The Baltimore Ravens made one of the best signings of the 2016 NFL free agency period when they nabbed veteran safety Eric Weddle on a four-year deal. But beyond Weddle, the Ravens are perilously thin on the back-end. Matt Elam, the one-time heir apparent at the strong safety spot, has yet to distinguish himself as an NFLer. Will Hill was released and guys like Kendrick Lewis and Terrence Brooks are young and talented, but mostly just potential. It wouldn't be surprising at all to see safety be a position that Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome addresses in the 2016 NFL Draft.
And according to a recent draft rumor, that's exactly what Newsome and head coach John Harbaugh are thinking.
Per the report, the Ravens won't be considering a safety at No. 6 in the first round, because, well, there won't be any players in that area worth taking. The top prospect at the position is CB/S tweener Jalen Ramsey of Florida State and there's every possibility that the uber-talented Ramsey will go well before the Ravens select at six.
Instead, it seems Baltimore is giving serious consideration to trading back into the bottom of round one in order to nab a safety. At that point, guys like Florida's Keanu Neale and Boise State's Darian Thompson are likely to still be available, though Neal continues to climb draft boards.
Neal, 6-foot, 211-pounds, is a quick-twitch player who plays exactly how you'd expect a strong safety in the NFL to play - which is to say that he lays the wood. A lot.
"He looks like an NFL safety. Looks like he can run on tape and is exactly what you look for in run support. He's an athlete so I don't worry about his cover skills as long as his instincts are okay," an NFC defensive backs coach said.
Neal dealt with some injury issues to start the 2015 season, namely a hamstring strain, but his combination of attributes have him looking like a surefire NFL starter.
Mock drafts have Neal slotted in somewhere around the last first, early second, so it's entirely possible that Neal could make it to the Ravens in the second round. But it doesn't seem likely.
Instead, if the Ravens covet a hard-hitting guy like Neal, it sounds like they' have to pull off that trade into the latter portion of the first round.
