ExtremeRavens Posted Thursday at 09:51 PM Posted Thursday at 09:51 PM The Ravens have a problem a lot of teams in the NFL would welcome. They have five tight ends on the roster and three of them — Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar — are really good. It was intriguing on Day 2 of training camp Thursday to watch how the Ravens would rotate them, but the team has different formations. The catch of the day belonged to Likely, who made a one-handed grab on a pass across the middle from Lamar Jackson, easily turned the corner and took off for what would have been a 65-yard touchdown. But throughout Thursday’s practice, all three quarterbacks used the tight ends on different formations, both inside and outside of the red zone, as well as in the 7-on-7 period. One of my favorite plays was a toss to running back Derrick Henry with Kolar leading the way. That’s a sign of versatility while also using Henry’s great vision. Rookie watch Training camp is only two days old, but rookie safety Malaki Starks, the first-round pick out of Georgia, has been impressive. Not only does he play well on the back end of the secondary, but he breaks on the ball extremely well. He knocked down one pass intended for Kolar and then intercepted what looked like an arm punt from Jackson late in the team period. There is talk that Starks is the best safety to come out of college since the Ravens took Kyle Hamilton in the first round out of Notre Dame in the 2022 draft. First impressions It wasn’t an exceptional day for newly acquired cornerback Jaire Alexander, who was beat for a long touchdown down the right sideline by Devontez Walker. First of all, let’s give Walker credit. The second-year receiver out of North Carolina has played well though offseason workouts and so far in training camp. As for Alexander, he has looked good so far in practice. He backpedals well, can sit down with receivers and recovers quickly. The 28-year-old veteran against the 24-year-old Walker is one of the better matchups in training camp. Injury updates While on the subject of receivers, veteran DeAndre Hopkins didn’t practice because of a knee injury he suffered on a hard landing in Wednesday’s opening practice. The injury is not believed to be serious. Also, slot receiver Zay Flowers was at full-tilt in practice for the second straight day after suffering what appeared to be either a knee or ankle injury on Wednesday that forced him to miss about 10 minutes of practice. Flowers was at his artful best catching several short passes and easily juking defenders. He is by far one of the best open-field runners after the catch in the NFL. Ravens cornerback Chidobe Awuzie is competing to start next to Nate Wiggins and Marlon Humphrey. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Secondary shaping up Receiver Rashod Bateman ran an out-and-up against cornerback Nate Wiggins that resulted in a 55-yard touchdown pass from Jackson. The two-time NFL Most Valuable Player tried to make the same play versus Wiggins on the next snap, but the second-year player wasn’t fooled and knocked down Jackson’s pass intended for receiver Keith Kirkwood. Wiggins might only be in his second season, but he’s no fool and could become one the best at his position in the NFL. Because of his ability, he might not get tested a lot this season with Chidobe Awuzie, Jalyn Armour-Davis and Alexander competing to play on the opposite side. The Ravens had Armour-Davis playing over the slot at times during Thursday’s practice and even blitzed him a couple of times off the edge. This is a big season for Armour-Davis, as well as outside linebacker David Ojabo. Both are about to enter their fourth seasons before entering free agency. Offensive line battle Ben Cleveland and Andrew Vorhees both took snaps with the first-team offense at left guard Thursday, but Vorhees seems better suited for the position. Why? Neither are great pass blockers, but Vorhees is more versatile and durable. Play of the day The best overall play of the day was middle linebacker Roquan Smith running stride-for-stride with running back Justice Hill down the left sideline and knocking down a long pass. The Kansas City Chiefs exposed Smith’s inability to cover in the season opener a year ago and several teams attacked him in similar fashion in the early part of the season. Smith, though, regrouped and appeared to get in better shape deeper into the year. Pass rush intrigue When watching the Ravens do sled work, no one rocks it harder than 6-foot-4, 341-pound Travis Jones, the fourth-year defensive lineman out of Connecticut. When he strikes it, the earth moves. Outside linebacker and third-year player Tavius Robinson also showed good technique and explosion. Also of interest, fifth-year outside linebacker Odafe Oweh is thicker across the chest but appears to be not as quick as a year ago. It will be interesting to see what weight he plays at during the season. He is listed at 6-5 and 265 pounds. Kicker watch With sixth-round kicker Tyler Loop sitting out, presumably for a scheduled day off, undrafted rookie John Hoyland went 9-for-9 on his field goal attempts. Three were from 40-plus, and one was from 50-plus. Hoyland was wearing a GoPro camera on his helmet, which coach John Harbaugh said allows coaches to see what he’s looking at and different angles of his leg. Draft gem? If you want to see quickness, keep an eye on rookie defensive tackle Aeneas Peebles, a sixth-round pick out of Virginia Tech. He is getting better with the spin move and did a lot of work with pass-rush specialist Chuck Smith before the beginning of practice. Still getting better One of the best improvements from Jackson is his ability to drift to the left, even with a soft shuffle, keep his eyes down the field and complete the pass. The eighth-year veteran couldn’t do that earlier in his career. In fact, he wasn’t very good rolling to his left at all. It’s all part of his development as a top-tier quarterback. Baltimore Sun reporter Sam Cohn contributed to this article. Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article Quote
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