Ravens News 4/23: Trading Up

Why the NFL draft is so important for the Ravens, both this year and next

Brian Wacker, The Baltimore Sun

“We’ve always been a team that’s built through the draft primarily,” said DeCosta, who will oversee his sixth draft for Baltimore this year. “We feel that’s the best way to build your team long-term from a cost standpoint — obviously cheaper players, but also young players that you know a lot about who can develop and become good players.

“We see this year’s draft and we see next year’s draft as real opportunities for us to begin to build that depth up again.”

“Cornerback and offensive tackle are not exactly spots in free agency where a lot of great players hit the open market, so the Ravens might feel their best way to attack those two positions is in the draft,” Yates said. “The offensive tackle class I do think there are possibilities of players that last late into the late portion of the second round, but both of those [positions] are areas where 30 is the only place where I feel confident they could address one of those two issues.”

“Cornerback is their biggest need and the offensive line would be right there,” Kiper told The Sun. “Kool-Aid ran 4.47 [seconds in the 40-yard dash] with that Jones [foot] fracture [when] everyone thought he would be a 4.55 guy. He was better than that, even with the injury. He’s been a starter since Day 1. He was better than [teammate] Terrion Arnold most of his career … Kool-Aid at the end of the first round, that’s a heck of a pick there in terms of where they were, where they are now in terms of value.

5 trades that would shake up the 2024 NFL Draft

Gordon McGuinness, PFF

BALTIMORE RAVENS MAKE A BIG JUMP FOR AN OFFENSIVE TACKLE

The Ravens traded away starter Morgan Moses, whose 80.4 PFF grade in 2023 was the third highest among right tackles. They also restructured left tackle Ronnie Stanley’s contract this offseason after he ranked 18th among left tackles with a 75.9 PFF pass-blocking grade in 2023. He is now set to become a free agent after 2024. That gives the Ravens both short- and longer-term needs at tackle.

Baltimore picks at No. 30 overall and could draft a falling tackle, with players like Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton and Arizona’s Jordan Morgan frequently being linked to the Ravens in mock drafts. I like the idea of Baltimore being aggressive, especially if a player like Washington’s Troy Fautanu or Penn State’s Olu Fashanu reaches the midpoint of the first round. The Ravens would likely need to add a second- and a fourth-round pick to get up into that range, but given their needs at the position this year and next, it’s a move that could set them up for the next five years at left tackle.

Make the Case: WR Adonai Mitchell

Clifton Brown, BaltimoreRavens.com

Why He Makes Sense:

Mitchell was productive both outside and in the slot for the Longhorns and would add a versatile target to Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken’s scheme. At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, Mitchell has a strong skillset working the middle of the field and catching balls in traffic. He also has the speed (ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds) to take the top off a defense. Mitchell could join Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely to give Jackson another big body target to work with.

“Mitchell has outstanding size, toughness and polish for the position. He has surprisingly good route polish for a bigger receiver. He understands how to change tempo, and he’s clean getting in and out of breaks. He gave Kool-Aid McKinstry a lot of trouble in the Alabama game last September, finishing with three catches for 78 yards and two TDs. He has some wow catches on fades and 50/50 balls. It looks like he gets a little lazy at times on the back side of routes, assuming the ball is going elsewhere. He doesn’t have a ton of production after the catch. Overall, though, Mitchell is an ideal X receiver. He can make plays when covered, and he’s a real weapon in the red zone.” – Daniel Jeremiah, NFL Network

Better-Than Team for 2024 NFL Draft: Here are the prospects Pete Prisco likes more than scouts do

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports

Troy Franklin, WR, Oregon

Pop on an Oregon tape and you will see Franklin running away from defenders. He is a long strider who has impressive speed, clocking at 4.4 in the 40 at the combine. There were also a lot of plays where he was behind the defensive back, but had to wait for the football. The flip side is he did have some drops. He needs to improve his catching of the football. He struggled with it at the combine workout, but was much better at his pro day. He showed last season he could take a slant, split the defense and take it to the house. There aren’t a lot of guys who can do that, running away from defensive backs. He can, which is why he should be a late first-round pick in my book but will likely go in the second.

T.J. Tampa, CB, Iowa State

He is a long corner at 6-1, but he isn’t a burner after being timed at 4.53 at his pro day. He is the type of corner who would fit in with a team that runs a lot of zone — which he played a lot of in college. He is smart and athletic enough to be a good zone corner who can improve his man techniques enough on the next level. He will throw his body around in the run game, almost getting too overaggressive at times but he isn’t a great tackler because of the misses. He had two picks last season. I could also see him moving inside to safety and holding up well there on the next level because he is aggressive, and a team wants that.

Here’s How Every First-Round Pick of the 2024 NFL Draft Will Play Out

Sheil Kapadia, The Ringer

11:47 p.m.: At no. 29, the Detroit Lions go with West Virginia offensive lineman Zach Frazier. The Baltimore Ravens select Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry at no. 30. At no. 31, the 49ers take Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zahn Newton. And finally, at no. 32, the Cardinals go with Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins.