The Baltimore Ravens will likely look to add to their edge room before the 2024 offseason concludes. The team already re-signed veteran pass rusher Kyle Van Noy, but they could sign an outside free agent or draft a rookie who could be a difference-maker.
When speaking to the media, Baltimore general manager Eric DeCosta gave his honest opinion on the upcoming edge class in the 2024 NFL draft. He said that the pass rusher group available this year is only “average”, saying that it depends on what teams are looking for with speed, power, and more.
“I think it’s an average Draft, I would say, for edge pass rushers. There are certainly some guys at the top. For us, we’ve had success throughout the years in finding some guys in the middle rounds that have been good players for us. It really depends on what you’re looking for. You have your speed rushers. You have power guys, guys that can do both, guys that have to play in a three-point stance [and] guys that can play in a two-point stance. A lot of it has to do with your fit and what you’re looking for. Our coaches play a big part in that in their evaluation. [Pass rush coach] Chuck Smith does a really, really good job of evaluating pass rushers and has done a good job for us coaching those guys as well. We’ll get the [Draft] board squared away. There are certainly some guys at the top that probably won’t be there when we pick. So, the challenge for us is going to be who’s going to be that next-tier group of guys in that sweet spot between the 25th player to the 45th player that we have a chance to get either at [pick No.] 30 or at [pick No.] 62.”
The Ravens will be relying on young players such as Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo regarding their edge rushers, alongside the veteran presence of players like Van Noy. However, it wouldn’t be shocking to see the team add a rookie edge player, even in an “average” class.