Why I'm Selling the Early Ravens Hype Around Ja’Kobi Lane

The Ravens may have unearthed a gem in the third round with Ja’Kobi Lane.

It would be quite a rarity for them to find real success with a receiver in that terrain of the draft – heck in any terrain of the draft if you critically analyze their franchise – but I am certainly open to the possibility. And its great he's worthy of all the very-early fawning press.

However, I am also a stickler about the import of setting reasonable expectations and viewing current situations through the prism of the past, so I’m going to call for slowing the collective roll on Lane. Because this has all the hallmarks of an over-hyped situation, and this early in training camp with a prospect this raw, that’s almost always what you get.

The Ravens, as we know, have no one they can count on as a proven downfield receiver except Zay Flowers. So people are naturally hunting for solutions an projecting solutions. Lane has a flair for the acrobatic and highlight-reel catches were a big part of his college profile and that tends to create a viral sensation on social media that belies all the other really difficult parts of the job that generally make for a steep learning curve for non-generational wide receivers.

Then you get Ravens receiving legends like Steve Smith and Dez Bryant (okay, Bryant was a Cowboys legend but his career did come to a halt in Baltimore) getting excited about the kid, and the coaches throw him an atta boy or two, and you have the makings of a perfect storm.

The one-handed catches in practice are great; translating his entire profile to an NFL level in a brand new offense with a first-time play caller is something else entirely.

“That was a great play by Ja'Kobi,” head coach Jesse Minter said when asked about the acrobatic catch Tuesday. “He's continued to flash and make those type of plays. As (with) anybody, you're always searching for consistency down after down. Again, the more he shows (quarterback) Lamar (Jackson) that he's making those types of plays, the more trust they build, and that's really what training camp and what practice is all about."

So, I’m gonna hold up a caution flag, because I’ve seen it too many times before.

Let’s Slow It Down

It’s not a big leap these days from great catch in an individual drill in early days of training camp to : Immediate impact No. 2 WR and fantasy football sleeper. That’s the way the NFL ecosystem works, especially when you have a two-time MVP quarterback as the facilitator and a land-of-opportunity situation like this with a Super Bowl favorite drafting four pass catchers, extending a possibly-washed “move” tight end and doing nothing else to boost a suspect group of pass catchers.

And there is reason to believe that Lane will have a solid rookie season and make an impact in the redzone – where the Ravens need a lot of help – and find the endzone and get a chance to haul in back-shoulder fades … But I’m not ready to say he will have a more productive or impactful season than fellow rookie Elijah Sarratt – zero early buzz – or holdovers like Devontez Walker yet.

How he hold up against press coverage and whether he can use all quadrants of the field and how much offensive coordinator Declan Doyle leans into any of these rookies as they sort their way through the first four-to-six weeks of the season remains to be seen. It’s quite rare when a Ravens first-round receiver bursts onto the scene with an immediate impact (let alone mid-round) and the one who did the most the fastest (Hollywood Brown) was gone by the end of his third season.

So, I’m going to be quite patient and prudent about getting overly excited about any of these rookie pass catchers in early August. Been burned too many times before. How Lane truly adjusts mentally to his new surroundings and how he develops in that respect was something scouts wondered about heading into the draft.

No one doubts his ability to hit certain high notes athletically not everyone can try. The general managers and evaluators I spoke to after the draft – and there were many – were higher on Sarratt making more of an impact (staying and immediate) than Lane, and a week of practice isn’t changing much for me in that regard.

Becoming a trusted NFL playmaker and winning in high-traffic areas and sustaining it week after week, on a team that isn’t trying to develop guys for the future – but is trying to win a Super Bowl right now with Jackson in what’s essentially the final year of his contract – will be tough.

And I’m going to be much more inclined to go ga-ga over a potential Ravens breakout defensive lineman or tight end or defensive back – having watched decades of their personnel success and failures across all positions – than I’m going to volunteer to be the conductor on the Ja’Kobi Lane hype-train a week before the first preseason game.

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