Bengals should be concerned about these rival AFC North draft picks

Baltimore Ravens

Round 1: Pick 14 – Kyle Hamilton, S (Notre Dame) 

I’m not going to sugarcoat it — This was an absolute steal for the Baltimore Ravens at 14.

In many mock drafts, Kyle Hamilton was going inside the top 10, sometimes the top 7 or even the top 5. He was the best safety in this draft class and debatably the best defensive back, but Derek Stingley and Sauce Gardner would obviously be the more popular considerations. They play cornerback, which is widely considered the more important position.

Having Hamilton slip out of the top 10 and then past a team like the Washington Commanders was shocking and set the Ravens up perfectly to add another pivotal defensive talent to a secondary and a defense that is already one of the most talented when healthy.

Hamilton was a three-year player for the Fighting Irish, and in those three seasons, he had eight interceptions, 20 pass deflections, and a little over 130 total tackles. He is exactly what you want in a safety and just seems like an NFL-ready player, and he is going to a system that has gotten the best out in their defensive backs.

He will have the chance to play alongside Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters, who both suffered season-ending injuries last season but are still two of the game’s most talented defensive backs in football. They will be able to create quite the unit if they can all stay healthy.

You could say the Ravens got the most value in the entire draft, landing both Hamilton and Tyler Linderbaum in the first round and David Ojabo in the second round. All three guys had first-round value.