The information NFL general managers and coaches divulge between now and the draft in two weeks is often about as forthright as that of a Cold War-era double agent. There’s deception everywhere.
In other words, if Ravens fans were hoping to glean a trove of revelatory nuggets from the team’s annual predraft news conference Tuesday in Owings Mills, they might be disappointed to learn that Baltimore is planning to target players along the offensive line, at cornerback, running back, possibly at wide receiver as well as other positions, or could even trade out of the first round.
Put another way, the Ravens have to address several areas of need after an exodus of more than a dozen players in free agency who were either starters or significant contributors to a team that went an NFL-best 13-4 last season and reached the organization’s first AFC championship game in more than a decade.
Yet, there were insights offered by general manager Eric DeCosta and coach John Harbaugh that were somewhat revealing in the 35-minute session inside the team’s auditorium. One of the more telling — at least based on a two-minute commentary by Harbaugh — is that the Ravens don’t quite view all those departures as the window being slammed shut, but rather nothing more than a blip on the radar when it comes to reaching the ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl.
“Listening to questions about the team and parts and math, I think it’s really interesting and good to look at the parts,” Harbaugh said, transitioning from a question about backup quarterback-wide receiver Malik Cunningham into his thoughts about something else entirely. “You say we lost this many guys, we had this many guys, we’re not gonna be as good of a team, or how are we gonna fill these pieces, and that’s kind of a math equation. In the end, it’s not just about the parts, it’s about the sum of the parts. Can the sum be greater than the parts? And it’s how you put the parts together, how you piece them together. So the process is, it’s about getting the best players you can.
“It’s about how you build the whole machine. … It’s not just a math equation at the end of the year. These same questions were being asked last year, they were being asked the year before, and the year before that, and the year before that, and the year before that, all the way back. Every year it’s the same questions. It’s kind of a rollover thing.
“The goal is to be all-in every single year as best as you can be.”
Baltimore certainly was among the best in the NFL last year, thanks in part to not just the play of quarterback and NFL Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson but to the moves it made in the months and weeks leading up to and even during the season.
There was the signing of Jackson to a long-term contract, aided by the addition at his request of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., and the drafting of fellow receiver Zay Flowers, who went on to lead the team in catches and yards. There were the free agent additions of outside linebackers Jadeveon Clowney and Kyle Van Noy along with cornerbacks Ronald Darby and Arthur Maulet, among others. There was the signing of undrafted and ultimately sensational running back Keaton Mitchell.
Now DeCosta is tasked with doing it again. But this time, he’s faced with perhaps an even greater challenge than a year ago.
Three starting spots on the offensive line need to be filled after guards Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson left in free agency and right tackle Morgan Moses was traded. The defense, which led the league in sacks, takeaways and points allowed per game last season, is without Pro Bowl inside linebacker Patrick Queen, who signed with the AFC North rival Pittsburgh Steelers, Clowney (Carolina Panthers), safety Geno Stone (Cincinnati Bengals) and Darby (Jacksonville Jaguars). There are questions about the depth at running back, wide receiver and cornerback. Baltimore also lost defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, now the coach of the Seattle Seahawks, and replaced him with its former inside linebackers coach, 31-year-old Zach Orr, an energetic and bright mind who is untested as a play-caller.
The holes on the roster are indeed significant. But there is belief that some of them can be filled from within, be it on the offensive line, edge rusher or at other positions with young but mostly unproven talent. Some of them already have been addressed, with the signing of four-time Pro Bowl running back Derrick Henry and the re-signing of Van Noy among other roster moves.
There is also, of course, this month’s draft. From that standpoint, the Ravens are in good shape with nine picks, including the 30th overall selection.
What direction they go that late in the first round on April 25 is anyone’s guess, but DeCosta said he and his staff spent all day Monday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., dissecting offensive line prospects.
“It’s a very deep pool of players,” he said. “We see a lot of different opportunities in different rounds to get players at tackle, guard and center.”
They’re also not opposed to taking a wide receiver in the first round, something they’ve done in three of the past five drafts.
“If there’s a player that’s there that we think is too good to pass up on, we’re going to take him,” DeCosta said when asked about adding to that with another first-round receiver.
With the position thin beyond its top three of Rashod Bateman, Flowers and veteran Nelson Agholor, who signed a one-year extension in February, it’s almost certain Baltimore will look to bolster the group, in the first round or otherwise. There is also the question of whether the team picks up the fifth-year option for Bateman (and outside linebacker Odafe Oweh). DeCosta was noncommittal, saying he would address that after the draft. But a May 2 deadline looms, and declining the option would make both players eligible for free agency next offseason. A deep receiver class helps no matter the decision.
The running back class, meanwhile, isn’t as top heavy, but there is depth, particularly in the middle rounds. With only Henry, Justice Hill and Mitchell, who likely won’t be available until late in the year as he continues to recover from a torn ACL suffered in mid-December, it’s a position DeCosta was even more definitive about.
“There’s probably a pretty strong chance we’ll draft a running back at some point,” he said. “We do think there’s a chance for us to get a good, young player who can help us in different ways, as a running back, in the passing game and on special teams.”
The same is likely true at cornerback, an area the Ravens feel they never have enough players at.
“We would love to add a talented corner at some point in the draft,” DeCosta said. “That’s a position you typically never have enough, due to injuries and different things. … Our depth has always been tested in the secondary. This year’s was no exception.”
There’s always the possibility Baltimore could make a move or two between now and the draft, though it’s unlikely anything major would develop.
“You never know,” DeCosta said. “I don’t know that we’ll do a lot in the next couple weeks, other than polish the board up and get ready for the process.
“We’re still building. A big part of that is going to be through the draft. But there’s a lot of different opportunities along the way to add players. … The destination is September, not May.”
To that point, players will begin reporting to Owings Mills for the start of the voluntary offseason program beginning Monday. There is a draft to prepare for. There will be more free agent additions at some point.
Can the Ravens match the success they had last season despite all of the questions they’re facing this offseason?
“We’re going to have a heck of a team this year,” Harbaugh said. “You wait, you watch.”
NFL draft
Round 1: Thursday, April 25, 8 p.m.
Rounds 2-3: Friday, April 26, 7 p.m.
Rounds 4-7: Saturday, April 27, noon
TV: ABC, ESPN, NFL Network
Ravens 2024 draft picks
No. 30 (first round)
No. 62 (second)
No. 93 (third)
No. 113 (fourth, from Denver via N.Y. Jets)
No. 130 (fourth)
No. 165 (fifth)
No. 218 (sixth, from N.Y. Jets)
No. 228 (seventh, from N.Y. Jets)
No. 250 (seventh)
