At Penn State’s pro day, 6-foot-4, 320-pound guard Vega Ioane drove Baltimore Ravens offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford several yards while running blocking drills, nearly putting him on his back. “Alright, I’m going to use that to my advantage,” Ioane recalled saying to himself during the session, a moment that reinforced his reputation as a dominant run blocker.
Baltimore used the No. 14 overall pick on Ioane, making him only the second guard the franchise has taken in the first round. The only prior first-round guard selected by the Ravens was Ben Grubbs, the 29th overall pick in 2007. General manager Eric DeCosta told the team’s podcast, “Vega was my favorite player in the entire draft,” and called Ioane a fit “straight from central casting for what you want your guards to look like.”
The Ravens view Ioane’s toughness and grit as a potential foundation for a reworked offensive line. The unit allowed quarterback Lamar Jackson to be pressured on 37.1% of his dropbacks last season, the worst rate of Jackson’s eight-year career.
Ioane immediately took the starting right guard spot on the first day of spring practices. The team framed him as a significant upgrade over Daniel Faalele, whose run block win rate (70.8%) ranked 32nd among guards over the last two seasons and whose pass block win rate (93%) was 25th among guards.
Coaches have praised Ioane’s quickness off the ball and his professionalism in non-contact workouts. “He’s in there, and he’s a rookie, but he feels like a veteran from his communication or from his relationship with the guys around him,” Ravens offensive coordinator Declan Doyle said. Teammate Roquan Smith added, “I can tell physicality is his thing. I’m very excited to see him in camp when the pads get to popping a little bit more.”
One adjustment for Ioane will be the move from the left side, where he played 1,822 snaps in college, to the right, where he played 296 snaps. Baltimore signed John Simpson from the New York Jets to play left guard while moving Ioane to the right.
