The Baltimore Ravens could look very different next season, as they will be looking to make positive changes in order to improve their team after a disappointing 2021. There are many avenues for Baltimore to add new players, including free agency and the draft.
In his latest 2022 NFL mock draft, Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network put together who he thinks each selection will be in the first round. For the Ravens, he had them stop the fall of a star defender in cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. out of LSU. He explained that the team values the “best player available” strategy, which
“The Ravens need to address the offensive line, but they usually stick to a best-player-available philosophy. Stingley is coming off a foot injury, but he’s immensely talented and plays a premier position.”
Stingley had a phenomenal season in 2019 on LSU’s National Championship-wining team, but has been a bit inconsistent in 2020 and 2021 due to injuries and other factors. However, he has elite athleticism, great ball skills, and can match opposing wide receivers by running step-for-step with them due to his speed.
If Stingley is on the board at No. 14, Baltimore should absolutely slide his fall, as he’s one of the premier talents in the 2022 draft. He wouldn’t only represent the best player available, but would also fill a sneaky need for the team at cornerback, as there is uncertainty surrounding the futures of pending free agents Anthony Averett and Jimmy Smith. They also have two cornerbacks coming off of major injuries in Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters.