Ravens Rookie Set Up For Success

While the Baltimore Ravens' secondary was a major concern entering the NFL Draft, it was never due to the starting lineup. With Marlon Humphrey and Nate Wiggins at cornerback, as well as Kyle Hamilton at safety, Baltimore could and still can field one of the best starting secondaries in the NFL.

No, the problem was the lack of depth behind those stars. At corner, the Ravens' only three proven starters were Humphrey, Wiggins and newcomer Chidobe Awuzie. They had even less depth at safety, with only Hamilton and Ar'Darius Washington being proven starters.

Thankfully for the Ravens, all those issues should now be in the rear-view mirror. They drafted two cornerbacks in the later rounds, but the biggest addition was former Georgia safety Malaki Starks, whom they drafted at No. 27 overall.

Thanks to the stars around him, Starks is in a situation to be one of the most successful players in this class, according to NFL.com's Marc Ross.

"The Ravens secondary is loaded with talent, from safety Kyle Hamilton to cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Nate Wiggins, one of my second-year breakout candidates for 2025," Ross wrote. "So, Starks won't have to be the biggest playmaker on the field out of the gate. The Georgia product has experience playing safety and nickelback — much like Hamilton, whose move from playing primarily in the slot to a more traditional safety spot midway through 2024 sparked Baltimore's major defensive turnaround. Such versatility allows defensive coordinator Zach Orr to suffocate opposing passing attacks downfield."

Starks was an impact player throughout his entire time at Georgia, recording 17 pass breakups and six interceptions for one of the best defense's in the country. While there are several great players ahead of him, he will undoubtedly have chances to shine this season and beyond.

However, the relatively-low amount of pressure right away should help him throughout the transition to the professional level.