Ravens Post Draft Thoughts

[vmax]

This draft felt different. Maybe because of the talent level that was available. Maybe because players had less opportunity to develop and shine due to Covid and the limited season.

It certainly isn't like the Ravens 2018 draft. Yet it seems solid. Some needs are filled by very promising prospects.

I think Eric is planning for the future knowing they will be giving Lamar a mega contract. He's thinking CAP space and how it will be limited down the road. He wants a lot of picks for next year and he's got them. 10. All CAP friendly contracts. 

Here's where they currently stand for 2022: Baltimore Ravens Future Draft Pick Status (prosportstransactions.com)

They want to be competitive every year and this draft and next years assures that for the near future.

 

2021 Draft Picks

RD(PK)	PLAYER	POS	SCHOOL
1(27)	Rashod Bateman	WR	Minnesota
1(31)	Odafe Oweh	OLB	Penn State
3(31)	Ben Cleveland	OG	Georgia
3(41)	Brandon Stephens	CB	SMU
4(26)	Tylan Wallace	WR	Oklahoma State
5(16)	Shaun Wade	CB	Ohio State
5(27)	Daelin Hayes	DE	Notre Dame
5(40)	Ben Mason	FB	Michigan

 

The Bateman, Cleveland, Qweh and Wallace picks blow me away. I give them an "A".

The rest get  a "C" for now, although there are a lot of intangibles to these guys as far as toughness, team leadership, physical abilities and character...football character. Yet we all know about potential...let's wait and see.

So I give the draft a "B".

[tsylvester]

I like the Cleveland pick, solid choice for sure.

As much as I love the Wallace pick and to some extent the Bateman pick, skepticism has set in, history of failure at judging this position or developing them sets deeply in.

The rest of the guys are all developmental players, good ceilings if they can reach them, but.....can they? We shall see.. Will they become solid starters, or end up like many of the others who had potential but ended up busts?

[vmax]

Early rumors on UDFA's........

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With the addition of eight draft picks, the Ravens now have 79 players on their roster. That leaves 11 spots to fill with either veteran additions or undrafted rookie free agents.

OT Adrian Ealy, Oklahoma

Junior; 6-foot-6, 321 pounds

Ealy was a two-year starter at right tackle at Oklahoma, learning behind Orlando Brown Jr. and Cody Ford in his first two seasons before taking over in 2019.

S Ar'Darious Washington, TCU

R. Sophomore; 5-foot-8, 176 pounds

Washington played alongside one of the draft's top safeties in Trevon Moehrig. Washington is a feisty defender and good tackler who also had a team-high five interceptions in 2019. He could shift to nickel corner as well.

OG Sam Cooper, Merrimack

Senior; 6-foot-2, 305 pounds

Born in Nigeria, Cooper and his family settled in Pennsylvania in 2003. He first went to college at Maine before transferring.

TE Tony Poljan, Virginia

Senior; 6-foot-7, 251 pounds

Poljan posted more than 900 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns over the past two years as a starter. A three-star quarterback recruit, he switched between quarterback and tight end before settling at tight end full-time as a senior. He's new to the position, but has shown natural pass-catching skills and strong in-line blocking.

OT Foster Sarell, Stanford

Junior; 6-foot-6, 318 pounds

Sarell was a five-star recruit coming out of the Seattle area and a two-year starter at right tackle with good size.

RB Nate McCrary, Saginaw Valley

Senior; 6-foot-0, 213 pounds

McCrary played in 11 games and finished with 520 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns.

DT Xavier Kelly, Arkansas

Senior; 6-foot-4, 306 pounds

Kelly transferred to Arkansas after spending four years at Clemson. He finished his only season at Arkansas with eight tackles, one sack and two quarterback hurries. He had a strong Pro Day performance.

 

 

[vmax]

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Scouting report: "Ben Mason is a dying breed, a true fullback prospect. Mason does offer more than just lead blocking skills – he's been a special teams contributor. Mason should be regarded as a short-yardage and 20 series specialist at the pro level, which will whittle the field of interested teams a fair bit." – Kyle Crabbs, The Draft Network

Background: Mason grew up in Newtown, Conn., but he was brought to Michigan's attention by the school's former defensive coordinator, Don Brown, who coached at Boston College and saw Mason play in high school. Mason lives in the weight room and can bench press 420 pounds. He won Michigan's Toughest Player Award as a freshman.

What the Ravens said: "He's is Jack and Jackie Harbaugh's favorite player. I think it's pretty easy for anybody who watches us play to see how he's going to fit into our offense." - Head Coach John Harbaugh

"Just really kind of epitomizes what Ravens football is about - tough physical guy, our kind of football player." – General Manager Eric DeCosta

What Mason said: "I'm a player who is very versatile, and that's something that you need to be as a fullback. You need to be able to play in the I-[formation], play a little bit of tight end. That's what I'm going to bring on the offensive side of the ball. And then, I have experience playing defense in my time at Michigan. That's only helped me become a better football player – at defensive tackle. On special teams, I play all four units. I take special teams extremely seriously, and there's no better feeling, to me, than running down on coverage units and meeting the ballcarrier. So, I look forward to making my imprint felt."...2021 NFL Draft: Tight End Ben Mason, Michigan, Round 5, Pick 184 (baltimoreravens.com)

 

[vmax]

Quote

Baltimore Ravens

They took some big swings, and first-round WR Rashod Bateman and DE Odafe Oweh both have the potential to be home runs or strikeouts – Oweh a physically gifted player who nevertheless had zero sacks for Penn State in 2020, but a man who essentially winds up being the compensation in the trade of Orlando Brown. The Round 5 roll of the dice on CB Shaun Wade could be a good one. Grade: C+...NFL draft grades: Giants, Bears among best team classes in 2021 (usatoday.com)

 

[papasmurfbell]

I think Wade was undervalued.  A position change to FS might be in order though. I like him.  I like both WR.  I like Mason.  Cleveland should be able to play pretty fast.  Oweh should be in the rotation.  You cant teach what he has naturally.  This team has historically been good at teaching that position.  Stephens should start on ST while he learns playing DB in the pros.  He might need a position change to SS.

 

I would love if they signed Ealy.  If I were his agent I would tell him there is a real shot at winning that starting spot.  Same with Sarrell. Poljan would be good to get on the PS.

[papasmurfbell]

When will this team stop ignoring the center position?  They touch the ball as much as the QB but for so long we have nickel and dimed there.

[vmax]

29 minutes ago, papasmurfbell said:

When will this team stop ignoring the center position?  They touch the ball as much as the QB but for so long we have nickel and dimed there.

Bozeman. That's his natural position. He'll be a monster.

[tsylvester]

As usual, some great undrafted talent brought in by the Ravens, I wonder if they try for Dylan Moses, the over hyped Bama middle linebacker. Maybe going undrafted will humble him enough to truly learn how to use his talents

[tsylvester]

8 minutes ago, vmax said:

Bozeman. That's his natural position. He'll be a monster.

Im hoping Colon wins it outright, he showed more strength than Bozeman. They've been dancing around with center going all the back to Matt Flynn.....

[papasmurfbell]

13 minutes ago, vmax said:

Bozeman. That's his natural position. He'll be a monster.

I hope.  But Bradly is in the last yr of his deal.  If he plays well he could be priced out.  Stop waiting around for these problems to drop in your lap and be proactive.

 

6 minutes ago, tsylvester said:

Im hoping Colon wins it outright, he showed more strength than Bozeman. They've been dancing around with center going all the back to Matt Flynn.....

And Matt sucked.  He was pushed around like a ragdoll.

[vmax]

Really warming up to Mason. He's got McCrary in him...

His nickname is "Bench Press," and his physical play will made him a special teams contributor immediately. "My mental process is I'm the baddest dude on the field at all times," Mason said. 

[oldno82]

No Center or OT drafted or signed in FA. The line doesn't look good to me. And they really didn't address with any certainty the edge rusher and DL depth they need.

We rolled the dice on the first two picks. They can either show that they can play right away or kiss them goodbye.

My grade for the Ravens draft is a C-.

I sure hope I'm wrong but this draft left me feeling empty.

[tsylvester]

For what it's worth

https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bs-sp-ravens-tackle-nfl-draft-receivers-20210501-xf55joujvbdobm63zfjpu5uwy4-story.html

“Well, we have some guys that we think are going to compete right now at the right tackle spot, and we’re excited about that,” general manager Eric DeCosta said Saturday at the team’s post-draft news conference. “As I learned from my mentor [executive vice president] Ozzie Newsome, we don’t have to play games until September. We’re confident that we’ll have a right tackle. We’ll have a strong offensive line. The best guys are going to play. We have great competition, and we’ll be ready to play when the time comes.”

 

 

[vmax]

https://twitter.com/i/status/1388361598859890688

https://twitter.com/i/status/1388331707066208261

[vmax]

Ravens Draft Grades:

Late for Work 5/2: Ravens’ 2021 Draft Receives Mostly High Grades (baltimoreravens.com)

 

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DeCosta said the Ravens were not going to betray their draft board to force a pick at any position.

"We're not going to reach on guys," DeCosta said. "Our boards might look different from other teams' boards and the media's boards. Sometimes there's a medical factor that has to be brought into the equation. Sometimes there's a scheme factor, there's personality factors, there's a lot of different things we look at. I think we're really comfortable where we are right now as an offensive line."...Ravens Still Have Options at Right Tackle After Not Drafting One (baltimoreravens.com)

 

[tsylvester]

Not going to reach for a guy? Picking a guy who has played corner for only a season or 2 in the 3rd is quite a reach.....