ExtremeRavens Posted August 25 Posted August 25 Four turnovers doomed the Ravens to an ugly 30-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers in their exhibition finale. After a preseason that showcased only a handful of starters, we turn our attention to the Sept. 5 season opener in Kansas City, where the real team will take center stage. Here are five things we learned from the last preseason game. The battle at No. 3 running back just got murkier Owen Wright was no sure thing to make the final 53, but he made a stronger case than anyone around him to play behind Derrick Henry and Justice Hill. He deserved better than to be carted off in the second quarter of the final preseason game with a broken foot. With Wright out of the picture, where do the Ravens turn? Fifth-round pick Rasheen Ali was the favorite going into training camp given how enamored the Ravens seemed with his big-play potential coming out of Marshall. But Ali played poorly in the preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles, and a stinger deprived him of the opportunity to redeem himself. Would Harbaugh feel comfortable entrusting a potentially important reserve role to a rookie with so few reps? Undrafted rookie Chris Collier has been a steadier presence in practice but feels more like a practice squad candidate than a potential No. 3. Veteran journeyman John Kelly received the most work Saturday and delivered a few strong runs between the tackles. Could he make an unexpected late push? Or will the Ravens look outside at a position where formerly productive players usually become available when teams trim their rosters? Not the most scintillating questions — the hope is Henry will render any depth issues moot — but this position might present the only legitimate mystery as we await final cuts. Tylan Wallace keeps finding ways to stick A year ago, Wallace spoke endearingly of how on cutdown day, he sat in his car in the parking lot at the Ravens’ training facility, praying his phone wouldn’t buzz with unwanted news. He hoped a strong preseason was enough to put him on the right side of the roster bubble. The fourth-year wide receiver’s position isn’t so tenuous in 2024. He seems likely to make the 53-man roster because of his special teams value, displayed most memorably with his game-winning punt return against the Los Angeles Rams last season. If the 2021 fourth-round draft pick needed a final flourish, however, he provided it Saturday with the most exciting individual play of the Ravens’ preseason. In the second quarter, Wallace slanted right to find clear ground in the middle of the Green Bay secondary, caught Josh Johnson’s pass and outran everyone to the front corner of the end zone, extending his arm to smack the pylon for a 48-yard touchdown. Quarterback Lamar Jackson, among others, bounded off the sideline to celebrate. With seven catches over three seasons, Wallace isn’t likely to become one of Jackson’s featured targets out of nowhere. He is a guy who keeps finding ways to make the Ravens keep him. That’s worth celebrating in its own right. Daniel Faalele, set to play right guard, is part of a youth movement along the Ravens’ offensive line. (Matt Ludtke/AP) There’s no indication of a late surprise on the offensive line The Ravens again started Roger Rosengarten at right tackle, Daniel Faalele at right guard and Andrew Vorhees at left guard, setting the table for three linemen with one career start between them to claim the jobs vacated by Morgan Moses, Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson, respectively. Though Patrick Mekari could still beat out Rosengarten or share time with the rookie, it sure seems the Ravens are embracing a youth movement on the unit that will protect Jackson and clear holes for Henry. On Saturday, we again saw the growing pains that will go with that plan. Faalele — to be fair, he has held up well as a pass blocker at his new interior spot — pushed the Ravens back with a false start when they were already facing third-and-long on their opening drive. Miscommunication left Packers defensive end Arron Mosby free to run in for a strip-sack on Devin Leary that led to a defensive touchdown. That blown play aside, the unit’s pass blocking generally held up better than its run blocking, as the Ravens ran for just 39 yards on 12 carries in the first half. Those numbers will look better in the regular season with Jackson and Henry operating in place of Johnson and Wright, but these young offensive linemen will also be held to a higher standard when the games count. They did not move Green Bay’s backups as much as you’d hope in their final audition. The line’s depth also took a potential hit when rookie center Nick Samac, who has come on strong over the past two weeks and who started against the Packers, left the field on a cart. Harbaugh didn’t elaborate on Samac’s injury after the game, but he’ll join a cluster of young players — Ali, cornerback T.J. Tampa, safety Sanoussi Kane, edge rusher Adisa Isaac — who could stick on the 53-man roster or go to injured reserve (where they’d either be designated to return or stashed for the year). Those machinations will be among the more interesting decisions the Ravens have to make over the next few days. Another game, another few productive series for David Ojabo As we’ve discussed throughout the preseason, Ojabo needed these games more than most players projected to make significant contributions to the 2024 team. He has yet to get a clean shot at his NFL career after a torn Achilles tendon wiped out the beginning of his rookie year and knee surgery cut short his second-year follow-up. Doctors finally cleared the 2022 second-round pick to play in this year’s second preseason game, and he immediately impressed as a pass rusher (expected) and a tough edge setter (pleasant surprise). The grin on Ojabo’s face when he spoke to reporters a few days later conveyed how much it meant to him to be back in the mix. His 2024 won’t be judged on flashes, however. The Ravens, in need of edge rushers to fill the void left by Jadeveon Clowney’s departure, need the former Michigan star to produce week after week. So far, so good after Ojabo played well in limited action against the Packers. On Green Bay’s opening drive, he occupied two blockers on the edge, giving safety Beau Brade a clear lane to dart in and drop running back Ellis Merriweather for a loss. The next time the Packers had the ball, Ojabo popped tight end Joel Wilson, then zipped around his outside shoulder to drill quarterback Sean Clifford, who threw incomplete. The box score did not show a tackle or a sack for the third-year outside linebacker, but his impact was felt. Devontez Walker has yet to make a case for playing time Walker finally grabbed our attention, albeit for the wrong reason, when he was penalized for offensive pass interference on the Ravens’ first drive. That meant the rookie’s penalty yards exceeded his receiving yards — 4 on one catch — for the preseason. Not the summary line you want for a guy who ranked high on any list of Ravens playmakers we were eager to watch going into training camp. And it’s not as if he has burned defenders consistently in practice either. After Nate Wiggins and Rosengarten, Walker probably generated the most buzz of any Ravens pick. As a confident, powerfully built vertical threat, he seemed custom designed to fill a hole in Jackson’s collection of targets. Scouting reports suggested we’d see lapses in his technique, but he seemed as good a candidate as any to light up camp practices and preseason games with spectacular catches. We’ve seen only fleeting glimpses of that player. Walker quickly faded into the background as less touted pass catchers — Dayton Wade, Qadir Ismail, Sean Ryan — made stronger impressions. A rib injury that limited him for the second preseason game did not help matters. With the regular season almost upon us, he’s still searching for his breakout moment. It’s hard to see the Ravens giving up on such a promising draft prospect after one summer, but if they’re picking the six wide receivers who’ve made the best case to help in Week 1, Walker isn’t on the list. View the full article Quote
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