Having been awarded the 6th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Ravens fans should be more excited for it. Many top prospects will be linked to the team, and we look at a few of the options. Lardarius Webb sees his future at safety, while Jimmy Smith is feeling like himself just in time for the end of the season. Injuries weren’t the only problem in 2015. The Browns continue their revolving door of football leadership. John Harbaugh feels that this season was rewarding.
The 6th Overall Pick
1-20 Draft Order is set: pic.twitter.com/PocwuWRc8C
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) January 4, 2016
For the first time since 2007, the Ravens will have a top 10 draft pick. That may not seem like exciting news at the time, especially as the three teams Ravens fans hate the most are in the playoffs. In March and April, however, it will be worth our excitement. All of the talk we’ll hear for two months will be about players who have the potential to fall to the Ravens, especially if a quarterback goes before Baltimore’s pick. There is also the chance that a team tries to move to the 6th pick to jump ahead of the 49ers for a quarterback, which would give Ozzie more picks at his disposal.
Ravens have plenty of options with the #6 pick
Clifton Brown of CSN Mid-Atlantic has a few options for the Ravens at the number 6 pick. At the top of the list is WR LaQuon Treadwell, who appears to be this year’s top receiver prospect at this early stage. Three of the other options are defensive backs: Jalen Ramsey, Vernon Hargreaves, and Mackensie Alexander.
Ravens’ Lardarius Webb sees future at safety, while Jimmy Smith is happy to feel like himself
Interesting comments from Lardarius Webb. Moving forward, he says he sees his future at safety. What is especially interesting about that is his paycheck. Safeties are typically paid much less than cornerbacks. Jimmy Smith, on the other hand, had just begun to feel like himself again after suffering a Lisfranc injury last year. His best game of the year was probably in Week 1, but that was against the 2015 version of Peyton Manning.
Injuries were not only story in Ravens’ lost season
Bo Smolka of CSN Mid-Atlantic says injuries weren’t the only reason that the Ravens had such a poor season. Of course he is right; the Ravens were 1-6 before any of the major injuries even occurred. Smolka list four reasons why they were in that position from the beginning: little to no production from high-round draft picks, poor construction of the roster in places, disappointing free-agent acquisitions, and tough calls going the other way.
Browns fire Mike Pettine, Ray Farmer
This seems like an annual rite of passage for the Browns. Both the General Manager and Head Coach have been fired for what seems like the 400th time since the franchise re-entered the league via expansion (in reality, it’s been the 5th time since 2008).
According to ESPN, the new Head Coach will be hired first, and he will be a part of the decision-making process of deciding a new GM. Seems backwards to me. Whoever makes the decision that choosing Cleveland is a good idea for their career is making a very poor decision; an organization in as much despair as that one needs way more continuity. Which is impossible given how quickly owner Jimmy Haslam fires his organization’s leaders.
