What Do Ravens Still Need Headed Into Day 3?

Day two started off with a perfect Ravens-like pick in Zion Young.  With Ioane and Young in the fold, I give the team some leeway with the questionable WR pick of Ja’Kobi Lane in Round 3.  Now we have eight (8) more picks to get through to build the depth on the team… and there are a lot of places that can use depth.  This being a weak draft, we started seeing some weird picks by the end of the night, and that’s pushed a lot of players down.

Do the Ravens continue that trend or take some of these free-fallers?

Quarterback

My sleeper QB2 in this draft is Cole Payton (North Dakota St).  That doesn’t mean it’s a ringing endorsement, but he fits with Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley’s play style.  Well, closer to Huntley.  If the team can draft him late and stash him on the PS for a year I’d call it a win.

Wide Receiver

I’d still look at this position even having already drafted Lane.  We’re expecting six receivers and WR6 is currently Dayton Wade.  There are plenty of options too – among them Skyler Bell (Uconn), Elijah Sarratt (Indiana), Bryce Lance (North Dakota St), Jeff Caldwell (Cincinnati), and Josh Cameron (Baylor).  The Ravens need more competition and can even add a veteran signing.

Tight End

As I said in the previous article, it depends on whether the Ravens want a traditional “Y” TE or a receiving “F” TE as to who they draft… because they’re going to draft one.  At least one.  The draft order at this position went sideways with Nate Boerkircher, Will Kacmarek and Marlin Klein going far earlier than expected.  That leaves Justin Joly (North Carolina St), Jack Endries (Texas), Joe Royer (Cincinnati), Riley Nowakowski (Indiana), Michael Trigg (Baylor), and Josh Cuevas (Alabama) all still on the board, in addition to expected later draft picks like Tanner Koziol (Houston) and Dallen Bentley (Utah).  With so many day three picks, we can see a double-dip here.

Running Back

The Ravens successfully avoided drafting running back through three rounds, and find that only three of them total have been drafted, including surprise pick Kaelon Black.  I foresee the team taking one in round five, and my opinion is they should focus on Adam Randall (Clemson), Emmett Johnson (Nebraska), and Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest) in that range.

Offensive Line

The biggest question left on the team is what they’re going to do to fill Tyler Linderbaum’s shoes at C.  Ioane is going to help whoever that is.  It could be Corey Bullock, or Jovaughn Gwynn, or perhaps Emery Jones Jr.; but I’d feel a bit better if they draft Sam Hecht (Kansas St), Connor Lew (Auburn), Brian Parker II (Duke), Matt Gulbin (Michigan St), or Pat Coogan (Indiana).  As you can see there are still options.  I can’t say the same thing about OT.  Carson Vinson is better, I think, than anyone they can draft, but you could see the team take a flier on a fourth tackle.

Defensive Line

There is still a question at 3-Tech in spite of the recent good news regarding Nnamdi Madubuike.  Gracen Halton (Oklahoma) is still there and might be the #1 player on my day three board because of how thin this position is in the draft.  Beyond him, you’re looking at three smaller players in Zane Durant (Penn St), Kaleb Proctor (SE Louisiana) and Landon Robinson (Navy), plus an injury concern player in Rayshaun Benny (Michigan).  We don’t know what the team is planning for a Madubuike contingency.

EDGE

Baltimore now has a fearsome foursome on the outside, so whoever they get if they double-dip at EDGE would compete with Adisa Isaac for a roster spot.  The name at the top of the list coincidentally went to the same school – Dani Dennis-Sutton (Penn St).  Some other names to look out for include Mason Reiger (Wisconsin) and Quintayvious Hutchins (Boston College).  Age is a factor with these guys, and we know GM Eric DeCosta doesn’t like drafting older players.

Linebacker

There will probably be a LB taken somewhere on day three, even if it’s one of the picks in round seven.  The better ones are cleaned out, but the team needs someone like, say Bryce Boettcher (Oregon) to step in and play special teams until it’s time for their incumbents to move on.  The Ravens have been so successful in adding UDFA in this department that it’s not a sure thing any of the remaining picks will be from this position group.  One intriguing prospect is the tiny Kyle Louis (Pittsburgh), who is really more of a box safety but is not someone to sleep on when he’s on the field.

Cornerback

Let’s get one thing out of the way:  Jermod McCoy is by far the most talented player left, but it is clear his knee is a major injury problem.  When is the risk acceptable for the potential reward?  I think he goes early on day three, but we’ll see.  As for the Ravens, I feel they do need another CB, particularly one on the outside.  A lot of those left on the board are not that.  Ephesians Prysock (Washington) is, as well as Will Lee III (Texas A&M) and Charles Demmings (Stephen F. Austin).

Safety

Whoever is drafted from this position group is hopefully not seeing the field on defense any time soon, so special teams is paramount.  There are still some impressive names on this board, including Jalon Kilgore (South Carolina), V.J. Payne (Kansas St), Zakee Wheatley (Penn St), and Genesis Smith (Arizona).  If it happens, they’ll be in a lot of competition for a roster spot with 13 DBs already on the team, before the UDFA list.

Special Teams

The Ravens have Tyler Loop at kicker and Luke Elzinga at punter and both can use some competition.  I have no idea if any of this year’s class is draftable, so I’ll pass on an opinion and trust the Ravens front office.  I’m just saying that I wouldn’t rest on my laurels here.

The post What Do Ravens Still Need Headed Into Day 3? appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2026/04/25/nfl-draft/what-do-ravens-still-need-headed-into-day-3/