Malaki Starks' response to a 5am film text says it all about his mental makeup
The only thing better than having an elite talent at the safety position is potentially having two of them. That's the situation the Baltimore Ravens are in. Kyle Hamilton enters year four at football's highest level. He has already established himself as one of the best players at his position, and this past April, he was given his partner in crime.
Former Georgia Bulldogs star Malaki Starks was the 27th player taken during the most recent NFL Draft. His resume at the collegiate level was the stuff of legend: Freshman All-American (2022), College Football Playoff National Champion (2022), 2023 Consensus All-American, 2024 First-team All-American, two-time First-Team All-SEC nod. If all of that translates to the professional level, the Ravens are on to something.
Starks is so talented that one can make the argument that bad coaching would be the only thing to prevent a supernova elevation. He won't have that issue as part of the Ravens. John Harbaugh enters year 18 at the helm. Baltimore is led on defense by Zach Orr, and the secondary is led by a familiar face who recently came home after sitting out of coaching for four seasons.
Chuck Pagano wins Malaki Starks over
The last time we saw Chuck Pagano on an NFL sideline, he was the Chicago Bears' defensive coordinator. The last time Chuck was in Baltimore, he led the Ravens' secondary for three seasons (2008-10) before becoming the defensive coordinator in 2011.
Chuck has already won over his young group. His rookie safety recently spoke with media members and thanked his position coach for a 5 am text message, stating, "That's how I want to be coached."
We shouldn't be surprised. Starks cut his teeth under Kirby Smart and Will Muschamp at UGA. Long story short, he's no stranger to being coached hard.
The rookie is off to a good start by catching the eye of his position coach. Chuck knows what it takes to be great in this league, having coached Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, and Terrell Suggs.
He has certainly seen some talent come through the Ravens locker room, and now he has an opportunity to reach and mold Hamilton, Starks, Nate Wiggins, Marlon Humphrey, and Chidobe Awuzie. This is a special unit. Starks couldn't have landed in a better situation.
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