Ravens Insider: Risers and fallers: Ravens end preseason with 30-3 win over Commanders

ExtremeRavens · August 23

LANDOVER — Preseason finales are largely about bubble players getting one final shot to impress coaches as they try to make the roster. And, of course, about teams escaping uninjured.

On the latter front, the Ravens had two wide receivers, Dayton Wade and Xavier Guillory, both go down with shoulder injuries Saturday against the Commanders. On the former, much of Baltimore’s roster was likely already set, though there remains some intrigue over the precious final few spots.

That intrigue was perhaps further fueled by undrafted rookie cornerback Keyon Martin, whose interception return for a touchdown late in the second half was one of a few highlights in Baltimore’s 30-3 blowout of Washington.

Here’s a look at the biggest risers and fallers from the Ravens’ final preseason game:

Risers

Cooper Rush: It was a short but efficient day for the Ravens’ No. 2 quarterback. With Lamar Jackson in street clothes on the sideline and looking just fine after leaving practice early with an apparent injury Wednesday, his backup completed all five of his attempts for 59 yards.

That included a nice deep out to rookie wide receiver LaJohntay Wester for 22 yards to the Commanders’ 7-yard line in the second quarter to set up Baltimore’s second touchdown of the game, a 1-yard run from D’Ernest Johnson.

Keyon Martin: For the second straight game, the undrafted rookie cornerback made a splash play.

Last week, he recorded a safety when he raced in unblocked and dropped Cowboys quarterback Joe Milton III in the end zone. Saturday, he read Sam Hartman’s throw to Luke McCaffrey before the ball was even out of the quarterback’s hand, broke on the out route and easily picked it off before racing 26 yards to the end zone for a touchdown.

Martin also dropped McCaffrey for a 2-yard loss in the first quarter, downed a punt from Jordan Stout at the 11 in the second and brought down running back Jeremy McNichols for a 4-yard loss.

The Louisiana product wasn’t even initially signed by Baltimore and only was added after a tryout. But he might be one of several undrafted free agents to make the 53-man roster.

Reuben Lowery: It’s been a stanout summer for the undrafted free agent safety out of Tennessee-Chattanooga and it continued Saturday.

In addition to leading Baltimore in tackles (seven), Lowery chased down Colson Yankoff midway through the second quarter to save a touchdown. The play went for 52 yards, but that wasn’t on Lowery, who raced downfield, caught and dragged down the 6-foot-4, 225-pound tight end.

It was all but a certainty that Lowery had already made the team in the minds of coaches, but he didn’t play like his spot was already secured.

Trenton Simpson: Right behind Lowery in tackles was the inside linebacker, the only starter on either side of the ball to play Saturday.

Simpson had six tackles, 1 1/2 sacks, two quarterback hits, one pass breakup and a forced fumble when he dropped Hartman with under a minute to go in the first half. Malik Hamm recovered and that set up a 52-yard field goal by Tyler Loop as time expired.

Tyler Loop: The kicking job is already the rookie’s, and the sixth-round pick continued to justify coach John Harbaugh’s decision to name him Justin Tucker’s replacement.

Loop converted all three of his field goal attempts, drilling a 46-yarder and the aforementioned 52-yarder before delivering his best one of the preseason. Early in the fourth quarter, he smoked a 61-yard try down the middle with plenty of room to spare.

Fallers

Devin Leary: It was another shaky outing for Baltimore’s No. 3 quarterback.

First, the second-year passer had Anthony Miller for a second-quarter touchdown up the sideline after the receiver got behind safety Tyler Owens, but he threw the ball too far inside, allowing Owens to get back in position and break it up. On the next play, Leary’s egregious throw to Miller coming across the middle was high and behind him, hanging the veteran out to dry against his defender.

Late in the third quarter, Leary aired it out for Miller again, but he was well-covered and the pass fell harmlessly to the ground.

Preseason stats only go so far, but averaging 3.1 yards per attempt against third-stringers and guys who won’t have a job come Tuesday did not inspire.

Baltimore Ravens running back Rasheen Ali (26) scores a touchdown during an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025, in Landover. (AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.)

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Baltimore Ravens running back Rasheen Ali (26) scores a touchdown during an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Saturday, Aug. 23, 2025, in Landover. (AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.)

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Teddye Buchanan: The rookie inside linebacker struggled again in pass coverage, continuing what has been an uneven preseason for the fourth-round pick.

In particular, he seemed to be fooled on a few run-pass options or play-action passes and was often out of position as a result.

He also whiffed on an open-field tackle of McCaffrey on an 11-yard completion in the second quarter. Bringing down any wide receiver in that situation is a tough task for a lot of linebackers, but he barely got a hand on him.

T.J. Tampa Jr.: The second-year cornerback allowed the longest play of the game, choosing to try to blow up Yankoff on a completion in the middle of the field instead of simply tackling him. Not only did Yankoff not go down, but he rumbled 52 yards before being chased down by Lowery. The play led to Washington’s first points of the game, a 47-yard field goal.

Later, Tampa was flagged for pass interference on Ja’Corey Brooks with under a minute to go in the first half. The flag gave Washington some life, but only for a moment with Hartman being strip-sacked by Simpson two plays later.

Carson Vinson: The rookie tackle out of Alabama A&M is a project, so that has to be taken into consideration.

But once again the 6-7, 320-pound fifth-round pick seemed to lack some power while getting the start at left tackle. Baltimore ran the ball well on its opening drive, with 12 of 14 plays coming on the ground before Rasheen Ali found the end zone off left tackle from 9 yards out, but Vinson continues to look like a long-term project.

This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1.

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Ravens Insider: Risers and fallers: Ravens end preseason with 30-3 win over Commanders

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