With the 2024 NFL Draft fast approaching, teams are gearing up to choose from a highly skilled group of individuals from the college football talent pool. Those players have been meticulously evaluated the past several months and have participated in various assessments such as the NFL Scouting Combine, pro days and top-30 visits.
NFL Network draft analyst and former Ravens scout Daniel Jeremiah has diligently monitored the progress of these players during the pre-draft process and expects this draft class to effectively fill the needs of many teams.
The Ravens have nine picks in this year’s draft. Their first selection falls at No. 30 in the first round. They could very well have their sights set on building a strong offensive line. There are two offensive tackles Jeremiah feels could easily fill that need for the Ravens at No. 30: Georgia’s Amarius Mims and Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton.
“The offensive tackle, while it’s a deep group — 7-8 deep of really good players — they’re all going to go,” Jeremiah said on Glenn Clark Radio April 3. “So once that group is gone, I think trying to find a starting tackle gets extremely difficult.”
The 6-foot-8, 340-pound Mims has elite height and length and was part of the best offensive line in the SEC. His sheer size and strength is seen as very valuable, and he might be a fit for the Ravens, who lost starting linemen Morgan Moses, John Simpson and Kevin Zeitler.
The 6-foot-8, 322-pound Guyton has elite physical tools and flashes dominance. He allowed just two sacks on 548 career pass-blocking plays. Offensive tackles are a group that Jeremiah believes deserves some attention because the tackles stand out in comparison to other groups.
“They have freakish lengths,” Jeremiah said. “They can both move. They’re both pass protectors. Neither one have played enough, that’s the only reason they’re there. If they had another year in college, these guys are both likely top-10 picks in next year’s draft. There is tons of value there.”
Prioritizing corners is one approach that DeCosta favors when building the defense. In the past, he has been inclined to seek out players like Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean, who had seven interceptions in three years with the Hawkeyes.
“Maybe it’s me falling into the historical trap of just being in that draft room and seeing the Iowa players and knowing without knowing the conversation that’s taking place between Eric [DeCosta] and Kirk [Ferentz] who are really close,” Jeremiah said. “[Ferentz says], ‘This guy’s a special player.’ You can move him all over the board which is what they love to do with their defense. He’s intelligent, he’s tough and the last I checked the work they have done at that school has panned out quite well over the years.”
The Ravens are optimistic a player from their top 20 will fall to their first-round pick, which has been something they have managed to capitalize on in past years. Given this scenario, players like DeJean could be at the top of the list when April 25 comes around.
Another possibility: Florida State edge rusher Jared Verse, who had nine sacks each of the past two seasons for the Seminoles.
“I can see a guy like Jared Verse, who feels 1,000 percent like a Raven, if he were to get there in the early 20s, that maybe this is an opportunity for them to go up and get a guy like that who just plays like a bully and fits exactly their philosophy in Baltimore,” Jeremiah said.
Jeremiah feels the following edge rushers could also have a big impact on the Ravens: Penn State’s Chop Robinson, Missouri’s Darius Robinson, Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland and Alabama’s Chris Braswell.
Chop Robinson transferred to the Nittany Lions after spending one season at Maryland. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound Maryland native was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2023 and is considered one of the top defensive ends in the class.
“[Darius Robinson] is just a bigger guy, he’s not anywhere as juicy or as twitched up as Chop is,” Jeremiah said. “Then it’s Marshawn Kneeland, who kind of fits the rugged style there in Baltimore. Again, he doesn’t have that same pure juice that you get with Chop.”
The talk of the town is just how deep the offensive line class is this year, which pairs well with the Ravens’ needs. Some internal options exist, but the Ravens will likely look to add more options throughout the draft. Jeremiah mentioned Kansas State’s Cooper Beebe, TCU’s Brandon Coleman, UConn’s Christian Haynes, South Dakota State’s Mason McCormick and Utah’s Sataoa Laumea as potential plug-and-play options beyond the first round.
“People will say we’ve talked about the depth of the tackle class, but the problem is those are premiums. Those are gone. Those are off-the-lot gone, so those top eight tackles, forget about it. They’re flying off the board,” Jeremiah said. “Whereas your eighth interior guy, that is going to be in the third round and in some cases even into the fourth round. … There is a good chunk of guys there that I think are ready to play.”
For more from Jeremiah, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Jon Baker/OU Athletics