Ravens Sign First-Round G Vega Ioane
The Ravens have acted quickly in getting first-round guard Vega Ioane under contract. The 14th overall pick has signed his rookie deal, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic reports. Ioane will earn a fully guaranteed $24.23MM over four years. The contract also comes with a fifth-year option.
The 6-foot-4, 325-pound Ioane was a standout at Penn State, where he became a full-time starter at left guard in 2024. Ioane earned second-team All-Big Ten honors that year, and he improved to first-team honors last season. He was also a first-team All-American after putting together a second straight season without allowing a sack or taking a holding penalty. Ioane yielded just four pressures over 614 snaps in his last year with the Nittany Lions.
Considered the best pure guard in this year’s draft class, Ioane ended up as one of a whopping nine offensive linemen to come off the board in the first round. The Ravens could have lost out on Ioane if not for the Rams’ affinity for Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson. Teams hoping to jump the Ravens for Ioane called the Rams about acquiring the 13th overall pick, but general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay stayed put to draft a potential QB of the future.
Ravens GM Eric DeCosta and head coach Jesse Minter landed a plug-and-play starter in Ioane, though it is unclear whether he will line up on the left side in 2026. John Simpson, whom the Ravens signed to a three-year, $30MM contract in free agency, is more “comfortable” on the left than the right, Zrebiec notes. Regardless, Ioane and Simpson are poised to start next season, giving the Ravens two new No. 1s after they used Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele as 17-game starters last year. Vorhees is now ticketed for a bench role, while Faalele signed with the Giants and reunited with former Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.
In addition to signing Ioane, the Ravens have inked fourth-round wide receiver Elijah Sarratt to a deal, Zrebiec relays. Sarratt enjoyed a productive three-year college career between James Madison and Indiana, where he combined for 200 catches and 31 touchdowns in 40 games. Sarratt was an integral part of the Hoosiers’ undefeated, national title-winning team in 2025. Serving as a key weapon for quarterback Fernando Mendoza and a strong complement to fellow receiver Omar Cooper Jr., Sarratt caught 65 passes for 830 yards and an NCAA-leading 15 scores. The Ravens snagged Sarratt at No. 115, 35 picks after they chose USC wideout Ja’kobi Lane at No. 80.
Saints To Target WR, TE In Draft
APRIL 10: Cooper is, to little surprise, among the wideouts who will be hosted by the Saints on a top-30 visit, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. His visit will take place tomorrow and it will include other receiver prospects, another indication of New Orleans’ draft intentions.
APRIL 7: Saints quarterback Tyler Shough impressed as a rookie in 2025 despite a less-than-stellar supporting cast. Hoping to add more pass-catching threats ahead of Shough’s second season, the Saints plan to address wide receiver and tight end in the draft, according to Tony Pauline of Essentially Sports.
New Orleans traded Rashid Shaheed and waived Brandin Cooks last season, leaving the cupboard at receiver almost empty after No. 1 option Chris Olave. Devaughn Vele came on strong toward the end of the year, but he finished with just 25 catches and 393 yards in 13 games. Other than Olave and Vele, no returning Saints wideout even reached 20 catches last season. The team has not added any noteworthy receivers via free agency or trades, leaving the draft as its best avenue to upgrade.
Owners of the eighth overall pick, the Saints have set up visits with a pair of top-tier receiver prospects, Ohio State‘s Carnell Tate and USC‘s Makai Lemon. Either could be a possibility for New Orleans’ first selection. That spot is likely too high for Indiana’s Omar Cooper Jr., though he is a potential first-rounder. The Saints “spent extensive time” with Cooper and fellow Hoosiers wideout Elijah Sarratt after their pro day last week, Pauline relays. Sarratt may still be available in the third round, where the Saints hold the 73rd overall selection.
With 77 catches, 889 yards and three touchdowns during a second straight 17-game season in 2025, tight end Juwan Johnson was easily the Saints’ best aerial weapon behind Olave. The team has also added Noah Fant on a two-year deal in free agency. But Pauline nonetheless floats the possibility of the Saints using their first pick on Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq, who is riding the momentum of an excellent season and a scintillating Combine performance.
After Sadiq ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash, the fastest for a tight end since at least 2003, perhaps the Saints will consider making him a rare top-10 pick at his position. Since the turn of the century, only six tight ends (Kyle Pitts, Kellen Winslow II, Vernon Davis, T.J. Hockenson, Eric Ebron and Colston Loveland) have come off the board in the first 10 choices.
As the Saints’ general manager since 2002, Mickey Loomis has never spent a second-rounder on a tight end, let alone a first. On the other hand, he has shown a willingness to draft a receiver in the first round, having grabbed Olave, Cooks, Robert Meacham and Donte’ Stallworth in his two-plus decades in charge.