Overall strategy:
The more time I spend looking at Baltimore’s draft class, the more impressed I am.
The Ravens fixed the one flaw that got them kicked out of the postseason. That alone should be enough to get them over the hump towards another Super Bowl. But they got faster as well, further creating mismatches they can take advantage of and improving on an offense that scored the most points in the league last year. They’re easily a better roster than the 2019 unit that went 14-2.
However, one real shot at a Super Bowl isn’t enough. Baltimore has experience maxing out the credit cards for a ring in 2001, seeing injuries and other issues keep them from the promised land and forcing them to blow up the roster after it didn’t work out. Instead, ensuring the roster is set up for a few years to take repeated shots at a Super Bowl is the best strategy and the Ravens took steps towards that goal in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Baltimore filled what would have been some of their biggest needs next offseason, adding cheap, long-term options on both the offensive and defensive lines as well as finding a starter at running back. Instead of being forced to scramble at this time next year, spending their money and draft picks to hopefully keep up with the rest of the pack, they’re letting rookies grow into their roles and extending their Super Bowl window safely.
This is the type of draft the Ravens have prided and built themselves on. It’s why they’ve been so successful over the last 24 seasons and why they’re likely going to be one of the best teams in the league for their 25th and beyond.