Ravens land first-round steal in 7-round 2022 NFL Mock Draft
By Justin Fried
Round 4, 126th Overall, Ravens: Sam LaPorta, TE, Iowa
The Ravens have proven over the years that they can never have enough tight ends, but for the first time in a while, the position group isn’t nearly as deep as it once was.
Nick Boyle’s future is in question and Josh Oliver was a dud as TE3 in 2021. They can use a player like Iowa’s Sam LaPorta to serve as a complement to Mark Andrews in both the pass and run game.
LaPorta is a former wide receiver who added on 20 pounds of weight and has developed into a quality all-around tight end prospect. He’s an excellent route-runner who served as arguably the top option in Iowa’s offense this season.
Combine that with his impressive growth as a blocker and the Ravens could look to tap into the potential that LaPorta possesses. He’s one of the most interesting tight end prospects in this entire class.
Round 4, 137th Overall, Ravens: Keeanu Benton, DT, Wisconsin
Ideally, we would have addressed the interior defensive line earlier than this. But this is one of those situations where there are way too many external factors to truly assess the situation (retirements, free agency, etc.).
Nonetheless, the Ravens will likely be searching for their Brandon Williams replacement at the very least this offseason. And after missing out on prospects like Jordan Davis and Travis Jones, we pivoted to Wisconsin’s Keeanu Benton.
Benton is a true two-down, gap-stuffing nose tackle who probably lacks the explosiveness to be anything more than a space-eater at the next level. But that’s exactly what the Ravens would ask of him.
His raw power should allow him to compete for snaps early in his career as the Ravens look to get younger along the defensive line.