The Baltimore Ravens draft better than your favorite team does. And it's not even close.

In the era of free agency, the importance of drafting well cannot be overstated. Every year, each of the NFL's 32 general managers must reshuffle the decks in order to replace players who either left for greener pastures (and fatter wallets) elsewhere, are waived because they can no longer perform to their previous abilities or who were jettisoned as cap casualties. And it's highly unlikely (and unadvisable) that they will be able to fill all of their team's needs in free agency. Enter... the NFL Draft.

Theoretically, the draft is supposed to help the worst teams better by rewarding them with higher picks in each of the seven rounds. In recent years however, teams such as the NY Jets and San Francisco 49ers haven't used their bounty of high draft picks to their advantage, while the better teams have used the draft to reload for yet another postseason run.

And then you have the Baltimore Ravens. Ozzie Newsome, Brian Billick and Co. are in the midst of what may be an unprecedented string of quality first-round picks. One could argue that the Ravens haven't made a poor decision in the first round in the history of the franchise. Granted... the Ravens have only been existence for a decade, but 10 years of excellence in a time where player personnel directors throughout the league over-analyze Wonderlic results and vertical leaps is something to admire.

In case you were wondering, here is the list of draft picks since Art Modell packed up the "team formerly known as the Cleveland Browns" and headed east following the 1995 season (from oldest to most recent): Jonathan Ogden, Ray Lewis, Peter Boulware, Duane Starks, Chris McAlister, Travis Taylor, Jamal Lewis, Todd Heap, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Mark Clayton. Some of these men are Pro Bowlers, some (Ogden, R. Lewis) are future Hall of Famers, but all are still productive players in the National Football League. And when the worst first-round pick you make in a decade winds up being your starting quarterback for the past three years (Boller), you must be doing something right.

The Ravens' success isn't limited to the first round - during the same time period, the front office unearthed later round gems in Jermaine Lewis, Jamie Sharper, Brandon Stokley, Ed Hartwell and Gary Baxter. Many of these players, along with the first-round selections, played a key role in the Super Bowl XXXV win over the Giants.

Even the New England Patriots, with their three Super Bowl titles in the past five seasons, have made missteps in the first round in recent years (Andy Katzenmoyer, anyone?). Keep in mind, however, that having a successful draft is more than just getting your first pick of the two-day draft process right. But while a successful first-round pick doesn't necessarily make your draft, it can take a team years to recover (financially and otherwise) from a bad pick. In life, there are two things that happen every April without fail. One is that millions of Americans will run to the post office on April 15th and file their income taxes. The second is that the Baltimore Ravens will draft a future star with their first-round pick in the NFL Draft. Not convinced? Write down the name of the player they draft on Saturday and check back with me in about three years...