At some point, there needs to be some sort of study done on Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta. DeCosta and the Ravens are routinely considered "winners" of the offseason despite the fact that they rarely break the bank for NFL Free Agents and they rarely (if ever) are picking high in the NFL Draft.
What the Ravens do better than pretty much anyone else is take advantage of the best values on the market and find players who fit their culture quickly, especially compared to other teams.
And that extends beyond NFL Draft or NFL Free Agent steals. The Ravens find diamonds in the rough _after_ the NFL Draft as well and they might have found _the_ best undrafted free agent in 2025.
Ravens signing Jay Higgins is an absolute theivery among UDFA moves
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[All 32 NFL teams have reasons to be excited](https://nflspinzone.com/every-nfl-teams-most-underrated-breakout-player-non-rookie-in-2025-01jvshqc4bc3) about their incoming rookie classes and at least a couple of undrafted free agents. The Ravens, however, have more reason to be excited than most, because they managed to get Iowa Hawkeyes All-American linebacker Jay Higgins as an undrafted free agent.
Again, Eric DeCosta needs to be studied.
Not only did the Ravens find a diamond in the rough after the NFL Draft by bringing in Jay Higgins, but they might have legitimately found a future starter. Higgins is entering a position battle in Baltimore at the off-ball linebacker position where they should be relatively open for business next to Roquan Smith.
Trenton Simpson wasn't great last year and the Ravens don't have anybody that was brought in who is definitively going to be taking that spot this season. Higgins not only provides the Ravens some value in terms of the risk/reward of simply adding him to the team, but you might get yourself more than you bargained for in a hurry.
Higgins was a football magnet for the Hawkeyes and it's not like productivity _found him_. He found ways to fly to the football consistently, and with so much talent around him in Baltimore, there's every reason to expect he will thrive at the next level.