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Christopher Boan writes for BetMaryland.com and has been covering sports and sports betting for more than seven years, with experience at ArizonaSports.com, the Tucson Weekly and the Green Valley News.2021-08-02
Baltimore Ravens Draft: Best Ravens Draft Steals Since 2000
BetMaryland.com wanted to know the best NFL Draft steals for the Baltimore Ravens (players selected after the first round) since 2000. We used the Approximate Value (wAV) metric at Pro-Football-Reference.com for all players drafted by Baltimore from the second through seventh rounds in the past 25 years. Stick with BetMaryland for the best Maryland sports betting promo codes around.
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Ravens Best Draft Steals After Round 1 Since 2000
Pos., Player | Year, Pick No. | Career wAV* |
OL Marshall Yanda | 2007, No. 86 | 92 |
LB Adalius Thomas | 2000, No. 186 | 65 |
OT Orlando Brown Jr. | 2018, No. 83 | 63 |
RB Ray Rice | 2008, No. 55 | 63 |
DE Matt Judon | 2016, No. 146 | 62 |
G Chris Chester | 2006, No. 56 | 59 |
DE Za’Darius Smith | 2015, No. 122 | 57 |
DE Jarret Johnson | 2003, No. 109 | 55 |
DT Brandon Williams | 2013, No. 94 | 52 |
TE Mark Andrews | 2018, No. 86 | 48 |
*The career weighted Approximate value is for their entire career, which could include seasons played with other teams.
Who Are The Ravens’ Best Non-1st Round Picks This Century?
We don’t know how the 10 selections the organization selected in the latter six rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft will pan out, or what impact this year’s rookies might make for Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl odds. But we can look back at some of the success stories in the Charm City to compare those players with the men that came before them.
At the top of the list when it comes to the Ravens draft picks outside the top 32 that flew the highest, it’s hard to beat 2007 third-round pick Marshal Yanda (pictured above). He finished his 177-game NFL career with a 92 wAV, according to Pro Football Reference data, with eight Pro Bowl appearances. Yanda made first-team NFL All-Pro twice.
That 92 wAV total put the former Iowa offensive lineman ahead of linebacker Adalius Thomas, who was taken 186th overall out of Southern Mississippi in 2000. Thomas racked up 65 wAV and two Pro Bowl appearances in the same draft class that netted the Ravens Pro Bowl running back Jamal Lewis plus Travis Taylor, a veteran of 101 NFL games at wide receiver.
Smart moves such as that have frequently made Maryland sports betting on the Ravens a winning proposition over the years.
Other NFL Draft success stories for the Ravens include offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who was taken 83rd overall in 2018 and put up 63 wAV in 109 games out of Oklahoma. He joined Baltimore in the same class as QB Lamar Jackson, tight end Mark Andrews and center Bradley Bozeman. All four have gone on to contribute greatly to Baltimore’s success in the AFC North.
Throw in 2008 running back draft pick Ray Rice (63 wAV in 63 games), defensive end Matt Judon (62 wAV in 131 games) and guard Chris Chester (59 wAV in 169 NFL games) and you have the upper end of Baltimore’s draft success stories that came after the first round in the past quarter century.
We will have to wait a few years before figuring out which (if any) of Baltimore’s 11 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft pan out, including first-round choice Malaki Starks, a safety out of Georgia who was selected No. 27 overall on Thursday.
But we can hold up the men above as a gridiron barometer of sorts upon which the latest batch of Ravens’ prospects will ultimately be judged against, both in 2025 and beyond.
At BetMGM Maryland Sportsbook, the Ravens have +700 odds of winning Super Bowl 60 in February 2026. That makes them second on the board behind the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles (+650) in odds updated after the draft, as of April 28.
USA Today photo by Mitch Stringer
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