Carson Wentz is the key for the Baltimore Ravens

I feel like this topic has been discussed ad nauseum. Yet more and more information keeps coming to light that gives more steam to it, so articles keep getting written.

Quarterback Carson Wentz is the key for the Baltimore Ravens at sixth overall.

Quarterbacks make teams do crazy things. While this years crop seems to have elicited questions whether the candidates are franchise quarterbacks, analysts and quarterback guru's like Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden seem to be sold. Carson Wentz and Jared Goff are the top candidates in this years draft, and maybe have touted Wentz as on the same level as last years tandem of Jamies Winston and Marcus Mariota, and in some cases even Andrew Luck.

The Ravens need some help to push an elite player down to them at six, or possibly create a bidding war for a quarterback at #6 should none of the teams choose to select a quarterback. While Tennessee seems to be willing to trade down, the teams needing quarterbacks are all picking low enough that it would be hard to meet the Titans price, and some of them are also lacking the necessary assets to move up that far (Philly).

So if Cleveland were to pass on Wentz, choosing either Jared Goff or going after a different position, this would leave the Ravens in the enviable position of selecting before the San Francisco 49ers, a team in need of a long-term option at quarterback.

With the Philadelphia Eagles now swooning over Carson Wentz, according to multiple sources, this leaves the Ravens in the enviable position of being before San Francisco, but only a few picks ahead of the Eagles. The Ravens may be able to move down and still get a player they love like Vernon Hargraeves, Shaq Lawson, or even Ezekiel Elliot (if that is who they covet). Or the could improbably trade down a second time and stockpile even more premium picks.

What they could extract from the Eagles or 49ers in that scenario is uncertain, but it is likely that they could garner an extra 3rd rounder at a minimum for their efforts, as franchise quarterbacks do not grow on trees. If the Eagles are convinced Wentz is their guy, they likely will move heaven and earth to get up those few, important slots.

These last few weeks will be difficult, with all the rumors swirling, to decipher what is truth, and what is a smokescreen. But at the end of the day, when the dust settles on April 28, the hope is that the Ravens will have a cornerstone for their defense for years to come. But an extra day 2 pick or two would be a heck of a bonus!