The Baltimore Ravens stood pat after many mocks predicted they could move up to select one of the top offensive linemen in the draft. Instead of having to give up draft picks to do so, they took Penn State guard Olaivavega Ioane.

Ioane is the consensus top guard out of college, and was believed to be the top lineman. His spot continued to rise, with predictions placing him in the top 10. 

Instead, he fell to the Ravens right at No. 14 overall. It was a huge pick for Baltimore. 

Grade: A+

The draft board could not have gone better for the Ravens. Though they had the chance to upgrade their pass rush with Miami Hurricanes edge Rueben Bain Jr., general manager Eric DeCosta chose instead to invest in protecting Lamar Jackson.

The 2025 season was enough for the Ravens to bring in former rugby health and performance Dr. Nic Gill to help mitigate injuries, and taking Ioane was a similar path.

Ioane has the right size and strength that not only makes him one of best interior linemen in this draft class, but he has an innate ability to move defenders in a major way when it comes to run game protecting.

Considering the Ravens are a run-heavy team with Derrick Henry in the backfield and Jackson's ability as a dual-threat passer, landing a lineman like Ioane makes perfect sense.

Ioane only committed one penalty in 2025, and did not allow any sacks. That is important when thinking of the Ravens brand of football. The types of players that are disciplined and violent are the types that Baltimore finds, and they have found that in the Penn State prospect.

Ioane could potentially be taking the right guard position, which was previously inhabited by Daniel Faalele. Faalele joined the New York Giants in the offseason.

Andrew Vorhees also struggled mightily in 2025, leaving the left guard position up for grabs as well. Ioane may be up for either spot, or the Ravens could also consider converting him to a center.

Either way, this was a best-case scenario pick for the Ravens.