Ravens' Malaki Starks Named to Preseason All-Rookie Team

Making the transition from college football to the NFL is always tricky, but if there's a player equipped to make the transition smoothly, it'd probably be Baltimore Ravens rookie safety Malaki Starks.

Starks, the No. 27 overall pick in April's draft, spent three years as a starter at Georgia, which boasted one of the nation's best defenses in that time span. He was far from a passenger as he had 17 pass breakups and six interceptions over his three seasons. He was also a first-team All-American in each of the past two seasons, earning consensus All-American honors in 2023.

Now, Starks joins a Baltimore defense that seems tailor-made for him, and analysts can't wait to see him in action. NFL.com's Gennaro Filice named Starks to his all-rookie team, expecting him to make a big impact right away.

"Starks is represented by Nicole Lynn, but the trailblazing agent has a serious competitor when it comes to the dogged promotion of her client: ME! Seeing how my infatuation with the safety approached stalker levels during this draft cycle, his placement here was guaranteed the moment I was handed this assignment," Filice wrote. "The fit in Baltimore is perfect, as Starks’ center field chops will allow Kyle Hamilton to return to the overhang role that made him a first-team All-Pro in 2023. And Malaki has already endeared himself to his head coach."

“'He was organizing walk-throughs at the hotel for the rookies pretty much the whole camp -- I think that’s pretty cool,' John Harbaugh said last week. 'He’s always on point.' I. Love. This. Guy."

With the loss of Ar'Darius Washington, who will miss most of - if not all of - the season after tearing his Achilles last month, Starks will definitely have more pressure on him than previously expected, as he's now definitely the full-time starter next to Hamilton.

Again, though, he's more than prepared to take on that responsibility.