2014 DBN Mock Draft: Baltimore Ravens Select S Calvin Pryor at No. 17

With the 17th pick in the 2014 Dawgs By Nature Community Mock Draft, the Baltimore Ravens select...

Calvin Pryor, S, Louisville

This selection and write-up was made by OhioCityBrownsBeliever:

The Ravens had a disappointing 2013 season and massive roster turnover following their Superbowl win.  This leaves the Ravens with many roster holes, but some offseason acquisitions have lessened the blow.  The Ravens have signed the accomplished Steve Smith at wide receiver and Owen Daniels has been reunited with Gary Kubiak at the tight end position.  The Ravens also managed to re-sign tight end Dennis Pitta leaving Joe Flacco with improved weapons despite the uncertainty surrounding Ray Rice.

The most glaring needs for the Ravens remain at Offensive Tackle and in the secondary--especially at Safety as Anthony Levine is expected to start at this point.  This offseason the Ravens managed to re-sign Eugene Monroe, whom they acquired in midseason, for a large 5 year $37,500.000 contract.  Monroe isn't the greatest option at Left Tackle but it's all they Ravens have.  I wanted to draft Taylor Lewan here but he was chosen by the Cowboys at pick 16.  I don't think there is another Tackle worth this pick, although some believe that Zack Martin could be a possibility.

Replacing the loss of Ed Reed is hard.  The Ravens selected Matt Elam in the first round of the 2013 draft.  He had an inconsistent season and was playing out of position for most the year.  In this draft the Ravens go back to the safety well again and select Calvin Pryor to pair with Elam.  This will allow Elam to play closer to the line of scrimmage in run support where he is better suited.  Calvin Pryor is a ball-hawking, bone-jarring, safety.  He's great in coverage and makes plays on the ball with excellent athleticism.  He's ruthless on receivers and ball carriers alike coming into his zone and will help re-establish Baltimore's defensive identity.

I don't know what the key ingredient to "fixing" the Baltimore Ravens is, because something about them was clearly broken in 2013 following their Super Bowl season. If I was a fan, it would be a hard sell for me to see my team take safeties in the first round in back-to-back years. Running back looks like the biggest hole for me, but I doubt they see enough value at that position in round one. I'm not complaining about Pryor being the pick, but if the Ravens invested so much at safety and neither player pans out, it'll set their franchise back a couple of years.

The New York Jets are up next, led by OldSaltyDawg.

2014 DBN Community Mock Draft Results (so far)