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A lack of starting experience was the biggest knock on LSU linebacker Patrick Queen coming into the 2020 NFL Draft. Despite all his physical talents and steady improvement in 2019, he slid to Baltimore as the 28th overall pick and the fourth linebacker off the board.
Queen hadn’t gotten as much playing time in his first two years at LSU, sitting behind Devin White, the fifth-overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, on the depth chart. In fact, he didn’t even start every game in 2019, earning the starting job early in the season and starting 11 of 15 games last year. Yet while other teams might have viewed Queen’s inexperience as a negative, Baltimore instead saw upside.
In a film session with media, Ravens director of college scouting Joe Hortiz dissected about a dozen of Queen’s plays from 2019. The linebacker showed steady improvement in his technique and football intelligence to match his natural instincts and speed.
When reviewing Texas wide receiver Devin Duvernay, Hortiz brought up a play against LSU from the second game of the season. Hortiz pointed out that Queen wasn’t deep enough in coverage, which allowed Duvernay to catch a touchdown right behind him. But just a few weeks later, in clips from Week 6 against Florida and Week 9 against Alabama, it was clear Queen had learned from the error, making positive plays in coverage.
On a goal-line play against Florida, Queen quickly noticed blown coverage that left tight end Kyle Pitts wide open. While Queen’s responsibility was on running back Lamical Perine, who was running a similar route, he adjuted to cover over the top, making a play on the ball while it was in the air. Though the play still resulted in a touchdown, Hortiz specifically praised Queen’s instincts to notice the error quickly and his physical ability to not only cover two guys at the same time but still make a play for the ball.
Hortiz brought up a passing play against Alabama that that featured a wide receiver running a short crossing route while another wide receiver ran a deeper post. Where Queen hadn’t dropped back enough just a few weeks prior, this time he read the routes correctly and anticipated where the ball was going to go. Instead of taking the bait of the short crossing route, Queen drifted further back in coverage and picked off Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s throw to the deep post. Hortiz specifically called out the difference in depth and urgency between the two plays, noting how quickly Queen had improved on what could have been a similar mistake.
It’s that dramatic, rapid improvement that has Baltimore so excited about the possibilities with Queen.
“What was impressive about it was as I took you through [the film] – I kind of took you through it in order – you saw him get even faster, and faster and faster,” Hortiz said, when asked about Queen’s dramatic improvement last season. “He was fast at the beginning, but then you saw his reads get even more precise. His reaction was quicker.”
Hortiz admitted, as has general manager Eric DeCosta previously, that any draft selection is a gamble. As a first-round pick, Queen is the biggest gamble of them all for Baltimore. That early draft status means Queen will either become a solid starter, or he’ll be labeled a bust — a rarity for the Ravens. While the physical tools are certainly there for Queen, giving him a high floor, according to Hortiz, the speed at which he improved last season points to a much higher ceiling.
“I think with Patrick [Queen], you knew you were getting a great kid, and then when you watched the film, you saw the instincts and the speed and athleticism. You were like, ‘Wow, he’s a 20-year-old kid who’s showing this right now. What would he have been next year if he would have been another year starter with 12 more, 14 more starts under his belt? How much more instinctive would he be?’
“With a guy like Patrick, you’re just projecting that he’s going to be even better,” Hortiz continued. “Like, next year he’d be a top-10 pick or a top-15 pick versus a top-28 pick.”
Though Hortiz was quick to point out that Queen isn’t raw — as is often the case with many picks that are physically gifted but aren’t necessarily polished in terms of technique and football IQ — allowing the rookie time to build confidence and learn the intricacies of the game at the NFL level will only help him. And luckily for the Ravens, they don’t necessarily have to throw Queen directly into the fire.
Baltimore has done a good job of bolstering the depth chart around Queen with the additions of L.J. Fort and Jake Ryan. Instead of needing Queen to become a three-down linebacker immediately, Baltimore can rotate him into the lineup and play to his strengths as he steadily improves his overall game. It’s a strategy the Ravens have used successfully recently with cornerback Marlon Humphrey, who was given backup roles for two years before exploding onto the scene in 2019 and earning an All-Pro nod.
That’s not to say Queen will follow in Humphrey’s footsteps. But Baltimore was patient in the 2020 draft, allowing Queen to fall into their laps. The Ravens clearly see something special in the young linebacker, and with a little more patience, they could have a real star on their hands.
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