Starks is the 16th defensive player the Ravens have ever drafted in the first round. Six were Week 1 rookie starters: Ray Lewis, Peter Boulware, Ed Reed, Haloti Ngata, C.J. Mosley, and Patrick Queen.
Starks would be just the second defensive back to step into the spotlight immediately. Kyle Hamilton, Marlon Humphrey, Nate Wiggins, and Jaire Alexander (with the Packers) were all eased into starting action as rookies. However, the Ravens have a need, and they feel Starks has the makeup to take on the job.
“[Starks] is a very mature player. That’s why he’s a first-round pick. He’s the kind of guy that you would expect to be able to step into a role like that,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said during OTAs. “With Ar’Darius’ situation, he got thrust into that situation maybe a little sooner than we’d hoped, but he’s embraced it. I expect him to do very well.”
Starks has atypical maturity, evidenced by the fact that he organized walk-throughs at the team hotel during rookie minicamp. He’s a film junkie who rewrites his meeting notes at night to better remember them. Starks went back and studied the Ravens’ playoff loss in Buffalo and has pored over Hamilton’s film to better understand the All-Pro he’ll be playing next to. While he’s a natural leader, Starks is being a learner first.
“I’m leaning on the older guys. They’ve been here for a while, they know. They’ve been through what I’m about to go through,” Starks said.
“I’m a rookie. It’s okay to be a rookie, and I understand that. I want to give myself that grace. But I also still have high standards for myself. I know the expectations that have been set. So, I’m just really trying to find a good balance within that process.”
If Starks’ college start is any indication, he’ll do just fine in Buffalo. In his first game, on the second possession of the game, Starks made a phenomenal leaping interception on a deep pass by then-Oregon quarterback Bo Nix, who tried to test the freshman safety.