With the Ravens opening mandatory minicamp on Tuesday to complete the offseason program in Owings Mills this week, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. Nine non-participants marked a surprisingly high number with Nnamdi Madubuike and Teddye Buchanan previously being the only known rehabbing players, but Jesse Minter said the rest are dealing with illness or “little small things.” The good news is all are expected to be ready for the start of training camp.
2. Minter did note one exception as the organization continues “working through” Madubuike’s status. “At some point, that’ll clear itself up. Again, we feel good about where it’s at, and so I would just leave it at that right now.” While recent updates have sounded more encouraging, we’re still mostly speculating.
3. Calais Campbell lost a Super Bowl as a rookie and continues chasing a ring 18 years later. Though he’s feeling “as strongly as ever” that his age-40 season will be his last, he wants to play well enough to turn a team down next year. I wouldn’t bet against him.
4. Campbell called Anthony Weaver his “all-time favorite” coach and credited him as the biggest reason for his return to the Ravens. Though Minter will be calling the game-day defense, it’s worth noting how popular Weaver was with defensive players in his first coaching stint with Baltimore.
5. Campbell’s 30.8 defensive snaps per game last year easily marked a career low. Though the Ravens would be happy with that, the six-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman is training to play a “quality” 40 per contest. That sounds reasonable for someone with 278 career games under his belt.
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6. The play of the day was a scrambling Lamar Jackson uncorking a beautiful throw to rookie Elijah Sarratt for a long gain despite tight coverage from Marquise Robinson. Sarratt also looks pretty smooth catching punts, so it’ll be interesting to see if he gets a look as a returner.
7. Roquan Smith didn’t shy away from expressing disappointment when asked about 2025. “No excuses at all, but it wasn’t the season of my standard, nor was it from a defensive perspective.” This feels like a big year for Smith, who carries a scheduled cap number of $32.7 million in 2027.
8. If the season were to begin today, Danny Pinter would be the favorite to start at center, which isn’t surprising considering his modest edge in experience. However, one would think upgrading by early August would be a priority to allow sufficient time for the offensive line to gel.
9. In the little we’ve seen of Ryan Eckley over a few spring workouts, the sixth-round rookie has shown off an impressive leg. That said, the Ravens have kept fellow punter Luke Elzinga on the 90-man roster, so it’ll be interesting to see if any competition lingers into training camp.
10. This isn’t the time of year to evaluate offensive line play to any meaningful degree, but when asked about Vega Ioane, Smith smiled and said, “I can tell physicality is his thing.” The first-round guard has checked every box to this early point in his rookie campaign.
11. Baltimore often brings in a handful of tryout players during minicamp week and are taking a look at undrafted rookie offensive lineman Christian Hilborn and second-year tight end Caden Prieskorn. I see little point in carrying five quarterbacks much longer, so there’s definitely roster flexibility if desired.
12. Former Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale was a visitor at Tuesday’s practice and earned high praise from Minter, who worked with him from 2017-20. “He always empowered me. We had a really awesome relationship. … It’s awesome to have Wink around.”
