NFL Draft: Offensive Tackles of the first round, Ravens targets
The Baltimore Ravens are getting very close to the 2021 NFL Draft. The Purple and Black could realistically be looking at an offensive tackle. So let’s take a look at the offensive tackles in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
Should be gone early
- Rashawn Slater (Northwestern)
- Peneii Sewell (Oregon)
The Baltimore Ravens will probably not have a chance to get one of these tackles. Theoretically, the Ravens could trade up with the capital they got with the Orlando Brown Jr. trade. That isn’t happening, not in an offensive tackle class that is rock solid.
Slater is from Northwestern. He’s the top prospect (at least for me) for two reasons. First, he’s the best athlete. Slater’s athleticism at offensive tackle makes him Mr. Upside in this draft class. He’s solid all the way around, but his traits when it comes to footwork, quickness and athleticism set him apart from the rest of the pack.
It’s always hard to gauge offensive tackles from the spread offense of the Oregon Ducks because the ball is so often released before Sewell can get to work..Sewell more than looks the part of being a franchise left tackle. He started the draft process as the consensus number one. It’s hard to see him slipping out of the top 10.
Players that may go in the middle of the first-round
- Christian Darrisaw (Virginia Tech)
- Tevin Jenkins (Oklahoma State)
- Alijah Vera-Tucker (USC)
Can somebody spread a rumor about Darrisaw or something? Out of all the tackles in this class, he makes the most sense for the Ravens. He should be taken long before the Ravens are on the clock and it’s a shame. Darrisaw is a bruiser.
While his upside may not be the highest in this group he’s the readiest to come in and do the job. He’s solid at just about everything. Darrisaw may be the safest pick in the draft. In the middle of the first round, no team’s fans should complain about this pick.
If Tevin Jenkins fell to the Ravens, it would be hard to imagine them passing on him. He’s a great run blocker and he revels at the chance to plow people out of the way. Jenkins fits the play like a Raven mold. At 6-6 317 pounds, he would make a natural replacement for Orlando Brown Jr.
Alijah Vera-Tucker is a player who I see as an offensive guard. He’s got more of a build for that, but he has the strengths of an offensive tackle. Could I see him being a right tackle? Yes, but I see him being a Pro Bowl guard. Tucker should be taken in the first round. If Tucker makes it to the 25th pick I would be surprised.
Most realistic choices for the Ravens at 27 or 31
- Alex Leatherwood (Alabama)
- Samuel Cosmi (Texas)
- Liam Eichenberg (Notre Dame
Leatherwood is a player I spotlighted earlier. He’s a lot like Darrisaw in the sense that there’s not a lot to nitpick him on. The Alabama offensive tackle is a player that could slip down to the Ravens. He’s massive, experienced, and fundamentally sound.
Cosmi is a player I seem to be higher on than most. If there’s a player that I’m rooting for to be drafted ahead of his projections, it’s him. That would make me look pretty smart. Cosmi’s tape shows a mean streak.
He’s often dominant and he puts players on the ground. I think his brute force is being underlooked. Could he be taken in the second round? It’s looking like it. Should he slip that far? No, it’s unfair to his performance as a Texas Longhorn tackle.
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Liam Eichenberg is a big-bodied tackle from Notre Dame, He’s not my favorite option for the Ravens, but he’s certainly in play for them. Considering how Ronnie Stanley turned out, the Ravens may be very ready to go to that well again. Eichenberg looks the part and has a high upside that makes me intrigued.