The grades are in, and the Baltimore Ravens and general manager Eric DeCosta mostly received high marks for assembling the team’s nine-man draft class. DeCosta was praised for addressing the team’s needs and getting several perceived good value picks.
Of course, it will take a few years to accurately and fairly grade the Ravens’ 2024 NFL Draft class. DeCosta understands that reality.
“I know some of these guys won’t be as good as we think they’re going to be, but I know some of these guys will be better than we think they’re going to be, and that’s exciting,” DeCosta said Saturday night. “That’s just the nature of the draft.”
The Ravens’ draft haul didn’t produce much pizzazz or surprises. Last year was always going to be a tough act to follow, with Baltimore finalizing an extension with quarterback Lamar Jackson on the afternoon of Day 1 and then drafting an exciting target for him, wide receiver Zay Flowers, in the first round. However, this year’s Ravens draft was defined by functionality and good value.
It also produced some winners and losers.
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Ravens NFL Draft picks 2024: Grades, fits and scouting reports
Winners
Defensive coordinator Zach Orr: Within his first few months on the job, Orr watched the Ravens defense get raided in free agency with key performers Geno Stone, Ronald Darby, Patrick Queen and Jadeveon Clowney all signing elsewhere. Baltimore’s defense, though, is beginning to take shape. The selections of first-round cornerback Nate Wiggins, third-round edge rusher Adisa Isaac and fourth-round cornerback T.J. Tampa give Orr three talented, young pieces to mix in. Wiggins, in particular, was a guy Orr wanted so much that he told the former Clemson standout during his top-30 visit he would push the Ravens’ decision-makers to draft him if he was available at No. 30. Mission accomplished.
Former Raven Haloti Ngata: The affable Ngata provided one of the draft’s more amusing moments as he prepared to announce the Ravens’ third-round pick. Ngata introduced his three sons, noted they were all born in Baltimore, and said they were all “raised to say one thing.” In unison, the Ngata boys said, “Steelers suck,” as their father cheered them on. Ngata may never have had to buy a beer for himself in Baltimore anyway, but he just made sure of it.
Haloti Ngata provided the funniest moment of the draft for Ravens fans when he introduced his sons before making Baltimore’s third-round pick.
Ngata: “They were all born in Baltimore and they were all raised to say one thing.”
His sons: “Steelers suck!” pic.twitter.com/UF1xFbrYwz
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) April 27, 2024
Inside linebacker Trenton Simpson: It wasn’t expected that the Ravens would use prime draft capital to replace Queen. DeCosta did that a year earlier when he selected Simpson in the third round. However, the Ravens not adding an inside linebacker in this draft reinforces the idea that they are more than comfortable with Simpson replacing Queen and starting alongside Roquan Smith. The added bonus for Simpson was that Baltimore drafted Wiggins, his former Clemson teammate.
Manager of data and decision science Derrick Yam: DeCosta shouted Yam out twice during his draft news conference, praising a behind-the-scenes member of the organization’s personnel staff. Yam sold DeCosta on the idea that the Ravens could stick at 30 and still get a player they had ranked in the top 20 on their board. Wiggins was comfortably inside the Ravens’ top 20. It was also Yam who less assuredly told DeCosta there was an 80 percent chance offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten would still be available at pick No. 62 in the second round — and Baltimore wouldn’t need to trade up to get him. DeCosta wasn’t necessarily buying it, but Yam’s initial sense was prescient.
Returning guards: For Ben Cleveland, Andrew Vorhees, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu and possibly even Josh Jones, the path to a starting guard job did not get more treacherous during the draft. The Ravens surprisingly sat out the guard market beyond taking Michigan State center Nick Samac in the seventh round. John Harbaugh said Samac would take some reps at guard, but it’s hard to imagine a seventh-round pick whose natural position is center will immediately enter the starting guard mix. Training camp is just under three months away and there’s plenty of time for DeCosta to add a veteran interior offensive lineman. For now, though, Cleveland and Vorhees remain the favorites to start, and both of their chances got a boost last week.
Secondary coaches Chris Hewitt and Doug Mallory: Hewitt, the assistant head coach/pass game coordinator, and Mallory, the Ravens’ secondary coach, got two nice additions to their cornerback group with the selections of Wiggins in the first round and Tampa in the fourth. With Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Stephens, Wiggins, Tampa, Trayvon Mullen, Jalyn Armour-Davis and Ka’dar Hollman among the outside options, and Arthur Maulet, Damarion Williams and Ar’Darius Washington in the slot mix, the Ravens will have plenty of quality competition for roster spots this summer. Hewitt and Mallory also have two young, talented cornerbacks with different skill sets to mold.
Nate Wiggins returned two interceptions for touchdowns during his final two seasons at Clemson. (Ken Ruinard / USA Today)
Wide receiver Rashod Bateman: The verbal agreement on a contract extension, which came the day before the draft started, silenced the questions about Bateman’s future in Baltimore and the speculation that he could be traded during the draft. That, in itself, would have been enough to put him on this side of the list. The Ravens then didn’t draft a receiver on either Day 1 or 2. DeCosta and Harbaugh have said all offseason they expect Bateman to have a significant role on offense and to have a breakout year, but their actions over the past 10 days speak louder. Not aggressively pursuing a wide receiver in free agency and not taking one early in the draft is affirmation that the Ravens believe in Bateman.
Losers
Candidates for final wide receiver spot(s): With Flowers, Bateman and Nelson Agholor, the Ravens are pretty set with their top three receivers. The candidates for the final two or maybe three receiving spots on the 53-man roster just got some more competition with Baltimore drafting Devontez Walker in the fourth round and adding some college free-agent receivers after the draft. Walker will be on the team as long as he’s healthy. Assuming the Ravens’ top three receivers are also ready to go, that leaves maybe one or two roster spots for a group that includes Deonte Harty, Tylan Wallace, Sean Ryan and any receivers added in the coming weeks.
Cornerbacks Jalyn Armour-Davis and Damarion Williams: Both fourth-round picks in 2022, Armour-Davis and Williams have struggled to remain healthy for the Ravens, appearing in just 27 games combined over two seasons. It was already setting up to be a crucial summer for their futures before the Ravens used two of their first five picks on cornerbacks. There remains a path to the 53-man roster for both young corners who the Ravens like, but Armour-Davis and Williams are operating with significantly less margin of error now.
Offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris: To be clear, the Ravens are putting a lot of faith in D’Alessandris’ ability to teach and develop young offensive linemen, along with making sure Baltimore has the right guys in the right spots up front. The venerable D’Alessandris has earned it and relishes such responsibility. However, the Ravens are now in line to replace three veteran starters (Kevin Zeitler, Morgan Moses and John Simpson) with three first-year starters. Two of the team’s new starters could essentially be rookies in Rosengarten at right tackle and Vorhees at left guard. Vorhees is coming off a “redshirt” rookie year as he rehabbed a knee injury. It’s a lot to ask, although D’Alessandris has shown he’s the man for the job.
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Offensive tackle Daniel Faalele: The 2022 fourth-round pick wasn’t just going to get handed the starting right tackle job. Yet, Rosengarten was a guy Ravens evaluators loved and targeted. Harbaugh stopped short of naming Rosengarten the starter, although he acknowledged that the rookie could start immediately — and he was drafted with that idea in mind. Faalele, who has started one game over his first two seasons, will need to show significant improvement this summer to win the job. At this juncture of the offseason, Rosengarten would probably be considered the favorite.
Quarterback Malik Cunningham: Tyler Huntley’s free-agent departure was seemingly a boost for Cunningham’s chances to win the No. 2 quarterback job behind Jackson. However, the Ravens re-signed veteran journeyman Josh Johnson and then anointed him the No. 2 quarterback. Harbaugh conceded recently that he still wasn’t sure whether the Ravens would use Cunningham as a full-time quarterback or wide receiver. On Day 3 of the draft, the Ravens used a sixth-round pick on Kentucky quarterback Devin Leary, who Harbaugh said would “probably be the third quarterback this year in some way or fashion.” It isn’t clear where that leaves Cunningham, but his roster spot suddenly feels tenuous.
Young outside linebackers: As long as they’re healthy, and that’s a question for David Ojabo more than Tavius Robinson and Malik Hamm, there will be opportunities for the trio to earn their snaps this summer. The addition of the highly thought-of Isaac, though, will almost certainly impact snaps for the team’s less-established outside linebackers. With Kyle Van Noy and Malik Harrison being re-signed, and Odafe Oweh as a projected starter on the edge, the Ravens are suddenly crowded at outside linebacker. As for Oweh, DeCosta declining to say whether the team would pick up his fifth-year option, a decision that has to be made this week, felt a bit ominous. Yes, the Ravens are a deadline team when it comes to making decisions, but if it was a slam dunk, it would have been easy for DeCosta to say so and put the question to bed.
(Top photo of Trenton Simpson: Julio Cortez / Associated Press)
