Great stuff Mike, Really on top of the situation as always, man.

PLEASE!!!!! Do not draft a quaterback with a 1st round pick! We will have to sit him a year, and on top of things no quaterback is good without a SOLID O-LINE and good WR's.

I like going defense/OL with our 1st round pick, and grabbing WR James Hardy - Indiana in the second. Just remmeber his name! This kid is a BEAST!

I like staying at 8 and taking the best player available. Long could be the guy, or Sedric Ellis, or McFadden even could slip, but either way if someone takes Ryan before we draft, we will get one of the top D linemen or RB to drop to us.

Then we could entertain trade offers or just pick Ellis or Long if the Pats don't.

The Ravens have too many needs, and not enough early-round picks, to even consider moving up to draft Matt Ryan. For the third year in a row, the Ravens are entering the draft without their third round pick. (That supplemental pick at the end of the round is really just a high 4th round pick and, in any case, it can't be included in any trade.) If a real blue-chipper like Chris Long is still on the board at No. 8, by all means, the Ravens should take him, but if not, they should trade down in Round 1, maybe a couple of times, to obtain another 2nd and/or 3rd round pick, then take one of the other QB's with the lower 1st round pick and draft wisely to fill their multiple needs (CB, OT, DE/OLB) with additional picks acquired by trading down. (By drafting "wisely," I mean not rolling the dice on a project like David Pittman.) Just one fan's opinion.

How about this- the Ravens swap their first and third round picks with the Saints. Moving from #8 to #10 and #99 to #78. (break even according to the NFL draft value chart). The Ravens stop USC DT Sedrick Ellis from going to division rival Bengals and improve to a top 10 third round pick instead of a compensatory pick. From there the Ravens trade again with the Eagles. Getting #19 and Lito Sheppard for their #10. The Eagles can then take the OT of their choice while the Ravens can take Henne at #19 and a 2nd tier CB in the 2nd round with Sheppard able to start and moving Rolle to nickel. Now we get the QB we need, a DB who gets a year in the system before he's put in man to man coverage against Ward, Houshmanzadeh, Johnson, or Edwards twice a year, and an upgrade at DB this season too. Plausible?

Shawn, Supplemental picks (# 99) can't be traded.

To Shawn,

The Ravens cannot trade their 3rd round pick because compensatory draft picks cannot be traded.

To Shawn: The Ravens can't trade the third round pick because it's a comp pick. Them's the rules.

The ideal situation is to trade down, then to select Henne or Flacco. Hopefully we can pick up a 2nd or recoup our 3rd in the process. It is difficult to swap picks, so if something doesnt come together I think you stay put & take Sedric Ellis. Ellis & Ngata would form a cement wall in the middle of our DLine for many seasons & upkeep the Ravens tradition of having a strong defense. Im not crazy about the guy, but I think Brohm might be there in Rnd 2.

if we get Chris Long, that would AMAZING!

Shawn- Teams can't trade compensatory draft picks, so no treading the #99 pick.

Hey shawn i hope you have great hair like mel kiper. You have everything all sewed up for the ravens. The next phil savage. All that i hope for is that the ravens don't take ryan with that number 1 pick. Qb and wide receiver are like crap shoots with number 1 picks. I wouldn't mind taking long with that 8 th pick and then they would have somebody with a motor like michael macreay.They have enough draft pick left to fill the rest of the teams need. We could still get henne in the second round. But anyway shawn you have to start some where GOOD LUCK .

I don't think anyone can predict what scenario will transpire on draft day. Trades with other teams always mess up the projections of these gurus.

What can be said, is that the Ravens are not in an ideal position to move up. Each draft pick this year is precious, even in the late rounds. If the Ravens remain at "8", they will get a starting player (unless it is a QB) who can impact immediately. I believe the 'ideal' situation is to get a top notch defensive player at "8", get a QB with the second pick. It is cheaper to move up in the second round rather than the first, but I would prefer that they not move up at all. They will probably get whoever is left out of the "4" QBs mentioned. The more I read about Matt Ryan, the more I am convinced he may not be worth the '8th" pick.

I hope to God the Ravens don't take Chad Henne. The guy had a stud OL in Chris Long and two good receivers in Manningham and Arrington helping him out. What would he do with what the Ravens have?

What about the more realistic possibility of Darren McFadden falling to #8? May sound crazy now, but it's no crazier than Chris Long dropping to #8. He has "character issues" and a alot of teams are skittish now that Sheriff Goodell is in charge. Most mocks have Oakland taking DMc but they have a ton of pressing needs and a 400 lb. quarterback. They also just spent a bazillion dollars this offseason. I don't see anybody trading up to #4 take a RB with an attitude problem. Chiefs won't take him, the Jets have bigger needs and the Pats won't take him. So what if he falls to us? Do you keep him and run the killer tandem of Willis and DMc or do you bleed Jerry Jones for him? I like the latter idea. Jones is an Arkansas boy, has 2 first round picks and is certainly trying to win NOW. I figure as long as we're playing imaginary games I'd throw this scenario out there. What do you think?

Chris Long falling to us would be amazing. He's an elite talent. The top 4 corners, no matter how you rate them aren't worthy of a top 10 pick so we won't go there. If Ryan falls, I guarantee we will take him. Why aren't we hearing about an effort to trade with the Eagles for Lito Sheppard? He basically solves our CB problem and I'd rather trade a pick to get him than spend it on an unproven rookie at the same position. No matter what, you all have to take a breath and realize that Ozzie et all have earned our trust when it comes to drafting. Year in and year out, they surpass the rest of the league in that department so I am confident the Ravens will improve this weekend.

Why do people keep saying that the Ravens have no good wide receivers? Demetrius Williams, Mark clayton, and Derrick Mason are the best combo we have had since Derrick Alexander and Michael Jackson. They have had no one to throw them the ball and a horrible offensive design. Give them a chance in the new system.
Mike Preston's mock draft above has us giving a pick to the Patriots to move up one slot when DT Ellis is still on the board. Be patient and see which of them falls to us. Remember, the low draft pick saved could be the next Adalius Thomas or Dwan Landry.

Only the Ravens could be stupid enough to have Henne rated above the other QB's. Henne was mediocre at best while at Michigan, and he's never going to be a good starter in the NFL. He won't even be better than Boller.

If Long or Ellis is still on board at # 8 , the Ravens should grab either of them , they can start for you immdiately .
if McFadden slips to # 8 , it would be interesting , as J.Gavin suggested , If Jerry Jones calls Ozzie , about getting Ravens # 8 for his # 20 and # 28 picks . I couldnt refuse that offer , would Ozzie?
If Ryan manages slip to # 8 , i would hope Ozzie wait for phones to ring before submitting Ryan's on card . extra Draft picks are few and hard to come by .

I really can't get myself to jump on the Matt Ryan bandwagon for some reason. If Ryan is the best player on the board at #8, the Ravens should trade down to get Henne or Flacco late in the 1st. round plus maybe a legitimate 3rd. rounder. They should be more than able to fill a lot of their CB and other needs in the 3rd-4th rounds. I just honestly don't understand the Matt Ryan fever. Maybe he would be what everyone thinks he could be, but I think the risk is too high. Just my thoughts

I think the best thing that could happen to the Ravens is to have Matt Ryan or Run DMC call to them. If Matt Ryan does, they take the best QB in the class. If now, they can trade down to get Dallas's two first round pick and take a good corner (probably the 2nd or 3rd one off the board) at 22 and a QB at 28.

They can't pass up a chance to get Long if he's there. He's got a motor like McCrary. The line would be back to it's elite status like two years ago, making it easier on the secondary, also.

Interesting about Chris Long. Would pay immediate dividends. But how do you get all at once another QB, corner and OT with those remaining picks I ask. Youd miss out on one of em even if u packaged to trade back into 2nd again. Trade down, get some ammo and spread the hits.

I love the thought of Chris Long being drafted by the Ravens. Strong motor, relentless, powerful, thats the he was against Maryland. But 1 question does come to mind, If they do draft Long, what happens to Trevor Pryce? Do they keep him and let him tutor Long or do they release him?

I am praying something like that could happen. The QB can be addressed in the 2nd. If someone like Long couldn't be acquired at 8 then I would like to see DB or OL addressed in the first round.But I am hoping that becomes a reality.

Please TRADE DOWN and then geta a Corner -- - need lots of help for longterm

Well, after all is said and done, I personally think the Ravens would be crazy not to snag Flacco. I just plain like his attitude.

*** "I don't care what anybody says," Flacco said. "I know what my game is. They can say all they want, put all the pressure on me they want. I have as thick skin as anybody. So bring it at me." ***

He arguably has the strongest arm in the draft, and moves better than anyone anticipated. Just remember, McNair came from Alcorn State, and say what you will, he turned out to be a top quality QB, so to me, the rap that he can't play with the big boys because he's from an I-AA school just doesn't hold enough water.

To be frank, I wonder if Atlanta won't take him before the Ravens get the chance.