Ravens Rookie WR Zay Flowers Ready to Be Franchise 'X-Factor'?

The Baltimore Ravens have needed help at wide receiver, and it came in a big way with Odell Beckham Jr. signing this offseason. But Zay Flowers is the real X-Factor.

The Baltimore Ravens more or less let Lamar Jackson hang out to dry with the lack of quality receivers on the roster... until now. Adding Odell Beckham Jr. and Zay Flowers this offseason was key to keeping Lamar.

The Ravens had an NFL-low 1,517 receiving yards from wideouts last season, and that number is about to skyrocket for a healthy Lamar and his new weapons. Though one of those weapons stands above the rest.

In Sports Illustrated's 32 teams in 32 days preview, the outlet said that the entire team's X-factor is the youngest addition to the wideout room with Zay Flowers. 

"The Ravens took another swing at drafting a wide receiver in this year’s first round. They’re counting on Flowers to end the team’s streak of whiffing on wideouts, hoping he can make an immediate impact under Monken, who’s looking to push the ball downfield," SI.com said.

Flowers, a Boston College product, was explosive in college, despite being just 5-foot-10, 180 lbs. In his senior season, he caught 78 passes for 1,077 yards and 12 touchdowns, leading the ACC.

And he'll have to bring that to Baltimore in order to give the team a reliable downfield threat, Sports Illustrated says.

"At this stage in his career, Beckham may no longer be a downfield threat, and, while Rashod Bateman has shown flashes of making plays in the vertical game, the 2021 first-round pick has struggled with staying on the field. Flowers has plenty of pressure to help this passing game improve this season," SI.com concluded.

While all eyes have been on Beckham, maybe the real story is Flowers's capability of exploding onto the scene. Has age slowed Beckham down? Can Bateman stay healthy? Where's Nelson Agholor in all of this? 

Give it a couple of months, and it will all come together.

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