CANTON, OH — The NFL career of former Boise State linebacker Kamalei Correa has started slower than many anticipated. After all, great expectations almost always closely follow being selected with the 52nd overall pick in the NFL Draft.
Back in the spring of 2015, the Baltimore Ravens used their one and only second-round pick on the sack machine out of Boise State. In the two years since submitting that pick, Correa has appeared in 25 games, however, he has only recorded 19 total tackles to go along with one other glaring omission from his stat line: 0 sacks
During the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday night, Correa gave reason to believe that his third year in the NFL will be different than his first two.
Correa had never picked off a pass during an NFL preseason or regular season game prior to Thursday night's preseason matchup with the Chicago Bears.
That all changed at the 3:55 mark of the first quarter.
Correa stepped in front of a pass intended for Bears tight end Dion Simis and returned it deep into Chicago territory. Four plays later the Ravens would kick a field to take a 10-7 advantage on the scoreboard.
The night of "firsts" would not end there though. At the 6:41 mark of the second quarter, Correa sacked Bears quarterback Chase Daniels on 3rd-and-8 to force a punt. Then, on Chicago's very next offensive series, Correa sacked Daniels again on 3rd down, which helped Baltimore cling to their 10-7 lead at the half.
"Correa has had some night," said NBC commentator Al Michaels following Correa's second sack of the evening. "This guy was third on the depth coming into tonight. He's going to be moving up."
Correa would have added yet another sack in the third quarter. He hit Bears third-string quarterback Tyler Bray, causing the 6th year NFL veteran to fumble, and the Ravens would recover.
Baltimore would go on to win the game 17-16, and Correa's stat line looked like that of a lottery pick:
Six tackles (five solo), 3.0 sacks, one interception and one forced fumble
"Boy, what a great game," said Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. "This young man has been killing himself - his work ethic, his attention to detail - he's very determined. To see it pay off like that, the coach loves to see that."
Correa made a name for himself during his sophomore season at Boise State in 2014, the same year the program claimed their third Fiesta Bowl Championship. Correa led the Mountain West with 12.0 sacks, a total that still ranks fifth most in a single-season in school history.
Correa and the Ravens return to preseason action on Thursday, Aug. 9, when they host the Los Angeles Rams.
