Ravens' Malaki Starks Shares Admiration for All Pro Teammate

Even before they became teammates, Baltimore Ravens first-round rookie safety Malaki Starks was an admirer of his new teammate, two-time Pro Bowl and All Pro selection Kyle Hamilton.

Among the things they have in common, aside from being the team's top overall pick in their respective drafts, is that they both were the first safeties off the board in each of their years. They each also possess unique positional flexibility, although Starks concedes that Hamilton's game is on a tier of its own amongst the NFL's elite.

“There’s levels to this thing and he’s at the very top of the top,” Starks said in a recent appearance on "The Lounge" podcast.

The former University of Georgia star claims to have watched all of Hamilton’s tape. When he was training during the pre-draft process down in Tampa, Florida, with former Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden, it was a main focus of their film study sessions.

“(Gruden) told me that Baltimore was going to get me,” Starks said. “Just to see the way that (Hamilton) moves on tape to just learn from him in person and just kind of see it is crazy… I think just his knowledge and the way that he goes about the game is different than most guys and I’m very blessed to just get to learn from that.”

Hamilton is far from the only former first-rounder in the Ravens' secondary with a wealth of knowledge to impart on Starks, as they have three corners who once heard their names called on opening night of their respective draft years and have had different levels of success in the NFL. Veterans Marlon Humphrey and Jaire Alexander are both multi-time Pro Bowlers. Nate Wiggins is a rising star heading into his second season. Although he wasn’t a first-round pick, veteran Chidobe Awuzie is another experienced cornerback and the only one in the entire defensive backfield with Super Bowl experience.

“Our room is very deep,” Starks said. “From (Hamilton) to everybody. I think just being able to come into a room like that and learn (and) really just soak up all the knowledge I can from everybody has been awesome.”

As far as what he expects the deployment of him and fellow former All American honoree to look like from week-to-week, drive-to-drive or even play-to-play, he had a simple yet apt response.

“Whatever he wants to do, I’ll do the opposite,” Starks said with a laugh. “Wherever I need to be, I think that’s what it is. He’s been in the system for awhile, he knows the defense, he’s very smart and he can literally do whatever. You watch him on tape and he’s everywhere and I think I have that ability and me being able to learn as much as I can will help me get to that point.”

Starks is just as comfortable playing in the box as he is back deep. Last season, Hamilton silenced any remaining skeptics who doubted his ability to play both safety spots at the NFL level and saw him as just a hybrid nickel defender by transitioning more into a traditional free safety role once Ar'Darius Washington was inserted into the starting lineup. Now with two players who can execute both duties at a high-to-elite level, the multiplicity of the Ravens' coverage schemes is even greater.

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