NFL Draft Recap: Baltimore Ravens: 2023 NFL Draft Outlook

The Baltimore Ravens' draft day was overshadowed by bigger news: their re-signing of franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson. But the draft was also good for Jackson, too.

In the first round, the Ravens picked yet another exciting receiver who could be a real weapon for Jackson in this Baltimore offense: Boston College's Zay Flowers.

Besides Flowers, who else did the Ravens add, and what does it mean for their 2023 prospects?

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Who Did The Baltimore Ravens Draft On Offense?

Zay Flowers is a small but fast receiver who led the ACC in receiving touchdowns twice--2020 and 2022. In 2022, he also placed second in the ACC in receiving yards, with 1,077. If Flowers can translate his game to the NFL and show that he can get off the line against press coverage, he will be yet another asset on an offense that already added Odell Beckham Jr.

The Ravens waited until the sixth and seventh rounds to take their next offensive players, tackle Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu and guard Andrew Vorhees. The Ravens have drafted linemen in the late rounds in the past who ended up starting.

Aumavae-Laulu gets the "developmental" label. He went unrecruited out of high school but worked to prove himself at Oregon. Vorhees led the entire NFL Scouting Combine with 38 bench press reps even after he tore his ACL that same day. The ACL tear means he won't be able to play this season, but Ravens officials said they expect him to start in 2024.

Who Did The Baltimore Ravens Draft On Defense?

Lacking a second-round pick, the Ravens' first defensive pick came in round three when they selected Clemson linebacker Trenton Simpson.

Simpson made a total of 72 tackles his junior season, including 2.5 sacks and forced two fumbles. In a draft class that was frankly lacking in off-ball linebacker talent, Simpson was Mel Kiper Jr's top-rated inside linebacker. The Ravens will need a new ILB this year or next year after they declined Patrick Queen's fifth-year option.

The Ravens followed that pick with an outside linebacker: Mississippi's Tavius Robinson. Finally, they got Stanford cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly with their fifth-round choice. Kelly only allowed a 39% completion percentage when targeted. If he can shut down receivers the same way in the NFL, he'll start alongside Marlon Humphrey. All in all, this was a solid draft, which earned the Ravens a B in RotoBaller's team-by-team NFL draft grades.

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