With the Ravens practicing in full pads for the first time this summer on Monday afternoon, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. Monday marked the true start to training camp after an opening week of ramp-up practices that more closely resembled an extension of OTAs than “real” football. Introducing the threat of contact is always an interesting checkpoint, especially for young players who stood out practicing in shorts all spring.
2. DeAndre Hopkins made a fantastic one-handed catch in the end zone, but the problem was his other hand yanking Nate Wiggins’ face mask, which prompted an offensive pass interference call. That summed up a penalty-riddled day for the offense, which frequently couldn’t get out of its own way.
3. We didn’t wait long to see the first dust-up as Odafe Oweh and offensive tackle Carson Vinson went at it and had to be separated minutes into the first 11-on-11 period. Oweh got the best of the rookie a play earlier, so you wonder if there was some extra grabbing.
4. Jaire Alexander missed practice with “a little swelling” in his knee that was drained. John Harbaugh said Alexander “should” return Tuesday, but we also understand his extensive injury history — including a knee injury last season — is why he was available for $4 million in June.
5. Unfortunately, the health concerns at cornerback didn’t stop there with Jalyn Armour-Davis exiting Monday’s practice with an undisclosed ailment that will prompt an MRI and rookie Bilhal Kone recovering from a minor shoulder injury. You can never have too many corners, right?
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6. Rashod Bateman was the only other notable player absent from the field as the Ravens sent him home with an illness. On the positive side, veteran linebacker Jake Hummel (hand) was activated from the non-football injury list and practiced for the first time this summer.
7. Perfect through his first four camp practices, Tyler Loop had a rough day with misses from 43, 38, and 45 yards — all of them wide left. He was 5-for-8 overall with a long of 47 yards while John Hoyland was 4-for-4 with his longest also coming from 47.
8. Perhaps it wasn’t a coincidence that Mark Andrews had his most active practice to date with the pads on and the defense putting plenty of heat on the offense. Andrews had a catch and long run for a touchdown and was targeted frequently by Lamar Jackson, which sounds pretty familiar.
9. The best offensive play of the day might have been a screen pass to Derrick Henry that turned into a long gain. The blocking and design were on point to throw off a blitzing defense trying to collapse the pocket on Jackson. Henry made a nifty grab before taking off.
10. Mike Green had a relatively quiet opening week, but his motor stood out in the first padded practice. The Ravens are going to make him earn his snaps behind Oweh, Kyle Van Noy, and Tavius Robinson in the rotation, but his athletic gifts are easy to see.
11. The offense has committed numerous false starts, and it’s a byproduct of wanting to be more dynamic with the cadence. Harbaugh mentioned past coordinators — Greg Roman? — not wanting to work on that early and how the cadence would never evolve. Todd Monken is making it a point of emphasis.
12. With several members of the defense expressing urgency about creating more turnovers, it wasn’t surprising to see a period devoted to stripping the football. However, it was interesting seeing it in the middle of practice rather than the very end, which is when you usually see such drills.
