Three Draft Pitfalls The Ravens Must Avoid Tonight

It’s easy to overthink things this close to the draft. Or fall into old habits.

So much time and effort has gone into the preparation, and these has been so much information and quasi information about what will or could happen that it can play tricks on your mind. So after a week filled with one blockbuster trade and so many conversations about potential trades and bizarre scenarios, it’s probably best just to default back to your original position.

And that, according to multiple high-ranking execs going back a few weeks now, is that the Ravens couldn’t bleep this up if they tried by sitting at 14 and taking the best offensive lineman on the board. And when general manager Eric DeCosta talking about being in a “sweet spot” a week ago at the Liar’s Lunch those executives took that as an acknowledgment of that very dynamic.

So with that said. They should ignore any impulse to do one of the following:

DO NOT DRAFT A SAFETY AT 14

Yeah this one is in all caps and the rest are not. For good reason.

If they were to have, say Caleb Downs on their roster in a few hours, after taking safeties Malaki Starks and Kyle Hamilton the past few years, that would in fact be overkill. Especially because Downs would be a less-impactful version of Hamilton to me. And if anything they would need someone to pair deeper long-term with Starks. If they did make this leap, I’d prefer it was for Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman or Toledo’s Emmanuel McNiel-Warren. But that also would feel like a luxury for them and a little too on-brand – and DeCosta claims he doesn’t want to be typecast.

Don’t Draft Anyone With A Chronic Injury Situation

Somebody coming off a surgery but on schedule and able to run fully and do a lot of drills, man, maybe somewhere in the deeper reaches of the draft. But not at 14. What about Tennessee corner Jermod McCoy? Man they better be super sure, and while I am not sure I am buying him falling to like pick 50, I also have pause. And someone like Arizona State receiver Jordyn Tyson, with a history of repeated hamstring issues and who has missed time with various ailments and suffers from some overall durability issues?

No thanks. Not at 14.

This franchise has had too much difficulty with those situations and even with the additions they have made to their medical staff, I’d prefer going in a different direction with a draft selection so critical to the future of the organization.

Don’t Trade Back For A Pass Rusher

If they want to move up a few spots for someone like Miami’s Rueben Bain, Jr., I could get with that. But there is a significant dropoff after this first cluster of defensive line/LNB//EDGE, and all of those players are almost certain to be gone by pick 14.

This front office has had a helluva time evaluating pass rush and hitting on one. Odafe Oweh (late first) and David Ojabo (top 45) were total busts. Mike Green had better take a big step forward in 2026 after being their biggest investment in pass rush last year and their metrics and quants and projects at this position have frankly sucked.

Trusting them to find the best gem in a group of edge who will go from like 20-30 is a big ask. It’s exactly the areas of the draft they should be avoiding. It’s dangerous terrain for them and especially with the way this class has shaped up. Leave it alone.

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