Power Rankings: Ravens Get Respect

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Ravens improved their roster in free agency and the draft.

If they can stay healthy, the Ravens should be playoff contenders next season.

Baltimore is also getting respect in the post-draft Power Rankings.

Here's a roundup:

Ranking: 11; Previous Ranking: 15

Analysis: "The Ravens are just good at this. Disappointments connected to an injury-ravaged 2021 season aside, Baltimore has remained an AFC power player for the better part of two decades thanks in large part to an uncanny knack for knowing who to pick and when. The team’s two first-round selections this year — safety Kyle Hamilton and center Tyler Linderbaum — profile as Day 1 starters and instant difference-makers, while the move to select highly skilled outside linebacker David Ojabo -- who tore his Achilles tendon in March — could pay big dividends in 2023. Meanwhile, the trade of Marquise Brown to Arizona for a first-round pick was more ace maneuvering by GM Eric DeCosta. Brown wanted out and never lived up to his own first-round status."

— CBS Sports

Ranking: 10; Previous Ranking: 16

Analysis: They expect Lamar Jackson to revert back to his MVP form this season, which will make them a contender for the AFC North again. They had a great draft, which will only help those chance

— Sporting News

Ranking: 9; Previous Ranking: 9

Analysis: "The Ravens will simply be better by getting healthier across the board, starting at running back and quarterback and continuing with an upgraded offensive line. They dominated and stockpiled for both immediate impact in the draft, especially on defense. Lamar Jackson and the coaching of John Harbaugh can allow them to push for once again taking a tough division."

— NBC Sports

Rankings: 10

Analysis: "With two first-rounders, the Ravens added players who could have an immediate impact as rookies. Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton joins a very experienced secondary which will be one of the toughest to face in the league.

"Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum was the top-ranked center in the draft and will help Lamar Jackson and the offense in the ground game. What the club didn’t address was their wide receiver group after losing top target Brown, who was traded to the Cardinals."

— Bleacher Report

Rankings: 7

Analysis: "It's been an eventful offseason for the Baltimore Ravens, who missed the playoffs in 2021 thanks largely to a litany of injuries. There's the ongoing contract saga of MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson, who is entering the fifth and final season of his rookie contract. There was the stunning draft-day trade that sent wide receiver Marquise Brown to Arizona, seemingly leaving Jackson none too pleased. But there was also the 2022 draft—a draft navigated masterfully by Baltimore general manager Eric DeCosta."