels said.

Only one player on the Ravens’ training camp roster, wide receiver Deonte Harty, is shorter than Washington’s 5’8″. Running back Keaton Mitchell is the same height as Washington, although he has a larger frame. Unlike the offensive linemen, Washington does not run away from contact, but initiates it.

Washington never let that stop him. Daniels said he was the youngest with three older brothers and an older sister. Washington ran with his big brothers – and he tackled them too. His oldest brother grew to be 6’1″. Despite his size, weight and age, he found ways to stop them.

Therefore, it was no problem to defeat bigger players in his age group.

The doubts that always accompany the careers of smaller players have given Washington a grudge. That grudge, which gave his game an edge, was crucial to his advancement to the next division.

No team wanted to take the risk of giving him draft capital

Much of a front office’s success comes from its ability to identify and evaluate talent, and in 2021, no team had enough faith in Washington to risk any of their draft capital on him.

The success of an NFL agent lies in their ability to identify and evaluate talent. The better the players you sign, the more money you make.

Rick Roberts, an agent who founded the Ballengee Group, is a Louisiana native who knew Washington through rumors on the streets of Louisiana. He was heavily courted and had an offer from his hometown team, LSU. But Washington decided TCU was the right place for him, and so it was that the Ballengee Group decided to establish its headquarters in Texas.

Roberts saw Washington’s stats. As a junior, Washington had 35 tackles with five interceptions and two pass breakups. As a senior, he had 25 tackles and five pass breakups. But he also saw something in the player himself that made them want to sign him.

“It sounds clichéd to say that certain guys have that grit in them, but he does,” Roberts said. “He plays the game with that intensity. He practices with that intensity. And everything he does to prepare for football, he gives it 100 percent.”

Patrick Queen played a big role in his journey

Washington and former Ravens Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Queen grew up in Louisiana and knew each other for a similar reason. Roberts knew who Washington was. They were both highly sought-after players in the area, although one accepted an offer from the local university, LSU, and one did not. They both chose to sign with Roberts, a fellow Louisiana native.

When it became clear that Washington would go undrafted, Roberts and his team had to come up with their contingency plan for Washington: find a place for him as an undrafted free agent. After getting to know Washington and Queen as players and people, Roberts felt that Baltimore would be a good fit for Washington because of Queen’s experience, so he paired the two players together.

Roberts was right. Queen and Washington hit it off, and Washington found a home. He made the 53-man roster out of training camp despite draft picks. Unfortunately, he suffered a season-ending injury early on, but Queen helped him keep his head up. When he returned in his sophomore year, he was released before being signed to the practice squad. Once again, Queen supported him, Daniels recalled.

“He played the role of a big brother,” said Chris Doyle, agent for the Ballengee Group. “He took him under his wing and I think played a big role in the whole process, bringing him to the attention of the team and telling them, ‘Hey, this guy is special.'”

He played despite an injury that ended the season

When Washington felt the twinge in his upper body in Week 2 last year, he didn’t think much of it. He thought it was just a twinge in his shoulder, so he kept playing until he beat the Cincinnati Bengals 27-24. He didn’t think it was that bad, but he didn’t want to believe it either.

There’s no way he made the team twice as an undrafted free agent, only to get injured, especially considering he started the season off with a bang, recording six tackles, a sack and a pass defense in his first game and five tackles and a pass defense in his second game.

“After I got the MRI and everything else, I was in tears,” Washington said. “Because everything is going well. Everything is going well, and then this happens. Then you question everything, like, why now?”

His first call was, of course, to his mother. She said she was very saddened by the news that he had sustained a chest injury that meant the end of his season.

“I knew he was just getting started,” Daniels said. “I was devastated. I really was. Because he trained really hard in the offseason, and now that he’s getting his name out there, getting playing time and everything’s going well for him, it was devastating.”

Nearly a year later, Daniels saw a video on X, formerly Twitter, of her son catching a ball at Ravens training camp and doing his signature flip. This time, she laughed at the heart.

He has some skills in the ring

While football is his first love, Washington is an all-around athlete. Daniels said Washington was constantly doing backflips and jumping off things, so she sent him to gymnastics and various other sports.

Eventually, Washington focused on football. And then football brought him to boxing.

At the Ballengee Group, players are invited to step into the ring with Doyle. The agent has boxed for much of his life, including professional competition, and he continues to use those skills to train his athletes in the offseason.

“Boxing has a lot of benefits when you transition to football, like conditioning, but also hand-eye coordination and strengthening,” Doyle said.

For Washington, the invitation to box was a kind of rite of passage. So he entered the ring.

Doyle said both Washington and Queen were naturals, strong and fast. He said they were great. And by that he meant, “They’ll make it through the rounds.”

He doesn’t like pizza

Maybe she fed him it too often as a child, Daniels speculated, but for whatever reason, Washington doesn’t like pizza.

He insists it’s the consistency. Or maybe it’s because he hates spices and it reminds him of ketchup.

Is he picky?

Washington paused for a moment and then admitted with a grin, “Yes.”

So what does he eat?

Washington’s favorite food is seafood, especially crawfish, but like Queen, he is unsure about eating seafood outside of Louisiana, where they have the “best seafood in the world.”

Why should you cheer him on?

“Because he works hard and loves football. He just keeps pursuing his dreams,” his mother said.

“Because the road has not been easy for him and he is the story of the underdog who doesn’t get drafted. … Moreover, Ar’Darius is a great human being,” Roberts said.

“He’s always been a playmaker, a difference-maker. … He’s a guy who gives 1,000 percent, not 100. He gives 1,000 percent every game. And as a person, he will always give back to the city,” Doyle said.

And what does the man himself say? Well, because he is ready to put on a show for all of you. For the city, but also for a certain group.

“I’m going to go out there and stand up for the little guys and show them that we can do it too,” Washington said.