Draft News

The Ravens have continued to fortify their trenches.

Baltimore selected Nebraska offensive tackle Alex Lewis in the fourth round with pick No. 130.

The 6-foot-6, 315-pound Lewis is a versatile athlete who has played multiple positions along the offensive front.

"We bring him in here and he competes for a tackle and guard spot," Ravens Director of College Scouting Joe Hortiz said. "He's a versatile player. He's played both sides of the line of scrimmage. He's a big, athletic, long, tough, physical guy."

He began his career at Colorado where he started games at left tackle, left guard and blocking tight end. He then transferred to Nebraska where he settled into his role as a blindside protector. Lewis started 26 games at left tackle over the last two years, and he was a second-team All Big-10 selection as a senior.

Lewis is the second offensive lineman the Ravens have taken in this year's draft, as they also took Notre Dame left tackle Ronnie Stanley with the No. 6 overall pick. Lewis gives Baltimore more competition along the offensive front, and he could compete for the open job at left guard.

Lewis has an NFL bloodline, as his father spent seven years in the league with the Raiders, Cardinals and Patriots.

In drafting Lewis, the Ravens did their homework digging into his past. Lewis was arrested in 2013 and charged with assault, and eventually received 45 days in jail for the incident.

The Ravens talked with multiple people about the incident and also brought Lewis to Baltimore to ask him first-hand about it.

"We spent the whole day with him," Assistant General Manager Eric DeCosta said. "We were really able to spend a lot of time talking about who he is, who he wants to be, the player that he is, the maturity, all of those types of things. Really, at that time he passed all of the tests."