DeCosta has had the most success with drafting defense
Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta has been considered one of the best at the job since taking over for the legendary Ozzie Newsome in 2019. DeCosta’s ability to draft impact players over his six seasons in the position has helped to elevate the Ravens to one of the top teams in the NFL year after year.
The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec ranked the positions DeCosta has had the most success with in the draft. Zebriec listed safety as the position DeCosta has had the most success with, with Kyle Hamilton, Geno Stone, and Sanoussi Kane being the three selections he has made over the years.
“Signing veteran safeties has produced some notable misses for the Ravens. The draft route hasn’t, at least not in recent years,” Zrebiec wrote. “Hamilton is already one of the best safeties in the NFL, and he’s well on his way to becoming the highest-paid one. Stone had a solid three-season run in Baltimore, becoming a core special-teamer and then leading the AFC in interceptions in 2023. Kane played the third-most special teams snaps on the team last year and could push for a defensive role in his sophomore season.”
Zrebiec listed defensive line as the runner-up to safety. Daylon Mack, Namdi Madubuike, Broderick Washington, and Travis Jones make up DeCosta’s draft picks along the defensive line.
“For how much Ravens officials talk about the importance of the trenches and stopping the run, they just haven’t gone the defensive line route very often in recent drafts,” Zrebiec wrote. “The last time they selected an interior defensive lineman before the third round was 2014. In recent years, they’ve mostly relied on one or two veterans and the combination of Madubuike, Washington and Jones. That recipe has worked just fine. … Madubuike developed into a Pro Bowl performer and is one year removed from a 13-sack season. Washington has been a solid rotational guy and got a second contract from the team. Jones still has room to grow, but he’s gotten better every year and looks to be a second contract guy, too.”