Ben Cleveland
No. 66 – Baltimore Ravens
Position:Offensive guard
Personal information
Born: (1998-08-25) August 25, 1998 (age 25)
Toccoa, Georgia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight:370 lb (168 kg)
Career information
High school:Stephens County
College:Georgia (2016–2020)
NFL Draft:2021 / Round: 3 / Pick: 94
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 16, 2023
Games played:35
Games started:5
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Benjamin Keith Cleveland (born August 25, 1998) is an American football offensive guard for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia, and was drafted by the Ravens in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Early years

Cleveland grew up in Toccoa, Georgia, and attended Stephens County High School, where he played baseball and football.[1] He was rated a four star recruit and committed to play college football at Georgia during the summer before his junior season.[2]

College career

Cleveland redshirted his true freshman season.[3] He played in all 15 of Georgia's games as a redshirt freshman and started the final five, including the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship game.[4][5] Cleveland started eight games with six games missed due to an injury in his redshirt sophomore season.[6][7] He played in 13 games with seven starts at right guard as a redshirt junior.[8] Cleveland returned to being a full-time starter at right guard in his final season at Georgia and was named first-team All-Southeastern Conference and a third-team All-American by the Associated Press after starting nine games in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season.[9]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 6+1⁄4 in
(1.99 m) 		343 lb
(156 kg) 		33+3⁄4 in
(0.86 m) 		9+7⁄8 in
(0.25 m)		 5.01 s 1.77 s 2.91 s 4.88 s 28.0 in
(0.71 m)		 8 ft 6 in
(2.59 m)		 30 reps
All values from Pro Day[10][11][12]

Cleveland was selected in the third round with the 94th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens.[13] On July 20, 2021, Cleveland signed his four-year rookie contract worth $4.8 million.[14] He was placed on the active/non-football injury list at the start of training camp on July 21, 2021.[15] On October 12, 2021, Cleveland suffered a knee injury in Week 5 against the Indianapolis Colts and was placed on injured reserve.[16] On November 20, 2021, Cleveland was activated to the active roster from injured reserve.[17]

References

  1. ^ Krider, Dave (May 16, 2014). "Ben Cleveland: 322-pound football recruit also stars in baseball for Stephens County". MaxPreps. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  2. ^ Nabulsi, Radi (July 19, 2014). "UGA nets a couple five-star commitments". 11Alive.com. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  3. ^ "Ben Cleveland develops from a needed redshirt season to first time starter". Athens Banner-Herald. November 18, 2017. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  4. ^ "UGA football's Ben Cleveland talks team-building, academics". The Augusta Chronicle. September 11, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  5. ^ Odum, George (January 6, 2018). "Dogs' 'Big Ben' in pivotal role vs Alabama's defensive line". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  6. ^ "Georgia's Ben Cleveland talks about last season's injury". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. April 16, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  7. ^ Emerson, Seth (April 16, 2019). "Big Ben Remains Big Time: How Ben Cleveland keeps the faith despite a wild career swing due to injury". The Athletic. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  8. ^ "Georgia Bulldogs fortunate to still have Ben Cleveland around". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. September 11, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  9. ^ "Former UGA OL Ben Cleveland on his Pro Day and an NFL interview". Athens Banner-Herald. March 25, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  10. ^ "Ben Cleveland Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  11. ^ "Ben Cleveland, Georgia, OG, 2021 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  12. ^ "Baltimore Ravens select Georgia Bulldogs guard Ben Cleveland with No. 94 pick in 2021 NFL Draft". NFL.com. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  13. ^ Brown, Clifton (May 1, 2021). "Ravens Select Ben Cleveland With 94th Pick". BaltimoreRavens.com.
  14. ^ "Ravens take powerful Georgia guard Ben Cleveland with third-round pick, No. 94 overall". The Baltimore Sun. May 1, 2020. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  15. ^ Shaffer, Jonas (July 21, 2021). "Ravens place G Ben Cleveland, TE Jake Breeland on nonfootball injury list". BaltimoreSun.com. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  16. ^ Brown, Clifton (October 12, 2021). "Ben Cleveland Placed on Injured Reserve". BaltimoreRavens.com.
  17. ^ Brown, Clifton (November 20, 2021). "Ben Cleveland Activated to 53-Man Roster, Pernell McPhee to Injured Reserve". BaltimoreRavens.com.

External links

Baltimore Ravens roster
Baltimore Ravens 2021 NFL Draft selections
Categories