Eric DeCosta wrapped up his first season as the Baltimore Ravens’ general manager. By all accounts, DeCosta did a great job of finding capable free agents and trades, plugging them into Baltimore’s system to great results. Whether it was during the offseason or in the middle of the season, DeCosta seemingly got the right guys for the job, helping propel the Ravens to a franchise-best 14-2 record.
But a big portion of what DeCosta will be evaluated on is how his draft picks eventually turn out. Though a rookie campaign is hardly indicative of how a career will turn out, the teams that get the most from their draft picks early tend to be the teams still in the hunt in January.
Let’s take a quick look back at who the Ravens chose in the 2019 NFL draft and how their rookie seasons went.
1st round (No. 25) – WR Marquise Brown
One of the biggest concerns for Brown coming into the 2019 NFL draft was his injury history and smaller frame. While Baltimore could have easily gone into the pick willing to have a limited rookie campaign due to Brown’s foot injury, they actually got him back in time for Week 1. However, Brown dealt with injuries all season long, ultimately missing two games and not quite getting to 100% at any point in his rookie season.
Still, Brown had an admirable season, especially by Ravens rookie wide receiver standards. He caught 46 passes for 584 yards and seven touchdowns.
When compared to the rookie seasons of every other wide receiver Baltimore has ever had, Brown sits near the top in every category. Brown ranks third in receptions, second in receiving yards and is tied for first in receiving touchdowns for a single season. If he can get healthy and faster for his second season, the Ravens might have broken their draft curse at wide receiver finally.
Grade: B-
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
3rd round (No. 85) – OLB Jaylon Ferguson
As a third-round pick, Ferguson should be viewed as a bit of a project that has tons of upside but will need some coaching to get there. Ferguson’s rookie season filled out that idea perfectly, with “Sack Daddy” struggling early but getting into a groove by midseason and picking up nine starts.
NFL analyst Lance Zierlein’s scouting report noted some issues with Ferguson when it came to playing the run and setting the edge. True to the assessment, Ferguson struggled in that role with Baltimore as well but still showed some growth there at the end of the season. It’s a role Ferguson will have to develop further into if he’s going to be a three-down outside linebacker for the Ravens. Ferguson also didn’t put up a ton of stats as a pass rusher either. His 2.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits ranked fifth and third among Baltimore’s defenders.
Ferguson lived up to his billing as a project player. But in starting nine games at the end of the season, Ferguson showed some significant growth in all aspects, which is all anyone can ever expect from a third-round pick. Because of that, I gave him a slightly-below average grade.
Grade: C-
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
3rd round (No. 93) – WR Miles Boykin
Boykin registered 13 receptions for 198 yards and three touchdowns with one drop on 22 targets. It’s far from the best production a rookie wide receiver has had with Baltimore but much like Ferguson, not a whole lot was expected out of Boykin in his rookie season.
Where Boykin earns some attention is in his development over the season. He flashed big-play potential, starting in the preseason, but struggled to get playing time. However, Boykin went to work and did everything the coaches asked of him, increasing their trust in him over the course of the season.
It’s that steady development mixed with the big plays he had that has me giving him a solid grade. It should also have Ravens fans excited for what might come in his second season as he continues to improve his play.
Grade: C-
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
4th round (No. 113) – RB Justice Hill
Hill was never going to get a ton of playing time this season, sitting behind both Mark Ingram and Gus Edwards while Jackson also ran the football. But in his limited playing time, Hill showed some special things that has me excited for his future.
Hill was well known for his speed and agility with the ball in his hands and he showed that off at times, making defenders take bad angles or outright miss when trying to tackle him. But Hill also showed tons of grit and power in spite of his small frame, fighting for extra yards after contact on every run.
Hill will need to develop a little more patience and will need to work on his pass blocking in order to get more playing time in the future. But those are things that running backs typically struggle with as rookies, so those issues are to be expected. If he can improve in those areas, I can absolutely see Hill becoming a Ray Rice type of running back and starting for the Ravens in another year or two.
Grade: D+
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
4th round (No. 123) – G Ben Powers
Powers dropped a bit in my eyes in training camp when he couldn’t stake a claim on the starting left guard spot. But what looked like a shaky unit early actually turned out to be one of the best offensive lines with Bradley Bozeman starting at left guard. So it ends up being far less of a knock against Powers than what many originally thought.
Still, it’s tough to really grade him at all given Powers played just 30 snaps this season. Granted, Powers didn’t register a single penalty or sack against him, those 30 snaps are such a small sample size that it’s effectively useless.
Grade: N/A
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
4th round (No. 127) – CB Iman Marshall
Marshall was placed on injured reserve to start the season with an undisclosed injury. He was one of the Ravens’ two designated-to-return players, coming back in Week 12. However, with the addition of Marcus Peters via trade, he really wasn’t very much use to Baltimore in 2019. Marshall played in just three games, seeing only four defensive snaps and 43 special teams snaps (10%).
It’s impossible to actually grade how well he played given his low snap counts, especially since the Ravens had a ton of depth in front of him this season. But the fact Baltimore used one of their coveted designated-to-return spots on him shows the coaching staff thinks highly of him.
Grade: N/A
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
5th round (No. 160) – DT Daylon Mack
As a fifth-round pick, nothing should have been expected of Mack as a rookie. However, Baltimore’s very thin defensive line took a beating at points this season and could have used a player like Mack to step up. In turn, Mack not only didn’t contribute much, he was a healthy scratch most of the time until heading to injured reserve.
It’s hard to imagine Mack didn’t have opportunities to get on the field more with injuries to Michael Pierce and Brandon Williams at points this season. But his nine defensive snaps in Week 4 against the Cleveland Browns points to him just not being anywhere near ready yet.
Grade: F
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
6th round (No. 197) – QB Trace McSorley
Normally, third-string quarterbacks find their way to the practice squad until their ready to take on a bigger role. However, McSorley stayed on the Ravens’ 53-man roster all season long while only playing for one snap. That points to Baltimore thinking very highly of him and not wanting another team to poach him off the practice squad.
While I can’t give McSorley a grade given his lone snap this season, the fact Baltimore used a valuable roster spot for him for 17 weeks is pretty interesting.
Grade: N/A
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
UDFA – C Patrick Mekari
Mekari actually turned out to be Baltimore’s best rookie if we don’t just count the drafted players. He stepped in for center Matt Skura when he suffered a devastating knee injury and actually played even better, even though Skura was playing very well already. That’s remarkable for any player, much less an undrafted rookie.
Mekari ended up starting five games as a rookie and could very well alter the Ravens’ plans at center for next season, especially if Skura isn’t going to be ready for training camp. Mekari played far better than his draft status indicated and could have ended up cementing himself as a starter for 2020.
That’s worthy of the highest grade for Baltimore’s rookies in 2019.
Grade: A
Brown / Ferguson / Boykin / Hill / Powers / Marshall / Mack / McSorley / Mekari
