Lamar Jackson acquired paid on Thursday like nobody else in NFL historical past, ending a months-long stalemate between the star quarterback and the Ravens. And if that wasn’t sufficient Baltimore gave him his Flowers too. Isn’t $185 million in assured cash sufficient recognition? Not precisely, because the Ravens used the No. 22 choose in this yr’s NFL Draft to pick out former Boston College large receiver Zay Flowers. Talk concerning the canine home to the penthouse for Baltimore’s outlook on the 2023 season in a matter of six hours.
Flowers was within the high group of large receivers within the draft and was a two-time All-American for the Eagles in 2020 and 2022. Oddly sufficient, the yr in between is once I acquired to observe Flowers play reside when Missouri traveled to Chestnut Hill to face BC. Dude can flat-out play. He wasn’t the very best wideout within the draft however he’s not far behind. Playing alongside Odell Beckham Jr. will solely make each of them higher. And with the development of NFL franchises prioritizing large receivers because the second-most-important place on the sphere, Flowers transferring to Baltimore vastly improves the surface weapons for the Ravens. Most importantly, it offers Jackson an amazing safety blankety when he can’t solely win a recreation along with his legs.
A run of WRs within the later a part of Round 1
No large receiver was chosen till No. 20, however then 4 straight had been chosen with all three wideouts chosen round Flowers all coming into the NFL Draft having extra notoriety, primarily because of the different trio taking part in for higher groups. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Quentin Johnston, and Jordan Addison all performed for groups chasing a College Football Playoff spot final season or received a CFP semifinal earlier than getting smacked by Georgia. And Boston College didn’t beat an FBS staff final season by greater than a single level. Coming from that adversity ought to give Flowers an edge coming into the NFL. He received’t take any success without any consideration as he comes from a program the place making a bowl recreation is seen as a serious success.
Flowers has as a lot probability to reach his first yr within the NFL as some other large receiver within the draft and enters the very best state of affairs of any of the 4 taken within the first spherical. Sure, Addison goes to Minnesota and Kirk Cousins has to throw the ball at the least 40 instances a recreation as a result of the Vikings have already got the very best receiver within the league in Justin Jefferson, which is able to give Addison loads of reps. Then it’s a must to keep in mind Cousins is throwing him the ball. The Ravens’ playbook is curtailed to spotlight Jackson and carry up everybody round him. And that may imply probabilities for Flowers, as Beckham isn’t a positive wager to have a monopoly on targets like Jefferson.
While at the NFL Draft itself, the Ravens weren’t the largest winners, Baltimore had the very best week of any staff by far and that features the Jets, who lastly have a good quarterback. And Aaron Rodgers will lead New York to the playoffs, and that’s it. A motivated, wholesome Jackson with a stable offensive line and a number of threats on the surface is an exceptional website in Baltimore. The addition of Flowers was the very best cherry on high Jackson may have hoped for on the very best day of his profession.Â