Analyzing the Baltimore Ravens' 2020 NFL Draft

As we all remain stuck at home, with #45 rambling on about disinfectant, UV light and his various other musings on solutions to a situation he has gravely mishandled, we have none of our usual distractions.

There is no live sport on the telly, the NBA and NHL playoffs aren’t happening, we’ve no baseball, the climax of football around the globe has been halted – shout-out Liverpool fans – and we can’t even go to the pub and drown our sorrows.

Well, at least we had the NFL Draft to offer some kind of relief for three days and shed some light on the future of at least one sport.

The draft was particularly sweet for me, as a Ravens fan, because, simply put, they draft better than any team in the NFL and that remained true this year.

Round 1, 28 Overall - Patrick Queen, LB, LSU

The Ravens got one of several steals with Patrick Queen.

Queen was the Defensive MVP in LSU’s National Championship win over Clemson and was one of the best defensive players in college football last year, particularly as the season went on.

That is part of what makes this Queen pick so exciting: he started to dominate games at LSU and still has more room to grow. Despite that he was Matt Miller’s 16^th overall player and Daniel Jeremiah’s 15^th overall player.

He should be an immediate starter with an All-Pro level ceiling.

Round 2, 55 Overall – J.K. Dobbins, RB, Ohio State

When thinking of the Ravens, most people will think of the defense. Historically that is what the Ravens have been about, along with a ground and pound offense.

Last season that may have seemed to flip, with the Ravens boasting the reigning MVP and arguably the most exciting offensive player in the league. Nevertheless, the team is still set up to be a defense first, ground game dominant team, they just score 30+ points per game rather than 17.

Last year’s addition of Mark Ingram was perfect. He had more than 1,000 total years with 15 total touchdowns and was an immense boost in the locker room (BIG TRUZZ). He is, though, 30 years old. He should absolutely play out the remaining two years of his contract at a very high level, but that hasn’t stopped the Ravens from picking his running mate and eventual successor.

Dobbins is another steal, as many wouldn’t have been surprised had he gone in the first round. He is very versatile and dependable, having led the Buckeyes explosive offense in scoring and rushing in 2018 and 2019.

Dobbins will be an excellent compliment to an already stacked rushing attack for the Ravens, and figures to be eventual leader of the position group, hopefully for years to come. 

Round 3, 71 Overall – Justin Madubuike, DT, Texas A&M

Yet another steal for the Ravens, as Madubuike was a consensus top-5 defensive tackle prospect, and was rated as highly as the eighth overall interior defensive lineman with a second round grade from Matt Miller.

He still has some development to do, but he is an excellent interior pass rusher and makes the Ravens’ defense line an even more terrifying prospect.

Round 3, 92 Overall – Devin Duvernay, WR, Texas

I was genuinely buzzing to see the Ravens pick Duvernay. I would have loved to see the team go after a Justin Jefferson or CeeDee Lamb, obviously, but that was always slightly unrealistic, but getting Duvernay at the end of the third round is awesome value.

He is another speed demon for this offense, with 4.39 speed, and is an excellent slot receiver. He has great hands and is very tough to tackle after the catch. He also has running back experience and is a kick returner. He is a jigsaw piece for this team and could become very valuable to Lamar Jackson.

Round 3, 98 Overall – Malik Harrison, LB, Ohio State

Back to Ohio State and back to the linebacker position, once again presenting excellent value.

Matt Miller had Harrison graded as a low second round pick and the sixth overall linebacker. With this pick and the selection of Queen in the first round, the Ravens have completely revamped and seemingly upgraded their linebacking corps.

Queen and Harrison are both excellent movers, and together they offer the total package. Queen is ‘undersized’ and can be the rangy linebacker, roaming sideline-to-sideline taking down runners in space, whereas Harrison can be the tone setter, taking on blocks and filling gaps.

The duo means the Ravens have an excellent set up to completely stifle the opposition’s ground game – if they can get past the defensive line.

Round 3, 106 Overall – Tyre Phillips, OG, Mississippi State

Despite an incredible regular season last year, the Ravens did have a few big holes on their roster, interior offensive line being one of them.

Phillips, though he played tackle at Mississippi State, was announced as a guard and was a standout at that position for Last Chance U’s East Mississippi Community College.

Phillips is another good value pick and fits in well with the Ravens physical ground game.

Round 4, 143 Overall – Ben Bredeson, OG, Michigan

Back-to-back picks on guards has me very happy, particularly the two players they were used on.

Both Bredeson and Phillips represent good value, and both are fits for what the Ravens want to do.

Bredeson, having come from Michigan and Jim Harbaugh’s coaching, is a perfect fit for ‘The Raven Way’. He is a hard-working, blue collar, physical player, who could be the next man up in Marshal Yanda’s giant shoes.

Round 5, 170 Overall – Broderick Washington, DT, Tech

Perhaps the deepest position for the Ravens is interior defensive line, and Washington adds a steady, reliable presence to the mix.

The DT started every single game for the Red Raiders over the past three seasons and was a team captain.

With the depth at the position for the Ravens I don’t foresee Washington making an immediate impact on the field, but he is a talented player and could become a key part of the rotation in the future.

Round 6, 201 Overall - James Proche, WR, SMU

This may be my favorite pick of the 2020 draft class for the Ravens.

On the surface it may not seem the flashiest 2020 pick, not even the flashiest wide receiver, but I love this player.

With average size and measurables he has to rely on his skills to produce, something he did A LOT of at SMU. The now-former mustang was tied for the most catches in the country last year with 111, giving him 209 in the last two seasons, and was top five in touchdowns with 15.

What makes him so impressive, and me such a big fan, is his ball skills. He is able to make stupidly good catches on a regular basis, and despite his 5’11” frame, his ability to win contested catches and out-physical defensive backs is incredible. Put his ball skills on a bigger receiver from a bigger school and he would have been selected a lot higher.

He also adds value as a reliable kick and punt returner, another need for this team.

Round 7, 219 Overall – Geno Stone, S, Iowa

The Ravens’ secondary is among the best in the NFL, if not the best. Last year Chuck Clark took advantage of Tony Jefferson’s injury to cement himself as the starting strong safety and earned a nice contract extension out of it, too.

Clark taking on the starting role and Jefferson being cut opens up a spot for a rotational safety and special teams player, and Stone fits well to fill that role.

Bargain Hunters

Overall the Ravens may have had the best draft in the NFL. Using Matt Miller’s grading, every pick the Ravens made was where the player was graded or lower than you would have expected them to be picked. No player was graded lower than a fifth round talent.

In total, the Ravens came out of the draft with a first round talent, three second round talents, two third round talents, two fourth round talents, and two fifth round talents.

The Ravens did fail to address one of their biggest needs, edge rusher, but with the talent on the interior defensive line, Matt Judon, Jaylon Ferguson and Tyus Bowser figure to have a lot more one-on-ones and free pass rushing attempts. What's more, the defensive line itself boasts some great pass rushers, too.

Obviously we’ve yet to be able to see how any of these players will pan out in the NFL, and it is unrealistic to assume they’ll all reach their potential or expectations, but as of now, an already strong roster figures to have gotten an awful lot stronger.

All that’s left now is to hope football can come back to us sooner rather than later.