The NFL Draft begins tonight, and it is one of the toughest to predict in recent memory.

The Tennessee Titans are expected to take Miami quarterback Cam Ward with the top choice. How far will Shedeur Sanders fall? How many total quarterbacks go in the first round? The fun part of mock draft season is the hype leading up to the first night of the draft.

Every team still holds its own first-round pick for the first time since the merger. That phenomenon is sure to change tonight, but this mock draft will not include any. The Baltimore Ravens have the No. 27 pick in the draft. The Ravens have held the 27th pick twice in previous years, selecting Jimmy Smith in 2011 and Rashod Bateman in 2021.

Here is my final mock draft with some analysis to follow.

The Ravens add one of my favorite pass-rushing prospects in this year’s draft with the selection of Donovan Ezeiruaku. Baltimore needs to add some juice to their pass rush with Kyle Van Noy, Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo all on the final year of their contracts. Ezeiruaku can be a part of the rotation in his rookie season before taking on a full-time role next year.

The Steelers are in desperate need of a quarterback, so why not get one drawing comparisons to Lamar Jackson? Some might call this a reach. The same was said about the Ravens QB when he was drafted. It would be the ultimate boom-or-bust pick.

The Bucs are in the perfect spot in this draft. They need major help on defense and high-quality players keep falling to them in every mock draft I see. Barron would be a steal at No. 19 for Todd Bowles.

The Michigan connection obviously plays a factor, but the Chargers got no production out of the tight end position last season. Justin Herbert gets another receiving threat, and Loveland’s knowledge of the system makes him an instant starter.