Over the course of six weeks leading up to the NFL Draft, six writers will give us their favorite and least favorite potential pick for the Ravens with the sixth overall selection. The first five picks could go a variety of different ways. Considering that uncertainty, we have only eliminated two players – FSU DB Jalen Ramsey and Ole Miss OT Laremy Tunsil – from consideration.
Here is what we have:
Mike Fast: Favorite – Vernon Hargreaves; Least Favorite – Joey Bosa
Kyle Casey: Favorite – Laremy Tunsil; Least Favorite – Ronnie Stanley
Tony Lombardi: Favorite – Myles Jack; Least Favorite – Vernon Hargreaves
Dev Panchwagh: Favorite – Myles Jack; Least Favorite – Joey Bosa
Tyler Lombardi: Favorite – Laremy Tunsil; Least Favorite – Joey Bosa
Ryan Jones is up this week in part 3.
Favorite pick:Â DeForest Buckner, DE, Oregon
I’ve been going back and forth between Buckner and Myles Jack. Jack’s injury history, though, makes me nervous. The last thing the Ravens can afford is another top pick with lingering knee issues. I’m a big fan of Buckner for two reasons.
First is his ability to get after the quarterback. The Ravens desperately need it. The Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year had 10.5 sacks in 2015 and 17 tackles for loss.
Second, putting Buckner along the defensive line with Brandon Williams and Timmy Jernigan would give the Ravens one of the best young defensive fronts in all of football. The Ravens take pride in imposing their will and stopping the run. Taking Buckner would certainly help that.
Buckner would bolster a puss rush in need of it, and he brings a high motor and physical style of play that the Ravens and their fans appreciate.
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Least favorite pick: Ronnie Stanley, OT, Notre Dame
It’s clear that the Ravens want to move on from Eugene Monroe. They are reported to still be monitoring the statuses of Ryan Clady and D’Brickashaw Ferguson. But replacing Monroe with Stanley wouldn’t make much sense.
Even the great Jonathan Ogden played guard his rookie year. Would you want to trust a rookie to protect the blindside of the most important player on your team? A player that is coming off of major reconstructive knee surgery. Monroe has been unreliable since arriving in Baltimore, but he has to know that this is a make or break season for him. As Tony Lombardi recently pointed out, if he fails to perform in 2016 he will never see a dime of the remaining $13.5 million dollars the Ravens owe him.
The Ravens biggest need is a game changer, on either side of the ball. A player who can shift the momentum of a game in one play. Unless Ronnie Stanley will be forcing turnovers or catching touchdown passes, he’s not that player. He will be a solid player and left tackle in the NFL. I just hope it’s for any team besides the Ravens.
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