Blockbuster trade mere days before the Draft (April 29-May 1)? Of course, so now all our mocks leading up to the trade look silly.
Orlando Brown Jr. (offensive tackle) got the trade he desired and the Ravens got a reported first-round pick and more in exchange, as a deal long rumored this offseason materialized less than a week before the NFL Draft.
The Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs completed the trade Friday, which is pending the passing of a physical. Baltimore does not confirm the details of trades.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Ravens received extra first- (No. 31) and fourth-round (No. 136) picks in this year’s draft. The Ravens and Chiefs reportedly swapped second- and third-round picks this year and fifth- and sixth-round picks next year.
That would give the Ravens two first-round picks (No. 27 and 31) and nine selections overall in 2021.
Brown made his trade request public in late January when he tweeted, “I’m a LEFT tackle.” Brown started at right tackle for his first two seasons with the Ravens but filled in at left tackle for Ronnie Stanley after the All-Pro suffered a season-ending ankle injury midway through last season.
Brown did so well that he was voted to a second Pro Bowl. It also cemented his belief that he belonged at left tackle in the NFL. Brown’s father, Orlando “Zeus” Brown Sr., instilled that in him at a young age and Orlando played left tackle throughout college at Oklahoma.
“He always told me, ‘Don’t settle for playing right tackle,” Brown said of his father. “Make sure that when it comes time and you get to every level, you’re playing left.'”
A mauler at 6-foot-8, 345 pounds, Brown thrived in the Ravens’ power running scheme and was a strong blocker in pass protection as well. He and Stanley became arguably the league’s best tackle duo.
However, when the Ravens signed Stanley to a five-year, reported $98.75 million contract extension last season, it became clear that Brown would have to go elsewhere if he wanted to be at left tackle.
A 2018 third-round pick who slid in the Draft after a tough Combine showing, Brown was thrilled to be drafted by Baltimore, where his father became a Ravens legend. Like his father, “Zeus Jr.” became immensely well-liked by his teammates, coaches, the front office and reporters.
The Chiefs, who lost last year’s Super Bowl after both starting tackles were injured and quarterback Patrick Mahomes was routinely pressured, were looking for offensive tackle help. Now Brown will be playing for a team that has been a thorn in the Ravens’ side the past three years.
The Ravens, meanwhile, will be looking for a new starting right tackle. This week, the team reportedly worked out free-agent tackle Alejandro Villanueva, a two-time Pro Bowler who started every game at left tackle the past five seasons in Pittsburgh.
Baltimore could also use one of its extra picks to draft Brown’s replacement. Offensive tackles have been a popular projection to the Ravens in the first round, including Oklahoma State’s Teven Jenkins and Michigan’s Jaylen Mayfield. Other in-house replacements include Tyre Phillips, who helped step in last season as a rookie, making eight starts.
Here’s where the Ravens will pick (pending more trades):
Round 1 — No. 27
Round 1 — No. 31
Round 3 — No. 94
Round 3 — No. 104
Round 4 — No. 131
Round 4 — No. 136
Round 5 — No. 171
Round 5 — No. 184
Round 6 — No. 210
This new draft order as a result of the trade with Kansas City also provides a lot of packaging potential to move around the first round of the draft if the Ravens are so inclined— and that affects every other team’s looking to make a deal as well.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
