OTL: More Mock Drafts for Your Case of the Mondays

The Baltimore Ravens are coming off another heartbreaking end to a season. The wound is starting to heal and reveal the excitement for the offseason. Ravens fans kind of know that as long as Lamar Jackson is good to go, the Ravens have a shot to be a contender. They have to break through eventually right? It’s time to make the team better. That means the NFL Draft is on the mind.

Pro Football Focus does team specific seven round mock drafts. The latest mock draft by Josh Liskiewitz has the Ravens going for a pass rusher in round one: Mike Green Edge, Marshall. 

Green was one of the breakout stars of the 2024 college season, as he led the nation with 17 sacks and ranked eighth in the country in pass-rush win rate (20.1%). He flashed his blend of power and speed while stepping up to play with the big boys at Senior Bowl practices, solidifying his first-round status.

This is an exciting idea. Sometimes waiting on pass rushers in the NFL Draft can lead to frustrating results. Just look what happened with guys like Matt Judon and Za’Darius Smith; by the time they figured out how to be true stars at their position they ended up getting paid elsewhere. Prioritizing the pass rush with a productive edge rusher could be what the Ravens need. The Ravens haven’t had a dominant edge rusher since Terrell Suggs. It’s time to change that. I’m all for this pick.

Tom Fornelli at CBS Sports has a very similar idea with his latest mock draft. He has the Ravens taking a different edge rusher. His pick is Princely Umanmielen from Ole Miss. 

I’m not sure Princely Umanmielen will ever develop into a great run defender off the edge, but his ability against the run is more than good enough when you consider his potential as a pass rusher. He didn’t pick up 10.5 sacks in the SEC last season by accident.

10.5 sacks last season is a nice thing to see on a resume. The number one thing I’m seeing from these picks for the Ravens is productivity at the college level. This could translate to instant impact as rookies. A dominant pass rush could end up being the difference against a Josh Allen or a Patrick Mahomes, so this is something to get right in late April.

Jumping on the edge-rusher-to-the-Ravens train is Daniel Jeremiah, who has the Ravens taking Shemar Stewart from Texas A&M. This is what he wrote in his mock draft:

Stewart just feels like a Raven to me. He’s big, explosive and disruptive. The production will come.

Jeremiah got his start working for the Ravens. If anyone in the media knows what a Ravens draft pick looks like it is him. Stewart certainly passes the eye test so keep him on your radar.

https://twitter.com/Ravens/status/1892976551307665565

Whomever the Ravens select to be their new players, the coaching staff will look a little different around John Harbaugh. We’ve talked about some of this already. We knew Anthony Levine Sr. was coming back as an assistant special teams coach for example. There are a couple things that stand out to me of this announced list of coaching moves.

First of all, there is a lot of head coach-caliber experience on this coaching staff. Chuck Pagano had a good run as the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. Willie Taggart has been a head coach in the college ranks. While his tenure at Florida State wasn’t exactly a triumphant time for him he’s been through years and years of coaching. Now Taggart is the Assistant Head Coach. This shows that Harbaugh values him and that he can help Harbaugh lead this team. It’s also hard to say a bad thing about what he does with the running backs. The other thing that stands out is that Matt Pees, the son of Dean Pees is getting a shot as the Assistant Linebackers Coach. This isn’t his first stop in the NFL but the Ravens are a sensible landing spot for him.

https://twitter.com/jasrifootball/status/1761085683458867709

The NFL Salary Cap is higher than expected according to reports. This could help the Ravens get stuff done in the offseason. The question becomes do the Ravens want to keep the band together or do they want to go after big names in free agency?

Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox has a few ideas about the Ravens’ free agent strategies:

Expect the Ravens to lock up a few players during the early offseason, target one potentially impactful addition and then sprinkle in a little depth. Van Noy was Baltimore’s most productive edge-rusher during the regular season, and he’ll turn 34 in March. If the Ravens do find the cap space to splurge, a younger edge-rusher like Azeez Ojulari or Malcolm Koonce could make sense. A proven starting cornerback like D.J. Reed or Kristian Fulton would also be logical. Baltimore’s pass defense improved late in the regular season, it still finished the year ranked 31st in passing yards allowed.

A proven starting cornerback is an underrated option for the Ravens. The Ravens are probably moving on from Brandon Stephens. Also, good cornerbacks are always in high demand when you have to play Joe Burrow twice a year. I like the idea of this general conversation though. The Ravens have some work to do on offense but improving the defense could be more important. As long as the Ravens have Jackson and some viable answers on the offensive line, they should be productive. The 2024 Ravens needed more from their defense. This entire conversation today has been about attacking the premium positions, the stuff you can’t have enough of on defense.

https://twitter.com/koestreicher34/status/1893795700653125959

Kevin Oestreicher put out a mock draft on X that focuses heavily on the defense. While he goes for a defensive back first, you can see he’s focused on the defensive line. I like it. The Ravens need to beef up in the trenches and model what the Eagles are doing with their defensive line. Defenses win championships, especially defensive lines. Just ask the Rams, it helped them beat the Bengals a few years back.

https://twitter.com/Kate_KanSkate/status/1893846129248272763

Speaking of the defensive line, if you want Brent Urban’s gloves they may or may not be available…

Happy Monday Baltimore.

The post OTL: More Mock Drafts for Your Case of the Mondays appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2025/02/24/out-to-lunch/otl-more-mock-drafts-for-your-case-of-the-mondays/