Lamar Jackson‘s exceptional MVP season ended in heartbreak after falling to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
How did the Baltimore Ravens address their roster needs in the 2024 NFL Draft to help support a first trip to the Super Bowl since 2013? Let’s examine the Ravens’ 2024 NFL Draft grades to answer that question.
Baltimore Ravens 2024 NFL Draft Grades
Round 1, Pick 30: Nate Wiggins, CB, Clemson
The rich got richer with the Ravens’ dominant defensive unit adding an exceptionally athletic cornerback prospect in Nate Wiggins out of Clemson.
Nate Wiggins possesses some of the best coverage instincts, eyes, reaction speed, and route recognition in the class. 👀#RavensFlock | #ALLIN pic.twitter.com/ZZtrROOXz3
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) April 26, 2024
He is a bit undersized at just 173 pounds, but his elite movement skills — top speed, excellent change of direction skills, and springy verticality — paired with his plus-level feel for zone coverage give Baltimore another top-tier athlete to contribute to its versatile secondary in 2024.
Grade: B+
Round 2, Pick 62: Roger Rosengarten, OT, Washington
The Ravens’ offensive line’s loss of Kevin Zeitler earlier this offseason poked a small hole in that formidable group, which is now addressed with Baltimore spending the 62nd overall pick on Roger Rosengarten out of Washington.
MORE: Analysis and Grades for All 7 Rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft
He spent last year at right tackle for the Huskies, but he could potentially slide inside thanks to his quick feet, fluid hips, and horizontal twitchiness. Rosengarten could prove an effective pass protector immediately, and he flashed plenty of encouraging run-blocking reps to suggest he can be an early all-around contributor to the unit.
Grade: B+
Round 3, Pick 93: Adisa Isaac, EDGE, Penn State
Despite the Ravens’ defense being among the league’s best units last season, they simply couldn’t pass on an edge-rushing prospect like Adisa Isaac out of Penn State at No. 93 overall.
His college teammate — Chop Robinson — may have won the pre-draft process with exceptional athletic profile, but Isaac was the player with the ideal amount of production from the Nittany Lions pass rush in 2023. He uses his ideal length effectively and possesses the body bend and ankle flexion to run the arc while maintaining his acceleration.
Grade: A+
Round 4, Pick 113 (From DEN via NYJ): Devontez Walker, WR, North Carolina
The Ravens’ passing offense under Todd Monken helped unlock Jackson’s passing ceiling in 2023, which helped earn the former Louisville product his second league MVP. After the team parted ways with Odell Beckham Jr. this offseason, the team decided to bring in North Carolina WR Devontez Walker at No. 113 overall.
Walker has great length, vertical speed, and curvilinear acceleration to help him stack defensive backs effortlessly on vertical concepts. If he can become a bit more consistent with his hands and expand his route tree, Walker could develop into a productive WR2 for the Ravens.
Grade: B+
Round 4, Pick 130: T.J. Tampa, CB, Iowa State
The Ravens’ defense invested in the cornerback position to start the 2024 NFL Draft and circled back to the position by snagging T.J. Tampa at No. 130 overall.
Tampa was in the discussion for a Day 2 pick but likely slid because of his lack of top-end speed but uses his excellent arm length (32 ⅛’’) very effectively at the catchpoint. Additionally, he’s a physical presence in run support and should provide a nice depth piece behind Wiggins, Marlon Humphrey, and Brandon Stephens.
Grade: A
Round 5, Pick 165: Rasheen Ali, RB, Marshall
The Ravens’ identity on offense is to run the football, and they managed to take an intriguing RB prospect with Rasheen Ali out of Marshall at No. 165 overall.
Baltimore currently has Derrick Henry slotted in as the starter and got flashes from Keaton Mitchell during his rookie year as a big-play complementary piece prior to his campaign coming to an unfortunate end due to injury.
MORE: Best Players Available Remaining in the 2024 NFL Draft
But Ali was a productive three-down contributor for the Thundering Herd with his burst, physicality, and underrated pass-catching ability during his days at Marshall. Ali’s durability concerns are likely why a talent like him fell all the way to the end of the fifth round.
Grade: B
Round 6, Pick 218: Devin Leary, QB, Kentucky
When you have the reigning league MVP under center, you aren’t in the market for a quarterback to play any sort of significant role in the near future. Yet, Jackson’s durability concerns do make a quality backup quarterback a priority, which is why the Ravens selected Kentucky signal caller Devin Leary at No. 218 overall.
Leary had one phenomenal year at NC State in 2021 but has failed to capture that level of production or consistency since. His ceiling with the Ravens is to become a reliable backup option for Jackson in the case of an injury.
Grade: C
Round 7, Pick 228: Nick Samac, C, Michigan State
The Ravens entered the 2024 NFL Draft wanting to address the interior of the offensive line after the departure of guards Zeitler and John Simpson to free agency. They addressed the position group up front in the second round by selecting Rosengarten and circled back to add depth to the interior of this group by selecting Nick Samac out of Michigan State at No. 228 overall.
Samac likely doesn’t factor into a starting role this season, but his extensive starting experience makes him a quality depth piece for this offensive line unit in 2024.
Grade: B
Round 7, Pick 250: Sanoussi Kane, S, Purdue
The loss of safety Geno Stone to free agency this offseason made adding a third versatile safety to work alongside Kyle Hamilton and Marcus Williams a minor priority heading into the 2024 NFL Draft, which the Ravens finally got around to addressing with the 250th overall pick by selecting Purdue safety Sanoussi Kane in the seventh round.
Kane does some of his best work near the line of scrimmage as a box safety as a physical and instinctive presence in run support, but he could be a liability in coverage with tight hips and route-diagnosing inconsistencies heading into the NFL.
Grade: B-
Baltimore Ravens 2024 NFL Draft Summary
Say what you want about the Baltimore Ravens, but they consistently navigate the draft board very well over the years. Despite many linking the team to a wide receiver on Day 1, the team added Clemson CB Nate Wiggins on Day 1.
KEEP READING: 2024 Overall NFL Draft Grades
They then followed up that selection by finding a potential future replacement for Kevin Zeitler or John Simpson at guard with Roger Rosengarten in the second round.
Other exceptional value picks were Iowa State cornerback T.J. Tampa and Marshall running back Rasheen Ali in the fourth and fifth rounds, respectively.
Final Grade: A-