Alabama Raven

He had just played his way into a lucrative contract as well. What a huge bummer for him, and for the team. Clearly he has to do what is best for his long term health. What a bummer. I'll miss that dude.

I agree. We were obviously thin at LB, but we could rely on Mosley & Orr. Without Orr, I think we're in a terrible spot, arguably worse here than we are at CB. I think this opens up our board to selecting Foster/Cunningham in round 1 or hope that Davis/McMillan are around in round 2. We have so many holes to fill, it's daunting.

I'm a believer in Allen's repertoire. He's plus in all phases of the game: Pass rush, run defense, athleticism, tackling, edge sealing, you name it. His versatility and strength allowed less talented players (all completely my opinion of course) like Reed make names for themselves. I could see him being a great fit in Baltimore, but problematically I could also so Baltimore's needs not aligning with Allen's draft stock. In all likelihood we'll need to address ILB, Safety, or Corner in the first next year if the roster stays the same (It won't). Agree on Williams. He's a freak rusher that I'll enjoy watching but I'm skeptical of his fit with us until he proves otherwise. On a side note: I'm assuming your name is a reference to the All Blacks. Rugby is my life. Play it, Coach it, Work in it. Alabama, Baltimore, and Rugby. We seem to have a lot in common.

Thanks! I'll keep weighing in when people bring up Alabama players. I think it's difficult for Alabama fans to admit that a handful of our players have been products of Nick Saban's process, and likely won't produce similarly at the next level. As a Raven's fan I hate to see us invest in those players (Terrence Cody) just to have it bite us. Disconnecting from Alabama in the name of Baltimore is fairly easy for me.

Allen is a better pro prospect than either Reed or Robinson from this year's draft (even though the comparison to Robinson is difficult across positions). He's a perfect mold 3-4 DE. It was surprising that he even decided to come back to Alabama for another year, but it will likely benefit his draft stock barring a catastrophic year on the field for him. He was a massive difference maker on Alabama's 2015 team. While we're on the topic, there's a few other Crimson Tide players being discussed. I've seen Tim Williams, Eddie Jackson, and Reuben Foster mentioned in this thread. Eddie Jackson is a Safety (Converted from Corner last season) who had a promising 2015, consistently flashing plus ball skills. His ability to cover ground and create turnovers is a plus. However, he lacks ideal size as an NFL Safety, and is an inconsistent tackler. That said, he isn't a bashful tackler either. He's physical for his size, but this doesn't always translate well to the NFL. Matt Elam had a rap as a big hitter in College, and struggled to tackle consistently in the NFL. I think Eddie Jackson is certainly somebody to keep an eye on, as he could have a big year. I'm not 100% convinced he would be a fit for our defense at this juncture though. His stock will fluctuate between the 1st and 3rd rounds depending on his performance. Reuben Foster is a thumper of an ILB with plus athleticism. He needs to show improved form to allay serious injury concerns in 2016. He will undoubtedly be Alabama's go-to LB, and whether or not he can fill McClain, Hightower, Mosley, or Raglands shoes is yet to be seen, but it will show itself in 2016. In my own opinion, he's not yet showed the proper instincts to play ILB at a high level, and has made up for it with pure physicality. He's been helped out by high level talent around him, but I think this year he'll be the talent others will hide behind. He's a great downhill LB, but actually showed some ability to range. Just watch his kickoff coverage highlights. I think he's a more physical, less cerebral version of CJ Mosley, which I think would make a good compliment to CJ. He'll be a first round pick next season. If we haven't addressed ILB by this time next year, I think I'm in favor of this pick. My only reservation is his health. This dude loves to destroy human beings and take on blockers. He's going to have a big year. Tim Williams is scary. This is a good thing. He was a one trick pony in 2015, but teams still struggled to stop him on 3rd down. He's a faster version of Noah Spence. If he explodes in 2016 I expect he'll come off the board very early in next year's draft. That said, of all of these Alabama prospects Tim will be the most volatile. Like I mentioned earlier, he was a one trick pony in 2015. He will have to show an ability to stay on the field in run situations this season, and he'll get his chance. This kid is a freak pass rusher, no doubt. But he's never shown an ability to do anything other than come off the edge, which makes him a questionable fit as a 3-4 OLB.

Surprise, surprise. There was no chance the Ravens were going to pay Elam $6 Million in 2017.

Pretty solid guesses. I wouldn't be surprised is the team kept Arthur Brown in the fold for his last shot. The most interesting position is now RB. Half of these guys are going to get cut. Taliaferro and West are the obvious candidates. They will likely trim it further, and I'm not convinced they will keep the aging (albeit still productive) Forsett.

I'm thrilled with our last few picks. I think we're doing very well here late. That said, there's one exception. I don't like the Alex Lewis pick at all. It boggles the mind that we're willing to take him on after preaching character and pushing talented players down, or all together off our board for less. I'm not commenting on Lewis the player, maybe he's talented. I just don't see why.

I'm all aboard the Matt Judon train. He absolutely dominated his conference. Obviously he's making a big leap in competition, but he's set up well for success in Baltimore.

I agree on that were overhyping Spence, but to say he didn't stand out is false. He was the conference defensive player of the year.

I don't have feelings on the Correa pick. I hope he pans out. I would say that I'll always remember what could have been but I won't. There's the same outrage every year when we draft who we were projected to draft. You guys should let up on Ozzie though. These guys haven't even hit the field yet. Let's wait and see what we do with all these picks.

I think a 4.8 is exactly the same time that pushed Suggs down the draft to us, right?

That makes more sense to me. I actually agree with you, If I had to put money on our pick I would lean heavily towards Spence. My own personal preference is Alexander. I'm fine with Spence if he's the pick. Either way I'll be hoping that we find a way to trade back in to the 2nd round. We need to address both CB & Pass Rush in the 2nd round. The quality drop off is significant later, specifically at the positions we need to address.

This is overstated. You absolutely draft on present need. CB is both present and future need. The FO has been pushing the narrative of 'Instant Coffee' all off-season in regards to the draft. They're looking for contributors. I'll readily admit that CB & Pass Rush are needs 1A and 1B currently. I think you can get more bang for your buck drafting CB at #36. Of course, my ideal scenario is that we select Spence and then trade back in to take Alexander who some (GrimCoconut) think will fall down the draft. I'm 100% behind that. I'd love to address both needs

Mackensie Alexander. We're overvaluing pass rush because of our struggles last year, but discounting Suggs return. I'm not pretending he's got tons of gas in the tank, but they're (Suggs & Dumervil) better at what they do than Shareece Wright is at what he does. Ultimately, I think Spence is the obvious selection for us, but Alexander could plug and play week 1.