The Ravens wrapped up their 2020 NFL Draft with Geno Stone, an instinctive, playmaking safety out of Iowa, with pick No. 219 in the seventh round.
Baltimore hadn't taken a defensive back yet in this year's draft, which is uncharacteristic of a team that likes to constantly have a pipeline of young talent in the secondary.
The Ravens are certainly set with their starting safeties in Earl Thomas III and Chuck Clark, and have DeShon Elliott and veteran Anthony Levine Sr. as backups. Stone will add more depth at the position and could be a strong special teams player.
The 5-foot-10, 207-pound Stone has been an underdog for much of his career. He didn't get a scholarship offer from his home-state Penn State and had a visit to Michigan State canceled. He was picked up by Iowa – Marshal Yanda's alma mater – and made the Big 10 pay. Stone picked off four passes in just eight starts as a sophomore, returning one for a touchdown against Penn State.
As a junior full-time starter and team leader, he made 70 tackles, three for loss, one sack, one interception, four pass breakups and three forced fumbles.
Stone gets high marks for his instincts, showing quick recognition to make plays.The Athletic's Dane Brugler projected him as a late fourth-round pick.
"You just watch how he processes things," Director of Player Personnel Joe Hortiz said. "He's really quick to pick up routes coming across. [He] drives up quick, takes things away, shows a feel for the quarterback. He can identify run action quickly. So, what you do is you watch the guy process what he's seeing as the play is going on. When you watch Geno, you see a guy that really does have a good feel for what's happening in front of him and is able to pick up keys and react quickly to take things away."
