Tag: Jonathan Ogden

NFL draft flashback: Jonathan Ogden becomes Ravens’ first-ever selection

The Ravens’ NFL draft success all started with their first-ever selection, OT Jonathan Ogden, back in 1996.

There are many reasons why the Baltimore Ravens are currently third all-time in NFL regular-season winning percentage (.569, behind only the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers). It all started with their first-ever selection, Jonathan Ogden, back in 1996.

Baltimore took Ogden out of UCLA with the fourth overall pick, and you can relive that moment in the video below. Enjoy the footage of a much younger Mel Kiper Jr. breaking it all down:

Ogden would become the best left tackle in franchise history, an 11-time Pro Bowler, and a Pro Football Hall of Famer. He is sixth all-time in Ravens history for games played with the franchise.

In the following video, you can revisit the moment that Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome made the ’96 draft-day calls to Ogden and fellow future Hall of Famer Ray Lewis:

The Ravens selected Lewis later in the first round, out of Miami, with the 26th overall pick.

NFL Films named Ogden the 72nd-greatest player of all time when they compiled their list in 2017.

The first round of this year’s draft will be held on Thursday night, April 25. The Ravens hold the 30th overall pick.

Watch: Jonathan Ogden throws out first pitch at Camden Yards

Watch: Jonathan Ogden throws out first pitch at Camden Yards

The Baltimore Ravens have seen plenty of their current and former players have the honor of throwing out the first pitch at a Baltimore Orioles game. From Ed Reed to Lamar Jackson to Rashod Bateman and others, plenty of Baltimore greats as well as rookies have kicked off a baseball game in style at the historic Camden Yards.

On Tuesday evening, former Ravens’ offensive lineman Jonathan Ogden took the mound to throw out the first pitch before a game between the Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. Ogden was all smiles after delivering his pitch.

The Ravens’ official Twitter account responded to the post, calling Ogden a very appropriate title.

Both Baltimore teams have a very good relationship with each other, as is evidenced by the crossover events that they do, the interaction between their social accounts, the support that they give one another and more. The tradition of Ravens players throwing the first pitch at Orioles games is a longstanding one, and Ogden is the latest of many Baltimore football players who have stood in front of the Camden Yards crowd and delivered a ball to home plate.

Chiefs’ Orlando Brown Jr. strives to be compared to NFL’s greats at left tackle

The newest offensive lineman in Kansas City has some hefty aspirations.

The Kansas City Chiefs have acquired a big new left tackle in Orlando Brown Jr. (6-8, 345 pounds) who has even bigger goals with his new team.

Brown Jr. has played three seasons in the NFL so far. Even though the 2020 NFL season was one of his best yet, he knows there’s a lot of room for improvement within his game. He doesn’t want to improve just to impress his new team either. He has aspirations of being recognized among some of the greatest players to ever play the left tackle position.

“A lot better, a lot better,” Brown Jr. told reporters during his introductory press conference. “I can grow a lot as a player and I will grow a lot as a player. There’s so much in my game that I want to continue to develop, to put myself on the highest pedestal and be compared with those great players that played the left tackle position like Jonathan Ogden, like Walter Jones, like Tony Boselli, like Anthony Munoz — Eventually putting myself in that position.”

For anyone keeping score, that’s three Pro Football Hall of Famers and a player deserving of Hall of Fame recognition. Those are some pretty lofty goals for a player that has just 700 total snaps at left tackle during his professional career.

Now that Brown Jr. has secured the opportunity to play left tackle, his goals to get better and be recognized as an all-time great should drive him to success with his new team. He even believes that the Chiefs’ offensive scheme will perhaps help him to better showcase his ability.

“As far as the offensive scheme here, I’ve watched a lot of film on Kansas City just like I’m sure every other NFL team or NFL player has,” Brown Jr. said. “I know a little bit about the system. I look forward to learning a lot more but I’m just excited to be in the system, to have the opportunity to really showcase my talents. They do a lot of different things here than what we did in Baltimore just schematically, so I’m really looking forward to that.”

What he knows for certain is that his best football has yet to be played, and with a team like Kansas City, the sky is the limit.

“I would say I still have a long way to go,” Brown Jr. said. “I would say that I’m not even close to playing my best football right now. I’ll only get better as time goes.”

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25 years ago today: Ravens select Jonathan Ogden, Ray Lewis in first ever draft

The Baltimore Ravens started their franchise with a bang, as the team drafted both Jonathan Ogden and Ray Lewis with their first two picks

The Baltimore Ravens have been a dominant NFL franchise ever since they were introduced to the NFL in 1996. They’ve set a high standard both on and off the field, winning two Super Bowl championships in their first 16 years (2000-2001, 2012-2013) and showing that they have what it takes to be competitive almost every single year.

It’s a major credit to the players that the team has been able to be so successful. However, those players have to get to Baltimore somehow, and that’s a credit to the Ravens’ front office and decision makers. Ozzie Newsome, Eric DeCosta and more have shown that they have a keen eye for identifying talent, something that Newsome put on display during his first draft.

On April 20, 1996, Newsome selected both Jonathan Ogden and Ray Lewis with his first two selections, some of the best players (if not the best two players) in Ravens history so far.

Newsome took Ogden with the No. 4 overall pick, while Lewis was drafted shortly after at pick No. 25. The two went on to have illustrious careers with Baltimore, as Lewis put up over 2,000 career tackles while Ogden started in 176 of the 177 games he played in for the Ravens.

The Ravens probably wish every draft began on April 20th, as 19 years ago today on April 20, 2002, the team selected Ed Reed with the 24th overall selection, who had 61 interceptions during his time with Baltimore. The three of Ogden, Lewis, and Reed are all Hall of Fame inductees.

The first two draft selections for the Ravens paved the way for where the franchise is today. A strong on-field product, a fabulous culture, and a winning attitude all grace over the organization, and those things all were built thanks to fabulous decisions like Newsome made 25 years ago today, and the phenominal play of players like Ogden, Lewis and Reed.

Ronnie Stanley’s historically great 2019 puts him on par with Hall of Famer

Baltimore Ravens left tackle Ronnie Stanley had a spectacular 2019 campaign that puts his name in with the likes of .legend Jonathan Ogden

The Baltimore Ravens had one of the toughest assignments in the NFL when left tackle Jonathan Ogden retired following the 2007 season. As the Ravens are finding out again this offseason after the retirement of right guard Marshal Yanda, replacing a sure-fire Hall of Famer is nearly impossible. But nine years later, Baltimore did more than an admirable job with the selection of Ronnie Stanley in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Last season, Stanley allowed the fewest single-season pressures (6) by an offensive tackle since Ogden (8) in 2006, according to Pro Football Focus.

Ogden was one of only a handful of offensive linemen to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on his first year of eligibility. Despite it being such an important position, Hall of Fame voters have tended to ignore top offensive linemen in favor of skill position players. So for Ogden to step out from that shadow and earn the highest of praise speaks to just how impressive he was on the field throughout his career. For Stanley to be mentioned alongside Ogden is impressive enough, but to beat him in a pretty important metric, like quarterback pressures, is nearly unfathomable.

Stanley was by far the most efficient offensive tackle last season, letting up no sacks and only six pressures, according to PFF. The Ravens are trying to re-sign Stanley to a long-term contract, even though he’s still signed through the 2020 season on his fifth-year option. However, Stanley and Baltimore are likely looking at a record-breaking contract when he eventually signs.

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