Regrading the 2022 NFL Draft

 

Tuesday, May 20, 2025   4. Regrading the 2022 NFL Draft: Patriots and Commanders both get failing grades It's been nearly two weeks since I've heard from Pete Prisco, and although I assumed that was because he was on vacation, it turns out that's not the case. Prisco has gone dark for the past two weeks because he's been busy regrading the 2022 NFL Draft.  This is actually a fascinating exercise, mainly for two reasons: For one, Prisco now has three years worth of film from each player, so he can determine whether a team's draft class actually ended up being good or bad. Also, we get to see how good (or bad) Prisco's original grade was for each team when he handed it out on the night of the draft in 2022.  With that in mind, let's take a look at the three teams with the highest grades and the two teams with the lowest grades.  Highest regrades Ravens new grade: A+. "They had 11 picks and five of those are starters, including their first two picks. They took safety Kyle Hamilton in the first, and he's proven to be a heck of a player. Starting center Tyler Linderbaum came with their second first-round pick." Prisco's 2022 grade: A+ Chiefs new grade: A+.  "They had 10 picks in this draft and all but one are still with the team heading into 2025, with five definite starters. They had two first-round picks, thanks to the Tyreek Hill trade with Miami, and landed corner Trent McDuffie with one of them and took edge George Karlaftis with the other. McDuffie is a top corner in the league, while Karlaftis is a good edge player." Prisco's 2022 grade: A Jets new grade: A+.  "They had seven picks and all seven are still on the roster, with four as starters. Three of those starters came in the first round. They are corner Sauce Gardner, receiver Garrett Wilson and edge Jermaine Johnson II. Running back Breece Hall was taken in the second. They had a heck of a draft." Prisco's 2022 grade: A There were only five teams that earned an "A+" in Prisco's regrading system and these were three of them.  Lowest regrades Patriots new grade: F. "They had 10 picks in the draft and two are still with the team. That's awful. First-round guard Cole Strange is one of those, although he has missed a lot of time with injuries and will need to win a job at center or left guard in camp. ... They whiffed on a bunch of other players, which is why this team is in rebuild mode right now." Prisco's 2022 grade: C- Commanders new grade: F.  "They had eight picks in the draft, and just one -- third-round running back Brian Robinson Jr. -- is currently listed as a starter. Just four are on the roster. They missed on first-round receiver Jahan Dotson -- traded to the Eagles -- and second-round defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis, who is now with the Jets. They got very little from this draft." Prisco's 2022 grade: B+

PFF honors Ravens legends in a way that perfectly captures their dominance

 

Baltimore is in a class of their own.

By Matt Sidney | May 19, 2025

The Baltimore Ravens have had tons of talented players rock the purple and black in the franchise's 30 seasons as a member of the National Football League. From Hall of Famers and All-Pros to breakout stars and draft-day gems, this is a team that’s built its identity on finding value and turning talent into culture.

Pro Football Focus' Jonathon Macri reinforced that point with its latest All-2000s roster, a list highlighting the best players of the past 25 seasons. The roster wasn’t assembled based on name recognition—although the names are pretty recognizable. It leaned on PFF’s game-by-game grading system, identifying the highest-performing players since 2000.

And what do you know? The Ravens showed up big time, placing five players on or around the list—more than every other team not named the New England Patriots, and further proof that Baltimore knows how to scout, develop, and sustain greatness as well as anyone.

Five Ravens players make PFF's All-2000s team

Derrick Henry | Running Back

It only took one season in Baltimore for Derrick Henry to vault to the top of PFF’s running back rankings. His 2024 campaign was the best-graded of his career, and per Macri, it gave him the highest career PFF grade (96.8) of any RB in history. Henry averaged a ridiculous 6.0 yards per carry and led the league in rushing grade (93.5), powering an offense that scored a franchise-record 62 touchdowns. Henry parlayed his success into a two-year, $30 million deal this offseason.

Marshal Yanda | Right Guard

Across 13 seasons in Baltimore, Yanda defined consistency and dominance. His 93.6 career PFF grade makes him the only guard to rank top-five in overall, run-blocking, and pass-blocking grades. He allowed one sack over his best pass-blocking season (2016) and was never below a 72.2 grade for a single year. Simply put: a wall.

Ray Lewis | Linebacker

Though Lewis’ career began before PFF’s full grading system, his dominance still shows up in the data. His 91.4 overall grade in 2009 was the best among linebackers that season and remains tied for the third-highest of all time at the position. Lewis remains the Ravens’ emotional cornerstone. Lewis is a Hall of Famer and widely regarded as the best linebacker in the modern era.

Ed Reed | Safety

Like Lewis, Ed Reed only played part of his career under PFF’s lens, but what they captured was special. His 93.4 coverage grade in 2009 was the third-best ever for a safety, and his 19.3% forced incompletion rate ranks second among all safeties graded since 2006. You didn’t throw his way unless you liked to live on the edge. To no one's surprise, Reed is in the HoF with Lewis, a fitting ending for a duo that terrorized opposing offenses for years.

Eric Weddle | Saftey (honorable mention)

While he made the list as an honorable mention, Weddle was deservedly included in the exercise. He may not have played his whole career in Baltimore, but his three-season stint from 2016–2018 was incredibly productive. He earned three Pro Bowl nods and anchored a top-tier defense with smarts, consistency, and elite communication. He remains one of the most respected veterans the Ravens ever signed.

Katie Smith returns home to Ohio State, helps Buckeyes enjoy the process

 

Michael Arace

Columbus Dispatch

March 22, 2025

Ohio State, a No. 4 seed in the NCAA women's basketball tournament, will face No. 5 Tennessee in a second-round game at 8 p.m. Sunday at Value City Arena. No doubt, fans of Ohio State and Tennessee sports are thinking about a recent meeting between these institutions of higher learning: On Dec. 21, the Buckeyes eviscerated the Volunteers 42-17 in the first round of the College Football Playoff; the Buckeyes went on to win the national championship.

Katie Smith, who joined Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff's staff in November, can recall another meeting, on a similarly big stage, between the Buckeyes and Volunteers: On March 18, 1996, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Tennessee rolled Ohio State 97-65; the Lady Vols went on to win the national championship.

That game from another era, played on Tennessee's home court in Knoxville, was the last of Smith's college playing career. Saturday, after a presumably spirited workout at Value City Arena, she took a moment to reflect. She conjured 1996, when she scored 29 points against Tennessee, to no avail. She conjured 1993, the end of her freshman season, when she led the Buckeyes to the Final Four. She had 28 points in the championship game, to no avail – Sheryl Swoopes scored 47 to lead Texas Tech to an 84-82 victory. It was the closest OSU ever got to an NCAA women's basketball title.

Smith and Swoopes and the late Pat Summitt, who coached Tennessee to eight national titles, are all enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame.

Ultimate success is the product of many things, including caprice.

"That '93 team was such a great team," Smith said. "As I went on to play professionally, I came to realize that those opportunities don't come around very often."

Is that a strange thing to say, coming from a woman who won two ABL titles (with the Columbus Quest), two WNBA titles and three Olympic gold medals as a player? No, it's not.

"It's also on the coaching side," she said. "When you have a special team and you have a talented team, you don't take it for granted – because it's super, super hard to get back to a championship, let alone win it. We try to pass this along to our players. We pick our spots. Jacy (Sheldon), her run to the Elite Eight, that is tough to do. Winning is hard. That's why I have so much respect for UConn, and what Tennessee has done. Teams that win all the time, man, that's not easy."

Sheldon, whose regular job involves playing the point for the WNBA's Connecticut Sun, came aboard McGuff's staff with Smith in November. Sheldon played on an Ohio State women's team that advanced to the Elite Eight in 2023, when the Buckeyes upset UConn in the Sweet Sixteen before bowing to Virginia Tech.

Ohio State has made it as far as the Elite Eight just four times – in 1985, under Tara VanDerveer; in 1986 and 1993, under Nancy Darsh; and two years ago. McGuff, in his 12th season, has gotten the Buckeyes into the tournament seven times. He has had some terrific players and excellent teams. His Buckeyes have gone to three Sweet 16s and, as mentioned, one Elite Eight. But scanning a ticket to the Final Four, man, that's hard.

Last year, the Buckeyes had a No. 2 seed and visions of a deep run. They were upset on their home court by No. 7 Duke in the second round.

Smith said her fondest basketball memory dates back to her senior year of high school, when she and Logan made it to the 1992 OHSAA Division I championship game and lost in front of a packed house at St. John Arena, to Pickerington.

"Those teammates," she said, "they're still all my best buds."

Remember, Smith is one of the most decorated female athletes in America. What is she talking about here? It's about a core philosophy of McGuff's that Smith has always embraced.

"I want these players when they leave Ohio State to say, 'I had a great college experience,'" Smith said. "Whether it's winning or losing, championships or no championships, I still want them to be like, 'I had such a great time, and built relationships, and I played basketball.' That's what we as a staff want, so that's where my heart will always be. Because the game gives you so much.

"A whole life has been given to me because of basketball. It's amazing, because whether it's the pros or here, you want them to have success in their own right, whatever that means, and then make sure they have a good time as they come to work every day."

Last fall, Smith was serving as the top assistant for Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve. They had a special team. They lost a best-of-five, WNBA Finals in Game 5. They lost to the New York Liberty, a team Smith served as head coach until her contract wasn't renewed in 2020. Losing to the Liberty stung personally, but that's not her main takeaway.

"You want the players to have success," she said. "I hope against Tennessee, we have great energy and I hope we do it together. Whatever happens after that, you just want to feel good about whatever you did, that you gave it your all. Yeah, you're going to make mistakes, you're going to do whatever, but you want to feel good about the effort and the togetherness. After that, we'll see what happens."

Smith came home to spend more time with her aging parents and add a touch of normalcy to her life with her wife and two children. She's looking forward to spending an entire summer in Ohio. But there's a bit of work left in the spring.

Ohio State vs. Tennessee tips off at 8 p.m., with a trip to the Sweet Sixteen on the line.

marace@dispatch.com