2021 NFL Draft: Do the Baltimore Ravens have a true need at safety?

There’s a slew of directions the Baltimore Ravens could go in the 2021 NFL Draft, but will the team add a safety with a premium pick?

Safety isn’t the first thought that comes to mind when one thinks of the biggest needs for the Baltimore Ravens, but it may be a position the team looks to address earlier in the 2021 NFL Draft than we may anticipate.

It’s not as though Baltimore is necessarily in dire need of a safety. Honestly, it’s quite the opposite. Chuck Clark has been one of the league’s best-kept secrets and his partner in crime, DeShon Elliott, flourished in his first season as a starter. The two are tone-setting, stud safeties with the latter absolutely laying the wood on unfortunate offensive players going his direction… just ask Derrick Henry.

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The two give the Ravens a very strong duo at the safety spot, but they admittedly are a tad limited as cover guys. Neither is a true center-fielder and both are better suited to play up near the line of scrimmage. The team had that guy in Earl Thomas before that whole fiasco took place last offseason. It’s not like this was a huge weakness in Baltimore’s defense in 2020, but it’s definitely a spot that could use an upgrade. With a pass rush that already wasn’t the best getting significantly worse in the offseason, every second of coverage matters. This leads us to believe that adding more safety talent could happen this offseason.

There are a handful of really solid options for the Ravens to fancy with the 27th overall pick in round one, but none more so than TCU’s Trevon Moehrig. Moehrig has actually been a popular selection for Baltimore in a slew of mock drafts recently, as he has great coverage instincts and a knack for turnovers. In three seasons with the Horned Toads, Moehrig picked off seven balls and broke up 21 passes thrown his way. Moehrig would certainly be a welcome addition to a secondary lacking a true ball-hawking presence on the backend.

A few other interesting options outside of round one include Oregon’s Jevon Holland or UCF’s Richie Grant. Both of these guys have some ball-hawking skills of their own and could see some major time on the field because of it. While neither would be great values in the first round, both would be very good options on day two of the draft.

Of course, there are always options to develop and stash away later in the draft and the Ravens have proven to be one of the best teams at doing this. After all, both Clark and Elliott were sixth-round draft choices. This seems like the more reasonable and responsible move to make, but don’t rule out a bigger investment at the position.

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However and whenever the Baltimore Ravens decide to address the safety position, the need is for a true cover man over the top of the defense. The team has more than solid and reliable options at the spot right now but adding a game-changing deep safety could be a huge difference-maker in how dominant this defense can be. The secondary is a huge strength in Baltimore, but just imagine if it had no weaknesses… to do that, the Ravens should consider drafting a true free safety in the 2021 NFL Draft.

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