Baltimore Ravens: 3 surprise trades to make during 2023 NFL Draft

We have finally arrived to the week fans have been waiting a long time for. It's about time to kick off the 2023 NFL Draft, with the Baltimore Ravens owning a total of just five picks this year.

General manager Eric DeCosta has plenty of work to do with those limited assets, and he very well could wind up making a trade back in one of the earlier rounds to stack additional draft capital.

However, with the state of the franchise in flux, thanks to the quarterback position, DeCosta could also go out on a limb and make one or two huge, surprise trades during the draft. Just what would one of those look like? We have three, in particular, to highlight based on some current rumors or possibilities.

Surprise Trade Number 1: The Baltimore Ravens acquire DeAndre Hopkins from the Arizona Cardinals

One of the more recent rumors in regards to Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is that he could land in Baltimore, alongside veteran Odell Beckham Jr. If Baltimore wanted to acquire Hopkins, they could try a deal like this one.

With a trade like this, the Cardinals would have to pay some of the remaining salary for Hopkins in 2023, considering it sits just under $20 million and the Ravens don't have that kind of cash this year. However, Arizona does end up getting some value for Hopkins instead of losing him for nothing.

There were plenty of reports over the past month that Arizona could end up cutting Hopkins if they cannot find a trade partner, so this is a win for both sides, in the end.

At this point, one would think this is enough to get Lamar Jackson to commit to playing out the 2023 season, at the very least, in hopes that he balls out and the Ravens end up giving him an extension he feels he deserves in 2024.