While the Baltimore Ravens spent most of the 2024 NFL Draft addressing some of their biggest areas of need, offensive guard was one area they did not use a top pick on. This shows the confidence they have in players like Andrew Vorhees to replace 2023 starters John Simpson and Kevin Zeitler.
Simpson signed a two-year contract with the New York Jets to become their new left guard, while Zeitler will chase another championship after signing with the Detroit Lions. As of now, it seems like John Harbaugh will install Vorhees, a 2023 seventh-round pick, at left guard and Ben Cleveland at right guard.
The Ravens are putting a ton of pressure on Vorhees to play better than his draft position suggests. Vorhees participated in rookie minicamp, and head coach John Harbaugh seems to be very impressed with his performance so far.
Harbaugh said that Vorhees looked “like you’d expect him to look” while making mention of his strength and raw power. Vorhees did record a preposterous 38 bench press reps of 225 pounds at the NFL Combine despite his injury, which could make him a high-end guard in the pros.
John Harbaugh said guard Andrew Vorhees “looked like you’d expect him to look.”
Vorhees, a 7th-round pick a year ago, was on the practice field for first time after spending all last season on the Non-Football injury list. He is in the mix for one of the starting guard spots. pic.twitter.com/FuW6Jxv8ty
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) May 4, 2024
Ravens very impressed with projected starting LG Andrew Vorhees
After a very long career at USC that saw him start at multiple positions, Vorhees was regarded as a Day 2 prospect. Even after his injury, Arif Hasan’s consensus Big Board had him slotted at No. 124 overall. Getting a talent like that in the seventh round is extremely uncommon value.
Vorhees was named a first-team All-American during his final season with the Trojans while winning the Morris Trophy for being the top offensive lineman in the Pac-12. Past winners of that trophy in the last few decades include Tyron Smith, Alex Mack, and Ravens legend Jonathan Ogden. In terms of pedigree, Vorhees is solid gold.
The risks come when one realizes that Harbaugh is going into a season with Jackson and Henry at the tip of the spear despite starting a 25-year-old semi-rookie with no experience in the pros. A veteran guard like Dalton Risner might be more appealing to a smaller subset of fans.
Harbaugh and the Ravens seem determined to go forward with Vorhees as the starting left guard. If John Simpson can go from a fourth-round pick and practice squad castoff to a somewhat reliable starter for a contending team, why can’t a superior prospect like Vorhees?