The Baltimore Ravens have put together a stellar 2023 campaign to this point. They earned the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a dominant regular season and used homefield to their advantage, defeating the Houston Texans 34-10 in their Divisional Round matchup.
The Ravens will now host the Kansas City Chiefs for the chance to advance to Super Bowl 58. This is the sixth consecutive season the Chiefs will be playing in the AFC Championship Game, while Baltimore is making their first appearance since the 2012 season when they won the Super Bowl over the San Francisco 49ers.
While that is where all of the team’s focus is, most of the NFL has already turned their attention to the 2024 offseason. Eventually, the Ravens will be doing the same and preparing for the next regular season.
One of the goals this offseason for Baltimore will be retaining as much of their talent as possible on the defensive side of the ball. The Ravens have had a top ranked defense throughout the season, but several key contributors are set to hit free agency.
That is part of the reason why ESPN’s draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has the Ravens going defense with their first-round pick in a recent mock draft. He believes they could address their secondary, with Missouri cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. heading to Baltimore with the No. 31 overall pick.
“The Ravens’ defense has been spectacular this season, but defensive tackles Justin Madubuike and Michael Pierce, edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney, linebacker Patrick Queen and safety Geno Stone are all set to be free agents this offseason. While they’re likely to bring back a couple of these players and might have young replacements on their roster for others, I see a banged-up cornerback group that could use more depth.
Rakestraw would make six cornerbacks off the board in Round 1, which would be the most since the 2020 draft. He has the versatility to play out wide or in the slot. He had just one interception in four college seasons, but he did have 24 career pass breakups, so he knows how to get his hands on throws. I like Rakestraw’s fit in Baltimore,” Kiper wrote.
Rakestraw was an important part of Missouri’s nationally ranked defense. They were 26th in the country in points allowed and showcased how strong their defense was while defeating Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl.
As a result, Rakestraw is one of the fastest rising players in this year’s draft class. He is finding himself in the first round of more and more mock drafts, with one of them even having him going as high as No. 13.
His statistics won’t jump off the box score, as he didn’t record an interception this season, but he has strong coverage abilities. There are a lot of high scoring offenses in the SEC and NFL caliber players but Rakestraw more than held his own and would fit in well with the Ravens.
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