ESPN 2020 NFL draft: Pros & cons for every first-round pick

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2020 NFL draft: Pros and cons for every first-round pick

28. Baltimore Ravens

Patrick Queen, ILB, LSU | Highlights


Why they picked him: Middle linebacker was the Ravens' most glaring need after Baltimore tried to fill the void of losing four-time Pro Bowl defender C.J. Mosley with a rotation inside last season. Queen doesn't look or play like Mosley, but he fits as the centerpiece of a defense that prides itself on position flexibility. Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said before the draft that the inside linebacker position has changed because the NFL has morphed into more of a speed league, in which defenders have to run, cover and blitz. No one epitomizes this modern-day definition of a middle linebacker more than Queen, the defensive most valuable player in the national championship game.

Biggest question: Is Queen too undersized to play middle linebacker? Queen weighed in at 229 pounds at the combine, which is considerably smaller than the players who had previously manned the middle of the Ravens' defense (Ray Lewis played at 240 pounds and Mosley is 250 pounds). For a defense that was bullied by Derrick Henry in an upset playoff loss, adding a safety-sized middle linebacker doesn't seem like the perfect answer. Queen's response: "I have the heart to be able to stop the run." -- Jamison Hensley


https://www.espn.com/nfl/draft2020/stor ... round-pick
 

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