You're obviously known for your pass-blocking at [the University of] Washington, has it sunk in how it's going to feel to be pass-blocking for QB Lamar Jackson? (Jamison Hensley) "As soon as I heard [it was] Baltimore, that's the first thing that came to my mind – blocking for Lamar [Jackson]. [He's] an elite-level quarterback, an MVP-level quarterback. It's a dream come true. Baltimore is one of those places where it's been a historic program for such a long time, and just to hear my name called and have everybody on the staff come [on the phone] and congratulate me, it was such a great feeling."
Obviously, you played right tackle at Washington. What do you feel like is your best position here at the NFL level, and how do you feel like your game projects to this next level? (Garrett Downing) "I'm most comfortable at tackle, both tackles. I grew up playing left [tackle] and then kind of got switched over to right [tackle], but my main thing is, is that I want to come in and compete, and help this team earn wins for the program. It means a lot to me that Baltimore chose me out of this position, and I take a lot of pride playing offensive line – especially offensive tackle."
What was your level of interaction with the Ravens? Did you come to Baltimore for Pre-Draft visits? Did you meet with them at the Combine? And did you kind of have a feeling that they were going to be one of the teams that was interested in you in the second round? (Jeff Zrebiec) "Yes. I met with them first at [the] Senior Bowl, kind of briefly with the scouts, and then that progressed on to a Combine visit, and I had a formal meeting with them, and that went super well. I remember, you have the allotted 17 or 20 minutes, or whatever it was. Our meeting ended up going 10 minutes. Coach [John] Harbaugh and the offensive line coach [Joe D'Alessandris] and the rest of the staff really said, 'Hey man, you check all the boxes. There's no need to spend all 17 minutes on this.' I knew from there my meeting went super well with them at the Combine, and then, I didn't end up doing a [Top] 30 visit, but that's kind of all the extent was."
Where do you feel like you have the most room to grow in your game? (Childs Walker) "For me, as an offensive lineman; I'm my own biggest critic. ... I think there's a lot in my game that I need to critique and get better at. So, when it comes back to game film, I wish I could give you one strong answer, but I have a whole lot to work on my game. My game isn't perfect, but I feel like I have certain strengths in certain areas and certain weaknesses in areas, but it's [throughout] the offensive line. It could be get-off, it could be hand placement. [It's] A to Z really."
I just want to build off of those strengths that you see. What do you feel like right now are the biggest strengths in your game? (Ryan Mink) "Just coming from college, we were [a] pass-heavy offense, so obviously I feel very confident in pass set, but also in my run blocking. I feel like my run blocking is underrated. We were kind of in that spread offense – spread offense, run-scheme, zone-scheme, but it doesn't matter what scheme it is, I feel confident within run-pass screens, getting out in space. I just feel confident in it all."
You mentioned your run blocking. Obviously, RB Derrick Henry just got here. How excited are you to be able to block for him, and how familiar are you with the Ravens' scheme and what offensive coordinator Todd Monken likes to do? (Brian Wacker) "As soon as you brought up Derrick Henry, that was one of the first things. When I thought [about] Baltimore, you think Lamar [Jackson], and then you think [about] the new addition of Derrick Henry. You get a guy that high level, a guy who runs hard, trusts his O-linemen. I know he loves his linemen from just watching him back when he was at Tennessee. To now see him finally in Baltimore, it's super exciting. To know that I'm going to get reps blocking for Derrick Henry, that's something that you don't really think of growing up watching him when he was at Alabama [and] wins the Heisman [Trophy]. It kind of comes full circle. Getting to block for a guy like that is super special.
Going off that last question, when blocking for Lamar and what you've seen just watching him, is there anything unique that entails since he is a very different type of quarterback? Obviously, he can lift your game, but is there anything that you will have to adjust to learn to play with Lamar? (Giana Han) "No. I think obviously Lamar, one of his strong suits is the ability to scramble and get out of the pocket, but a lot of that came with 'Mike' [Michael] Penix [Jr.] back at school. Before he came to Washington and everyone saw him as a true pocket passer and seeing what he can do ... In practice, he would definitely branch out and get into that scramble mindset, and I learned to adapt to it very quickly. Thankfully, he didn't have to do that too much in games, but in practice, it was on. When it came to that scramble mentality that he had, when it needed to be, going to Lamar – Lamar will stand in there, grip it and rip it, but he will also get out of the pocket when he needs to. So, I'm excited."
I know someone already asked you a little bit about what your feel is about Todd Monken's offense, but coming from that Washington offense, how do you feel like what you did in that Washington offense is going to translate directly to the NFL? (Nikhil Mehta) "Just from [offensive coordinator] Todd [Monken]'s offense, when he's in that gun formation, I know he trusts his offensive line very much, especially the edges and the tackles. Just that supreme confidence in his offensive line, within the pass game and also run game, it speaks millions to what I could bring to the table, coming in and competing."
Have you gotten the sense from the Ravens whether it is going to be the right or the left side, or has the conversation not gotten specific yet with that? (Jeff Zrebiec) "It hasn't gotten really specific. Obviously, I played right [tackle] for the majority of my career, with my starts, but I'm flexible to come in and compete for both. That's my main thing. I just want to come in and compete and earn the respect of my teammates and the coaches."
In pass protecting a lefty in QB Michael Penix Jr., on the right, you were protecting his blind side. How translatable is that for your game, on the right side, with pass protection? Do you think that kind of gave you an advantage in refining your pass-protecting skills? (Kyle Phoenix) "Yes, absolutely. Just knowing your blind side, you've got to sharpen up your edges. You can't get loose on the edge and give up an edge pressure, because a quarterback is not going to be able to see it. But I mean, there are just those added, extra ... I don't even think it's pressure to me; I think it's a privilege – those privileges that come with [protecting] the blind side. Especially [with] my two years of starting and having that left-handed quarterback, I ate all that pressure up and took it for all it was worth."
One thing that pundits talked about was your weight – 310 pounds at your pro day. Are you looking to put on more weight, or is that where you feel comfortable, because of your great mobility? (Ryan Mink) "Like you said, I just want to make sure I'm mobile and feel athletic. So, I can probably range from 315 [pounds] to 305. It really doesn't matter; I just want to feel strong and especially mobile. [I want to] feel athletic on the edge and get out in space, [and] that's my main thing. So, if that's 315, 320, 310 ... My weight can vary. I'm not [best] at one strong weight. It can vary, [but] just as long as I feel good at that weight running around and taking sets and getting off on runs, I feel ready."
Is there an offensive lineman who you've modeled your game after? And secondly, did you get a sense from the Ravens if they would encourage your aggressive style on pass sets? Will you be bringing the "44 Special" to Baltimore, or is that a little bit too far down the road? (Jonas Shaffer) "Yes, absolutely. I just want to come in and compete right away, whether ... Obviously, I've got to use the technique that [offensive line] coach [Joe D'Alessandris] wants to install, and Coach has a really good plan for offensive linemen that come in. Growing up, I watched a lot of the Joe Staley – I'm thankful to have him in my corner – Trenton [Williams], and I've heard stories [from] my old D-line coach from high school; his name is Travis Kirschke. He was UCLA teammates with Jonathan Ogden, and he told me crazy stories of how Jonathan Ogden was such a legend over here."
Did you ever get to meet Ravens Hall of Fame T Jonathan Ogden? (Jonas Shaffer) "No, I didn't. I've heard he's one of the biggest humans [that] at least my D-line coach has met, and Travis Kirschke was not a small individual, to say the least."
How much did your high school basketball experience help your footwork and mobility? How do you think that translates to your skill set? (Brian Wacker) "Going back to my O-line meetings with [former Washington offensive line] coach Scott [Huff] in the O-line room, basically, what would happen was, he [would be] like, 'Get to a good point. Get to a good position to punch in pass [protection], and then once you're there, it's basically just [like] playing basketball with them,' and that for me just clicked right away – like you said. Whether that's [like] you're guarding a guy on the perimeter or interior, you block a guy with your feet first, and I find that very, very true with offensive line play. So, that basketball background definitely helps me out a ton."
Did you have a favorite basketball player growing up? (Brian Wacker) "I don't want to say I've really had one, but being a Colorado kid, I've really come to love [Denver Nuggets center Nikola] Jokić's game – just how he plays and how he dominates, and then he makes it look so easy. I think just bringing those same skill traits to [my] offensive line [play] ... I'd love to dominate and make it look easy."
