The 2019 NFL season is officially over after the Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl 54. With the full 2020 NFL draft order figured out and every team staring the offseason in the eyes, it’s the perfect time for another mock draft.
I went with The Draft Network’s mock draft simulator and used their predictive board to create this two-round mock draft for the Baltimore Ravens. It gave me some new options that I think Baltimore would be excited to call at the podium come draft day.
Let’s take a look at the two players I selected in the 2020 NFL draft for the Ravens.
First round (No. 28) – S Grant Delpit, LSU
While I would have loved a pass rusher here, there was no good values this late in the first round. The Ravens never really reach for a prospect that fits a bigger need and have quite famously gone with their draft board, especially in the first round. They’ve taken guys like cornerback Marlon Humphrey even though they’ve seemingly had enough depth there at the time. Picking up Delpit is the same type of move in my book and one that will pay of in short order.
Baltimore might be set at safety currently but Chuck Clark is set to hit free agency next offseason and who knows how many good years Earl Thomas has left in him. Delpit would give the Ravens a ball-hawking safety (eight interceptions over three years) with tons of heart that can also play inside the box against the run (199 combined tackles over three years).
Delpit would get a great education under Thomas and Clark, potentially being ready for a starting role as early as 2021 if Baltimore wants to move on from either player.
Second round (No. 60) – WR Donovan Peoples-Jones, Michigan
When wide receivers started going off the board, they went quick. It took until the 13th pick for the first one to get selected but five were selected in the first round alone and another four going before I could pick in the second round. But by being patient in the first round, the right player fell into my lap in the second round.
Peoples-Jones might not have the greatest stat sheet coming into the draft but don’t let that fool you. He’s a sure-handed receiver that can play both inside and outside with enough athleticism and size to pick up extra yards with the ball in his hands. It doesn’t hurt the Ravens have a connection at Michigan in John Harbaugh’s brother Jim, who leads the Wolverines.
Baltimore desperately needs a guy who can reliably catch the football for first downs. Peoples-Jones might not ever be a big-play guy capable of taking every catch into the end zone but he’s the type of receiver that a quarterback will look at first or when in trouble, which is exactly the type of player the Ravens are searching for now.
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