Ravens 2018 Draft Grades (forum)

[sp6488]

What did everyone here think of the Ravens 2018 draft overall?  Feel free to grade by pick in your response, but please vote in the poll reflecting the draft as a whole.  I will create another thread for pundit/media grades/perspective.  

 

[drd23]

I'd probably give it a B/B+ overall.

I love the Lamar Jackson pick - I think it was great value and like that the organisation has seemingly acknowledged that Flacco's play recently hasn't been good enough.  I think the Brown and Andrews picks were good value, and I'm interested to see what Jaleel Scott can bring. Lasley and Elliot were worth a shot at the spots we drafted them, and it'd be stupid to rate a draft on 6th and 7th round picks who've got a ~5% chance of working out any way.

That said, I'm not a fan of the Hayden Hurst pick because I hate the value - I just don't see a special TE when I watch his games.  I'm also not a fan of the Young as a 4th round pick, and am pretty ambivalent about Averett in the 4th too

[sp6488]

2 minutes ago, drd23 said:

I'd probably give it a B/B+ overall.

I love the Lamar Jackson pick - I think it was great value and like that the organisation has seemingly acknowledged that Flacco's play recently hasn't been good enough.  I think the Brown and Andrews picks were good value, and I'm interested to see what Jaleel Scott can bring. Lasley and Elliot were worth a shot at the spots we drafted them, and it'd be stupid to rate a draft on 6th and 7th round picks who've got a ~5% chance of working out any way.

That said, I'm not a fan of the Hayden Hurst pick because I hate the value - I just don't see a special TE when I watch his games.  I'm also not a fan of the Young as a 4th round pick, and am pretty ambivalent about Averett in the 4th too

I went with a B.  I was opposed to the Jackson pick at #16, but really like it at #32 (and one of two 1s this year & not surrendering next years).  I think it gives us a guy who could be the future at the position and gives us some flexibility.  It's not going to hurt us to ride with Joe for a few more years if he picks up his play.  Conversely, if he continues to struggle, then we have a high potential guy already in the system and aren't in a position where we necessarily feel compelled to make a big move or be without a QB.

I was meh on the Hurst pick.  I like the player (as I mentioned pre-draft, I thought he looked like a really natural catcher), but I didn't like the value.

I really like what we did in rounds 3 and 4. 

As you mentioned, the rest shouldn't carry the draft one way or the other.

[diamondbull424]

I think the first couple question one needs to ask before assigning a grade are these:

1. Do I see any All Pro talents?

- Yes, I’ve said all along that I believe in Joe Flacco and would only want to upgrade him for a clear difference maker. I have Lamar Jackson as my favorite QB in this draft class for various reasons that I’ve stated likely ad nauseam

2. How many pro bowl talents?

- Two pro bowl talents.

Don’t get me wrong, I hated the value of Hayden Hurst. Especially passing up on Derwin James. But removing that from the equation and focusing just on the player, I see Hurst as a 3x pro bowl caliber option. His skillset coming out reminds me of a Shannon Sharpe; a guy that will thrive in a H-back role as an explosive option but is an effort blocker that can handle in-line duties.

The other probowl talent is Jordan Lasley. I really loved what I saw from him on tape. I had him ranked as a 2nd/3rd round guy, but mainly because of his concentration drops. But there’s no question that he’s  explosive, separates deep, and has a clutch factor to him. Why pro bowl potential? Because on tape when he’s on, he looks like a first round talent. He’s struggled with maturity issues to this point. But we have a strong locker room presence and this man just fell to the 5th round. There’s nothing better to humble you and sober you up then that. Plus he’s going to be in a tightly contested camp battle that will force him to bring his A game from jump street. NFL.com compares him to Torrey Smith and that’s the comparison that I saw. He’s not as athletic, but is a much more natural receiver. Torrey’s drops seemed more from a lack of hands, whereas Lasley’s from a lack of focus. I would also say that prime Torrey Smith was a pro bowl caliber player, I see the same with Lasley.

3. How many starters?

- Six: Lamar Jackson, Hayden Hurst, Orlando Brown, Mark Andrews, Kenny Young, Jordan Lasley

4. How many key situational contributors?

- Deshon Elliot and Bradley Bozeman

5. All in all, how many players do I expect to be hits in the class?

8/12. Three pro bowl plus talents plus some starters and situation players is about as much as you can ask from a draft class IMO.

Overall

So that being said, I would grade this class an A-, I only give it a minus because I think there were moments where we might’ve traded down too much. I’d much rather have Tyrell Crosby than Greg Senat. Hayden Hurst in retrospect doesn’t seem as bad, but there is always going to be a little opportunity cost questioning with regard to selecting Hurst at 25. Thus he will have to live up to my expectations to acquit the team of any of those questions.

[paraven]

Im going to go C. I dont think any player drafted this year makes an immediate impact, which is disappointing to me. TE's always struggle their rookie years, but if somehow Hurst and Andrews contribute early , then il bump it up to a B

[coordinator0]

If I'm going to go with a composite score...

1-25: Hayden Hurst = F. Older prospect at the slowest developing position in the league that still needs to develop? Yay. At least he has hands and a winning personality. 

1-32: Lamar Jackson = A. This is a move the Ravens needed to make. Flacco might be the most complacent guy in the league. That's probably just how he is, but it's not good. Jackson has a lot of talent, and brings a completely different dimension to the table. It's going to take the Ravens building a new offense around him to fully utilize his talents, but hey that sounds good to me. Their current system/structure isn't lighting the world on fire.

3-83: Orlando Brown = B. Really close to an A, but he fell for a reason. Orlando is going to struggle with plus speed and athleticism off the edge and that's just something the Ravens are going to have to live with if he's playing. Otherwise he should be fine, and nearly always an asset in the running game. 

3-86: Mark Andrews = B. This is more of a solid B. I like him and his game. Just as long as the Ravens let him thrive in his role and don't  try to mold him into something different Mark should be pretty decent. If they go the other route... eh. Come on, let receiving tight ends receive. 

4-118: Anthony Averett = B. Pretty decent value pick. Especially for a corner that can actually stick in man coverage and won't need to be hidden in off-zone. We don't know what Tavon will look like coming off of his injury. If he's good, then fine. But Carr will most likely be gone next year and maybe Jimmy a year after that if his durability struggles continue. Humphrey-Young-Averett makes sense down the line. Also, I'm not sold on Hill yet. 

4-122: Kenny Young = D. Not great. He fits what you should want at LB these days but Kenny just isn't that good. Well, yet at least. With his athletic ability you always have some hope of unfulfilled potential. Will play on special teams but ultimately that might be about it.

4-132: Jaleel Scott = A. Really nice pick for the fourth round. This dude can play, and has a bunch of upside. I'm pretty excited about the Ravens getting him. Probably more so than if they would have gotten someone like Washington, Chark, Kirk, etc. earlier on. 

5-162: Jordan Lasley = B. I actually really like this pick too, but his hands concern me. There are no doubts about his ability to get open and make plays, but if Jordan doesn't finish the job and actually catch the ball it doesn't matter. Still this is a risk worth taking for a team that desperately needs play-making ability from the receivers. 

6-190: Deshon Elliot = B. Really, really nice pick this late. Not quite an A because I don't think he can play on defense except in a boxy, traditional SS role, but if needed I don't think Deshon would be a huge liability either. At the worse Elliot will be an asset on the coverage units. Can't ask for anything else from a pick this late. 

6-212: Greg Senat = ?. I mean, I don't know anything about this guy other than he's a developmental tackle with a long ways to go. That's not a bad thing I just hope the Ravens can hide him on the PS long enough to actually develop him. Because I have faith in D'Allesandris and Roman being able to do that. This isn't Castillo's show anymore. 

6-215: Bradley Bozeman = B. Another solid pick late in the draft. I don't actually expect much out of Bozeman, but he might secure the backup center spot behind Skura. Looks like there will be competiion from at least a couple UDFAs though. Regardless, Bradley is a solid pick this late.

7-238: Zach Seiler = ?. Not sure who this guy is, where he will play along the defensive front, or how he makes the roster. But I'm not against taking flyers on small (really small, trust me I'm actually familiar with the college part of Ferris State) school guys who at least have the frame to play in the NFL. 

So I guess that would be a B overall. Voting B-/C+ for the poll. Hurst at 25 really, really hurts though. Hitting at the top of the draft is pretty important. Finding value from the middle rounds is nice, but securing top-end talent at the top is even better. 

[Mancunian Raven]

B- to C+

I still think Hurst was a reach, and there were better players to be had at that position (or at #22, before the second trade down). I do think that one of the guys Eric DaCosta was lamenting being taken just before the Ravens picked was DJ Moore, but it's their own fault for not realising the Panthers would be all over him.

Mark Andrews is more like the right value for TE in this draft. A pure pass-catching TE with good hands... and a 3rd round pick.

I'm not a fan of Orlando Brown, and I think this will end up being a wasted pick. But again, it was only a 3rd rounder, so I can live with it. And if he somehow develops into an NFL calibre Tackle, then he'll be a steal.

Anthony Averett seems like a solid pick, and even though CB isn't currently a need, it easily could be before too long. And Kenny Young looks like a competitor for the Will slot, which was definitely needed.

DeShon Elliot is a guy with a big heart, but not the most athletic. There's always a place for players like that in the NFL, and I expect him to be a Raven for a long time.

I don't know much about the WRs, but it seems like they're picks with high upside, and low risk. If they make the roster, we'll see what they have to offer.

The big X-factor is Lamar Jackson. Can he develop into an NFL QB? How will his presence affect Joe this season? If he becomes the player his biggest cheerleaders believe he can, then this draft might end up being one of the best in a long time.

[Danand]

While I like the Lamar Jackson pick, I don't really feel like we comitted ourselves to building a strong team either this year or when he is supposed to take over 1-2 years down the road. We tried to stay competitive this year with the usual approach by taking a flyer on late round wide receivers and some role players to plug in, but not fully commit to add difference makers.

Or to say it in another way, we really bet on Hurst and Andrews being the guys to catch the ball and then hope we get something from the wide receiver bunch collected this off season.

Hurst was drafted too early, but lets just see it as Lamar Jackson picked at 25 and Hurst with a 52 pick. Kenny Young was imo way too early, but if he is a special teams ace from the get go, the pick makes sense. I liked some of Scotts tape and really didn't like other parts. I have to watch the video put up in his draft thread to see if theres something I am missing, but players who fluctuate like he did worries me. Lasley I am ok with - right until he gets into trouble again and I will consider it a wasted pick because all the alarm clocks where already blinking. We could have had some sure fire hard working, blue collar wide receivers with less talent who would most likely produce but with less upside.

Orlando Brown great, Deshon Elliot great, Anthony Everett great, Bradley Bozeman great.

But all in all, I miss a clear thread in what we tried to do through the draft. It looks better due to the high number of picks, but it seems we did a little bit of everything instead of comitting.

[diamondbull424]

4 hours ago, Danand said:

But all in all, I miss a clear thread in what we tried to do through the draft. It looks better due to the high number of picks, but it seems we did a little bit of everything instead of comitting.

I disagree. I think this draft clearly shows a commitment to us utilizing a power man blocking scheme.

The blockers

Bradley Bozeman, C, Alabama- 6’5” 316 lbs

Orlando Brown, RT, Oklahoma- 6’8” 345 lbs

These are the main contributors. Greg Senat is a project. Both could end up starting when it’s all said and done and both are players that most teams would shy away from because they are considered too slow according to today’s NFL standards. But we’re looking for big guys that take up space, are aggressive, and imposing. We want our OL to overpower the smaller athletes of today’s NFL.

The Tight Ends

Hayden Hurst and Mark Andrews

Also to protect Brown against elite speed in pass blocking and to provide Flacco/Jackson weapons, insert two tight ends. The tight ends will chip the defender just enough to allow Browns length to get on pass rushers.

Flacco favorite targets: Derrick Mason, Todd Heap, Willis McGahee, Ray Rice, Dennis Pitta, Dallas Clark, Kyle Juszczyk, Steve Smith, Ben Watson.

The list is populated with tight ends and H-backs. If we have two tight ends that can put up 1200-1400 yds receiving for Flacco is that any worse than having two wide receivers that do the same? Is this play any less invaluable because it came from a tight end?

The Wide Receivers

Jaleel Scott and Jordan Lasley

To me it seems clear that the idea is to suck the defense into the middle of the field with running the football and tight end action, creating more isolation opportunities for receivers. Crabtree is put in positions to go 1on1 with a corner and win 50/50 balls more often than not. On the other side we’ve got deep threat wide receivers to take advantage of the deep player action pass off of RPOs.

John Brown is the starting deep threat at the moment, but both Lasley and Scott are guys that have the ability to make plays deep and in Scotts’ case make contested catches if need be.

[jpeter15]

I predict when we look back on this draft it will be the second best behind the 1996. I think Jaleel and Lasley will turn into great WRs and vindicate Ozzie for otherwise poor drafting of WRs. Lamar will be a perennial Pro Bowler, one of our TEs will turn into a solid contributor and Bozeman and Brown will be starters on our line for years to come.

[wackywabbit]

TBH this year, I have little to no knowledge of prospects outside the top 25-30, but I'm going to confidently give it an A+, mostly for getting Lamar Jackson. I can't overstate how much I love the move. Beyond how much I like him as a prospect, how much sense it makes to get a QBoTF THIS year and from THIS class, there's also what it says about the team willing to go in a bold new direction. I love the forward thinking in that side of the ball. The Eagles could not be stopped by arguably the most talented defense in football in the NFCCG (or by Beli-genius) running an RPO offense. We still want to be a defense first team and a mobile QB is going to pair really well with that in terms of ball control, boosting the running game and you know LJ8 isn't going to let those 3 and outs stack up before he just says F this and rips a big run. 

I guess there were some other draft picks. I think focusing on TE was smart, as I think that'll be really important in the short term, and we still plan to compete now. Zeus JR in the 3rd is great value and it could have a huge payoff. We did add multiple WRs, probably later than most would like, but a couple lottery tickets is better than one. I considered knocking it down a half grade because we didn't add a running back. I really did want to upgrade on Buck Allen (sounds like the team did too) with someone more dynamic, and it sounded like there was going to be depth in this draft there, but it didn't come to us. But, for Lamar Jackson + ???, I'm still going A+.

[drd23]

3 hours ago, diamondbull424 said:

I disagree. I think this draft clearly shows a commitment to us utilizing a power man blocking scheme.

I think you could go even simpler and just say that this draft adds size

[AFlaccoSeagulls]

I'd give it a C. I see Lamar Jackson as the highest ceiling player, but also the biggest risk. Other than that, I don't see anyone that's going to be anything more than a solid starter at their peak.

[diamondbull424]

7 hours ago, drd23 said:

I think you could go even simpler and just say that this draft adds size

As you can see from my post history. Simple has never been easy for me.???‍♀️

[berlin calling]

my biggest issue with this draft is i can't answer if the Ravens are in win-now or rebuild mode.

TE in rounds 1+3 point me to the latter as they'll help Flacco a lot, if they amount to anything that is.

QB rd1 and the WR who'll need a year or 2 before they'll be worth anything imo point me in the opposite direction and tell me they are part of the young core to grow with/for LJ.

whats more, i made it clear that i am sceptical if LJ ever amounts to anything. i am hopeful he will be the QBOTF and a top10 QB in this league for years but much too early to tell.

so, i give this draft a C as of today, give me two years and it may well be the best draft class for this team eva! but i have seen too much bad drafting lately to not remain sceptical at this point.

e/

forgot to mention my favorite pick - DeShone Elliott. i do believe he'll be the successor to Weddle and a starter come 2019. not Ed Reed caliber but very serviceable.

he'll outplay his draft slot by far.