Ravens Choose Defense Over WR in Todd McShay's First 2023 Mock Draft

Updated: Sep 10, 5:00pm UTC

The Baltimore Ravens are trotting out a hodgepodge wide receiver group after losing No. 1 wideout Rashod Bateman to a foot injury. This unit wasn't even particularly strong before Bateman's injury, so it will remain a major area of need in the coming offseason.

However, ESPN's Todd McShay has Baltimore going defense over WR in his first 2023 mock draft.

McShay projects the Ravens to select cornerback Clark Phillips III with the No. 25 pick in the draft. This would mark the fourth straight year the team has addressed the defense in some way in the first round, and it'd be back-to-back drafts spent improving the secondary.

The Phillips choice certainly makes sense with Marcus Peters and Kyle Fuller becoming free agents at the end of the season. The Utes standout has turned it on during his sophomore year, racking up 6 interceptions in 12 games. He's shown a knack for making plays off of turnovers, as evidenced by the 4 defensive touchdowns he's scored while at Utah.

Still, it could be hard to pass on a wide receiver, especially with the likes of Zay Flowers and Josh Downs expected to be available in this range. Both ACC products are absolute threats with the ball in their hands that the Ravens could use to open up the offense.

Flowers is coming off of a career year where he recorded highs in receptions (78), yards (1,077) and TDs (12). Downs, meanwhile, posted his second straight campaign with at least 1,000 yards and set his personal best with 11 TDs.

With how abysmal the receiving corps has been in 2022, investing in a wideout would be a wise choice. However, Baltimore having several routes to go from this spot is encouraging at the very least.

Isaiah De Los Santos is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Isaiah De Los Santos also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username zayyy05328. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

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