Mock Draft: Ravens go after big play wide receiver in first round

In his first official 2018 mock draft, ESPN’s Todd McShay has the Baltimore Ravens selecting Texas A&M wide receiver Christian Kirk.

As the 2017 NFL regular season is nearing an end in the next few months that means it’s mock draft season. Around this time of year, high-profile college football prospects start to declare for the NFL draft. That means media and draft experts like Todd McShay start to really discuss the upcoming 2018 NFL draft. This includes 100 different versions of mock drafts starting from round one all the way to round seven.

While mock drafts, especially this early, really have no meaning, their still interesting to look at. Yesterday, McShay released his first official mock draft for round one and had the Baltimore Ravens selecting Texas A&M wide receiver Christian Kirk with the 22nd overall pick.

The junior from College Station, Texas is a big play wide receiver that the Ravens passing attack lacks. At 5-11, 200 pounds, Kirk has the ability to score just about anytime he touches the ball and has amassed 2,667 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns during his three seasons with the Aggies.

Not only can Kirk burn secondaries in the passing game, he’s just about, if not more dangerous as a returner on special teams. As the primary punt returner during his college career, Kirk is simply impossible to stop in the open field. He has the agility and elusiveness but just by pure speed, Kirk is the best athlete on the field in a given week.

If you don’t believe me just watch it for yourself.

Kirk is such an exciting player to watch and given the lack of production at receiver this season for the Ravens you can see exactly why this fit would make sense. Many fans would kick and scream for Ozzie Newsome to draft Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley out of Alabama but that seems to be out of the realm of possibility given the Ravens’ draft order. Ridley will be off the board with the first ten picks. Unless the Ravens trade up, they don’t have a shot.

After failing to select an offensive skill position player in last year’s draft, Ozzie Newsome will target playmakers this year. With Maclin and Wallace both around the age of 30 and Breshad Perriman looking like a bust, the Ravens need help badly. And by help, they need help at wide receiver in the first or second round, not in the fourth round or later. The offense has lacked a consistent playmaker since the days of Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin.

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With the college football season still yet to finish out along with combines, pro days and every other offseason workout, mock drafts are going to change by the week. While Kirk won’t be in every Ravens mock draft we see, I expect the wide receiver theme to stay pretty consistent heading into the draft. That’s the area the team needs the most help heading into next season.