With the Ravens conducting the final workout of their three-day mandatory minicamp on Thursday, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. Practicing neither his best or anywhere near his worst, Lamar Jackson was simply rock solid throwing the ball this week, which was perfectly fine after so much angst over his absence during voluntary workouts. Any proclamations beyond that sound too much like recency bias to me.
2. Noticeably bigger in the upper body, Jackson added 12 to 15 pounds of muscle. I’m curious to see how that extra weight potentially impacts his speed as competition ramps up, but you wouldn’t blame him for wanting to add a little mass to help absorb some of those hits.
3. John Harbaugh said Michael Pierce is healthy and the “personal matter with his family” shouldn’t impact his status for training camp. It’s natural to wonder where he’ll be from a conditioning standpoint with his history, but you just hope for the best for all.
4. Harbaugh said Ronnie Stanley’s left ankle is “looking great” and the 2019 All-Pro left tackle is getting ready to play football again. “If he plays like Ronnie Stanley and even better, then the significance is almost immeasurable.” There isn’t a more important health situation on either side of the ball.
5. Acknowledging “the knee injuries are a little tougher to say what the schedule really is” with the running backs, Harbaugh described J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards as having “work to do still,” which isn’t surprising. How the Ravens bring them along in training camp will be interesting.
6. Tyler Huntley was dealing with some shoulder tendinitis this week while Jaylon Ferguson sat out Thursday’s workout with the ankle sprain he suffered the previous day, according to Harbaugh. Neither ailment is a concern moving forward. Nick Boyle had a scheduled day off to conclude an encouraging spring.
7. Isaiah Likely was one of Thursday’s standout performers with a one-handed touchdown grab after he came very close to securing one-handed score earlier in practice. I’m really looking forward to watching him and fellow rookie tight end Charlie Kolar play in pads.
8. Tyler Badie caught a red-zone touchdown from Jackson with Patrick Queen in coverage. Harbaugh went out of his way to praise the way Badie and Mike Davis flashed as receivers this spring, so we’ll see if there’s a commitment to get the running backs more involved in the passing game.
9. How much does Justin Tucker care about his craft even in mid-June? Let’s just say he was a tiny bit disenchanted over missing field goals of 59 and 61 yards within a few moments of one another. Just a hunch, but I think he’ll be OK.
10. You rarely say this about a 5-foot-10, 185-pound cornerback, but Damarion Williams just looks like he belongs out there. We’ll see if that holds up in training camp, but secondary coach Chris Hewitt said, “I guarantee you the kid has got the biggest heart and he’s a good football player.”
11. As you’d anticipate with him no longer projected to be a starter, the versatile Patrick Mekari moved all over the offensive line this spring. Even in the unlikely event that he doesn’t start a game in 2022, that three-year, $15.45 million contract extension was still worth it.
12. The best news from spring workouts was Baltimore avoiding any serious injuries, but Harbaugh wasn’t about to chalk it up to revamping their training methods. “I feel like the guys appreciate what we’re doing, and I can’t wait to take it into training camp and see how it affects us.”
