ryan tannehill

In eager anticipation of the 2013 NFL season, Matt Vensel of The Baltimore Sun will take a daily look at one of the 13 opponents on the Baltimore Ravens' schedule. Today's team is the Miami Dolphins.

Nationally, the TV audience for the first night of the NFL draft was down a bit from last year, but Baltimore tuned in in a big way.

Given that the Ravens have made a trade in the first round of the draft five times in the past seven years, most fans are well aware there is a chance the team could trade out of the first round again Thursday night.

Here is what other news outlets are saying about the Baltimore Ravens, the San Francisco 49ers and Super Bowl XLVII today.

Every morning, Monday through Friday, blogger Matt Vensel will hook you up with reading material -- mostly on the Ravens but with some other Baltimore sports stuff, too -- to skim through as you slug down coffee and slack off at the start of your workday.

Every Monday, the day after our favorite day of the week but still hours before that week's slate of games officially wraps up with "Monday Night Football," Matt Vensel will bring you his weekly premature NFL power rankings. Why Monday? Because who wants to wait until Tuesday or Wednesday for power rankings?

Despite growing chorus for Brady Quinn, quarterback Matt Cassel is expected to start vs. Ravens this Sunday

Every Monday, the day after our favorite day of the week but still hours before that week's slate of games officially wraps up with "Monday Night Football," Matt Vensel will bring you his weekly premature NFL power rankings. Why Monday? Because who wants to wait until Tuesday or Wednesday for power rankings?

The only starting quarterback in NFL history to reach the postseason in each of his first four seasons, Flacco gives inspiration to other teams trying to find their franchise quarterback

The Ravens have a handful of needs. Most are not pressing. They have yet to address the offensive line this offseason and will be forced to do it in the draft. Even with the emergence of Torrey Smith a year ago, they are looking for another game-changer at wide receiver. Terrell Suggs lacks a true sidekick. And then there is the annual question about whether this is the year they need to prepare for life after Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. In my fifth and final first-round mock draft, I give you a semi-educated guess at whom the Ravens will select with the 29th pick. Is it still Wisconsin center Peter Konz? Read on to find out.

The 2012 NFL draft is now just over a week away. Free agency has died down, and teams are shifting their focus to the draft to round out their rosters. The Ravens are no exception. Their primary needs are still the same as they were entering the offseason: offensive line help, a pass rusher and a receiver. This mock draft -- the fourth of five I will do before the draft -- doesn't account for trades. And remember, these are called "mock" drafts for a reason. Try not to take them too seriously, folks.

According to former Ravens head coach Brian Billick, Kyle Boller wasn't the best college quarterback prospect he saw in his time in Baltimore. That would be JaMarcus Russell, the No. 1 overall pick in 2007 and one of the biggest draft busts in NFL history.

The 2012 NFL draft is three weeks away, and though most teams have solidified their draft boards barring a few tweaks after prospects visit, the "silly season" of draft rumors is really starting to heat up. Need an example? How about the rumblings that the Colts are undecided about the first pick? But hey, I love mock drafts as much as you do, so allow me to contribute to the silly season with my third mock draft of the offseason.

After a wild first week in free agency that was punctuated with Peyton Manning signing with the Denver Broncos, we have a better idea of what needs teams will address in April's NFL draft. So now seems like a good time for our second mock draft of the offseason. (This mock draft does not account for potential trades.) And remember, these are called "mock" drafts for a reason. Try not to take them too seriously.

Did the Cleveland Browns really lose the No. 2 pick and Robert Griffin IIII to the Washington Redskins?

This year's NFL scouting combine begins Wednesday, unofficially marking the start of draft speculation season. Before the prospects are poked and prodded, though, staff writer Matt Vensel has taken his first crack at predicting the first round of April's NFL draft.

The NFL scouting combine starts Feb. 22. In advance of the NFL's annual meat market in Indianapolis, staff writer Matt Vensel will examine each position and give Ravens fans the 4-1-1. In this post he looks at the quarterbacks, which include Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Brandon Weeden and Kellen Moore.