ExtremeRavens Posted July 22 Posted July 22 This offseason was different for Ravens tight end Mark Andrews. After missing eight games last season with a severe ankle injury, he said he didn’t feel like himself again until late March or early April. He took up Pilates as he searched for unique ways to get back into form. His 11 games in 2023 were his fewest as a pro as the veteran dealt with the first long-term injury of his career. The Ravens fared fine in his absence, but the void he left was obvious. Now Andrews, recuperated from the injury, enters his seventh training camp armed with a fresh perspective but the same optimism. “I feel 100%,” Andrews said. “A lot better than I ever have.” Andrews’ early months of the offseason were spent rehabilitating. He suffered the ankle injury in Week 10, had surgery soon after and returned for the Ravens’ home AFC championship game about two months later, a turnaround Andrews now acknowledges was quick and difficult. He caught just two passes for 15 yards in that loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Football was put on hold in February and March. Stabilization and balance exercises took up most of the 28-year-old’s time instead. It was a family effort to get Andrews back into playing shape — he ran routes while his brother covered him and his father fed a ball machine. Finally, the eventual return to the field gave him the feeling he longed for. “For me to be able to go through the offseason and go through a training session and feel incredible, be flying around and have the next day and be able to do it again,” Andrews said, “that was a great feeling.” Most of the supporting cast around Andrews is the same as last season. It’s the second year under offensive coordinator Todd Monken. Wide receivers Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman, who said his foot is no longer ailing him and that he feels more comfortable than ever, are back on the outside. Quarterback Lamar Jackson, who missed the first full team practice of training camp Sunday after he was sent home with an illness, will reconnect with his favorite target. The addition of running back Derrick Henry gives defenses even more to prepare for. Andrews, similar to his fellow pass catchers, hardly flashed Sunday in an uneventful first day of camp with Josh Johnson and Devin Leary throwing passes. Andrews managed to make a few grabs in the full team portion of practice, but his best will come when Jackson returns. “It’s only going to evolve more and more as guys get comfortable,” Andrews said. “As always in Year 2, after having an offense and learning it, things are new. You’re trying to figure out who you are as an identity. I think right now we’ve got a really clear picture of what we want to be and how we want to operate.” Perhaps the lone positive that sprouted out of Andrews’ absence was the emergence of Isaiah Likely as the Ravens’ top tight end over the final few weeks of the regular season. The Ravens’ Isaiah Likely hauls in a touchdown pass over the Texans Derek Stingley Jr. in the fourth quarter of their divisional playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium. (Jerry Jackson/Staff photo) Likely started a career-high eight games and posted 411 receiving yards and five touchdowns, both career bests. That’s despite finishing with fewer targets and catches than his rookie campaign in 2022, which is largely because of his nonexistent role before Andrews’ injury. From then on, Likely was a focal point in the offense. He scored five touchdowns and averaged 56 yards per game over the last five weeks of the regular season. He caught a touchdown pass in the Ravens’ divisional round playoff win over the Houston Texans. The 2022 fourth-round draft pick’s snap counts jumped from an average of 27% over the first 10 games to more than 70% with Andrews sidelined. Now entering his third training camp, Likely proved he’s capable. Seeing both tight ends on the field together might still be a rare occurrence. The Ravens decreased their usage of two tight end sets last season in Monken’s first campaign and instead relied on one tight end packages much more than Baltimore did under Greg Roman. That might not change — Monken’s system produced prolific numbers and Jackson’s second NFL Most Valuable Player Award. Still, Likely showed that it would be a tantalizing thought. The Ravens have the next few weeks to tinker with the possibility as they seek a postseason breakthrough in a season with high expectations. “I’m excited to see what it looks like,” Bateman said. “I’m kinda like everyone else, I’m just excited to watch.” View the full article Quote
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