Pundits Pick Which Undrafted Rookies Can Make Ravens' Roster
The Ravens signed 17 undrafted rookie free agents and are hosting many more for tryouts. The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec, Sports Illustrated’s Joshua Reed, and Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski named which players they feel have the best chance to make the 53-man roster.
Jay Higgins, ILB, Iowa
"The Athletic draft analyst Dane Brugler had Higgins as the 22nd-best inside linebacker in the draft class and projected him to be a sixth- or seventh-round pick," Zrebiec wrote. "A two-year starter and a defensive signal caller, Higgins played the Mike linebacker spot and was a tackling machine, leading the FBS with 295 combined tackles over the past two seasons. At 6 feet, 224 pounds, he doesn't have ideal length or speed, but he has excellent instincts and plays with smarts and energy. He's an experienced special teams player, too."
"The Ravens are one of the league's best at unearthing and developing high-quality off-ball linebackers from the undrafted ranks and the former Hawkeye could very well be the next," Reed wrote. "Higgins earned Second and First Team All American as well as First Team All Big Ten honors in his final two seasons and led the FBS with 171 total tackles in 2023 and followed it up with a team-leading 124 in his final year. Over that dominant stretch, he also recorded 7.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, five interceptions, nine pass breakups and three forced fumbles."
Jayson Jones, DT, Auburn
"Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta vowed to add more big bodies inside, and Jones, who is 6-foot-6, 325 pounds, is your prototypical space-eating nose tackle who could find a spot in the defensive line rotation," Zrebiec wrote. "He played one season at Oregon and three at Auburn, accumulating 84 tackles, four tackles for loss and 1 1/2 sacks."
"Jones possesses violent hands, plays with impressive power at the point of attack and is difficult to move even when double-teamed," Reed wrote. "His performance in exhibition games will be vital to his chances of making the roster and as was the case with Pierce a decade ago, it could come down to the preseason finale to put him over top."
Nash Hutmacher, DL, Nebraska
"When looking at the potential of Nash Hutmacher as a nose tackle for the Baltimore Ravens, one can't help but think back to Kelly Gregg since the two have similar wrestling backgrounds," Sobleski wrote. "Gregg was a three-time champion wrestler in the state of Oklahoma. Hutmacher was even better, according to his Nebraska Cornhuskers bio: 'On the wrestling mat, Hutmacher was a four-time state champion, the first four-time heavyweight state champion in South Dakota history and the first four-time champion in one weight class in state history. Ranked as the nation's No. 1 high school heavyweight wrestler, Hutmacher went 166-0 from his freshman to senior season.... Hutmacher won each of his final 73 matches by pin - 71 in the first period - the second-longest pin streak in the history of high school wrestling.' Coaches love former wrestlers because they understand leverage, torque and hand placement."
"Hutmacher is built and plays like a true nose guard at 6'3" and 314 pounds and can take on and defeat double teams," Reed wrote. "He comes from a strong wrestling background as the first-ever four-time heavyweight state champion in South Dakota's history which shows up on tape as he possesses a great understanding of how to gain and take advantage of leverage."
Did the Ravens Fill All Needs on the Roster?
Following the draft, Jonas Shaffer of "The Banner Ravens Podcast" shared his thoughts on the Ravens' roster holes and if they've been filled:
Left side of offensive line
"Ronnie Stanley is obviously the big piece there to get him back to be Lamar's blindside protector. Good news to get him for even less than what would have been a crazy free agency market. Obviously, we don't know how big a drop off or if there will be a drop off from Patrick Mekari to Andrew Vorhees. But I think based on what we saw when Vorhees made some snaps, got some reps, he seems that he could be a solid piece. The reviews from the coaches have been good. The reviews from his teammates have been good. Obviously, it's going to be another matter when the pads come on and he's going against Travis Jones and Nnamdi Madubuike and Broderick Washington, it'll be another trial by fire. But at least there will be other options behind him."
Weapons around Lamar
"I think any time that you bring back as many starters as are bringing back from the NFL's best offense, it's hard to be too miffed about what they did or did not do in free agency. Listen, they have solid depth behind them. You like what Tylan Wallace showed in spots last year. He caught almost everything thrown his way. You hope that there is that Year 2 leap from Devontez Walker, you hope that LaJohntay Wester can maybe give you something in the slot. I think they have to feel good about their receiving options. To say nothing of the incredible depth they have at tight end and at fullback. It does seem like more of their moves on that offensive side of the ball this year have been about setting Lamar up and setting this offense up for long-term success."
Inside linebacker
"The biggest question that you have now for this [defense] is probably not the outside parts of the field and the downfield parts of the field, it's that middle because we saw how much of an issue Roquan had at times. We saw Trenton Simpson certainly be lost a bunch of times. We had PFF's Gordon McGuinness on and basically what the PFF data told him was that a lot of the problems that the Ravens had over the middle was not really Roquan's fault, and so if you are betting on a bounce back from Roquan you can definitely find a lot of logic there. But still, you need to have another guy that knows where to go in zone drops, knows how to pattern match."
Carson Vinson Named Rookie to Watch
While many are taking stock of the undrafted rookies and top picks, CBS Sports’ Bryan DeArdo suggests fans take note of fifth-round offensive lineman Carson Vinson during rookie minicamp.
"A product of Alabama A&M, the 6-foot-7, 321-pound Vinson undoubtedly improved his pre-draft stock following impressive showings in his school's matchups against Vanderbilt and Auburn," DeArdo said. "Vinson's journey to the NFL can at least partly be attributed to his drive to prove people wrong after he was lightly recruited coming out of high school. He said that he wanted to go to North Carolina, which didn't show interest in him until after he had already started to establish himself at Alabama A&M."
Vinson was one of three offensive linemen selected by the Ravens in the draft. With third-round pick Emery Jones Jr. dealing with a labrum injury that could keep him sidelined until training camp, Vinson has a greater opportunity to jockey for early playing time.
