Joe Flacco

The Ravens did us beat reporters a minor disservice on Saturday afternoon, drafting Harvard fullback Kyle Juszczyk, whose surname will leave behind many red squiggly lines as we learn to spell it, in the fourth round. It's too soon to say that this did a disservice to Pro Bowl fullback Vonta Leach, whose future could be in doubt . “I couldn't ask for a better mentor,” Juszczyk said Saturday. “I think he's been the best fullback in the league.” As we have seen for two years, Leach is probably the best blocking fullback in the NFL, and he has the dented facemasks to prove it. But Juszczyk appears to be a better fit for the future as the Ravens, with quarterback Joe Flacco, continue to modernize their offense.

Here is a roundup of which first-round draft prospects the Ravens are linked to in 2013 NFL mock drafts. --- Rob Rang of CBS Sports believes the Ravens will select USC receiver Robert Woods on Thursday night. “The Super Bowl champs committed to quarterback Joe Flacco from a contract perspective, but must add to his weapons if he's to remain successful,” he wrote. “Speedster Torrey Smith gives the club a premium vertical threat but the team could see Woods as an ideal complement following the trade of Anquan Boldin .” --- Peter King of Sports Illustrated says the Ravens will draft Kansas State inside linebacker Arthur Brown with the 32nd pick.

The Ravens won't get their season-opening home game, like reigning Super Bowl champions have for the last decade. But they will play four prime-time games, including a Thanksgiving night showdown at home against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, and a much-anticipated rematch with the Denver Broncos to kick off their Super Bowl XLVII title defense. The NFL released its regular-season schedule Thursday and it's highlighted by the Ravens' Sept. 5 matchup against the Broncos, a pairing that produced one of the league's most memorable games from the 2012-13 campaign.

Ravens assistant general manager Eric DeCosta was reading comments recently from former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson that he felt summed up his organization's drafting philosophy perfectly. "I think the thing we want to try to do - this is something that Jimmy Johnson believes - [is] when you have a lot of picks as he had when he did the Herschel Walker trade, you've got to make sure to approach the draft like every pick is the only pick you have," DeCosta said. "It's easy when you have so many picks to just throw some picks away and deal and do all these different things.

Each weekday through April 24, the day before the first round of the NFL draft, The Sun will look at where the Ravens stand at each position, the likelihood that they will address that spot early in the draft and some of the prospects that they may consider. Today we'll examine the quarterbacks: Current quarterbacks under contract : Joe Flacco, Tyrod Taylor Chances that the Ravens draft a QB in first three rounds : None. Even the harshest Flacco critic over the years has to grudgingly admit now that the Ravens are set at the quarterback position.

It's a great problem to have to solve. In fact, let's not call it a problem, but a situation. It will be interesting to see how the Ravens offense evolves in 2013, because a lot of the featured players are going into their peak years. Once Jim Caldwell took over as offensive coordinator late last season, quarterback Joe Flacco took his game to another level and the Ravens were able to spread the field more. Flacco wasn't hesitant about checking out of running plays and throwing down field.

Ten days before the NFL draft, the amazing transformation of the Ravens continues. Rolando McClain is just the latest new piece of the puzzle. And I wouldn't bet he's the last free agent the Ravens sign, not with the team still $4.1 million under the salary cap and several gaping holes in the lineup still to be filled. But by signing the volatile linebacker after the Oakland Raiders dumped him, the Ravens reaffirmed that they're willing to take chances on players other teams wouldn't touch with a 10-foot pole.

This afternoon I did a chat on our site about the Ravens and the NFL draft. Maybe the most popular question, besides ones about the situation at inside linebacker and the uncertainty along the offensive line, was about what it would take for the Ravens to trade up so they can draft one of the top left tackles or electric wide receiver Tavon Austin or some other highly-touted prospect who will be long gone by the time the Ravens pick. We get these questions every spring, so I figured I would do a little homework and address trading up here.

Having co-hosted a pre-game radio show with John Unitas for four years while producing the radio broadcasts on WCBM for the Baltimore Colts, I think John would be laughing over the family feud about Joe Flacco portraying him in a movie. John would probably remark that Joe is a little too tall for the role. John had a great sense of humor, and I think he would have approved of Joe Flacco's own "golden arm. " As a Ravens season ticket holder, I can attest to both quarterbacks "coolness quotient.

Orioles fans stood and applauded Friday as an image of Joe Flacco hoisting the Lombardi Trophy flashed on the video board at Camden Yards, part of an Opening Day tribute to the Super Bowl champion Ravens. But the friendly public moment belied a bit of unseen intrigue as several members of the Ravens organization, citing scheduling conflicts, declined to be on hand for the pregame ceremonies. The absence of a Ravens representative followed a recent standoff between NFL and Major League Baseball officials over scheduling of the Ravens' opener, which became a road game because of conflicts with an Orioles home date.