ExtremeRavens Posted July 20 Posted July 20 The Ravens’ summer vacation is almost over. This year, Baltimore rookies reported for their first day of training camp July 13, the earliest of any team in the NFL. Lamar Jackson and the team’s three other quarterbacks, along with any injured veterans, reported Monday. The rest of the roster will report Saturday, with only the Houston Texans and Chicago Bears opening camp earlier. While there’s nothing glamorous about the hot summer days in Owings Mills, they are the foundation for the season ahead and will provide, at the very least, glimpses of the possibilities to come. Over the coming weeks, training camp will lend insight on, among other things, how new running back Derrick Henry will fit into the fold, what new defensive coordinator Zach Orr’s defense will look like in the wake of Mike Macdonald’s departure to the Seattle Seahawks and who will emerge to fill the three open starting spots on the offensive line. As players get back to work, here’s a look at what to watch for as training camp kicks off. What will the second year of Todd Monken’s scheme look like for Lamar Jackson and the rest of the offense? Last season, Jackson threw for a career-high 3,678 yards and completed a career-best 67.2% of his passes, leading Baltimore to an NFL-best 13-4 record in the regular season. Jackson won his second league Most Valuable Player Award, becoming the youngest player to do it twice. Still, the offense was wildly inconsistent, particularly early in the season. “We want to streamline, [and] we want to make it better for all of our players — Lamar especially — and we want to streamline it in a way that we become a more consistent offense,” Monken said during the offseason. “We have to work to start faster. That’s inevitable, but Year Two, we should be able to do that.” Baltimore was fourth in the NFL last season in first-half points per game (14.6), but to Monken’s point, in six of those games the Ravens scored 10 or fewer points over the first 30 minutes. Meanwhile, expect Jackson to have even more input and control within the offense, something that was expanded on last year and will be a point of emphasis again. How will that manifest? “Just being able to change extra plays and stuff like that,” Jackson said. “From us watching film and getting into games, teams changing things up on us, we just want to add extra layers to all of our calls.” That includes some nuance to Jackson’s cadence, which has been another point of emphasis during the offseason. How will they overcome all the coaching departures? Perhaps one of the more overlooked changes, or at least one that’s difficult to quantify for now, is the significant amount of turnover on coach John Harbaugh’s staff. Beyond losing Macdonald, defensive line coach Anthony Weaver left to become the Miami Dolphins’ defensive coordinator, defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson was named the Tennessee Titans’ defensive coordinator and assistant offensive line coach Mike Devlin bolted to become the offensive line coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. Orr, meanwhile, was promoted from his role as inside linebackers coach, while assistant quarterbacks coach Kerry Dickson and assistant T.J. Weist are both gone, among other moves. That’s a lot of change, though some of it wasn’t unexpected given the Ravens’ success last year, and it’s something Harbaugh is used to over his 16 seasons at the helm. It’s also an area of impact that’s difficult to measure at this point and will remain that way until games are played. On the upside for Baltimore, there is at least some continuity with Orr, Monken, longtime offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris, tight ends coach George Godsey, wide receivers coach Greg Lewis and quarterbacks coach Tee Martin all back. Running back Derrick Henry enters a Ravens offense that runs more often out of shotgun and pistol formations than his previous team, the Titans. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Can Derrick Henry be as impactful at age 30 and out of the shotgun? Even at an advanced age for a running back, Henry has showed only minimal signs of slowing down. His 1,167 rushing yards last season with the Titans were his fewest in a full season since 2018 and his 4.2 yards per carry was his lowest mark since 2017, but he was also operating behind one of the league’s worst offensive lines. He was also the focal point of Tennessee’s offense for a long time with few other stars surrounding him during his eight seasons there. That won’t be the case alongside Jackson and a plethora of other options, including tight ends Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely and second-year wide receiver Zay Flowers. Surprisingly, there was at least a tinge of concern initially about Henry operating out of a much more shotgun heavy scheme after playing with a quarterback mostly under center during his career. “Watching the film in Tennessee, that was a concern,” Ravens running backs coach Willie Taggart said. “Like, ‘We’re in the [shotgun], and we run from the gun, and how would Derrick be in it?’ And I’m not going to lie, I questioned that, until he got here, and [I saw] the big man move his feet, and I’m like, ‘Woah.’ It’s really impressive for a guy that size to move the way he does. And he’s got, not necessarily Zay Flowers’ feet, but from a big guy, he’s pretty swifty on his feet and [has] great vision and all. But seeing him do it from the gun, I don’t have any … I don’t think we’ll have any problem doing it. “And, we’ll also be under center.” Will the Ravens feature more two tight end sets? With Andrews and Likely, Baltimore has one of the better tight end duos in the league. The Ravens also led the NFL in expected points added per play when passing from 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) last season despite Andrews, a three-time Pro Bowl selection, missing seven games because of injuries and the two not often being on the field at the same time. While there’s not a lot to glean from spring practices during organized team activities and minicamp, Andrews and Likely did see a healthy number of targets, perhaps a harbinger of this fall. Having both of them on the field at the same time more often, along with Henry in the backfield, should present problems for defenses — namely forcing opponents to choose between using an extra defensive back to match up with the two tight ends, or a linebacker to deal with Henry. The former could be a boon for the four-time Pro Bowl back and in turn the Ravens’ rushing attack, which vanished against the Chiefs in the AFC championship game. Which rookies will have the biggest impact? The expectation for first-round draft pick Nate Wiggins is to be an immediate contributor. Still, there’s no guarantee that the speedy cornerback will be automatically plugged in as a starter on the outside. For one, the Ravens have a proven duo in Brandon Stephens and Marlon Humphrey, who, if fully healthy, could bounce back from an injury-hampered season. For another, it’s a crowded room that includes positional versatility and depth — at least for now. Beyond Wiggins, the most intriguing rookies are second-round offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten, third-round outside linebacker Adisa Isaac, fourth-round receiver Devontez Walker and fifth-round running back Rasheen Ali. The hope internally is that D’Alessandris can plug Rosengarten in at the open right tackle spot and not worry about him, much the way he did with Tyler Linderbaum at center. Isaac, who suffered a hamstring “tweak” that kept him out of spring practice, would be a boost to a group that needs one if he’s able top produce. Ali is a smooth and speedy back who could spell Henry and Justice Hill, particularly with Keaton Mitchell’s timetable for return from a torn ACL still unclear, as well as contribute on special teams. Walker, meanwhile, gives Jackson another downfield threat with good size. Who else will the Ravens add? Last year, the additions of outside linebackers Jadeveon Clowney and later Kyle Van Noy paid tremendous dividends for the Ravens, who have a history of adding veteran players late in camp or beyond. With question marks once again surrounding Baltimore’s pass rushers, there’s a good chance general manager Eric DeCosta will look to bolster that group again. The Ravens already dipped into the veteran safety market, signing former All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowl selection Eddie Jackson to a one-year deal on Friday. Jackson, who spent his first seven seasons with the Chicago Bears, gives the Ravens depth and will likely be part of three-safety looks alongside All-Pro Kyle Hamilton and veteran Marcus Williams. View the full article Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.