Baltimore Ravens: Why Not Trade Up in 2016 NFL Draft?
By Joe Serpico
There has been a lot of chatter about the Baltimore Ravens moving back in the 2016 NFL Draft. They should entertain the idea of moving up as well.
Just about every draft guru believes that the Baltimore Ravens and quarterbacks could be the key to the first round of this year’s draft. Jared Goff and Carson Wentz could go anywhere from No. 2 to No. 15. and many expect the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles to be frequent callers about moving up to select one of the quarterbacks.
The Ravens are in a position to trade back and acquire additional draft picks from one of these quarterback-needy teams. With the number of holes this team currently needs to fill, acquiring more players and hoping they pan out would be a smart idea.
Or they could get real aggressive and trade up for the player they want instead of taking what is left over.
The Ravens find themselves in a position where they might be limited in what players are available to them. There are two defensive stars that seem to have everyone salivating: Jalen Ramsey and Myles Jack. Baltimore could really use one of these players, but it would require them to move forward rather than staying put.
If the Cleveland Browns or Dallas Cowboys select a quarterback, that could leave the Ravens in position to end up with either player. Most recent mock drafts have both Ramsey and Jack going in the top-5, and the Ravens would need to move up to get their man. Otherwise, they could be forced to pick between Joey Bosa and DeForest Buckner as consolation prizes.
The Ravens could certainly use someone like Buckner after an abysmal pass rush last season. However, Jack and Ramsey seem to be once in a generation players and it’s not often that Ozzie Newsome has an opportunity to get one of the drafts greatest talents.
The Ravens have the pieces to make a move forward. They have four picks in the fourth round, although two of those picks are compensatory picks and cannot be traded. The other two picks, which are also earlier in the fourth, could be thrown into a trade with additional picks likely being necessary as well.
If Baltimore does decided to move up in the draft, they can look at the 2014 draft as a bench mark of what it will take to move forward. The Browns traded the No. 4 overall selection to the Bills for the No. 9 pick, and the Bills’ first- and fourth-round selections in 2015.
Baltimore would like to avoid giving up a second first-round pick, and it is possible that they do not have to to move forward two spots. This is a trade value chart provided by SBNation.
The Ravens current pick at No. 6 has a value of 1,600 points. Should they decided to swap with the Cowboys and move to No. 4., they need to come up with another 200-300 points to satisfy Dallas. Baltimore ‘s third-round pick (No. 70) could do the trick. They could also part ways with the two tradable picks in the fourth round (No. 101 and 127) and an additional selection next season to entice the Cowboys.
The likelihood of this scenario playing out is not as crazy as it seems. The Ravens want to reload, not rebuild, and that is evident by some of the offseason moves they made. They have every intention of getting right back into the thick of things in the AFC North.
It would be an unconventional move on the Ravens part to move forward, but they rarely find themselves in a spot to land players of this caliber. Adding Ramsey or Jack would be another piece to the puzzle to get the Ravens into contention.
Next: Ravens Worst Draft Picks in Each Round
Everyone expects them to move back, but moving toward to get a game changer makes sense also. Will it happen? Probably not. However, it’s more possible than you think.