Steve Biscoitti loves the NFL Draft and has been the Ravens’ majority owner since 2004.
After all those years in the draft room, the boss wanted to call one of the shots.
Bisciotti made his first pick as Ravens owner, selecting running back Adam Randall out of Clemson with the last of the Ravens’ three picks of the fifth round (No. 174).
General Manager Eric DeCosta shed more insight on how the pick came to be during an appearance on “The Lounge” podcast several days after the draft.
It all started when they were at Bisciotti’s house down in Florida, where they meet every year to discuss offseason strategy. At some point, DeCosta mentioned that former team president David Modell had made a pick in 1998 – the final “Mr. Irrelevant” pick in the draft. Modell selected tight end Cam Quayle.
“Steve said, ‘Man, I’d love to make a pick,'” DeCosta recalled. “I said, ‘You can make a pick. We have lots of picks. You can make a pick.'”
They decided on the last of four originally-scheduled fifth-round picks and Bisciotti got to work. Every year, Bisciotti loves to dig into the prospects and find some of his favorites. This year, he had a special project.
He did his research, which included speaking to a close friend, Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney.
Bisciotti also added an assistant in DeCosta’s 15-year-old son, Jackson, with whom he hit it off in the draft room a year ago. Bisciotti and Jackson both “have an affinity for testers at the Combine, the underrated guys,” DeCosta said.
The Ravens’ GM figured Bisciotti would take a playmaker. “It was never going to be a lineman,” he said with a laugh.
Bisciotti worked in secret, nervous that DeCosta might swipe his guy with the pick right before. But after DeCosta picked Alabama tight end Josh Cuevas at No. 173, Bisciotti got his guy.
Randall is a high-upside prospect as a converted wide receiver who stands in at an imposing 6-foot-3, 232 pounds, earning him the nickname “Baby Julio” after former Falcons star receiver Julio Jones. He has elite athleticism with a 4.5-second 40-yard dash at his size.
In his first year as a starter last season, Randall posted 814 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns and caught 36 passes for 254 yards and another three scores. He also offers additional positional value as a kickoff returner who averaged 23.2 yards on 13 attempts.
DeCosta called Randall a “jackknife” player who could fill multiple roles on the team.