Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images A look into the reasoning behind the Ravens’ pick of Adisa Isaac at No. 93. The Baltimore Ravens had a pair of 10-year veteran outside linebackers have career-best seasons in 2023. While they lost three-time Pro Bowler Jadeveon Clowney to the Carolina Panthers in free agency, they were able to re-sign two-time Super Bowl champion Kyle Van Noy to a two-year deal. Nevertheless, adding another edge defender in the 2024 NFL Draft remained a need even though it wasn’t as glaring as it looked at one point when it seemed as if neither seasoned pro would be brought back. Even though the Ravens have invested a pick in at the position in each of the previous three drafts, having a wealth of talented pass rushers is never a bad problem to have especially if the other younger players have struggled with health during that span despite showing promising flashes. Adding Adisa Isaac at No. 93 overall was another good value selection and he is a great fit for the style of defense the Ravens are known for playing, physical and with relentless effort. On the Ravens taking Adisa Isaac in the third round:“This is a Ravens-type pick”“The epitome of the phrase ‘Play like a Raven’” pic.twitter.com/aa8NRvJwyE— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) April 27, 2024 “We just feel like he is a Raven type of guy,” Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said in a post-draft press conference. “[He] fits us in many different ways. Mentality and with his physical style of play.” Unlike a pair of his former teammates who had their names called in the first round in their respective drafts including the last former Nittany Lion who the Ravens drafted and the one who went 52 picks ahead of him in this year’s draft, Isaac was very productive in college when it came to his sack production. His 14.5 career sacks were more than double Oweh’s seven and was three more than Robinson’s 11.5 including a team-leading and single-season career highs with 7.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss in 2023. More important than his solid sack totals and linear increase of them each year excluding the 2021 season which he missed after suffering a torn Achilles in summer workouts, Isaac was consistently disruptive in a multitude of ways during his time in college leading the charge as team captain. He was athletic enough to drop into the coverage, played with heavy hands and showed incredible explosion when penetrating into to backfield or looping around into a lane on twists and stunts. "Well I saw a guy on tape that makes a lot of plays." Coach Harbaugh on the addition of @A1Isaac1: pic.twitter.com/n4txeDKque— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 27, 2024 “I saw a guy on tape that makes a lot of plays,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said during the post-draft press conference. “He does it in a real athletic way. He’s a very athletic guy, very explosive starter DeCosta shared that Isaac first got put on his radar when he went to go visit his daughter who just so happens to attend Penn State. He caught the Nittany Lions season opener against West Virginia in early September and liked what he saw from Isaac in terms of his physical frame and how he can be deployed dynamically on defense. If Isaac wasn’t already high on the Ravens board after DeCosta got to see him in person in Centre County, Pennsylvania, he was definitely on the rise after showing up and being one of the brightest standouts down in Mobile, Alabama at the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl. He was one in the mix with UCLA’s Liatu Latu who with No. 15 overall to the Indianapolis Colts as being one of the most impressive, disruptive and raved about edge prospects during the week of practice. He consistently found ways to beat some of the top tackle prospects in this year’s class around the edge including another top 20 pick in Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga who went No. 14 overall to the New Orleans Saints. #PSU DE Adisa Isaac consistently captured the edge and displayed sound technique to beat tackles during the Senior Bowl. Super impressed with the reps in one-on-ones and team. pic.twitter.com/oM68VAWGle— Dominic White (@DomWWhite) February 2, 2024 Isaac checks all the boxes of both a traditional and more modern Ravens pick at edge defender. While former Ravens’ general manager and current, Ozzie Newsome, almost always prioritized experience and production over traits, DeCosta has been a little more willing to bet on the coaching staff’s ability to develop gifted athletes into difference-makers and potential game-wreckers since becoming the head of the front office. With Isaac, they appear to be getting the best of both worlds and his relentless motor and effort will pave the way for him to quickly become a core special team while earning snaps as a situational pass rusher.

Photo by Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images A look into the reasoning behind the Ravens’ pick of Roger Rosengarten at No. 62. The Baltimore Ravens are committed to rebuilding their starting offensive line and entering the 2024 NFL Draft, tackle was their biggest need by a wide margin. After bypassing the position in the first round on Thursday in favor of addressing their second biggest need with the best player available in Nate Wiggins, coming away with a starting caliber tackle prospect on Day 2 was a necessity. With this in mind, the selection of University of Washington’s Roger Rosengarten at No. 62 overall in the second round makes perfect sense. While Ravens’ general manager Eric DeCosta had his pick of either Rosengarten or BYU’s Kingsley Suamataia when he came on the clock, he opted to go with the more refined of the two promising prospects. The Ravens landed a technically sound plug-and-play prospect in the same offseason they opted to move on from 10-year veteran stalwart Morgan Moses, who was a staple on their starting blocking unit the past two seasons before being traded to the New York Jets. Mel Kiper Jr. called Ravens second-round pick Roger Rosengarten “an underrated offensive tackle.” Kiper had Rosengarten in the first round in one of his mock drafts this year. pic.twitter.com/oCJXtOt8OE— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) April 27, 2024 Rosengarten will push Daniel Faalele for the starting right tackle spot as a rookie and shouldn’t be ruled out as an eventual successor to Ronnie Stanley on the left side. He played on the right side the past two seasons for the Huskies because his coaches trusted him to protect the blindside of left-handed quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and he didn’t give up a single sack in 1,158 pass-blocking snaps during his college career according to Pro Football Focus with an overall grade of 78.6 since 2022. @roger_73r pic.twitter.com/RRG92SWI3y— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 27, 2024 Before Rosengarten blocked for a Heisman Trophy finalist who went No. 8 overall pick on Thursday night, he played on the left side in high school. At the next level, he will have a chance to compete to block for a former Heisman Trophy and two-time NFL MVP winner Lamar Jackson right away and could wind up being his blindside protector down the road. Rosengarten is an underrated athlete who put on quite an impressive display of athleticism at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine when he was one of the better performers in his position group, including running a 4.92 in the 40-yard dash—the best among all linemen. He impressed at the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bow and his game tape shows an authoritative finisher who buries and pancakes defenders whether he is pass or run-blocking. Lofi Roger Rosengarten tape to study to pic.twitter.com/wjpdEErt5v— James Foster (@NoFlagsFilm) April 24, 2024 Choosing Rosengarten over Suamataia, who went one pick later after the Kansas City Chiefs traded up, is more telling than just wanting the more refined prospect when it comes to pass-blocking prowess. In offensive coordinator Todd Monken’s scheme, the Ravens need more nimble and agile offensive linemen capable of getting out on the move in space as opposed to the massive maulers they targeted when Greg Roman was designing and dialing up plays.

The Washington Nationals put the sting of a 2-4 homestand behind them with a come-from-behind 3-1 win Friday in Miami. Trevor Williams (2-0, 2.70) continued his excellent 2024 campaign, pitching five innings of one-run ball,... The post Nats open road trip with comeback win in Miami appeared first on Marylandsportsblog.com.

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