Safety · Baltimore Ravens

Malaki Starks

No. 24 · 2nd season

Malaki Starks already knows what he wants to fix

There's a version of the rookie year story where the player just talks about how much they learned. Malaki Starks isn't telling that one.

Starks came into the Baltimore Ravens as a first-round pick — the kind of arrival that comes with real expectations from day one. He didn't ease in. He took on a leading role in the defensive backfield as a safety during his first season in the league, which is not a given, and not a small thing.

But when he talks about that year now, what stands out is what he's not satisfied with. He's said plainly that he didn't perform the way he wanted to, and that he expects more from himself going forward.

There's something worth paying attention to in that. A first-round pick who starts as a rookie and still comes out the other side frustrated with himself — that's not a player who's comfortable. That's a player who has a standard.

The Ravens clearly believe in what he can be. Whether year two is when it clicks — that's the watch.

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