Happy March, Ravens Flock. More importantly, happy NFL Combine!
Starting today and running through March 7th, the Combine will showcase the skills of the 324 invitees and will likely be the catalyst for the most dramatic movement that we see up and down Big Boards prior to the 2022 NFL Draft. In fact, the effect is so dramatic that I usually don’t even bother putting together my own Big Board until after the Combine is over. Still, with the Ravens holding a precious commodity in the 14th overall pick, it’s been impossible to ignore the high-profile prospects that Baltimore could snag early on. With so much parity in the top end of this draft class, it feels inevitable that a top-tier talent will be available for the taking… the question is who will it be, and what position will the Ravens address?
Rather than eyeballing specific prospects, I’m going to keep my eye on clusters of players at specific position groups as the week progresses. Here are some guys on my wish list at positions of need:
EDGE: George Karlaftis (Purdue), David Ojabo (Michigan), Jermaine Johnson (Florida State), Travon Walker (Georgia)
1. Jaguars: OT Evan Neal, Alabama
5. Giants: Edge Kayvon Thibodeaux, Oregon
11. Commanders: QB Kenny Pickett, Pitt
18. Saints: QB Matt Corral, Ole Miss
26. Titans: Edge George Karlaftis, PurdueThe great @McShay13's Mock Draft 2.0 is live. https://t.co/YPmFaUM79X
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) February 16, 2022
It seems unthinkable that the top two EDGE candidates, Aidan Hutchinson and Kayvon Thibodeaux, would slide out of the top five. What should draw intrigue from Ravens fans is that there’s no real consensus on who the next best EDGE is outside of those two big names, and where they might fall. Take for example Todd McShay’s Mock Draft above, where he has George Karlaftis sliding all the way to the Titans at #26. By comparison, PFF’s most recent mock doesn’t even have Karlaftis making it out of the top 10, with Denver snagging him at #9.
The obvious play for the Ravens would be to reunite David Ojabo with newly-minted DC Mike MacDonald, but if Karlaftis did slide, there’s not a doubt in my mind that the Ravens would select him. In the cases of Johnson and Walker, they’re likely to fall somewhere in the late-first to early-second round range, but if their metrics don’t impress, Baltimore could make a play at one of them in the second round, even using some of their extra draft capital to trade up if they think it’s necessary.
[Related Article: Ravens Headed Overseas?]
CB: Ahmad Gardner (Cincinnati), Trent McDuffie (Washington), Andrew Booth Jr. (Clemson)
Trent McDuffie only allowed 111 yards in coverage in 2021…
Lowest number by a Pac-12 CB since 2014 (min 215 coverage snaps) pic.twitter.com/xz4uuoK7ze
— PFF Draft (@PFF_College) February 23, 2022
Sauce Gardner to the Ravens? 👀 pic.twitter.com/J9iBp3reQr
— PFF (@PFF) February 28, 2022
I’m trying not to get my hopes up that “Sauce” Gardner will be available at #14, but when PFF posted this jersey swap, I felt it in my soul. Gardner and LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. are the top two corners on nearly every board I’ve seen, so there is plenty of skepticism on their availability at the 14th pick. But teams always need QBs and OTs, and depending on how valued those positions are to teams with top 10 selections, a lockdown corner could slide right to the Ravens.
Just so I don’t gloss over him too much: Derek Stingley Jr. would be on my watch list, but his recovery from a Lisfranc surgery will make him unavailable for the Combine.
#LSU CB Derek Stingley Jr., perhaps the top CB in the draft, will wait until his Pro Day on April 6 to workout, source said. Stingley had surgery for a Lisfranc injury during the season and is nearly 100%. But not quite there yet, so no workouts at the Combine.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 28, 2022
OT: Ikem Ekwonu (NC State), Charles Cross (Mississippi State), Trevor Penning (Northern Iowa)
I alluded to it above, but there are plenty of teams ahead of Baltimore in the draft order in need of O-line help. Cross and Ekwonu aren’t exactly well-kept secrets, but we’ve seen plenty of instances in the past where unexpected concerns have caused players to lose ground from their early projections. Just off the top of my head, Alex Leatherwood and Teven Jenkins are two examples of how an O-line prospect can plummet from early projections based on Combine performance or unforeseen health concerns. It’s not likely, but if one of those guys happens to wake up on the wrong side of the bed one day at the Combine, maybe teams could be gun-shy enough not to risk a top-10 pick and the Ravens could take advantage.
Like the CB group, a big name (and the big human being that goes along with it) will be noticeably absent from the O-linemen at the Combine:
#Bama OL Evan Neal, a potential top overall pick for the NFL Draft, will wait until his Pro Day on March 30 to work out, source says. He’ll participate in interviews at the NFL Scouting Combine, but after a long season, he’ll take a few extra weeks to prepare.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 28, 2022
Do I expect teams to steer clear of Evan Neal just because he’s absent from the Combine? Absolutely not, but again, all it takes is a slight bit of concern to ward off the 11 teams making selections before the Ravens in the first round.
If any GMs from those 11 teams are here reading this article, I hear Evan Neal is mean to small children, yells at puppies and wears socks with sandals.
