With the Ravens still ramping up and not yet practicing in full pads through the first three days, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. The play of the first few practices was Thursday’s gorgeous deep ball from Lamar Jackson to Rashod Bateman with two defenders converging in coverage. The 50-plus-yard completion reminded of the vertical success those two unlocked last season, which helped take this offense to a different level.
2. Nate Wiggins was arguably the best player on the practice field Friday as he blew up back-to-back plays near the line of scrimmage early and also registered multiple pass breakups. For what it’s worth, the defense has enjoyed the upper hand through the first three days of practice overall.
3. Though still in the honeymoon phase after signing with Baltimore last month, Jaire Alexander said he’s “in love” with the organization and city and appears to have a personality that meshes very well with Marlon Humphrey. “I thought I was weird, but I don’t know. He might [have] me beat.”
4. The day after John Hoyland went a perfect 9-for-9 handling all the field goal tries, Tyler Loop went 10-for-10 on Friday, which included a 63-yard attempt that drew much applause. The rookie kicker even received a high five from John Harbaugh. So far, so good for both.
5. Increasingly confident, Malaki Starks is beginning to make plays on the ball with Kyle Hamilton saying the rookie’s “miles ahead” of where he was in his first camp. Starks called that “generous” and complimented Hamilton’s football intellect. “You think you know football until you get around people who know football.”
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6. Harbaugh cited “an abundance of caution” when discussing DeAndre Hopkins being held out of practice after falling on his knee during Wednesday’s workout, so it was good to see the veteran receiver back on the field Friday. He made a nice sliding catch during a 7-on-7 period.
7. Chidobe Awuzie was suited up for Friday’s practice, but he didn’t appear to take part in any 11-on-11 or 7-on-7 drills. It looked like he might have been favoring something late in Thursday’s workout, but Harbaugh said the veteran corner was “fine” after practice.
8. Asked whether he’d entertain contract extension talks during the season, Tyler Linderbaum predictably deferred to his agent handling his business. “My job is to be as prepared as possible and get this football team ready to go Week 1, so that’s all I’m really worried about.”
9. Humphrey has repeatedly stated the Ravens’ need to create more turnovers after finishing 20th in the NFL with only 17 last season. After coming away with three interceptions on Thursday, the defense didn’t have any the following day, but there were multiple tipped passes and breakups.
10. Kyle Van Noy described his offseason as “interesting” while downplaying whether that meant pondering retirement. “There’s just other situations where I feel like I’m very valuable, and some people think I’m more valuable than others.” After a career-high 12 1/2 sacks, the 34-year-old is making $3.75 million in 2025.
11. The pads won’t come on until Monday, but Friday brought the first real test from a conditioning standpoint with temperatures climbing into the mid-90s in Owings Mills. Though Hamilton appeared to be dealing with a little bit of leg cramping near the end of practice, players held up well.
12. Reiterating Jackson’s comments from the first day, I’ll point out some start-of-camp wisdom from J.J. Watt to remind how limited observations and stats from training camp can be. Different players at different stages of their careers have different objectives, especially early in training camp.
