Baltimore Ravens: 5 Best players under 25 on the roster

Who are the best Baltimore Ravens players under 25 years old?

The Baltimore Ravens lit the NFL ablaze last season behind Lamar Jackson and an electric offense — at least during the regular season. In only his second NFL campaign, Jackson led the team to a league-best 14-2 mark in the regular season and won NFL MVP in the process. Now he hopes to lead a team that is a mix of highly talented youngsters and great veterans to the next level.

While there are plenty of vets on the team that make a big impact, though, it’s Jackson and the young players that often steal many headlines in Baltimore. So that’s who we’re going to look at today, the five best players on the Ravens roster that are under 25 years old. For clarity, these are players who will be under 25 when the 2020 NFL season kicks off on Sept. 10.

Those parameters leave out a player like tight end Mark Andrews, who just misses the cut. And just because we’ve yet to see them play, rookies such as Patrick Queen and J.K. Dobbins are off the list as well. With that in mind, let’s get into the best young players on the Ravens. Note: All grades are courtesy of Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

5. Ben Powers, OG, Baltimore Ravens

So, while the Ravens have plenty of young talent on the roster, the truth is that many of them miss out on the under 25 years old threshold. That’s why Ben Powers, a 2019 fourth-round pick, ends up on this list at No. 5 after playing only 30 snaps as a rookie. According to PFF, however, those snaps earned him a grade over 82.0, which is enough for me to consider him a young player to watch.

4. Marquise Brown, WR, Baltimore Ravens

Just as with Powers, there might be some projection here as Marquise Brown was inconsistent as a rookie in the 2019 season. Overall, he played in 14 games with 11 starts and finished the year with 46 catches on 71 targets for 584 yards and seven touchdowns. He was, however, inconsistent in terms of his production. Even still, he showed flashes as a rookie that make you believe he can be a premier big-play threat in the NFL sooner rather than later for Baltimore.

3. Orlando Brown Jr., OT, Baltimore Ravens

Whenever Orlando Brown Jr. ran at the 2018 NFL Combine at a record-slow pace, even for an offensive tackle, everyone was already ready to call him a bust. Yet, the Ravens took a chance on him in the third round and, thus far, it’s paid off.

After showing out respectably in his rookie 2018 season, Brown emerged as a force in the Ravens high-octane offense last season, finishing as the 24th best tackle in the NFL according to PFF and registering the 11th-best pass blocking grade as well.

2. Marlon Humphrey, CB, Baltimore Ravens

Interestingly enough, 2017 first-round pick Marlon Humphrey is coming off of his worst season in the NFL according to PFF. His grade of 69.2 was down over 10 points from his previous campaign and even lower than his rookie grade as well. However, he still was 18th in the league in terms of his coverage grade last year, which is what the Ravens ask him to be. He’s undeniably a young stud in the secondary.

1. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens

The reigning NFL MVP left little drama in compiling this list. After taking over as the Ravens starter midseason as a rookie in 2018, Lamar Jackson assumed that role fully in the 2019 season. He lit the league on fire with 3,127 passing yards, 36 passing touchdowns and only six interceptions along with an NFL-record 1,206 rushing yards and seven more touchdowns.

Jackson is arguably the most explosive and dynamic player in the NFL right now. The next step for the 23-year-old will be postseason success as he’s 0-2 in that department as a starter, having his troubles both times. Even still, if he can stay healthy, he has the opportunity to go down as the greatest dual-threat quarterback in NFL history, and that’s not hyperbole.