With the 2023 NFL Draft just over three weeks away, the mock draft projections from some of the top analysts are getting bolder. In his latest slate of predictions, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein has the Baltimore Ravens making a pair of first-round selections for the third year in a row after trading away yet another prominent player.
This time around, he has them granting the trade request of the unanimous league MVP-winning quarterback Lamar Jackson by dealing him to the Indianapolis Colts in a package that includes the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft that they then use to take Ohio State’s CJ Stroud to be his replacement.
“If a trade is going to get done for Lamar Jackson, you would think Baltimore would like it to happen before the draft — especially if the deal is with the Colts, who hold the fourth overall pick,” he wrote. “It would be hard to pass on Stroud in this spot.”
The top 10 of his latest mock is a bit of a head-scratcher but Stroud falling past the top three let alone the top two picks is beyond wishful thinking. Another quarterback-needy team looking for a rookie to start over with or groom would almost certainly trade up to No. 3 overall to stop his short fall if both the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans pass on him.
Zierlein’s projection for the team’s original first-round pick at No. 22 overall is former Boston College standout wide receiver Zay Flowers who has been popularly mocked to land with them for good reason.
“It’s not out of the question that the Ravens go with a guard or edge rusher here, but Flowers adds a much-needed pass-catching element to Baltimore’s offense, no matter who is at quarterback,” he wrote.
Despite his lack of size at just 5-foot-9 and 182 pounds, Flowers would fit perfectly into the vision that the Ravens have for their offense under new play caller and designer Todd Monken. His dynamic and explosive playmaking ability with the ball in his hands in space will provide Jackson or whoever is under center for the team this year and in the foreseeable future with an exciting lethal weapon in the passing game.
Boston College WR @ZayFlowers recorded 12 TDs and 1077 receiving yards in his senior season… no wonder he is a top Draft prospect🔥
📺: 2023 #NFLDraft – April 27-29 on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
Ravens Hosted Ascending Cornerback Prospect for Pre-Draft Visit: Report
In actual draft-related news, the team had former University of Miami standout defensive back Tyrique Stevenson in for one of their official top 30 visits on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, according to a report from NFL insider Ian Rapoport.
At 6 feet and around 200 pounds, Stevenson possesses the ideal size to play on the outside and the strength and speed combination to excel in press coverage against bigger receivers at the next level.
This clip perfectly sums up #Miami CB Tyrique Stevenson. He’s an outstanding technician. Slips a bit here, but flips his hips and recovers to break up the pass.
He attended the 2023 Reese’s Senior and performed well during the week of practice which bodes well for his chances of potentially becoming a Raven as the team regularly drafts one or more players that participated in the senior All-Star event.
Great recovery from @CanesFootball CB Tyrique Stevenson at the Senior Bowl!
With three-time Pro Bowler Marcus Peters still a free agent, the team needs a new starter opposite another three-time Pro Bowler in Marlon Humphrey. If the Ravens opt to take a receiver like Zierlien and many others predict, they could take a prospect like Stevenson in the third round or later.
Per Rapoport, the former Hurricane will continue his tour of the AFC North teams next week when he visits with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston, Stevenson isn’t the only big and lengthy cornerback that they plan on bringing into the building ahead of the draft as Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr. is slated to visit the Ravens next week.
Penn State @PennStateFball corner Joey Porter Jr. visited #Raiders today, #Commanders on Monday and has upcoming visits with #Ravens, #Panthers, #Saints and #Eagles, according to league sources. #NFLDraft2023 @KPRC2
Porter Jr. is the son of former Steelers four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Joey Porter and has been linked to land with the Ravens in several mock draft projections throughout the pre-draft process.
Wilson also reported that they plan to host University of Florida defensive lineman Gervon Dexter for a visit soon. With Calais Campbell officially not returning after signing with the Atlanta Falcons, adding more talent and depth to the trenches on that side of the ball is suddenly an underrated need.
While he’s not quite as tall as Campbell who is 6-foot-8 and 300 pounds, Dexter who measures in at 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds is built similarly and would come in and either rotate or compete to fill the six-time Pro Bowler’s vacated starting defensive end spot.
Gervon Dexter – DT, Florida, No. 9
– prototypical size, freakish athleticism
– play strength, strong anchor against the run
– lacks consistency, last guy off the line
– raw explosiveness, but unlimited upside
Predicting Potential Smokescreens From Ravens Pre-Draft Presser
The team will hold its annual pre-draft press conference on Wednesday, April 5, 2023, in which General Manager Eric DeCosta, Director of Player Personnel Joe Hortiz, and Head Coach John Harbaugh will address the media ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft.
The yearly meaning is aptly nicknamed ‘The Liars Luncheon’ where the team’s top decision-makers talk about many of the prospects at their top positions of need while simultaneously trying to keep reporters, analysts, and especially other teams from cluing in on who they might like the most.
Last year they talked about how they valued size on the offensive line and particularly at center but when they got another first-round pick as a result of trading wide receiver Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown, they used to select Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum.
He was viewed as the best prospect at the position but many were also concerned about his size or rather the lack thereof. The former Hawkeye was still selected at No. 25, was their only rookie aside from punter Jordan Stout to start in every game, and established himself as one of the best centers in the entire league last season.
The year before in 2021, DeCosta made headlines when he said that he was “insulted” on behalf of the wide receivers on the roster at the time for the way they were being harshly criticized by the national media. He then went on to draft Rashod Bateman in the first round and double-dipped at the position by taking Tylan Wallace in the fourth.
That same year he also reiterated how much the team historically values college sack production only to turn around and select Odafe Oweh with his second first-round pick. It came as a surprise because the athletically gifted edge defender didn’t record a single sack in his final collegiate season a had just seven in his entire career.
So what headline-grabbing proclamation or statement will DeCosta and Co. use to throw everyone off their scent this year?
Once again for what feels like the millionth year in a row to most Ravens fans, wide receiver is a glaring need. However, unlike in 2021, it’s highly unlikely that they will try to exclaim the same level of confidence in the current group after already going on the record about their intentions to rebuild and reinforce it this offseason
Cornerback is also a big area of need both in the starting spot opposite Humphrey as well as additional depth despite having spent a pair of fourth-round picks on the position last year. The Ravens are firm believers that a team can never have enough quality corners because they seem to always lose one or more throughout a season.
They will certainly talk about how much they love the in-house options and want to give some of their recently drafted young guns like Brandon Stephens, Jalyn Armour-Davis, and Damarion ‘Pepe’ Williams a shot to prove and establish themselves if Peters isn’t brought back.
Harbaugh believes that they have four candidates already on the roster that will be competing for the starting left guard spot that was vacated when Ben Powers departed in free agency.
While they will likely reiterate that belief on Wednesday, there’s a chance that if an interior offensive lineman is the best player available on their board after the first round, they might pull the trigger and add another horse to the race that comes with four years of a cheap rookie deal.
If they do talk about specific prospects or desirable traits they look for, take that with a grain of salt as well because it could very well be a smoke screen.
As much as they value starting experience and years of high-level college production in college, they’ve shown recently that they’re willing to bet more on athleticism with the selections of Oweh, inside linebacker Patrick Queen in 2020 who was a part-time starter in his final year at LSU, and outside linebacker David Ojabo last year who had just one big sack year in 2021.
Not everything that will be said will be a deception as they will more than likely state the obvious when it comes to what positions they will be targeting specifically without dropping any names or hints of who they’re keying in on in particular.
They also might detest exploring or considering a certain position or option early in the draft only to address it earlier than many believed they would if at all such as quarterback if Jackson isn’t traded or running back before day three.
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Ravens Land Top QB Prospect After Trading Lamar Jackson in Wild Projection