The Baltimore Ravens have 10 selections in the 2022 draft, including nine in the first four rounds. They’ve never been shy about making moves up or down the draft board, especially in the Eric DeCosta era. That’s one of the many reasons why the team could look to use their treasure chest of draft assets to their advantage and land multiple players that they have rated highly on their draft boards.
When looking at one 2022 draft trade for each NFL team, Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report put together a deal where Baltimore trades up in the first round, parting with their first and second round selections to move up seven spots.
Ravens receive:2022 first-round pick (No. 7 overall)
Giants receive:2022 first-round pick (No. 14 overall), 2022 second-round pick (No. 45 overall)
Davenport explained that in the event that the Ravens make this deal, they should be targeting an edge rusher with their newly acquired 7th overall pick, namely University of Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux or University of Georgia’s Travon Walker.
“This potential trade contains a caveat: a top-three edge-rusher being available at No. 7, which would require Kayvon Thibodeaux to be more the player folks were calling the No. 1 overall prospect a year ago and less the nebulous prospect who has been sliding down draft boards. Or Georgia’s Travon Walker to dip a bit more than most expect…We already saw the Ravens try (and fail) to land edge-rusher Za’Darius Smith in free agency. And when Thibodeaux is on his game, the 6’5″, 258-pounder is a scheme versatile game-wrecker. Walker put on an eye-opening display of athleticism at the combine.”
It’s rare to see Baltimore hold a pick as high as No. 14 overall, and they could utilize it to move up for a falling star such as Thibodeaux or Walker. The Ravens have a big need at edge rusher, and either one of the prospects mentioned by Davenport would slot in and give the team star power at the position. Parting with a second-round selection wouldn’t be easy, but for one of the top players in the 2022 class it could be well worth it.
