The Grades For The Stone Pick

Iowa safety Geno Stone was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in Saturday's seventh round of the NFL Draft.

Stone was a second-team All-Big Ten selections by the conference coaches and the Associated Press last season. Stone started all 13 games at strong safety last season, finishing with 70 tackles, including 40 solos.

"This has been my guy through the draft process," said Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL Network during Saturday's telecast. "When I talked to general managers and personnel executives, I go, 'Tell me what I'm missing on Geno Stone.' Because I have a big grade on Geno Stone — he's my 12th safety. What am I missing? I couldn't get any support for him around the league."

A look at how national analysts viewed the pick:

ESPN

Analysis: "Stone has good size, short arms and so-so straight-line speed. He's a naturally instinctive player with good recognition skills and fast eyes. He's at his best in two-high zone and in the box. Stone isn't rangy enough to handle single-high responsibility, and he has below-average man-to-man cover skills. He's a tough run defender who fills hard and chases with good effort." — Steve Muench

"The Ravens used their last pick on the 'most underrated player' in this draft, according to Pro Football Focus. On 600-plus career snaps at free safety, Stone allowed 137 yards while intercepting three passes. He has a big hitter reputation, but his 74.4% tackle percentage last season ranked 55th out of 61 qualified tacklers in the Big Ten. Stone provides young depth at safety for the Ravens after they cut Tony Jefferson and declined to pick up the option on Brandon Carr." — Jamison Hensley

NFL.com

Analysis: "The Ravens love to draft toughness and instincts and Stone has plenty of both. He isn't the greatest athlete, but he proved capable of creating turnovers with his vision and smarts from the back end." — Mark Dulgerian