Recent Mock Draft Will Test Ravens' Defense

by Bruce Raffel on Mar 6, 2011 3:00 PM EST

NFL.com's Pat Kirwan completed a Mock Draft the other day and while he has the Baltimore Ravens taking Maryland Terrapin wide receiver Torrey Smith at #26 of the first round, the big news is who the other teams in the AFC North are projected to draft. Before we even get into whether or not Smith is the guy to take by the Ravens as opposed to going in a bunch of other directions (CB, OL, DE), we need to see how our division rivals will be improving their teams.

Kirwan has the Cincinnati Bengals selecting Auburn QB Cam Newton with the fourth pick in April's NFL Draft, which should have the Ravens defense running around trying to catch the guy who might be the best pure athlete in the draft. Perhaps no Michael Vick, as Newton is nowhere near as fast, but he is a lot bigger and might be more comparable to Vince Young in size and skills.

The Cleveland Browns are projected to take Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green. Green had a great NFL Scouting Combine and will present match-up problems for the Ravens secondary with his speed and size. With unanswered questions about the make-up and depth of the Ravens corners, perhaps this is even a better reason for Baltimore to look at improving their secondary based on the Browns pick, much less the Bengals.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are going to then take Miami CB Brandon Harris, according to Kirwan's Mock Draft. Harris is showing up on a lot of Mock Drafts as going to the Ravens, so a guy who is going to be a first round CB going to a division rival is also not a great thing to look forward to years down the line when his value would be better determined.

Of course, Kirwan's Mock Draft also has the Steelers passing on Florida G/C Mike Pouncey, when many Mocks have them grabbing Mike to pair him with his brother, Maurkice on their offensive line.

The Baltimore Ravens have a bunch of needs and the debate will continue long after April's draft. However, make no bones about it, the Ravens decision when their pick comes up will not only be based on their own draft board, but what our opponents do in their picks ahead of them as well as what they think the team picking a few spots later will do when their turn comes up.

See Pat Kirwan's latest Mock Draft on NFL.com.

Tweet Comment 10 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

I really dont believe we should use a first on Smith because I see too many question marks. He has potential, but he really struggled with his route running. I would have preferred Baldwin based on his mock or Justin Houston.

by AV23 on Mar 6, 2011 7:13 PM EST reply actions

hmmmm just because he struggles in college with route running doesnt mean he will

once he get drafted. I mean just about every wideout in this draft has been reported in need of work on their route running.

by jazz20 on Mar 6, 2011 9:10 PM EST up reply actions

At first I really like Torrey

but the more I listen and watch, I see him as just nowhere near a first round pick at all. I’ll pass and take either Harris, DE or OL instead.

aka 'Rexx'

by Bruce Raffel on Mar 6, 2011 9:24 PM EST up reply actions

I said he has potential, but don’t feel he is worthy of a first round pick. I know a lot of people here would love him on the team because he is a Terp, but don’t feel he is worthy of a 1st rounder and Ozzie will not reach on a player. If he was there in the 2nd then I have no problem.

by AV23 on Mar 6, 2011 9:33 PM EST up reply actions

I thought the universal belief was that Kirwan’s mock drafts are garbage. They tend to reach based on shock value. I do enjoy his other articles though.

I think we should grab one of those 1st round defensive ends. I like Heyward, Kerrigan, and Watt.

by Keith R on Mar 6, 2011 8:37 PM EST reply actions

Me too

I do like Kirwan on Sirius

aka 'Rexx'

by Bruce Raffel on Mar 6, 2011 9:25 PM EST up reply actions

I would love if Watt fell to us, but I don’t think it happens and I’m not really sold on Kerrigan. Reminds me too much of Kruger and don’t really want to bring in another project of a DE/OLB hybrid.

by AV23 on Mar 6, 2011 8:48 PM EST reply actions