May 29, 2001

By Len Pasquarelli
Sportsline.com

Continuing to add more depth to an already loaded roster, the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday reached a formal contract agreement with Randall Cunningham, a deal that provides the team tremendous insurance behind starting quarterback Elvis Grbac.

The 15-year veteran will sign a one-year contract for the NFL minimum base salary of $477,000. Cunningham said last month that he had "an understanding" with coach Brian Billick on a deal to join the Ravens, but the agreement did not become official until Monday afternoon.

"It's a tremendous opportunity," Cunningham said. "I think I can help them and they can help me get a ring."

The plan is for Cunningham to be listed No. 3 on the depth chart, behind Grbac and second-year veteran Chris Redman. The team's No. 2 draft choice a year ago, Redman is being groomed as the quarterback of the future. But if Grbac were injured for an extended period this season, Billick would actually turn first to Cunningham to fill in.

Cunningham, 38, played last year with the Dallas Cowboys, appearing in six games and starting three of them when Troy Aikman was injured. Although he signed a three-year contract with the Cowboys before the 2000 season, he reached predetermined performance levels sufficient enough to void the final two years of the deal and become a free agent.

The move to the Ravens will reunite Cunningham with Billick, who was offensive coordinator when the quarterback played for the Minnesota Vikings.

Cunningham, of course, spent the bulk of his career in Philadelphia, playing 11 seasons (1985-95) for the Eagles, who selected him in the second round of the '85 draft. He sat out the entire 1996 campaign, then came back with the Vikings in 1997. After three seasons in Minnesota, he signed last season with the Cowboys.

In 15 seasons, Cunningham has appeared in 155 games and started 133 of them. He's completed 2,375 of 4,200 passes for 29,406 yards with 204 touchdowns and 132 interceptions.