The Baltimore Ravens selected wide receiver Elijah Sarratt with the 115th pick in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft on Saturday.
Sarratt played for the national-champion Indiana Hoosiers last season, totaling 65 receptions and 830 receiving yards and leading the FBS with 15 receiving touchdowns.
Sarratt, 22, was one of the players head coach Curt Cignetti brought with him from James Madison to Indiana when he was hired ahead of the 2024 season. Despite playing just two seasons in Bloomington, Sarratt ranks third in program history with 23 touchdown catches. He enters the NFL with 3 1/2 years of starting experience.
‘The Beast’ breakdown
Sarratt ranked No. 69 on Dane Brugler’s top 300 big board. Here’s what Brugler had to say about him in his annual draft guide:
“A former hooper, Sarratt is a coordinated athlete who knows how to use his size and adjust to the football (4.5 percent drop rate in 2025), which made him a back-shoulder machine for the Hoosiers. Though he plays well through contact, he can get held up by press at times and will face more defenders who can match his physicality in the NFL. No one would describe his speed as electric, but he can find another gear when needed and combined for 32 catches of 20-plus yards the last two seasons (same number as Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith).
“Sarratt will be saddled with the ‘possession receiver’ label, but he is an underrated athlete and plays with the urgency and toughness to own the catch point — which translates to any level of football. He has the tools to develop into an NFL starter, either on the outside or as a ‘big slot.’”
Scott Dochterman on the pick
Baltimore immediately improves its receiving corps. Sarratt was one of the nation’s biggest playmakers and came up with big catches in seemingly every game for the last two years. Sarratt (6-foot-2 1/2, 210 pounds) led the nation in touchdown catches with 15 and was as instrumental to Indiana’s CFP title as any player sans Fernando Mendoza. Sarratt caught 65 passes for 830 yards last season and made numerous catches with defenders draped over him. Over the last two seasons, he had 32 catches of 20-plus yards.
How he fits
Sarratt played mostly out wide at Indiana, but he has the potential to play in the slot, and that gives new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle options when the team’s in 11 personnel. Sarratt also has the potential to develop into a red-zone and third-down weapon for quarterback Lamar Jackson. Sarratt is 6-foot-2 1/2 and 207 pounds. He plays to his size and is adept at making back-shoulder catchers and going up and getting the ball. Sarratt had 44 touchdowns in four college seasons, and 76 percent of his catches went for either touchdowns or first downs.
Depth-chart impact
Sarratt figures to compete for the No. 3 wide receiver role with third-round pick Ja’Kobi Lane and third-year pro Devontez Walker. His addition makes adding a veteran pass catcher less of a priority. Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman head the Ravens’ receiver group, and they have four young and unproven options behind them with Sarratt, Lane, Walker and 2025 sixth-round pick LaJohntay Wester.
They also could have picked …
Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta seemed to get annoyed late Friday night when he was asked about the team’s plan at center after losing Tyler Linderbaum in free agency. He said the Ravens do have three center options on the roster, and they also liked a few of the Day 3 prospects. They apparently didn’t like Kansas State center Sam Hecht or Auburn center Connor Lew enough to take them in the fourth round. They also eschewed a chance to select North Carolina State tight end Justin Joly.
Fast evaluation
This was surprising. Not that the Ravens selected Sarratt, a big, productive receiver. What’s surprising is they selected a second big receiver before a tight end, a potential starting center or an interior defensive lineman. As always, DeCosta is showing that he won’t reach for need.