Hello and happy Friday, Ravens Flock. It was a slow news week in the NFL as the league continued to prepare for the 2023 NFL Draft, which starts next Thursday and runs through Saturday.
Unfortunately, this time of year is for the rumors to start up. A lot of times, these rumors about the prospects in the Draft are made up to tank their stock. It is a cruel world one week before the Draft because these rumors about these kids a week away from fulfilling their dreams are made up by teams who want them to fall into their hands…nasty business.
Another point is that while it would seem as we get closer, we would know more about where the Ravens are heading, most Mock Drafts experts are divided.
Mock Draft 13.0: No clear favorite as we're one week away from the 2023 NFL Draft: https://t.co/655pKAeIer
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 20, 2023
This is exactly what the Ravens want: the media and fans are entirely lost. We can look at their depth chart and see where they need to improve, but they aren’t showing their hand. The Ravens front office would be excellent poker players. It seems like all of these Mock Drafts have a pattern, though. Most of the time, it is a corner or wider receiver landing in Baltimore.
Does this mean anything? Probably not, but those are the two gaping holes on the roster. Do the Ravens care about those holes? Yes and no. They understand when a problem is a problem, but they won’t let that dictate where they go. All of this is to say for the fans, don’t be locked into one position or player and have an open mind about who they could draft.
If you don’t know what is going on with the other positions, might I suggest following RSR’s draft coverage? Here is the most recent article from that ongoing series:
In other news, the Ravens reached a huge extension that will greatly impact this franchise.
The Baltimore Ravens and @MandT_Bank have extended their strategic partnership, including the stadium naming rights agreement, for 15 years through the 2037 football season❗️ pic.twitter.com/KIT9ZrjsQE
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 20, 2023
Not the extension we wanted but the one we deserve. The Bank is such a good nickname for M&T Bank Stadium, and I am happy it is sticking around for a while.
With this said, it is now time for the final edition of Mock Draft Friday. The stipulation is simple: if four certain players are available, you take them. If not, trade down.
The four players that are must-take are:
Wide Receivers Zay Flowers and Jordan Addison, and Corners Joey Porter Jr. and Deontae Banks.
Anything else is a trade-down, and then we evaluate. Luckily Flowers was on the board, and I will pound the table for him any day of the week. He is fast and explosive and can play on the outside. Getting Tyrique Stevenson in the third is a steal. He already took a top 30 visit with the Ravens and is the type of corner they like. Zavala is a teaching tape for run-blocking, which gives him such a good solid floor as an NFL starter, a late-round bonus. Kobie Turner would be a strong developmental piece for the interior of the line, and Wicks provides more Wide Receiver depth.
Overall a really good solid Mock Draft Friday to send us out.
We are less than one week away from the NFL Draft, and it is time to get excited. Let’s hope other news about a certain extension (or, gulp, trade) comes with said Draft.
3 Responses
Another thing that starts at this time of year is sport writers swooning over the Ravens’ supposed genius strategies on draft day. But what is this actually based on? Has anyone done a real analysis if it works? We don’t know if Dobbins was the right move with the second pick in 2020 when they didn’t really need a RB. We don’t really know if Hamilton was the right pick last year. And do the Ravens actually succeed on the field any better than teams that pay more attention to need? I’ve never seen any stats on this. If the Ravens take a RB with the first pick I’ll be physically sick.
Go back over the past 5-7 drafts and see how many players drafted by the Ravens are still in the League. While not all are on the roster, there are quite a few who ended up leaving for bigger and better paydays. That is a true sign of successful drafting team. The Cap won’t let you keep everyone you draft.
Good idea. I wonder what that would show? But I’m more questioning the automatic assumption that “best player available” is always the right strategy. For example, we badly needed a right tackle in 2020 (and turns out a left tackle too) but ED decided Dobbins was too good to miss. Tackle was our Achilles heel that year, undermining the entire offense. Last year Hamilton was too good to miss rather than a WR. We know how that turned out. But to your point, yes, maybe a sports writer could undertake that analysis, and then compare it to other teams. I’m just asking where are the facts?