2. Torrey Smith: 2nd round 2011
There are few players that will be more beloved in Baltimore than Torrey Smith. Smith was a star at College Park and stayed in Maryland when he was drafted by the Ravens. Smith had his first big moment against the Pittsburgh Steelers, which is a good team to have a defining moment of your career as a Raven. Smith had a chance to complete a 92 yard touchdown drive with a game winning catch and he dropped it. Plays later, Joe Flacco gave him another chance and Smith silenced the Pittsburgh crowd. That was a top 10 play in franchise history.
Smith was a solid receiver for the Ravens. He had 213 of his 319 career receptions wearing the purple and black. He was a huge part of the Ravens run to win Super Bowl XLVII. His torching of Champ Bailey in the legendary divisional playoff game in Denver, was unforgettable.
It would have been nice to see Smith be a lifelong member of the Ravens. He was a big play-maker for Baltimore, a class act and an easy player to root for. Smith had a total of 5,141 yards and 41 touchdowns in his career. He had a very respectable run. While Marquise Brown looks poised to change the following statement: Smith was the best receiver the Ravens have ever drafted.
1. Mark Andrews: 3rd round 2018
Putting Mark Andrews above Torrey Smith is a bold move. The thing is that Smith was a very good number two receiver yet Andrews has become an elite tight end. Andrews has a chance to become the best tight end in team history. That’s high praise considering the Ravens have had Shannon Sharpe, Todd Heap and Dennis Pitta play for them. Andrews is coming off a season where he led the Ravens in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns. He caught 10 touchdown passes and proved that he was one of the best players at his position.
The reason Andrews is the best pick is because the Ravens got away with the draft steal of the ages here. The Ravens got Andrews with the 86th overall pick. Andrews was the fourth tight end taken in the draft that year and he ended up clearly being the best in the draft class. The Ravens took Hayden Hurst with the 25th overall pick. Hurst was supposed to be the main star at the position and he just got traded to the Atlanta Falcons. The Philadelphia Eagles drafted Dallas Goedert 37 picks ahead of when the Ravens took Andrews.
So it boils down to two things. First, Andrews is the most elite player that the Ravens have drafted on the second day of the draft since 2010. Secondly, Andrews was the greatest value the Ravens have gotten with a day two pick in that time frame.