The Ravens can take another item off their wish list.
Baltimore filled a hole at outside linebacker by selecting Houston's Tyus Bowser Friday evening with the No. 47 overall pick in the draft.
"I was hoping I got a call from a Maryland number," Bowser said on a conference call soon after getting selected. "Seeing that number on my phone, it was amazing."
Bowser visited the Under Armour Performance Center during the pre-draft process, and had a sense he might ultimately end up in Baltimore. He connected with the coaching staff because of "how down to earth and how real they are."
"That's how I've always been – just having coaches that will be real with me," Bowser said. "It's a lot of things about the team that I really enjoyed on my visit there."
The 6-foot-3, 247-pound defender is a stellar athlete who has a knack for getting after quarterbacks. He put up 8.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss last season, and had 21.5 in his four-year career. He also had a pair of interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries in his career.
"This guy's motor is hot," Head Coach John Harbaugh said. "He flies around. He gets after the quarterback. He runs to the ball. He chases stuff down."
Bowser gives the Ravens an explosive athlete who also played two years of college basketball as a shooting guard before committing solely to football. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.65 seconds and had a 37.5-inch vertical at the scouting combine.
Bowser is considered a prospect on the rise, and he could become even more productive by refining his technique at the NFL level. He only played in eight games last season because of a broken orbital bone he suffered in a fight with a teammate.
When he arrives in Baltimore, Bowser will get thrown into the competition for the starting outside linebacker spot opposite veteran Terrell Suggs that opened when the Ravens released Elvis Dumervil this offseason.
"I got the chance to see [Suggs] on film and see how he plays, and I kind of critique my game off of him too," Bowser said. "Being able to have the chance to play with him now, I'm speechless."
Bowser will compete will fellow young outside linebackers like Za'Darius Smith and Matthew Judon for that starting job, and he could also provide an immediate boost as a rotational pass rusher.
"They're getting a great player," Bowser said. "A guy that's good on and off the field, that's going to work hard, play hard, that's going to rush the passer and that's also going to be a huge factor on special teams."
