With the 2018 NFL Draft behind us, it’s time to begin the review
process on how each team stacks up with the selections they’ve made. After
reviewing the Ravens draft class ADF was extremely encouraged with the talent
that was selected. General Manager Ozzie Newsome will be leaving his mark for
the next many years with perhaps one of his stronger drafts in recent memory.
With twelve picks coming their way, it was indeed quite the haul, let’s
review…
Baltimore Ravens 2018 Draft Class Review:
Round 1 – Pick 25 (25)
Hayden Hurst (TE)
For the last several years the Baltimore Ravens have found it
difficult to fill the void at the tight end position since the injury to Dennis
Pitta left him unable to play football. The Ravens also surprised the viewing
public in passing on a quarterback of the future in Lamar Jackson and chose to
select perhaps the best tight end in the entire draft. Enter Hayden Hurst the
stand out product from South Carolina. Hurst is a tower of a man standing 6’5”
tall and a nice 250 pounds while showing good athletic ability and running a
clean 4.67 40-time at the combine.
Hurst is a very reliable pass catcher that should take the
starting job form day one in the Ravens offense. More impressively, Hurst has
shown the ability to run the entire route tree understanding placement on the
field to assist his quarterback in all situations. If there is a knock-on
Hayden’s game, it would have to reside in the form of average blocking ability.
Hurst will undoubtedly need to receive some coaching at the next level to
become a true three down player that coach Harbaugh can rely on. From his tape
it fully appears the Ravens may have finally solved their issues at the
position.
ADF Prediction: Great potential, high upside.
Round 1 – Pick 32 (32)
Lamar Jackson (QB)
While the Ravens decided to pass on perhaps the most eclectic
player in the entire draft with their first pick, the Ravens managed to trade
back into the first round with the Eagles and selected Louisville star
quarterback Lamar Jackson. The value in receiving Jackson with the last pick in
the first round was absolutely fantastic. First and foremost, Lamar is a
natural playmaker the NFL hasn’t seen since the days of Michael Vick back in
Atlanta when he took the league by storm. Jackson’s effectiveness in juking
defenders and creating on the fly to take off running out of the pocket is
something special, and will turn heads in the process. Jackson also possesses a
very good arm having the ability to launch it all over the field. Lamar does
carry decent size that will help his situation in the NFL in terms of injury
protection after he chooses to make plays with his legs and takes a shot from
opposing defenders.
While ADF believes Lamar will grow and the situation to sit his
first season learning behind Joe Flacco should provide nothing but positives to
his game. In his three years in college, Jackson didn’t overly flash great
passing ability with never cracking the 60% completion mark and never finding
his way to tossing 4000 passing yards. His touchdown to interception ratio
isn’t a large concern either, as his time in Louisville saw 69 touchdowns to
only 27 interceptions giving credence that he may be able to keep the ball
safe. ADF is very intrigued with Jackson in the NFL and believes he could turn
out to become one very exciting player. While the potential is high, his floor
remains very low also. Still, we love the pick at 32!
ADF Prediction: High Potential, low floor.
Round 3 – Pick 19 (83)
Orlando Brown (OL)
Cheers roared when the second coming of Orlando Brown became a
fixture on the Ravens draft board. Brown’s father also played for Baltimore and
saw a fantastic career unfold in his time. Brown was gifted with his father’s
fantastic size and body type coming in at a gigantic 6’8” tall holding a frame
of 345 pounds, wow! The limitations in Brown’s game does question if he found
the family genes in athleticism and sound agility. Orlando did see an unusual
drop into the third round as teams have viable concerns that he could man the
left tackle position with consistent production.
This may be echoed thought-out the Ravens draft class from us, but
this truly seems to be the perfect fit for Brown. Coach Harbaugh is a master at
exploiting talents from his players and Brown should enjoy great tutelage with
the chance that he could eventually carve out a starting role on the line. ADF
really likes the upside that should happen with the great coaching he will
receive.
ADF Prediction: Good
potential.
Round 3 – Pick 22 (86)
Mark Andrews (TE)
This pick in the third round really surprised us as the Ravens
chose to double down at the tight end position with another pass catcher coming
off the line. Andrews has great ability as he used to play the wide receiver
position but has the ideal size and weight to take on the role of tight end.
This pick screams duel tight end set formations for the Ravens this coming
season, as Andrews and Hurst will form quite the tandem. While Hurst possesses
more of an all-around game, Andrews surely will only be used in passing
situations to start his career with below average blocking ability.
ADF was extremely encouraged when reviewing the tape on Andrews in
his final season in Oklahoma, which saw him see his best statistics and taking
a giant leap to become a trusted receiver. Mark has always been a heavy
producer in terms of touchdowns, hauling in a whopping 22 scores in his three
years in college. Almost surpassing the 1000 receiving yard mark in his junior
season placed him on the Ravens scouting list. Love the upside here.
ADF Prediction: Very good
potential.
Round 4 – Pick 18 (118)
Anthony Averett (DB)
Did we mention we absolutely love the Ravens draft class? ADF
can’t say enough about Anthony Averett as he is one of our favorite defensive
backs to come out of this draft. Starting with his intangibles, Averett shows
top-notch measurables in terms of speed, agility, awareness, body placement,
even transitions, and closing ability. Averett would best be classified as glue
as he just stays with opposing wide receivers locking them down the entire
game. His game isn’t overly flashy, but Anthony will become a solid unbreakable
defender in the NFL.
Some scouts knock his stature as he doesn’t possess what all NFL
teams are looking for in that regard, ADF has zero concerns in that department
because he’s just a fantastic football player. If Averett had two or three more
inches in height, we could’ve seen him drafted in the first or second round.
While ADF does recognize his struggles in generating interceptions (1 career
interception) that really isn’t the facet of his game. Becoming a full-time
player in 2016 for his junior season, Averett tailored his game to shutting
down receives rather than making plays on the ball. This evidence is proven
with his 16 pass breakups in those two years. Baltimore scored an absolute stud
in the fourth round of this draft and will reap the benefits for many years to
come.
ADF Prediction: Very high
potential, potential star.
Round 4 – Pick 22 (122)
Kenny Young (LB)
Yet another pick in the Ravens class shows good talent at the line
backer position. Former UCLA product Kenny Young has very good ability even
though he may be a little undersized to man the middle of the field. Young does
possess good but not great athletic ability, but it doesn’t seem to matter when
he’s on the field. In his junior and senior seasons, Young was a tackling
machine amassing 200 tackles accounting 22 for loss being the line of
scrimmage. ADF does see the weakness in Young’s game as he tends to disappear
at times while not being a high producing in generating turnovers. Kenny
however does fit the mold of how the Ravens play on defense with his sound
positioning. ADF could envision Young taking a special teams role from day one
with being used in sub packages later in the season. Young has future starter
written all over him.
ADF Prediction: Solid
potential, has a floor.
Round 4 – Pick 32 (132)
Jaleel Scott (WR)
New Mexico State receiver has been on the ADF radar for quite some
time and the Ravens have found another player that will turn out with more
instruction and guidance. Scott is a tower that can do many things for his
quarterback with his great hands and leaping ability. In reviewing his tape,
ADF found ourselves enamoured with his ability posting many highlight reel
plays that definitely made us take notice. While Scott was a late bloomer but
breaking out last season, his stats showed he was more than capable of manning
the number one receiver slot hauling in 76 receptions for over 1000 yards and 9
touchdowns.
Some scouts question Scott’s speed and don’t provide gleaming
reviews for what he was able to accomplish. ADF does recognize that Jaleel will
need time to prefect his skill and show crisper route running and release off
the line, but his potential is extremely high going into the NFL. Its safe to
say we are a fan of Jaleel Scott.
ADF Prediction: Good potential, coaching needed, skill improvement required.
Round 5 – Pick 25 (162)
Jordan Lasley (WR)
Yet another talented receiver brought to the fold, Baltimore this
time went with a speedier very productive receiver from UCLA. Lasley enjoyed a
breakout campaign in his junior season that saw him achieve 69 receptions, 1264
yards, and 9 touchdowns, rather impressive. Jordan doesn’t have top end speed
but possesses a very fast get off that should make him a potential to do some damage
in the future. Character issues have been front and center showing his
inability to be a team player and be all for the team. If Harbaugh can’t
correct that aspect of what he is, Lasley could be out before he gets started.
ADF does like the potential Lasley brings though and should challenge as the
season wears on.
Round 6 – Pick 16 (190)
Deshon Elliott (DB)
Defense is the name of the game in the Harbaugh tenure and adding
more depth in that department, the Ravens selected Deshon Elliott to help the
backend of the secondary. Elliott is a pure hitter that has shown how opportunistic
he can be in generating turnovers. While his frame is good to man the safety
position, his speed might be something of a question mark to become a full-time
starter at the position. ADF has echoed our belief in having adequate depth on
any roster to have success in the long run for the season, and Deshon fits that
mold.
Round 6 – Pick 38 (212)
Greg Senat (OL)
With the last three picks in their draft class, it was clear these
all had depth additions and special team interests in mind. Having more
offensive lineman on the roster will undoubtedly give any team the advantage as
injuries happen every year and Greg Senat would be able to fill a void if one
become prevalent. ADF can see Senat more as a right tackle rather than on the
left side as his athletic frame should provide good production. His technique
does leave something to be desired but should be solid for depth purposes.
Round 6 – Pick 41 (215)
Bradley Bozeman (OL)
Any player that had production in his time in Alabama should be on
the radar to at least be given a shot at an NFL tryout. Bozeman is a decent Center
that can play the game at a high level but will have to work on his placement
and awareness of opposing defenders. Bradley does possess great size to man the
line and his leadership skills look to be on par as he is well respected. More
depth to a unit that is aging and requires more talent was the driving factor
here.
Round 7 – Pick 20 (238)
Zach Sieler (DE)
ADF is extremely intrigued with Zach Sieler and what he was able
to accomplish in his time in college. Zach is put together extremely well for a
player that will make his living playing off the edge. His speed teamed with
his strength makes him a fantastic prospect to at least be given the opportunity
to show what he can do. Though playing in a smaller division, Sieler was uber-productive
showing his skill while making great plays for his team. Zach could be a long
shot to make the final roster, but he has a great opportunity.
2018 Undrafted Free Agent Signings
Gus Edwards, RB,
Rutgers
Mason McKenrick, LB, John Carroll
Kaare Vedvik, K/P, Marshall
Christian LaCouture, DT, LSU
Jaelon Acklin, WR, Western Illinois
Alvin Jones, LB, UTEP
Randin Crecelius, OL, Portland State
Alex Thompson, C, Monmouth
Justin Evans, OL, South
Carolina State
Nick Keizer, TE, Grand
Valley State
Andrew Levrone, WR, Virginia
Trent Sieg, LS, Colorado
State
Mark Thompson, RB, Florida
De'Lance Turner, RB, Alcorn State
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