Lamar Jackson nearly led the Ravens to a Super Bowl last season. If he gets some help in Round 1 of this year’s draft he might finish the job this year.
The Ravens are definitely a team that has legitimate designs on winning a Super Bowl this season. The front office did an excellent job of boosting the roster via free agency, but now they need to refocus their energy on doing the same thing via April’s NFL Draft.
The team spent a lot of their offseason resources on strengthening their defensive line. Franchising Matt Judon isn’t an upgrade, but it was a necessary piece of business. Trading for Calais Campbell and adding Michael Brockers via free agency should give the Ravens a lot more defensive punch up front.
That doesn’t mean all of the team’s issues on that side of the ball are solved. Neither Chris Beard or LJ Fort is going to light the world on fire at the linebacker position. Adding a more dynamic player to the defense’s second level could be an area of focus for Baltimore with their Round 1 selection.
The team could also look to replace retired guard Marshal Yanda at that spot. None of the guard’s in this class are ready made stars, but the Ravens could get their pick of the group with the No. 28 overall selection.
There’s also a possibility that Baltimore could look to take advantage of the talented group of wide receivers available in this class. Keep an eye on the following five players who could easily go off the board to Baltimore in Round 1.
5. Denzel Mims
Mims isn’t the most polished receiver in the draft, but he’s got some elite athletic traits. Those qualities are very important to the Ravens front office. Don’t be surprised if they target Mims as a guy who can make explosive plays down the field for Jackson for years to come.