Re-drafts are an entertaining way to pass the time of the dreaded offseason. Looking back at drafts with the power of hindsight to hit on every pick and groan knowing your team could have selected X instead of Y. And last week, Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder attempted a re-draft of every NFL’s team’s worst first-round selection over the past five year. But the power of hindsight wasn’t good enough, because the Baltimore Ravens have hit on eight straight first-round picks in the past five years.
The experiment was to remedy busts for each team’s first-round picks since 2019. And to qualify as a bust, the player they were replacing via re-draft must not receive a second contract or be a starter for the 2025 season. But the Ravens broke the game on account of their success in the past five years. In their attempt, Holder selected outside linebacker Odafe Oweh as the one being replaced for the Ravens.
Original Pick: Edge Odafe Oweh at No. 31 (2021)
“We have to bend the rules for the Ravens a bit since Oweh is projected to be a starter this season,” Holder wrote. “But Baltimore doesn’t have a blatant first-round miss over the last five years, making it slim pickings.”
Oweh has not been a bust by any account. He’s steadily developed into a more impactful outside linebacker. A bit slower than any — including himself — would have liked, but nowhere near bust territory. Especially after hitting 10 sacks last season. And it’s worth mentioning the Ravens picked up Oweh’s fifth-year option last year, proving their faith in him.
“Linebacker Patrick Queen was the other player considered since he didn’t sign a second contract with the club, but Queen was a Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate and a Pro Bowler in Baltimore,” Holder wrote. “So, somewhat unfairly, Oweh is the default pick even though he isn’t a ‘bust.’”
There were a few other teams that Holder ruled the “jury is still out” on if the player he’s replacing is a bust or not, but the Ravens were the only team in his experiment to be flat-out rule-breaking. A testament to the Ravens’ drafting since 2019 when Eric DeCosta became the General Manager.
