Five Ravens Draft Moves You Wouldn’t Expect This Year
Taking a wide receiver on Day 1 or Day 2 – The Ravens signed DeAndre Hopkins, re-signed Tylan Wallace, and Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman are coming off career years. The Ravens had 11 draft picks in 2022 and didn’t take a wideout. If they take one on Day 1 or 2, he’s someone they really like.
Trading up in Round 1 – The Ravens are known for their patience in the draft, trusting their board and waiting for a quality player to fall to them. With a strong roster in place, they don’t need to give up draft capital to acquire a quality player at No. 27.
Drafting more offensive players than defensive players – Even if Baltimore drafts two or more offensive linemen, their overall draft board should lean toward the defensive side. The Ravens had the league’s No. 1 offense last season, and they’re looking to add depth at corner, safety, defensive tackle, edge rusher, and linebacker.
Drafting two or three players without special teams experience – Baltimore lost experienced special teamers Malik Harrison, Chris Board, and Kristian Welch during free agency. Finding special teams, including an explosive returner, is on Baltimore’s to-do list.
Taking a running back early – Derrick Henry, Justice Hill, Keaton Mitchell, and Rasheen Ali give Baltimore a deep and diverse stable of backs. However, this draft is strong at the position, and DeCosta does not rule anything out.
“There are some really good players in this Draft class, and the same could be said about the running back position, as well, and we’ve talked about that,” DeCosta said. “We talk about these things all the time. The reality of it is, is if there’s a tight end that we think is a blue-chip tight end or a running back that we think is a blue-chip running back, we’re going to take them.”