The Ravens weren’t done making trades prior to Wednesday’s start to the new league year as former first-round tight end Hayden Hurst will be sent to Atlanta for a second-round pick.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, general manager Eric DeCosta will trade Hurst and a 2020 fourth-round pick to the Falcons in exchange for a second-round selection and a fifth-round choice in next month’s draft. The Ravens will reportedly receive the 55th overall pick, the second of Atlanta’s two picks in the second round.
The news of the pending deal comes months after the first rumors and speculation began about Hurst’s future as the 2018 first-round pick from South California was outplayed over the last two seasons by Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews, a third-round selection in that same draft. Hurst has hinted at wanting a bigger role in the Ravens offense after catching nearly 77 percent of his targets — tops among Baltimore’s non-running backs — and finishing third on the team with 349 receiving yards. Atlanta will now be hoping for big-time production from Hurst while two-time Pro Bowl tight end Austin Hooper was nearing a lucrative free-agent deal with Cleveland on Monday.
In a vacuum, the Ravens are receiving perfectly fine value for a tight end halfway through his rookie contract and entering his age-27 season, but Hurst arguably provided more value than his numbers indicated after playing just over 500 snaps last season and serving as an insurance policy for Andrews. With Hurst graded as the NFL’s 14th-best tight end by Pro Football Focus last season, the Ravens will now need to add another option behind Andrews and top blocker Nick Boyle in an offense anchored by its tight ends. After catching just 13 passes for 163 yards and a touchdown while dealing with a foot injury as a rookie, Hurst snagged 30 passes and two touchdowns while playing in every game last season.
It’s also worth noting the Ravens haven’t had much success with second-round picks in recent years, but DeCosta could use the choice as ammunition for other moves. It’s easy to get caught up thinking about the best outcome with an unknown draft pick, of course, but the 6-foot-4, 260-pound Hurst still served an important role, even if not living up to his draft billing. The 25th overall pick in 2018, Hurst now becomes one of the rare first-round picks in team history not to finish his rookie deal in Baltimore.
Following the pending acquisition of Pro Bowl defensive end Calais Campbell and the Hurst trade, the Ravens are now slotted to have nine picks in next month’s draft: a first, two second-rounders, two third-round selections, two fourths, a fifth, and a seventh-round choice.
