With the much-needed Week 7 bye finally here, we're doing our rookie review of the 2025 draft class after six games.
The Baltimore Ravens made all 11 of their picks in April's NFL draft, beginning with the No. 27 selection on Day 1 of the three-day event. Eric DeCosta added two elite defenders with their first two picks, solid depth at the offensive line, and the team's first kicker in the 30-year history of the Ravens franchise.
Fast forward to mid-October, Baltimore is 1-4 in part due to several lingering injuries to starters and Pro Bowl-caliber players at key positions. As for those 11 rookies, the first two picks are starters, pick No. 129 in the fourth round has developed into a starter, while two other rookies are on injured reserve, and another joined a rival franchise's practice squad looking for a better opportunity.
With the much-needed Week 7 bye finally here, we're doing our rookie review of the 2025 draft class after six games.
Round 1, No. 27 overall: Malaki Starks, S, Georgia
Starks logged 10 tackles (three solo) during the Ravens' 44-10 loss to the Texans in Week 5. The rookie first-rounder was on the field for every single defensive snap for a third straight game, and entering Week 6 vs the Rams, Starks had logged at least seven tackles in four of the first five games of the regular season and was up to 34 tackles (14 solo) on the year. Stark's 56.2 overall grade on defense from PFF is good for 61st out of 79 NFL safeties.
Round 2, No. 59: Mike Green, Edge, Marshall
Baltimore had a need at the edge rusher position, so it landed the draft's most talented but questionable prospect, Marshall's Mike Green, at pick No. 59. Green was expected to be a top 10-15 pick, but was forced to address the circumstances around his 2022 departure from the Virginia football team at the NFL Scouting Combine. Through the first five games, Green has 14 tackles (6 solo), six pressures, and four QB hurries. Green's 210 snaps are 30th among all NFL edge rushers, while his 41.2 overall grade from PFF is 161st out of 169 NFL edge rushers. Green's 44.9 run stop grade is 155th out of 169.
Round 3, No. 91: Emery Jones Jr., OL, LSU
A four-star recruit who played basketball in high school, Jones was a third-team freshman all-American in 2022 and a second-team All-SEC in 2023 and 2024. Two weeks ago, Jones Jr. made his long-awaited practice debut after shoulder surgery sidelined him for the summer. A rookie stud out of LSU, Jones, who has been on the reserve/non-football injury list, was ruled out for Week 6. He has 12 more days to be activated, or he would need to miss the entirety of the 2025 campaign. The Ravens have a Week 7 bye, and Jones should make his debut in Week 8.
Round 4, No. 129: Teddye Buchanan, ILB, California
The Ravens felt they added a tremendous linebacker to the roster in the fourth round, selecting Cal linebacker Teddye Buchanan with the 129th pick. Buchanan played in 36 games at UC-Davis before transferring to the ACC. At Cal, Buchanan is a First-team All-ACC, after leading the team with 114 tackles and 12 for loss. Buchanan tied for the team lead position with 2 FFs. Started all 13 games (5 sacks, 4 PBUs). Buchanan logged 15 tackles (eight solo) during the Ravens' 44-10 loss to the Texans in Week 5, and the rookie linebacker was one of three Ravens players to play all 70 defensive snaps and finished as the game's leading tackler. Buchanan has started in each of the Ravens' last four games and is up to 40 tackles (20 solo) through the first five regular-season games of his NFL career. Buchanan's 48.2 PFF grade is 58th out of 72 linebackers.
Round 5, No. 141: Carson Vinson, OT, Alabama A&M
The Ravens love to do their due diligence on talented small-school draft picks, and with one of his 11 selections, GM Eric DeCosta may have found a diamond in the rough in later rounds. Baltimore hosted Alabama A&M offensive tackle Carson Vinson at the Under Armour Performance Center on April 9, and during the fifth round, the Ravens drafted the intriguing prospect. Vinson was named First Team All-SWAC for his play in 2024 and a First-Team FCS All-American. He accepted an invitation to the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl and was the lone invite from an HBCU program at the 2025 NFL Combine.
Through the first six weeks, the 6-foot-7 Alabama A&M product has yet to play in the regular season.
Round 6, No. 178: Bilhal Kone, CB, Western Michigan
General manager Eric DeCosta previously said that Baltimore would take a cornerback in this year's draft, and the Ravens got Mel Kiper Jr.'s 101st-rated prospect with the 178th pick. Kone tore a ligament in his left knee during the Ravens' 24-16 win against the Colts in the preseason opener and will sit out the season, coach John Harbaugh said. Kone, a rookie sixth-round pick, was defending Colts wide receiver Ashton Dulin down the left sideline at the end of the first quarter when he went down in the end zone on an incomplete pass. He was visibly in pain and immediately grabbed his left leg. According to PFF, Kone allowed a completion on just 45.7% of throws in coverage last season. He forced eight incompletions and one interception while allowing just one touchdown. Last season, Kane led Western Michigan with nine passes broken up. He added 70 tackles and one interception.
Kone primarily plays on the outside but has spent some time in the slot. Last season, Kone led Western Michigan with nine passes broken up. He added 70 tackles and one interception.
Round 6, No. 186: Tyler Loop, K, Arizona
The Ravens drafted a kicker for the first time in their 30-year history after the NFL started investigating Tucker for sexual misconduct, and team officials said they would wait to decide until the league finalized its investigation. Tucker was released, and Loop has one of the strongest legs in recent drafts. He has converted 6 of 9 attempts from 50-plus yards, including making a 62-yarder last season at Arizona. Loop went 1-for-2 on field-goal attempts and made his only PAT in Sunday's 44-10 loss to the Texans. Loop connected on a 27-yard field goal in the first quarter before later missing a 55-yard attempt wide right as time expired in the first half. The miss was Loop's first of the year, and he has gone 7-for-8 on field-goal tries, including 1-for-3 from 50-plus yards, while making 15 of 16 extra-point attempts through five games this season.
Round 6, No. 203: LaJohntay Wester, WR, Colorado
Baltimore added more speed to the roster after selecting Colorado wide receiver LaJohntay Wester in the NFL draft with pick No. 203 in the sixth round. In his lone season at Colorado after transferring from Florida Atlantic, the smooth and dynamic receiver recorded 74 receptions for 934 yards and 10 touchdowns. In Week 5, Wester gained 16 yards on a punt return and went without a target while playing four snaps on offense in Sunday's 44-10 loss to the Texans. Wester has logged just nine snaps at receiver through the Ravens' first five games.
Round 6, No. 210: Aeneas Peebles, DL, Virginia Tech
Baltimore added a pass rusher to the defensive line with Peebles, who was projected to go as early as the third round. His 25 pressures were tied for the most among ACC defensive tackles. In Week 5, Peebles played 10 defensive snaps, which was just 14% of the team's total, and he tied his career-high in snaps on special teams with 8. Even with Nnamdi Madubuike out for the season, Peebles has played just 67 snaps.
Round 6, No. 212: Robert Longerbeam, CB, Rutgers
The 2025 offseason marked the fourth time in the last five years that Baltimore has selected multiple cornerbacks in the same draft. Longerbeam led the Big Ten with 30 passes broken up since 2021. The 5 feet 11, 174-pound cornerback from Rutgers was projected to play slot cornerback, and Longerbeam was only the second player from Rutgers to get drafted by the Ravens, joining running back Ray Rice (second round in 2008). Longerbeam (knee) was placed on injured reserve after missing the Ravens' preseason opener.
Round 7, No. 243: Garrett Dellinger, G, LSU
Dellinger was the third offensive lineman drafted last April by the Ravens as an experienced offensive guard with 30 career starts (including 24 at left guard). Dellinger was selected by Baltimore in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL draft with the idea of adding to the depth on the Ravens' rebuilt offensive line. Instead, Dellinger is spending his first season with the Ravens' rivals in Cleveland. The former LSU offensive guard was among six players signed to the practice squad. During his time at LSU, Dellinger was flagged just twice for penalties in 1,937 snaps. Despite playing just 268 pass-blocking snaps due to injury, he surrendered only three total pressures and did not allow a sack.
This article originally appeared on Ravens Wire: Ravens rookie review: The good and bad from first six games
Category: Football
