It’s that time of year again—when ESPN’s Bill Barnwell decides to throw conventional wisdom out the window and fire up his all-trades mock draft, a chaotic masterpiece where every pick comes with a price tag.
Some make sense. Others are purely for entertainment. Then there are the ones, like the Baltimore Ravens’ hypothetical trade, that leave you scratching your head wondering if the multiverse version of Eric DeCosta is operating unhinged.
In this particular reality, the Ravens ship off tight end Mark Andrews, their No. 27 overall pick, and a fourth-rounder to the Chargers in exchange for pick No. 22 and former first-round guard Zion Johnson.
Baltimore moves up five spots in the draft. But at what cost? Losing Andrews would be a massive hit as he’s still one of the best tight ends in the league. And while Johnson still has some upside, he hasn’t exactly lived up to the billing as a top-tier interior lineman.
On the surface, this addresses Baltimore’s most obvious need. The offensive line’s been gutted over the past two offseasons, and the departure of Patrick Mekari left a decent-sized hole at guard. But giving up your franchise's all-time touchdown leader to make up for that? It just doesn’t feel like the kind of move the real-life Ravens would—or should—make.
Does trading Mark Andrews for Zion Johnson make sense for the Ravens?
Let’s be clear: Johnson could still turn into a very good player. He’s just 25, and the positional value of a plug-and-play guard in a Super Bowl window shouldn’t be dismissed. Barnwell himself points out:
“The Ravens have lost multiple starting offensive linemen over the past few years, and they might like their chances with the 25-year-old Johnson.” He’s not wrong.
But this isn’t a one-for-one swap. Baltimore’s also sending an additional fourth-rounder and Mark Andrews, who—despite some frustrating playoff moments—remains a top-five tight end and Lamar Jackson’s longtime safety blanket.
You don’t just toss that aside, especially when the offense already skews so heavily toward tight end usage. Even if Isaiah Likely is waiting in the wings, this feels like overcorrecting a positional imbalance while creating a new one.
If the Ravens were going to draft a defensive player at 22 anyway, what exactly is the point of moving up five spots just to patch a guard spot and offload an elite pass catcher? What's the end goal here?
Andrews’ $4 million roster bonus was paid in March. Head coach John Harbaugh said at the league meetings he fully expects him back. And despite the offseason chatter, the Ravens haven’t acted like a team trying to move off their star tight end. This trade feels like it belongs to a different universe of Baltimore—a version that’s more desperate and more chaotic than the one we’ve come to know.
If you squint hard enough, there’s logic in acquiring a young interior lineman and clearing a logjam at tight end. But the Ravens don’t need to squint. They need to stay the course. And this mock trade, as fun as it is, simply just isn't making too much sense. Respectfully, we'll pass on this chaos for now.