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Mel Kiper downgrades Ravens' 2015 draft class

Hindsight is supposedly 20/20. Now that a season has come and gone, the Ravens still look like they have a solid group of young players.

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Ravens have built themselves up by being superb drafters. You'd be hard-pressed to find another team that nails the draft each and every year. The Ravens always have their misses, but each class seems to produce a big hit without fail.

2015 was no exception to that rule. The group initially received an A- rating from draft guru Mel Kiper, Jr. in the aftermath of the draft. Here is the group that received high remarks from Kiper.

  • Round 1: Breshad Perriman, WR
  • Round 2: Maxx Williams, TE
  • Round 3: Carl Davis, DT
  • Round 4: Za'Darius Smith, DE
  • Round 4: Buck Allen, HB
  • Round 4: Tray Walker, CB
  • Round 5: Nick Boyle, TE
  • Round 5: Robert Myers, OG
  • Round 6: Darren Waller, WR
Now that the season is over for the Ravens, Kiper reassessed his rankings and regraded the group with a mediocre B-. This was mostly because of the missing Breshad Perriman, the crown jewel of the class. Otherwise, the Ravens did quite good in the draft savant's opinion. Because of injuries, many of the rookies saw much more playing time than expected.

On offense, Maxx Williams and Nick Boyle both flashed great potential at a position that is slow to develop, and Buck Allen performed admirably when he was thrust into the RB1 role. On the other side of the ball, Carl Davis and Za'Darius Smith both look like real value picks, with the latter becoming a sack machine in the closing weeks of the year.

The class didn't come without its misses either. Robert Myers was cut midseason, and Tray Walker was underwhelming when he was on the field. Darren Waller of course, is still a project player.

Overall, the Ravens look poised to have this class pay dividends for them in the future. It's just another year of the Ravens doing what they do best. Winning the draft.