Mocking the Draft: Ravens trade up to grab Taylor Lewan

Last week, at the Ravens' pre-draft press conference, Ozzie Newsome was asked if there could be a scenario where the Ravens trade up in the first round, which takes place this Thursday.

"I'd have to say, ‘no,' because we don't have a lot of ammunition this year," Newsome said. "We've only got three picks that are tradeable; the other four are compensatory picks. So, it would be hard to do. But I could probably say if one or two players start getting really close to us, we'd be clamoring trying to go up and get them. I can just say, I know John, I know Eric and I know Joe, and we'll be telling Steve, that we need to go get this player because we feel like he can impact us that much."

So that's that. One, maybe two players, could be what causes the Ravens to move up.

Well, in this Monday's SB Nation mock draft, the Ravens trade up to pick No. 13 to take Michigan offensive tackle Taylor Lewan. Given that Newsome began his answer with a "no" before stating the only reason they would trade up, Lewan would need to be the exception to the overall thinking here.

Here's Ryan Van Bibber's reasoning as to why the Ravens would trade up for this pick:

"It's hard to think about Baltimore's offense being worse than it was last season. Some decent free-agent moves and a healthier roster in 2014 will help, but the Ravens have to improve the offensive line in a division loaded with pass-rushing power. Lewan fills a big void at right tackle. Lewan's slide out of the top 10 is less about his troubling off-field behavior than it is just the fact that his ceiling is a clear step down from the tackles picked ahead of him."

While the reasoning is solid and sound, it's a very unlikely scenario at this point. Perhaps it happens and Van Bibber is onto something the rest of us don't know.