Ravens 2022 Mock Draft Roundup

Today is the day. Draft day. Over the next three days the Ravens will add about ten new players to the team. The most anticipated, coming up tonight. With the 14th overall pick, unless a trade is made, a wide range of players will be available and the mock drafts among various industry experts reflect that.

Without further ado, a roundup of who 24 writers believe the Ravens will take with their first-round pick tonight.

Discuss your thoughts on these picks on our message board.

Jordan Davis, DL, Georgia

Kyle Stackpole, CBS Sports

We know the Browns and Steelers want to rely on their running games, but that would be hard to do with Davis clogging up the middle for the Ravens. And with veteran Calais Campbell coming back, he and Davis will be able to collapse the pocket and make life easier for promising young pass-rusher Odafe Oweh.

Charles Davis, NFL.com

Yes, I still strongly considered Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum (the top center) here. I also considered a CB in this spot. But with the All-American DT from Georgia still available, I couldn’t pass up on him. Davis gets a year to learn from Calais Campbell and improve his conditioning so that he becomes the true three-down terror he’s capable of being.

Daniel Jeremiah, NFL.com

I know this pick won’t fill one of the most pressing needs for the Ravens, but they always lean toward drafting the best player available. Davis or Trevor Penning would make sense here, but I’ll stick with the massive SEC DT prospect.

Bucky Brooks, NFL.com

The league’s No. 1 rush defense gets that much better after adding the 6-6, 341-pound Davis up front.

Rhett Lewis, NFL.com

The Ravens are a little long in the tooth on the interior of their defensive line, and Davis provides a jolt of youth and athleticism to go along with his massive 6-6, 341-pound frame. Plus, Calais Campbell’s re-signing in Baltimore can aid in Davis’ quest to become more than just the two-down player we saw at Georgia.

Ari Mairov, Pro Football Focus

Stopping the run has long been a Ravens principle and simply put, that’s what Davis does best.

He went viral for his unreal Combine performance in Indianapolis, showing freakish athleticism by posting an insane 4.78-second 40-yard dash (fastest ever for a player over 310 pounds), 32-inch vertical (highest ever by a player over 340 pounds) and 10-foot-3 broad jump (longest ever by a player over 300 pounds). With Calais Campbell returning on a two-year deal, he and Davis will be able to collapse the pocket and make life easier for second-year pass-rusher Odafe Oweh.

Michael Renner, Pro Football Focus

Davis just feels like a Raven. They aren’t going to let their defensive front crumble to the point of what we saw last year for long. Davis can wreak havoc from the nose.

Trent McDuffie, CB, Washington

Mike Fast, Baltimore Sports and Life

My 7th overall prospect, McDuffie fills a big need for the Ravens. He’s a smooth, skilled, versatile defensive back that enjoys coming up in run support. Between both starting cornerbacks returning from injury and Tavon Young moving on, there’s plenty of opportunity for a young cornerback to make early contributions to this team.

He was voted as Washington’s Defensive Player of the Year—a defense which ranked 1st in the nation in pass defense in 2021.

Mel Kiper Jr., ESPN

The Ravens could go in several directions here, including offensive tackle (will Ronnie Stanley ever be the same again?) and defensive end (Calais Campbell is back, but he’s 35). When I look at this depth chart, though, I see corner depth as an issue. McDuffie has the versatility to play outside and in the slot, and he also will wrap up and bring down ball carriers in the run game. He’s physical.

Jason McIntyre, FOX Sports

Baltimore’s defensive backs were decimated by injuries last year, and the division now features Ja’Marr Chase, who has obliterated the Ravens’ secondary.

Doug Kyed, Pro Football Focus

Every team could use a player like McDuffie, who might be slightly undersized at 5-foot-11, 193 pounds but is a tremendous athlete and earned an 80.0 or higher overall grade in each of his three college seasons.

Trevor Penning, OT, Northern Iowa

Chris Trapasso, CBS Sports

Penning feels like a Ravens blocker. He’s huge, overwhelmingly strong and excels in the run game.

Matt Miller, ESPN

The Ravens could very well go defensive line here — Georgia’s Jordan Davis makes a lot of sense — but fixing the offensive line should be the priority. Penning’s technique needs to be cleaned up — especially his hands and punch timing — but his toughness and physical traits would work very well on the right side of the Ravens’ offensive line.

Peter King, NBC Sports

Kudos to Good Morning Football’s Peter Schrager for IDing Penning to the Ravens. The fourth tackle, clearly, on boards around the league would be a very good fit in Baltimore, where there’s a hole at right tackle (31-year-old Morgan Moses due to fill it as of today) and where left tackle Ronnie Stanley has struggled to stay healthy. Penning started 31 games at left tackle for Northern Iowa, and his size (6-7, 325) would play well on either side. I think the Ravens feel good enough about Stanley’s future to not be forced into taking a tackle here. Picking a corner (Trent McDuffie would be very good value) will not surprise me.

Trevor Sikkema, Pro Football Focus

Although tackle Ronnie Stanley will reportedly be good to go for the 2022 season, Morgan Moses on the right side is getting into his 30s with not much guaranteed money on his contract moving forward. At the end of the day, the Ravens will pick whomever they believe is the best player available; they won’t force a need. With the way this board falls, that could be Penning.

George Karlaftis, Edge, Purdue

Nate Tice, The Athletic

Love the player, love the fit. Karlaftis kept getting better throughout his college career, and you could see light bulbs turn on as the seasons progressed. He can align outside and has the play strength and explosive athletic traits to to bump inside if the Ravens want to attack interior offensive linemen on passing downs. Karlaftis would give the Ravens another fun young piece on their defensive line, pairing him with emerging defensive tackle Justin Madubuike. If 2021 first-round pick Odafe Oweh takes a leap, watch out.

Diante Lee, The Athletic

Karlaftis and Jermaine Johnson are just about tied in my draft evaluations, but Karlaftis comes into the league with the size necessary to be a versatile piece in Baltimore’s defense. Odafe Oweh needs to take a step forward and develop into a lead rusher, and Karlaftis can play a role of run stopper on the edge and kick inside on obvious passing downs to crush the pocket and move quarterbacks with stunts and twists.

Josh Edwards, CBS Sports

Karlaftis is one of the more volatile prospects in this class. Opinions are all over the board. I value his talent here and believe that he would be a great complement to Odafe Oweh; speed on one side and power on the opposite.

Lance Zierlein, NFL.com

Karlaftis is a rugged edge defender who can play with a hand down or standing up. He’d fit the Ravens’ culture and has underrated power rushing talent.

Jermaine Johnson II, DE, Florida State

Ryan Wilson, CBS Sports

After transferring from Georgia, Johnson has a fantastic season at Florida State. And he told us at the combine that he felt like he had something to prove going from the SEC to the ACC. He did that and then some, then he dominated the Senior Bowl, and followed that up with an electric workout in Indy. The Ravens drafted Odafe Oweh a year ago and he’ll get a running mate with Johnson here.

Todd McShay, ESPN

Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum would be a good pick after the Ravens lost Bradley Bozeman to free agency. But could the Ravens afford to ignore Johnson’s fall out of the top 10 right into their lap at No. 14? They were in the bottom 10 last year in sacks (34), and only Tyus Bowser (seven sacks) and Odafe Oweh (five) made much of a dent there. Johnson had 12 sacks and 46 pressures at FSU in 2021, frequently using his quick feet, powerful hands and arsenal of pass-rush moves to overwhelm blockers. If Linderbaum does end up with the Ravens, I’d bet it comes after a trade down the Round 1 board.

Jordan Reid, ESPN

After getting five sacks and three forced fumbles from rookie Odafe Oweh, their first-round pick last year, the Ravens could try to pair him with another edge rusher in Johnson.

He is a ready-made run defender as well as a mature pass-rusher. Johnson is firm at the point of attack and has a determined mentality throughout games and a playing style that would fit well in Baltimore.

Tyler Linderbaum, C, Iowa

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports

They have a hole in the middle of their line that needs to be fixed. Linderbaum has been called by some the best center in a long time to enter the draft. The Ravens would draft and play him right away, much like the Chiefs did with Creed Humphrey last year.

Devin Lloyd, LB, Utah

Dane Brugler, The Athletic

I don’t think anyone would be surprised if the Ravens drafted an offensive tackle (Trevor Penning), edge rusher (George Karlaftis) or defensive lineman (Jordan Davis) here. But a versatile linebacker like Lloyd will also be an appealing option with four-down skills that would be a great fit in Baltimore’s scheme.

In summary, the 24 writers picked seven different players. Jordan Davis looks like the favorite (7). An even split between Trent McDuffie, Trevor Penning, and George Karlaftis (4). Jermaine Johnson II (3). Prisco and Brugler out on islands with the picks of Tyler Linderbaum and Devin Lloyd respectively.

Who are you taking?