Ravens Rookie Shares Motivational Story of Homelessness

The Baltimore Ravens fell in love with former standout University of Georgia safety Malaki Starks throughout the pre-draft process and after selecting him with the No. 27 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, they have been effusive in their praise of him for his impressive athletic traits and high football intelligence.

As outstanding as his intangibles are, they all stem from his tenacious and relentless work ethic, a quality he developed by going through a lot of adversity at a young age and watching those closest to him grind to get them through it.

“I put my head down and work.” @StarksMalaki on his family's influence on his work ethic: pic.twitter.com/9ffdEaVesA
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 25, 2025

"As a kid, I was homeless twice, and there was a period of time where I didn't really see my parents because they were working day shifts, night shifts, whatever the case be, but I've never seen them not work for anything, and I saw it, and it turned me into who I am today," Starks said.

In times of hardship as it pertains to football he reflects on that period in his life when sports were the least of his worries and proceeds to grind through and overcome the challenge like his family members and stalwart role models have always done.

"When things don't go my way, when I don't know what to do, I put my head down and work," Starks said. "It's always been what I do. It's part of who I am, it's how I go about my business [by] just doing things the right way... Keeping your faith up front, staying true to yourself. I've seen that from my parents, and I've seen it from my sister, as well. So, all the people who set a great example for me to follow, I've just got to follow in their footsteps."

To reach this point in his life journey where he is about to embark on the next and most exciting chapter after all that he has had to endure and persevere through on and off the field has truly been "a blessing" for the gifted rookie defensive back.

"I come from a very faithful background, and something that me and my parents and my fiancée had talked about a lot this week, but throughout the process as well, is God has already written my story for me," Starks said. "Just being able to have faith in him and stay true to myself and not compromise that for anybody. I think when you look back on things that me and my family have been through, just being able to stay true to ourselves, but also keep God first. Things happen for a reason, and you may never know, and you may know right away, but just having faith in that and staying true to ourselves is what really got me to my point today."

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