Ravens 2025 NFL Draft: 8 Winners and 4 Losers

A look at the organizational changes following the draft.

The 2025 NFL is over and the Ravens used 11 draft picks to bolster an already Super Bowl-caliber roster. It’ll take years to give this draft a true grade but we can check for the immediate impact this class can bring.

Let’s check on the winners and losers in the organization.

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Winners

Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr

After year one of Orr’s playcalling career started rough, the Ravens reloaded on that side of the ball after some disappointing secondary play and inconsistencies. Insert Malaki Starks and Mike Green into the starting lineup, add some inside pass rush prowess with Aeneas Peebles, and depth with Teddye Buchanan, Bilhal Kone, and Robert Longerbeam. The Ravens used six of their 11 picks on the defensive side of the ball. Orr will have a ton to work with during OTAs and training camp, and I can’t wait to see who makes the roster and how they’re utilized.

George Warhop and the OL options

The offensive line needed heavy investment coming into the draft. The Ravens had their three top starters, some penciled-in starters at guard, and re-signed Ben Cleveland at depth, but had nothing else. Insert three draft picks who all contribute in different ways. Emory Jones Jr. comes in as the top new option, a guy who could potentially push for a starter’s role at guard, his likely spot in the NFL. But his experience at tackle in the SEC gives the Ravens a swing tackle option they didn’t have before. Carson Vinson has a very real chance to sit behind Ronnie Stanley for a few years and develop into the next franchise left tackle while also being depth. And seventh-round pick Garrett Dellinger is immediate depth at guard with a ton of starting experience.

Either way, new offensive line coach George Warhop suddenly has a ton to work with and mold before the season.

Andrew Vorhees, Daniel Faalele

As mentioned above, there were questions regarding the starting offensive line for the Ravens coming into the draft. Vorhees and Faalele were penciled in as the guard starters, but could the Ravens pick one high to replace them? They were heavily linked to Tyler Booker in the first round. Instead, they wait till their last pick of Day 2 to take their first linemen, and it’s a tackle instead. Emory Jones Jr. will likely play guard in the NFL and will compete for a spot. But the Ravens called him a “swing tackle” in their presser and typically slow-play rookies. Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele have to feel pretty good about earning starting spots right now.

T.J. Tampa, Jalyn Armour-Davis

Cornerback was listed as one of the top areas of interest in the NFL draft for the Baltimore Ravens. After signing Chidobe Awuzie who leaps into the third spot ahead of Tampa and Amour-Davis, could the Ravens pick another corner high, forcing them down the depth chart again? After being a highly regarded fourth-rounder last year, Tampa saw little action dealing with injuries. And Armour-Davis has always been talked about highly by the organization but has never had consistent snaps due to injury and is going into his last year. Both are desperate for an opportunity to shake the injury bug and get out there.

Instead, the Ravens wait until the sixth round to pick two corners, thus assuring Tampa and Armour-Davis’ spots in the room. Instead of potentially fighting each other for the last spot on the roster, Tampa and Armour-Davis will fight each other for the first backup spot behind the top three corners. A spot that will always see snaps due to rotation and injury. Tampa could set himself up to be a starter in 2026 with a good season and Armour-Davis is looking to buy himself more time in the NFL with a prove-it year. This should be one of the top training camp battles.

Return game

The Ravens have lacked consistent juice in at the returner position since Jacoby Jones was on this team. They’ve traded multiple guys over the years with varying success. Devin Duvernay was a good, consistent returner but more for not making mistakes and just getting north-south to pick up yardage. There was rarely electricity because of it. There have been moments like Wallace’s famous game-winner in 2023.

Lajohntay Wester invites real change to the position, a chance for a guy to come in and for the next four years, offer real electricity and juice at the spot. Wester has incredible start-stop suddenness and the burst to get up to his top speed quick. The traits for an electric returner are right there. Wester didn’t do it a ton at Colorado but was a good returner for Florida Atlantic. Expect fun times soon.

Mark Andrews

After months of trade rumors following an awful divisional round playoff game, Mark Andrews can let out that breath he didn’t realize he was holding in. This is still a top tight end in the league and Lamar Jackson’s favorite weapon. Trading him never really made since but a business does what a business needs to do. But the Ravens leave the drafts with no tight ends despite a deep class. This sets up one of the best tight end rooms in the NFL to remain the same: Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar.

This is probably the last ride for Andrews in a Ravens uniform but it comes with a true Super Bowl roster. The expectation is for Likely to take a bigger role this season, conserving Andrews more and setting Likely up to receive a big extension and be the top tight end in Baltimore going forward. But for now, we should enjoy one of the franchise’s best players for one last season.

Eric DeCosta

Are we really surprised? He does this every year. Once again, the Ravens will leave the draft with one of the best grades amongst all the teams. DeCosta delivered maybe the best one-two punch in this draft, and definitely in his career, with Malaki Starks and Mike Green in the first two rounds. That’s two top 2-3 players at their positions, in the back of the first and second rounds, without any trades. Mike Green, especially, is an astonishing pick for them, both from a PR side and simply because it’s the type of player the Ravens never get a chance to grab. A top-tier pass rusher that doesn’t normally fall out of the top 10-15 in the draft.

Add in depth at multiple positions of need with starter potential at a number of them, and DeCosta nailed this draft for the most part. The only surprise was how long they took to take a defensive linemen, but they seemingly nailed it with Aeneas Peebles, who comes in with serious pass rush pedigree. I also love their UDFA pick up of Nash Hutmacher, who’s my favorite to make the roster.

Overall, this was exactly the draft the Ravens needed to extend the window open for Lamar Jackson and the Ravens for a Super Bowl. Instant impact, depth and developmental picks for the future.

Lamar Jackson, the Baltimore Ravens, and Championships

After a devastating loss, once again, in the playoffs to the Bills, many could feel the energy dip a little. The question of whether or not they could get over the hump in the playoffs with Lamar Jackson rang loud. The question of what more the Ravens could do to get to a Super Bowl when they haven’t been able to do it yet, despite multiple years and chances with one of the top rosters in the NFL.

The organization answered those questions loudly. Re-signing Ronnie Stanley, adding DeAndre Hopkins, then drafting instant impact guys who reshape this roster. Despite already having one of the best rosters on paper going into the draft, the Ravens legitimately improved the roster during the draft. The championship hopes for Lamar Jackson and Baltimore remain alive and real because of it. These windows can close at any moment. Eric DeCosta and the Ravens made sure that wasn’t the case.

Losers

Edge Room

The Ravens came into the draft heavily linked to grabbing an edge defender in the early rounds. This, even though the Ravens have six guys who could realistically make the roster in Odafe Oweh, Kyle Van Noy, Tavius Robinson, Adisa Isaac, David Ojabo, and Malik Hamm. The Ravens typically carry five guys into the season and just added a seventh name. With Mike Green added, and likely taking significant snaps, a couple of guys aren’t making the roster, and those who do could lose some snaps.

Justin Tucker

They mentioned it a couple of times during the offseason, the possibility of it. But there was always the question of ‘would they actually do it? ’ Then the Ravens did it. They drafted a kicker in the NFL draft for the first time in history. And while a sixth round isn’t massive most of the time, that’s a real investment for the kicker position. All-in-all, it doesn’t spell good things for Justin Tucker. The writing is mostly on the wall. There are still months to go and who knows what will happen, but things don’t look good with the accusations and now a real investment at the position.

Zero-Tolerance Policy

The Ravens are well known for the zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual assault and domestic violence. After the very public Ray Rice incident, they’ve been very vocal about this policy and enforcing it. Now, just months after their kicker Justin Tucker was accused and no move has been made, they draft Mike Green. Their explanation for the lack of a move surrounding Tucker is waiting for the NFL’s investigation to conclude. Then they came out and said they did extensive and “exhaustive” work around Green’s incidents and came away feeling comfortable with drafting him. This will be a story going into the 2025 season, whether or not Tucker is still on the roster

Defensive Line room

There’s nothing majority negative about the room following the draft. But I think most people expected more investment for a room that only had three locks to make the roster. Peebles is a bit of a steal in the sixth and brings significant pass-rush juice. But eight different defensive linemen took snaps for the Ravens last year and no position in the NFL gets more rotation than the line. They lack a real run-stuffing option right now.

The Ravens signed UDFA Nash Hutmacher, who has a real chance to make an impact as a run defender and make the roster as a backup nose tackle. But they will need vets this season, including bringing back Brent Urban and finding others to fill the void.