Draft Judgements: Ravens in right place yet again

NEW YORK -- Call it luck. Call it divine providence. But somehow, some way, the Baltimore Ravens keep finding players who shouldn't be there when they step up to draft.

This year it was Oklahoma wide receiver Mark Clayton. Two years ago, it was defensive end Terrell Suggs. The year before that, it was safety Ed Reed. In 2001, it was tight end Todd Heap.

Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome doesn't hesitate to draft Mark Clayton. (AP)

The Ravens locked on Clayton early but didn't believe he would be there with the 22nd pick. Well, he was, somehow surviving 11 places after Detroit made Mike Williams the third wide receiver selected.

Clayton lasted because some clubs considered him too small at 5-feet-10, and maybe they're right. But the Ravens have another 5-10 receiver in their lineup, Derrick Mason, who caught 191 passes the past two years for the Titans.

The Ravens chose productivity over size when they signed Mason as a free agent, and they did the same thing with Clayton.

"I like productive receivers," said coach Brian Billick.

He should. Outside of Heap, he hasn't had one. Now he does. He also has a new offensive coordinator in Jim Fassel. So maybe Billick has a passing offense that isn't buried at 31st in league standings, too.

All I know is that the Ravens missed the playoffs last year because they didn't have enough offense in 15 games and not enough defense in one -- a 27-26 loss to Cincinnati. Well, they're better on both sides of the ball now and have narrowed the gap with Pittsburgh in the AFC North.

To get there, they spent millions to acquire Mason and cornerback Samari Rolle. Then they stepped up to choose Clayton and defensive end Dan Cody, a potential second-round steal some persons ticketed for the middle of the first round.

There we go again. The Ravens found someone they didn't expect, and don't ask me how or why. In Baltimore, it's an annual rite of spring.

Me-pinions, or what we learned this weekend

1. Now that quarterback Alex Smith is the first pick of the NFL Draft, and Andrew Bogut looks like a slam dunk as the first pick of the NBA Draft, we could have two No. 1 choices from the same school. But Utah?

2. The next time I do a mock draft, I'm putting the best Big Ten defensive player on the board with the Indianapolis Colts. The team's selection of cornerback Marlin Jackson marked the seventh time in the past nine years the club spent its first-round pick on a Big Ten player.