There are tons of draft analysts around, but none as famous as ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. Well known for his player evaluations and mock drafts, Kiper is one of the few analysts around that draw attention every time he puts together a mock draft.
Now that we know which underclassmen are entering the 2020 NFL draft, team needs established and the NFL Scouting Combine quickly approaching, Kiper had enough information to put together his very first mock draft of the offseason.
At No. 28, Kiper has the Baltimore Ravens taking LSU linebacker Patrick Queen.
“Did the Ravens ever really replace C.J. Mosley? Not really, though that defense didn’t have many weaknesses for the last few months of the season. Journeyman Josh Bynes took the reins, but he’s a free agent, and general manager Eric DeCosta could upgrade with Queen, a fast, athletic, run-and-hit middle linebacker who is rising up boards because of his play down the stretch of LSU’s title run. He was tremendous in the two College Football Playoff games, picking up four tackles for loss and 16 total tackles. This is a great fit. Baltimore could also address another spot in the front seven.”
While not the biggest pressing need for Baltimore this offseason, they never really found a suitable long-term answer for C.J. Mosley’s departure. They hoped Patrick Onwuasor and Chris Board would team up to make up for the loss but wound up out of the starting lineup shortly into the 2019 season in favor of Josh Bynes and L.J. Fort — two players who hadn’t started a game last season prior to joining the Ravens in Week 5.
With Onwuasor and Bynes among Baltimore’s 21 pending free agents this offseason, there are no guarantees the Ravens will be able to even limp into the 2020 season with what they had last year, much less upgrade at the position. That makes the 2020 NFL draft the ideal location to find Mosley’s replacement and improve the play upfront in Baltimore’s defense.
NFL.com draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah is also high on Queen, ranking him as his second-best linebacker prospect. Well known for his sideline-to-sideline speed and range, Queen is exactly the type of player the Ravens need at the position. Baltimore’s defense has struggled against running backs and tight ends in coverage over the years, failing to match their speed in the passing game, often getting gouged for big yards in key situations. While Queen is also well noted for being a little undersized, most draft analysts praise his football intelligence for helping him get to the hole quickly to make big plays in the run game.
Queen looks like a prospect who could realistically start Week 1 for the Ravens and has a high enough ceiling to excel there. That’s all any team could ask for from their first-round pick.
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