Zach Orr, Trenton Simpson among Ravens’ winners and losers coming out of NFL Draft

The newest Baltimore Ravens will get their close-up later this week. Eleven draft picks in all and somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 undrafted free agents will descend on the Under Armour Performance Center for the start of rookie minicamp.

They’ll meet their new coaches and teammates, get fitted for their equipment and take the field for the first time as NFL players. The Ravens’ rookie minicamp will put a bow on the 2025 draft.

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General manager Eric DeCosta has again gotten high marks after selecting another large draft class. He checked just about every box, except adding a space-eating backup nose tackle to replace the retired Michael Pierce.

It takes a few years to evaluate a class fairly. It takes very little time, however, to analyze the winners and losers from the draft. When you add over 30 players to the organization, several holdovers are bound to be impacted.

Winners

Defensive coordinator Zach Orr: The Ravens’ X account released a video of Orr reacting to the Malaki Starks pick with his defensive coaches. Orr looked like he was celebrating a game-winning interception. The excitable Orr watched his defense get restocked throughout the draft. The Ravens added a starting safety, a potentially high-impact edge rusher, a starting inside linebacker candidate, two cornerbacks and a defensive lineman.

After all of the talk about the potential for a defensive-heavy draft, DeCosta used six of the team’s first 10 picks on defensive players. Orr’s group looks formidable on paper, and he’ll have plenty of options in matching up against quality offenses.

“You fit our style of play… You’ll do great things here in Baltimore for a long time.” Go inside Malaki Starks’ exciting draft call: pic.twitter.com/L8lreJxMFu — Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 25, 2025

DeCosta’s patient approach: DeCosta acknowledged after Round 1 that he doesn’t really believe in trading up. His patience during the draft has been a source of criticism from fans who think the Ravens need to be more aggressive in moving up to get coveted players. DeCosta, though, stuck at No. 27, and the player the Ravens wanted, Georgia’s Starks, was there for the taking.

He didn’t force a move up in the second round, staying at No. 59 and grabbing Marshall edge rusher Mike Green. DeCosta then used the Day 3 selections he kept to get good value on guys like sixth-round Western Michigan cornerback Bilhal Kone and Virginia Tech sixth-round defensive lineman Aeneas Peebles.

Guard Andrew Vorhees: He was Baltimore’s Week 1 starting left guard last year, but he lost the job after an early-season ankle injury. He has a clear path to getting it back. The Ravens, who lost starting guard Patrick Mekari in free agency, drafted three offensive linemen, but none are obvious day one Mekari replacements. Ravens coach John Harbaugh said third-round pick Emery Jones Jr. of LSU will focus initially on the swing tackle role.

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Alabama A&M’s Carson Vinson, a fifth-round pick, is a developmental left tackle. The Ravens did select LSU guard Garrett Dellinger in the seventh round, but he likely won’t be an immediate starting candidate. The left guard job is Vorhees’ to win.

Pass rush coach Chuck Smith: When the Ravens selected Green, Smith took to his X account to send out a series of fireball emojis. Smith, who was an accomplished player in his own right, has worked with a number of the league’s top pass rushers as a personal coach. He teaches technique and pass-rush plan.

With Green, Smith has a lot to work with. Green is a twitchy, explosive edge rusher who plays with power. In the sixth round, the Ravens added a defensive lineman in Peebles with pass-rush ability. Smith has some new toys.

Running backs Keaton Mitchell, Rasheen Ali: This was a well-stocked running back draft class, and despite that, despite Derrick Henry entering the final year of his deal and Mitchell and Ali dealing with physical challenges last year, DeCosta didn’t add another ball carrier. The Ravens will add a few undrafted free-agent running backs, but Mitchell and Ali’s status as the Nos. 3 and 4 running backs, respectively, look pretty secure. They’ll need to stay healthy, though.

Tight end Mark Andrews: The three-time Pro Bowler’s placement on this list is operating under the assumption that Andrews is content remaining with the Ravens and hasn’t become disenchanted with all of the trade speculation and criticism he’s gotten for how Baltimore’s 2024 season ended.

DeCosta quieted some of that speculation about Andrews’ future after Day 2 of the draft, saying that he expects the productive tight end to remain with the team. That DeCosta didn’t use any of Baltimore’s 11 picks on a tight end when good options were available also suggests that Andrews remains in the Ravens’ plans.

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Losers

Center Nick Samac: A seventh-round pick last year, Samac wasn’t active for an NFL game in his rookie season. If he’s going to make the team again in 2025, Samac will have to beat out a lot of roster hopefuls. The Ravens drafted three offensive linemen and will add a few more as undrafted free agents. They typically carry nine or 10 offensive linemen on their regular-season roster. At least seven of those spots are accounted for, which doesn’t leave much margin of error for Samac. The coaching staff being comfortable with Ben Cleveland as the backup center would make it tough for Samac to stick.

Cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis: All indications are that the Ravens are still high on the potential of 2024 fourth-round cornerback T.J. Tampa, who was limited to just seven games as a rookie because of injuries. They also believe Armour-Davis is a solid NFL corner and special teams player when available. However, he hasn’t been healthy enough. He’s played just 19 games over three NFL seasons.

The drafting of two corners, Kone and Robert Longerbeam, and Starks, who gives Orr the flexibility to use a safety in the slot, certainly complicates Armour-Davis’ ability to make the regular-season roster. A 2022 fourth-round pick, Armour-Davis will likely start training camp in July on the proverbial bubble.

Inside linebacker Trenton Simpson: Harbaugh said at the NFL owners’ meeting that he expects Simpson to regain the starting weakside linebacker spot that he lost in December. That still may be the case, but Simpson now has legitimate competition. Ravens fourth-round pick Teddye Buchanan has the skill set to play immediately and challenge for the job.

A former quarterback, Buchanan has very good instincts and football smarts, which should help him decrease the learning curve. The selection of Starks and the return of restricted free agent Ar’Darius Washington will also allow the Ravens to use a safety in the dime linebacker role. That would cut into Simpson’s defensive snaps, as well.

Kicker Justin Tucker: It was hardly unexpected, but the Ravens drafting Arizona kicker Tyler Loop in the sixth round is an indication that Baltimore is preparing for life without Tucker, the all-time most accurate kicker in NFL history. When that happens remains unclear, as the league’s investigation into allegations against the kicker for inappropriate sexual behavior remains ongoing.

The Ravens have said they are following the NFL’s lead. Even if Tucker isn’t assessed significant discipline, he’s still 35, expensive for a kicker and coming off the worst year of his career. There’s also the question of where he’s at mentally and how he’d handle the questions and negativity surrounding the allegations. If Loop looks the part in minicamp and offseason workouts, it probably would be easier for the Ravens to move on from Tucker.

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The perceived organizational no-tolerance policy: Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti never said the Ravens have a no-tolerance policy as it relates to misconduct against women and other similar offenses. Former team president Dick Cass said specifically that the Ravens don’t have one and discussed why it would be so challenging. However, Harbaugh seemingly cited one when asked about the Cleveland Browns’ acquisition of Deshaun Watson in 2022.

Not until recent months have current team officials aggressively denounced the perception that a no-tolerance policy exists. There’s no ambiguity anymore. The Ravens drafted Green despite him acknowledging that he’s twice been accused of sexual assault. No charges were filed, and Green has denied any wrongdoing.

Young edge rushers Malik Hamm, Adisa Isaac and David Ojabo: The outside linebacker room is suddenly pretty crowded after the Ravens added Green in the second round. Kyle Van Noy and Odafe Oweh, who both had double-digit sacks last year, are established as the starters. Third-year pro Tavius Robinson, who started seven games last year and had 3 1/2 sacks, has carved out a nice role for himself as a rotational guy.

Green’s upside is extremely high, and he figures to have a role. That doesn’t leave too many snaps for Ojabo, a 2022 second-round pick; Isaac, a 2024 third-round pick; and Hamm, a former undrafted free agent who has stuck around for two years. There won’t be a 53-man roster spot for one or two of those guys.

(Photo: Terrance Williams / Associated Press)

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