With the mandatory minicamp over and the first practice of training camp still five and a half weeks away, many of the Ravens have gone their separate ways for their last extended break until after the conclusion of the 2019 season.
This is the time for many around the league, including executives, coaches, team officials and even reporters, to take some vacation time and gear up for the long season. We’ll be following suit, but before we do, let’s take a look back at last week’s mandatory minicamp.
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Those who impressed
Mark Andrews, TE: The second-year tight end looks bigger, stronger and faster than he did last season, when he was one of the most productive rookies in the league at his position. Andrews made a ton of plays the last couple of weeks, and he let defensive players know about it, too. He’s playing with confidence and swagger, which the offense sorely needs.
Chris Board, MLB: A 2018 undrafted free agent out of North Dakota State, Board saw most of his repetitions last week with the first team. If he hasn’t passed Kenny Young atop the weak-side linebacker depth chart, he’s at least pulled even with him. And that’s not because Young has disappointed. Board plays with speed and aggressiveness and has improved rapidly since last year, when he was one of the team’s best special teamers.
Terrell Bonds, CB: Signed out of the now-defunct Alliance of American Football League, Bonds picked off Lamar Jackson passes twice in the red zone in last Wednesday’s practice. That got people talking about him, but Bonds had already opened the eyes of the defensive staff by limiting his mistakes and getting better every practice. The Ravens are loaded at cornerback, but Bonds at least inserted his name into the mix.
DeShon Elliott, S: Before he suffered a season-ending broken forearm last preseason, the 2018 sixth-round draft pick showed he was a big hitter. In the offseason workouts this year, Elliott has proven to be a playmaker with good range and strong ball skills. Elliott, who seems to have a knack for being around the football, will likely be a key member of the special-teams unit. If he maintains his form from OTAs and mandatory minicamp, the Ravens will need to find a way to get him on the field on defense, too.
Sean Modster and Antoine Wesley, WRs: The undrafted rookies were the young receivers who stood out the most last week in what figures to be an interesting roster competition. Neither wows you with speed, but they seemed to get open, and when the ball was thrown in their direction, they caught it. Modster, from Boise State, and Wesley, out of Texas Tech, have acquitted themselves well thus far.
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Honorable mention: Cole Herdman, TE; Marlon Humphrey, CB; Mark Ingram, RB; Shane Ray, OLB; Jaleel Scott, WR.
Those who didn’t
Michael Floyd, WR: His inclusion on this list might be a bit unfair. The veteran did make a handful of plays last week, including a nifty back-shoulder reception of a Jackson throw. However, Floyd also had a few drops and seemed a fingertip away on a couple of other occasions from making a big catch. It wasn’t a poor performance by any means, but he won’t have a whole lot of margin of error come training camp.
Jordan Lasley, WR: Lasley was quiet before making a couple of plays on the final day of minicamp, and that was moderately surprising given the rapport he supposedly has with Jackson. A fifth-round pick last year, Lasley also added a few drops, including one on which he unnecessarily tried to one-hand the ball in the back of the end zone. That prompted wide receivers coach David Culley to ask Lasley if his other hand worked. Lasley will need to pick up his game later this summer to earn a second season with the Ravens.
Michael Pierce, DT: Pierce made himself into one of the top storylines entering training camp after he showed up to last week’s minicamp significantly over his playing weight from last year. It’s unclear how much he was over, but Ravens coach John Harbaugh wouldn’t have sent him off the field after the team stretch on the first day if he was only 15 to 20 pounds over. Pierce now has a lot of work to do and a lot of trust to win back.
Kaare Vedvik, K: It seems to be a foregone conclusion amongst some Ravens fans that the team will be able to trade the kicking prospect at the end of the preseason for a draft pick. However, Vedvik is going to have to kick well for that to happen. He struggled last week, missing four consecutive field-goal attempts at Wednesday’s practice. In fairness to him, he was often working with a backup snapper and holder, but a few of the kicks weren’t even close.
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What’s the deal at left guard?
It seems Matt Skura has a pretty good grip on the center spot and Young and Board will likely rotate at weak-side linebacker. That leaves left guard as probably the most interesting competition for a starting job heading into camp. Harbaugh acknowledged the competition at that spot was wide-open, and the mandatory minicamp was proof.
Jermaine Eluemunor, who wasn’t even really on the radar for a starting job, spent all of last week with the first team. James Hurst, a veteran with more than 40 starts in his career, worked mostly with the second team. Alex Lewis remained sidelined as he recovers from shoulder surgery, but Harbaugh volunteered that Lewis has done his rehab away from the team. Ben Powers is still a rookie.
What does all that mean? In Lewis’ case, I can’t imagine the Ravens are thrilled that a guy who has missed 28 games in three NFL seasons has barely been in the building the entire offseason. Harbaugh didn’t mention Lewis when it came down to rattling off some of the starting left guard candidates, but that might or might not have been an honest mistake. Either way, it sure sounds like Lewis’ roster spot is pretty tenuous.
With Hurst, I think the ideal scenario for the Ravens would be using him in that sixth offensive lineman role, where he’d be the top backup at every position except center. Harbaugh acknowledged that’s a consideration. To do that, the Ravens are going to have to have a better option. I’m not sure Eluemunor is that guy. Harbaugh praised his play last week but also sent a clear message that the third-year pro has to get in better shape. As for Powers, him emerging this summer and earning the left guard job would be ideal, but as we saw last year with Orlando Brown Jr., the Ravens aren’t in the business of handing a mid-round rookie a starting job unless they feel he’s 100 percent ready.
Ten random thoughts/observations
1. The most important thing Harbaugh said about wide receiver Marquise Brown was that the first-round pick hadn’t had any setbacks in his recovery from Lisfranc foot surgery in January. However, Harbaugh did acknowledge there are no guarantees that Brown will be ready for the start of training camp, and Brown is not running full speed yet. His comments came after owner Steve Bisciotti recently tempered the expectations for Brown’s production as a rookie in a conference call with season-ticket holders. The Ravens knew exactly what they were getting when they drafted Brown, and nobody is fretting at this point. Still, Lisfranc injuries are daunting, especially for speed guys.
2. Otherwise, team officials have to be pleased about where the roster is at health-wise. There were no known injuries at last week’s minicamp, and the Ravens essentially had 85 of their 90 players on the field every practice. The only exceptions were Brown, Pierce, Lewis, undrafted rookie guard Patrick Mekari and back and cornerback/punt returner Cyrus Jones (non-football illness). Both Mekari and Jones are expected to be ready by the start of training camp, and the other three have a chance to be as well.
3. I still think there’s a chance that the Ravens add a fourth quarterback to the roster before the start of training camp, even if it’s just to have another camp arm. Harbaugh doesn’t traditionally play his starting quarterback a lot in the preseason and expected backup Robert Griffin probably wouldn’t see action in all four games, either. There have been years where neither the starter or the backup play in the fourth preseason game. If that’s the plan this year, I’d be a bit surprised if the Ravens go into the fourth preseason game with just one quarterback (Trace McSorley) designed to play.
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4. Speaking of McSorley, I thought he made some progress last week. There were times in the rookie minicamp and the OTAs where he looked a bit overwhelmed, and that’s understandable for a rookie quarterback. However, he made some nice throws last week and seemed to be settling in and making fewer mistakes. He also continues to take part in special-teams drills.
5. Longtime Ravens special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg officially retired last Thursday to devote more time to his family. The Ravens have perennially had one of the best special-teams units in the league, and Rosburg is a major reason. He made an impact on so many Ravens on and off the field. I’ll never forget how Anthony Levine Sr. was nearly reduced to tears talking about the impact Rosburg made on him as a player and person. So many other Ravens have shared similar stories about Rosburg over the years. I’m not sure there was another member of Harbaugh’s staff who coached his players harder and yet was more beloved.
6. You try not to draw too many conclusions from non-contact practices. However, third-year cornerback Marlon Humphrey was dialed in. He looked like a guy who was 100 percent confident in everything he was doing. His continued ascension into a bona fide lockdown No. 1 cornerback would be a huge development for the Ravens.
7. Loved how Ravens defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale scoffed at the overused “Next Man Up” notion when asked about losing guys like Terrell Suggs, C.J. Mosley and Eric Weddle. “We’re going to miss them,” Martindale said. The Ravens second-year defensive coordinator also acknowledged that he told Pernell McPhee on his free-agent visit that the team needed McPhee’s leadership. Some have said that the Ravens’ loss of veteran defensive leadership and production this offseason has been overblown. Good on Martindale for not spouting the company line and acknowledging the magnitude of what the Ravens lost.
8. The Ravens had former Dayton left-footed punter Sean Smith take part in their mandatory minicamp on a tryout basis. That’s relevant, not because Smith is a threat to unseat Sam Koch, but because the Ravens will face teams with a left-footed punter in six of their first seven games, as new special-teams coach Chris Horton noted. The ball comes off the foot of a lefty punter different than a right-footed one. It makes sense to give the Ravens return candidates as many opportunities as possible in fielding lefty punts.
9. In watching the various return candidates at last week’s minicamp, running back Tyler Ervin looked the most comfortable fielding punts. Ervin returned punts and kickoffs for three seasons with the Houston Texans, so it’s hardly surprising that would be the case. Still, it’s going to be tough for the Ravens to devote a 53-man roster spot to a guy who only contributes in the return game, especially with how much quality depth they have at other positions.
10. Given how much offensive coordinator Greg Roman uses multiple-tight-end sets, I’ve said on multiple occasions that I could see the Ravens keeping four tight ends. However, that’s probably excessive at this point. Andrews, Hayden Hurst and Nick Boyle all add some versatility, and the Ravens could also use fullback/defensive lineman Patrick Ricard in the No. 4 tight end role.
(Top photo of Mark Andrews: Evan Habeeb / USA Today)
