Nfl Draft

I'll be honest with you. I don't know anything about Missouri Southern State nose tackle Brandon Williams, whom the Ravens picked in the third round of the NFL draft on Friday night. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, though. The Ravens raved about his strength and character and how he held his own at the Senior Bowl, so I'm eager to find out more about him in the next couple of days. One thing I do know about Williams is that he can do this (see video above).

General manager Ozzie Newsome said last week that there were so many good safeties in the draft that there would be one who the Ravens could take in all seven rounds. However, the Ravens showed on the first night of the 2013 NFL draft just how much adding to the position was a priority as they used the 32nd and final pick of the first round on Matt Elam, a hard-hitting and playmaking safety out of the University of Florida. “Even though he was a position of need, believe it or not, he was the highest-rated player on our board,” said Newsome, who acknowledged that the Ravens considered moving back in the draft but they never got any calls while they were on the clock.

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.

When Michael Huff arrived at team headquarters last month, it didn't mean the Ravens were suddenly set at safety. With free safety Ed Reed signing as a free agent with the Houston Texans and strong safety Bernard Pollard cut from the roster, filling the void created by their departures remains a job only halfway done. Signing Huff to a three-year, $6 million contract gives the Ravens a starting free safety to replace Reed, but the team still hopes to find a talented safety with enough versatility to potentially line up at either spot.

There was a time, not too long ago, when the NFL draft wasn't on Corey Fuller's radar. Without a football scholarship offer during his senior year at Woodlawn, Fuller went to Kansas to run track and compete in the triple jump. After two years there, he abandoned his scholarship, transferred to Virginia Tech and paid his tuition out-of-pocket for one year - all for the opportunity to walk onto the football team as a wide receiver. In his first season of eligibility, Fuller played just 57 offensive snaps and had two catches for 19 yards.

The Ravens replaced pass rusher Paul Kruger with a three-time Pro Bowler in Elvis Dumervil. They are open to trying out defensive end Pernell McPhee at rush linebacker. Courtney Upshaw could improve his pass-rushing prowess before his second NFL season. And Terrell Suggs should have four fully-functioning limbs this fall. Will that keep the Ravens from drafting another pass rusher next week, possibly even with an early pick? This draft class boasts a mysterious but talented group of edge rushers, led by LSU's Barkevious Mingo, Oregon's Dion Jordan, Florida State's Bjoern Werner, Georgia's Jarvis Jones, and BYU's Ezekiel Ansah.

Rob Moore had just watched Missouri open up a 14-3 first quarter lead on the Syracuse football team, and the wide receivers coach knew the Orange was in desperate need of a spark. So he pulled Alec Lemon aside and implored the senior wideout to will the team back into the game. "'You're going to have to take over,'" Lemon recalled Moore telling him. "'If we're going to win this, we're going to need you to step up.'" That's exactly what he did. Lemon caught 12 passes for a career-high 244 yards and two touchdowns - including a game-winning 17-yard score with 20 seconds remaining - to lead Syracuse to a 31-27 win over the Tigers on Nov. 17. For Lemon, it was nothing new. Ever since his freshman year at Arundel, the Crofton native has been a player who performs best when the game is on the line.