AFC North news, Draft talk, and some cake

March 12, 2010 11:54 AM by Dan Kolko View Comments

I wanted to watch Haloti Ngata's guest appearance on the Food Network show "Ace of Cakes" last night, I really did.

But this time of year, you can't compete with Big East and ACC Tournament basketball.

I do plan on catching Ngata's TV baking debut sometime soon, however, and for anyone else who missed the show last night, TVGuide.com has it re-airing on Tuesday at 8 p.m.

Part of the show was filmed at Ravens Headquarters a few months ago, as Ngata and Chef Duff brought their giant Raven-shaped cake into the team cafeteria for players and team staffers to share. It looked awesome, and trust me when I tell you, it tasted awesome as well.

That's enough cake talk. Back to football.

While the Browns continue to try to make some sense out of their quarterback situation, they added a nice offensive piece early today by signing tight end Benjamin Watson.

Watson had been considered a nice pass catching option for the Ravens as a compliment to Todd Heap, but GM Ozzie Newsome apparently didn't show much interest, leaving the Browns and Seahawks as the two teams most involved in the bidding.

With L.J. Smith almost certainly leaving town and Quinn Sypniewski already out the door, the Ravens will still need to add a tight end at some point. Alge Crumpler and Randy McMichael are two veteran free agents to look out for, although the Ravens might look to the draft to add some depth at the position as well.

Speaking of the draft, SI.com's Ross Tucker tweeted yesterday that Georgia Tech wide receiver Demaryius Thomas says he scored a 7 out of 7 in an interview with the Ravens and that the team really likes him. Thomas also said that he's setting up a visit with the Ravens.

Thomas is an interesting guy to watch; he broke his left foot a month ago while training for the Combine, but was considered a first-round pick prior to the injury. Thomas has great size (6-foot-3, 230) and can run as well.

That said, I have to wonder how much the Ravens are actually targeting the Georgia Tech wideout. It seems to me that if a team is intent on drafting someone, they aren't going to start spreading word that they "really like" the player and tip off the rest of the league. But we'll see.

One final note, the Ravens reportedly sent director of college scouting Joe Hortiz and defensive backs coach Chuck Pagano to Rutgers' pro day yesterday.

Pagano ran the defensive back drills, allowing him to spend time with cornerback Devin McCourty, who is considered a fringe first-round pick. Word is McCourty had a good showing yesterday; add that to his solid performance at the Combine (where he ran a 4.48 40), he's a guy to watch if the Ravens opt to stick with the 25th overall pick.

Ray Rice, a Rutgers alum, was on hand for the workout, and spent some time lobbying for his fellow Scarlet Knight.

"I need Devin on the Ravens," Rice told reporters. "I'm here trying to draw attention to him."