Why the Ravens drafted T.J. Tampa

A look into the reasoning behind the Ravens’ pick of T.J. Tampa at No. 130.

In his press conference following Day 2 of the 2024 NFL Draft, Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta told reporters the team’s approach to the third and final day would be to “just draft the best football players.”

“We’re just basically open highway and we can just sit back and just draft the best guys that we see on the board without any real thought to position or how they’re going to fit roster-wise,” DeCosta said Friday night.

While the selection of North Carolina wide receiver Devontez Walker near the top of the fourth round was a case of the top prospect on the board matching the top remaining need, that wasn’t the case at the bottom of the round when they used the No. 130 overall pick on Iowa State cornerback T.J. Tampa. However, it was clearly a prime example of DeCosta’s comments made manifest as adding another cornerback was far from the team’s biggest remaining need after using their first-round pick on Clemson’s Nate Wiggins.

The former Cyclone was one the most surprising prospect falls heading into Day 3 as many pundits believed he was a Day 2 lock at worst and fringe first-rounder at best yet he lasted all the way until the bottom of the fourth where he was too talented to pass up again. At 6-foot-1 and 189 pounds with 32-inch arms, Tampa has good size and length and plays the kind of physical press-man coverage the Ravens love out of their cornerbacks out on the perimeter.

Tampa made 29 starts in college including all 12 in each of the past two seasons during which he recorded 16 pass breakups, eight tackles for loss, a forced fumble, averaged 42 total tackles and recorded all three of his career interceptions—two of which came in in 2023. In addition to being adept in coverage having allowed just one touchdown in 900 career defensive snaps, he is both a willing and aggressive tackler in run support which is a mentality the Ravens cover in their defensive backs.

This pick further fortifies the team’s defensive back depth at outside cornerback after losing veterans Ronald Darby and Rock Ya-Sin in free agency who were key rotational and stop-gap pieces in the league’s top-ranked defense last season. It also ensures the Ravens won’t be back in the same position of needing to take a starting caliber early in next year’s draft if they lose Brandon Stephens in free agency. The 2021 third-rounder is heading into the final year of his rookie deal and is coming off a breakout 2023 season in which he established himself as one of the upper-echelon corners in the league.

Tampa will likely play the bulk of his snaps as a rookie on special teams barring injuries to the three players ahead of him on the depth chart but he could begin to earn some regular snaps if he shines in that phase of the game. Given the age, salary, and durability concerns of three-time Pro Bowler Marlon Humphrey, the Ravens might view Tampa as a potential future starter down the road who they got at an absolute bargain as a Day 3 pick.