When looking back at the Ravens draft in April, it’s possible that they draft 5 guys that could be starters for them for a long time.  Here’s a breakdown:

In the first round the Ravens traded up one spot with the Browns and drafted NT Haloti Ngata.  He was an instant starter and played in all 16 games and registered 31 tackles, 1 sack and 1 interception….that he returned 60 yards!  The best thing about Ngata is that he demands a double-team by the offensive line which allows the Ravens linebackers to flow to the football.  He’s a big reason why Ray Lewis looked so good last season.

In the 2nd round the Ravens drafted center Chris Chester.  The 6′3″, 305 pound Chester looks like a future starter for the Ravens as he played in 11 games and started 4 of them.

In the third round the Ravens took cornerback David Pittman and he gets an incomplete because he didn’t play a down for the Ravens last season.

4th round pick Demetrius Williams looks like he could be a future starter for the Ravens.  At worst, he looks like a solid #3 WR as he played in all 16 games and caught 22 passes for 396 yards (18.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

Running back P.J. Daniels was also taken in the 4th round but he didn’t play a down for the Ravens so his grade is also an incomplete.

In the 5th round Ravens’ GM Ozzie Newsome hit a home run.  Free safety Dawan Landry emerged as the starter for the Ravens.  Landry played in all 16 games for the Ravens and registered 69 tackles, 3 sacks, defensed 6 passes and intercepted 5 passes that he returned 101 yards (20.2 avg) including 1 TD.  Landry looks to be a starter for a long time and was a steal in the 5th round.

TE Quinn Sypniewski was drafted in the 5th round and he was mostly just a special teams player for the Ravens.  He played in all 16 games but only caught 2 passes for 15 yards.  He also returned a kick-off for 11 yards.

The Ravens drafted punter Sam Koch in the 6th round and he looks like a keeper.  He punted the ball 86 times and averaged 43.0 yards per punt.  He had a net average of 37.6 yards and pinned the opposition inside the 20 yardline 30 times.  Koch also kicked off a bit to save Matt Stover’s leg for field goals.

Cornerback Derrick Martin was drafted in the 6th round and did most of his work on special teams.  He played in 8 games and made 5 tackles.

7th round pick Ryan LaCasse was traded before the season started.

Jamal Lewis started running hard again this season as he carried the ball 314 times for 1,132 yards (3.6 ypc) with 9 TD runs.  It was the fifth time in Lewis six healthy years that he rushed for over 1,000 yards.  He is not a good pass catcher as he only caught 18 passes for 115 yards (6.4 avg).  For his career, Lewis has played in 91 games (87 starts) and has carried the ball 1,822 times for 7,801 yards (4.3 ypc) with 45 TD runs.  He also has caught 160 passes for 1,365 yards (8.5 avg) in his career with only 2 TD receptions. 

Mike Anderson wasn’t used much by the Ravens this season.  He carried the ball 39 times for 183 yards (4.7 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 9 passes for 54 yards (6.0 avg).  For his career, Anderson has played in 90 games (51 starts) and he’s carried the ball 904 times for 4,005 yards (4.4 ypc) with 37 TD runs.  He’s been a 1,000 yard rusher twice in his NFL career.  He also has caught 88 passes for 701 yards (8.0 avg) with 5 TD receptions.

Musa Smith had a decent season when he got to play, which wasn’t often.  He carried the ball 36 times for 153 yards (4.3 ypc) and he caught 22 passes for 135 yards (6.1 avg).   For his injury prone career, Smith has played in 33 games and has carried the ball 57 times for 232 yards (4.1 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also has caught 27 passes for 171 yards (6.3 avg).

Fullback Ovie Mughelli finally got a chance to get his hands on the football a little bit.  He carried the ball 12 times for 50 yards (4.2 ypc).  He also caught 21 passes for 182 yards (8.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  For his career, Mughelli has played in 38 games (13 starts) and has carried the ball 12 times for 50 yards (4.2 ypc) and he’s caught 24 passes for 195 yards (8.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

The Ravens defense had to be disgusted in the locker room with the offense.  The Ravens held the Colts without a TD and still lost by 9 points.  Steve McNair played an awful game and yesterdays game was the reason the Ravens acquired him and he layed an egg on the field. 

Steve McNair completed 18 of 29 passes for 173 yards and 2 gigantic interceptions!  With the Ravens losing 6-3 in the second quarter and the Ravens driving, McNair tossed his first interception to rookie safety Antoine Bethea at the Colts 1-yard line.  The Colts then went on long drive and kicked a FG to make it 9-3.  But, his second interception was the final nail in the coffin, as Nick Harper intercepted the ball at the Colts 32 yard line in the 4th quarter with the Colts winning 12-6.  What a pathetic performance by McNair.

The Ravens should have given the ball more to Jamal Lewis as he carried the ball 13 times for 53 yards (4.1 ypc) and he caught 3 passes for 24 yards.  Mark Clayton also had a good game with 6 grabs for 73 yards, but the Colts shut everyone else down in the Ravens passing game.

The Ravens played a great game on defense as Ray Lewis led the way with 15 tackles.  Kelly Gregg also had a really solid game from the tackle position with 9 tackles.  Ed Reed was all over the field as he picked off two passes and came close to getting a couple more.  The Ravens held the Colts to 100 yards rushing on 35 carries (2.9 ypc).  The Colts also completed 15 of 30 passes for 161 net yards passing.

It really must hurt to have the team that left Baltimore return to the city and end their season.   The fans must feel awful about it.  http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270113033

Brian Billick knew his job might be on the line so he had to fire one of his beat friends (Jim Fassel) and run the offense himself.  Lo and behold, the Ravens went on an awesome run and will host the Colts this weekend in Baltimore.  Billick is a much better coach than Tony Dungy, so the Ravens have a huge advantage in this game right there.  The Ravens finished an amazing 13-3 this season which brings Brian Billick’s career record up to 75-53 (58.6%) with a 5-2 post season mark.