My four guys? While it's tempting to pick more, here they are:
D'Angelo Ponds (CB, Indiana). Yes, I know he's really small. I don't care; he's a complete baller. Absolute flat-out baller and playmaker, always there when you need him, excellent and smart in coverage despite his size. He's gone up against Germie Bernard, Ryan Williams, Jeremiah Smith, Carnell Tate, Denzel Boston, Malachi Toney, it doesn't matter whom he goes up against - he'll limit them, he'll hound them, he'll frustrate them, and he'll make plays against opposing quarterbacks, maybe even force a crucial fumble on a blitz (like he did with Ty Simpson). His college highlights are like Tyrann Mathieu's at LSU when he played corner. Neither of them are the biggest, neither of them are the strongest, but both just made play after play after play. If we traded down, I'd take him with that first, hopefully before Seattle takes him; I will cry if Seattle pops him with their pick.
Gennings Dunker (OL, Iowa). I fucking love this guy. He's that lunchpail guard/tackle/even, maybe center who might not win any All-Pros or get Pro Bowl nominations, but he'll keep your quarterback upright for a very long time, he'll pave holes for your running back, he'll be technically sound, and while he's not an outstanding athlete by any means, he can play in any scheme and he'll be playing for the next ten years. He can play anywhere on the line, and might even be able to play center (he's done snaps there, he's said he's willing, and while he hasn't been tested, Cooper Beebe of the Cowboys - another draft crush of mine - didn't either, and now he's one of the better centers in the league). Imagine that glorious mullet on our team for the next ten years.
Elijah Sarratt (WR, Indiana). I could go with Concepcion, Cooper Jr., Brazzell II, Tyson, Lemon, Bell, Fields, Bernard, Fields, Tate, Boston, Lane, Hurst, Lance, Rivers, or Williams (and I'd be happy with any one of them), but I'm going with a sleeper who, while he may not be the most physically gifted, just did nothing for Indiana but make plays. He's being overshadowed by his fellow receiver in Cooper, but if Sarratt was healthy all year (he played hurt a lot of games), I guarantee he'd be getting first round grades as well. Touchdown machine (fifteen touchdowns. Fifteen! On sixty-five receptions. He's a redzone demon, and was Mendoza's favorite target there, even more than Cooper who paced all of the potential first rounders with thirteen of his own.), technical route runner, sneaky good athleticism. He seriously gives me vibes of Cooper Kupp. If we drafted him with our third and Ponds with a late first, I'd be over the moon - and I'm not even a Hoosiers fan.
Red Murdock (ILB, Buffalo). Man, I wrestled with choosing Murdock or Keyshawn James-Newby (an absolutely outstanding and underrated sleeper edge rusher from New Mexico who deserves more than just a mere mention, but since I could only pick four...)...but the badass known as Red Murdock gets my vote for his insane production and his obvious fit on our special teams to make them actually special and maybe even taking Speights' place. Why? For one, he set the NCAA record for career forced fumbles with seventeen. Seventeen forced fumbles in his career. I don't care who you're playing; that is just insane production. To top that off, he recorded 39.5 tackles for a loss in those three years he played. He is a sure tackler; if he has you wrapped up, you aren't getting out. He will fill gaps, take on or slip around blockers, and be a physical force who punishes running backs and makes them wish the game was over. Yes, he'll struggle with coverage; that's not his strength. But on special teams? He could be that ace on teams along with Dolac and possibly Stuard, and - again, possibly take Speights' place as a starter (as Speights is a RFA at the end of the 2027 season, and there's no guarantee our cap will accommodate him with Nacua, Turner, and at least one or two of our four UFA linemen getting contracts). Murdock could pair with his former teammate in Dolac as the starting ILBs one day. I could see it, and I'd gladly spend the Ravens' seventh to make it a reality.
