The Baltimore Ravens and the rest of the NFL are seeing Tennessee star pass rusher James Pearce Jr. fall down draft boards.
Entering the 2024 season, Pearce was viewed as one of the top players in the country, and he was even warranting consideration for the No. 1 overall pick. However, character issues have appeared to pop up in his pre-draft evaluations, which is a big reason why he has continued to drop.
He may even fall to as low as No. 27, where the Ravens are picking. Baltimore could get quite the bargain if he was the first member of their class.
“The Ravens were second in the league in sacks last season, but they were only 15th in pressure percentage. The scary part for the team is that 12.5 of its sacks came from 33-year-old Kyle Van Noy. It’s unreasonable to expect he’ll continue to produce at that level, and David Ojabo is running out of time to break out on his rookie contract,” Bleacher Report analyst Alex Ballentine writes.
“Seeing James Pearce Jr. fall to them, as he does in our latest mock draft, would be a great situation. As B/R’s Matt Holder noted in his scouting report, he is not a great run defender at this point in his career, but he’s only 21 and brings impressive athleticism and movement skills.
“Drafting Pearce would essentially reset the clock on developing a long-term running mate for Odafe Oweh.”
Pass rush isn’t exactly the Ravens’ biggest need, but they have always preached the idea of taking the best player available, regardless of position. If Pearce is still on the board by the time Baltimore picks, there wouldn’t be too many people, if any, higher than him.
