As we get closer to the 2023 NFL draft we are honing in on who exactly the Baltimore Ravens will select in the first round. ESPN analytics has been digesting mock drafts, looking through sportsbook odds, and trying to determine who the most likely players are for each slot.
While the method is not perfect, it does give a few options to consider, and there is a long list of potential choices by the Ravens when it is all said and done. So, who are the five most likely players to be selected by the Baltimore Ravens?
5. Quentin Johnston remains a likely option for Baltimore Ravens
Even with the addition of Odell Beckham Jr. you can see that this list is skewing toward a wide receiver. Quentin Johnston has been someone mocked to the Baltimore Ravens throughout this process, so it is no surprise that ESPN has him modeled to go here. If anything, it may be surprising that he is not the most likely option.
One of the reasons for that is that ESPN gives Johnston about a 25% chance of being selected before this pick, so they do reduce the odds that he will be the Ravens guy. Still, with nearly a 75% chance he is on the board, the fit makes sense.
This is not the most talented wide receiver class, but that could end up helping the Ravens. They may be able to sit back at 22 and see that the best wide receiver in the class, or at least on their personal board is still sitting there.
It would be interesting to see how Johnston would fit with Odell Beckham in the mix. While you can argue that wide receiver is less of a need, it still is a need. Still, of all the wide receivers Johnston may be more redundant is skill set. The Ravens may want a receiver who is better in the slot than Beckham or Johnston. At the same time, they may think the size of Johnston can complement the potential speed of Beckham.
4. Will Deonte Banks get drafted by the Baltimore Ravens
The fourth most likely player to be drafted by the Baltimore Ravens is Deonte Banks. Just like Quentin Johnston, ESPN has him about 75% likely to be on the board for the 22nd pick. If that is the case you could see them leaning to Banks over Johnston.
One reason is that the Ravens added Beckham, but they still have serious holes at cornerback. They are moving Kyle Hamilton out of the slot, and they are losing Marcus Peters. They have not done nearly enough to figure that position out.
Beyond that, they have had just a bit more luck drafting cornerbacks in the first round compared to wide receivers. Finally, it is a better cornerback class, so the odds are that they may find a falling cornerback compared to potentially reaching for wide receiver.
Banks will not fix the hole in the slot, but he would immeditaley become the man on the outside. He has everything you want from a height/weight/speed/length perspective. He can improve in some areas, especially tracking the ball in the air down the field. Still, that is why the prototype build of a corner may fall down to 22. If he does fall, the odds of him being the Ravens pick shoot up, and they are already one of the highest.
3. Is Jordan Addison the best wide receiver in the 2023 NFL draft?
The third most likely option for the Baltimore Ravens in the 2023 NFL draft is Jordan Addison from Pitt and USC. There is a real chance that Addison is the best wide receiver in the draft, and he may end up being the first one taken. At the same, he is a slender wide receiver, and he could fall.
Also, the Baltimore Ravens could still be the team that takes a wide receiver first. What makes Addison such an interesting prospect is that despite his slender frame he has a complete and well-rounded game.
At Pitt, he was winning jump balls in the air down the field. Addison was getting seperation deep and making plays. At USC, they used him closer to the line. He was working out of the slot more and was working with the ball in his hands more, creating after the catch.
So, what you saw is someone who now plays inside and outside. He has the deep game ability and can make you miss behind the line of scrimmage. If he was an inch taller, and 15 pounds heavier, there would be no debate when he gets drafted.
2. Are Baltimore Ravens more likely to draft Zay Flowers?
ESPN seems to be higher on Zay Flowers than most. They think that of the top wide recivers, he may be the first one gone. However, they also believe that he is a lock to get selected here if he falls. There are reasons to buy into that. He is another player who can win in all areas of the field.
While he is shorter, the Ravens swung on Hollywood Brown once, so they are not completely turned off by the notion. Still, while ESPN sees the fit, we are not as sure. The one thing is that while he is an all areas player, he did not have as much slot experience as Jordan Addison. Addison is a bit thinner, but he is also younger, more versatile, and a bit taller as well.
The debate between the two is fair and will be fleshed out. It is interesting to see that three of the top five picks are wide receivers, showing it still may just be up to them to pick their flavor and see who drops to them.
1. Will the Baltimore Ravens really draft Hendon Hooker?
This one is surprising to some, but obviously not others. ESPN Believes that if Hendon Hooker is on the board at pick 22 he will be on the Baltimore Ravens when things are all said and done. That is not the most likley thought in our book, though.
First, the Ravens do have Lamar Jackson under contract. Things do not look great, and while the Odell Beckham signing does not mean anything, as we stand right now, he is their quarterback. A team has to actually make an offer at Jackson for him to go anywhere else. If no team goes after him he has to decide to play for Baltimore or sit out. We know he will not sit out.
Second, of all the quarterbacks that are a pivot from Jackson, Hooker is the least likely to do anything. He tore his ACL late last season. If you draft Hendon Hooker, when does he start, week 10? If Baltimore started Tyler Huntley all season, do they pick in the top five next year? Then, they draft a quarterback and wasted Hooker. You draft Hooker when you have somebody that is a stop-gap, not if you need him to start right away.
They cannot draft Hooker, and have him sit behind Lamar Jackson for a year. If Jackson stays, they need to use that pick on a non-quarterback. If Jackson leaves, they still need someone who can start week one, and Hooker does not help that. ESPN may have great analytics, but this one does not make sense as we sit here right now.