3rd round (No. 85) – OLB Jaylon Ferguson
As a third-round pick, Ferguson should be viewed as a bit of a project that has tons of upside but will need some coaching to get there. Ferguson’s rookie season filled out that idea perfectly, with “Sack Daddy” struggling early but getting into a groove by midseason and picking up nine starts.
NFL analyst Lance Zierlein’s scouting report noted some issues with Ferguson when it came to playing the run and setting the edge. True to the assessment, Ferguson struggled in that role with Baltimore as well but still showed some growth there at the end of the season. It’s a role Ferguson will have to develop further into if he’s going to be a three-down outside linebacker for the Ravens. Ferguson also didn’t put up a ton of stats as a pass rusher either. His 2.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits ranked fifth and third among Baltimore’s defenders.
Ferguson lived up to his billing as a project player. But in starting nine games at the end of the season, Ferguson showed some significant growth in all aspects, which is all anyone can ever expect from a third-round pick. Because of that, I gave him a slightly-below average grade.
Grade: C-
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari