Maryland’s OWINGS MILLS Usually, the Baltimore Ravens want their rookie offensive lineman to prove they deserve to be at the top of the depth chart. A rookie lineman has rarely been declared a starter from the start, such as in 2016 when they selected left tackle Ronnie Stanley with the sixth overall pick and in 2022 when they selected center Tyler Linderbaum with the 25th pick.
When the Ravens picked offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten with a second-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the team’s decision-makers made plain that they believed the former Washington standout was capable of starting right away, but he surely wasn’t going to get handed the job.
With the team less than two full weeks into training camp, Rosengarten got his first extended look as the starting right tackle in Thursday’s practice. And it doesn’t figure to be a one-day thing, either.
“I thought Roger has been doing well,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Thursday. “I thought he deserved a shot with the ones, you saw him get a shot with the ones today. So, we’ll just keep working through that and let it play out.”
Harbaugh said initially that he’d love to have his starting offensive line set within the first few weeks of camp. He acknowledged that may not be realistic as Baltimore looks to fill three openings following the free-agent departures of starting guards Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson and the trade of right tackle Morgan Moses.
It seems like Andrew Vorhees has a strong grasp on the role of left guard. According to Harbaugh, the team is still in the midst of giving Daniel Faalele a thorough examination at right guard. Prior to Rosengarten and Patrick Mekari mixing it up on Thursday, Mekari, an experienced player, was a mainstay at right tackle.
Over the course of five NFL seasons, Mekari has made 36 starts with the Ravens, primarily at the tackle position in recent years. His versatility in playing all five offensive line positions helped him establish himself as an extremely important asset up front.
The Ravens have consistently declared that they will start their starting five offensive lineman. The right tackle selection, meanwhile, may depend on how highly they regard Mekari in his role as the sixth offensive lineman and how much they think Rosengarten would gain from not having to play a lot of snaps straight away.
“It’s certainly part of the challenge,” Harbaugh said when asked how Mekari’s importance as the team’s sixth offensive lineman will be weighed with getting the best five on the field. “That’s part of it. His greatest strength is his versatility. It’s also … a thorn in his side a little bit. He doesn’t get the chance always to lock down at one position. That’s a good problem to have, and we’re trying to work through that, too.”
Mekari, for his part, has no plans to run for a starting position.
“I just want to play, and I want to help the team,” he said Thursday. “In whatever way that looks like, that’s up to the coaches and front office. That’s for them to decide.”
Beating the heat
Harbaugh made a few changes because the Ravens are in the middle of a six-day practice stretch and the field temperature was close to 100 degrees.
The special teams portion of practice was performed indoors in Baltimore. Before practice began, the majority of players who do not play on special teams warmed up inside. In addition, Harbaugh called practice roughly 20 minutes ahead of schedule.
“We decided we wanted to shorten up a little bit of the time that they were out here with the humidity and everything,” Harbaugh said. “I think it helped.”
While wearing pads, Harbaugh thought the Ravens’ players performed admirably given the circumstances. Everyone seemed to have concluded practice, with the exception of guard Ben Cleveland, who left the field to be tested for a possible concussion.
A little altercation occurred when rookie offensive lineman Julian Pearl, who was not selected, shoved outside linebacker Quincy Roche and a few other defenders. However, cooler heads won out, and the conflict swiftly ended.
Other thoughts, observations
• Lamar Jackson’s desire to increase his accuracy with the deep ball this season has been discussed and written about extensively. Jackson did not have the best day in that sense on Thursday, but it was not all his fault. He made a very great throw down the far sideline in addition to a couple of overthrows. But Rashod Bateman, who had Brandon Stephens covering him effectively, had the ball bounce off his extended hands. Jackson gave tight end Mark Andrews room to move up and make a play on another deep pass. Although Andrews had the ball in his hands, it popped out of his grasp as he struck the ground and fell into safety Kyle Hamilton’s lap for an interception.
👀🤫 @kyledhamilton_ pic.twitter.com/Mi5hinhZVT
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 1, 2024
• One of the standouts of training has been Hamilton’s one-on-one duel with tight end Isaiah Likely. On Thursday, Hamilton defeated Likely in two reps. Most likely made a mistake on the first one. In order to induce an incompletion on the second one, Hamilton ran the tight end stride for stride. The undrafted rookie Dayton Wade breaking loose from Damarion Williams and Bump Cooper Jr. to make two catches, Andrews making a sliding catch against a well-positioned Eddie Jackson, Arthur Maulet breaking up a diving pass against Malik Cunningham, and Keith Kirkwood shakin’ up Ka’dar Hollman to make a deep catch were among the other highlights of the one-on-one session. For tight end Scotty Washington, who had two drops and a third, it was a bad time.
• One of the unsung heroes who contributes to the versatility of the Ravens’ defense, in their opinion, is linebacker Malik Harrison. Baltimore gave re-signing him top priority this offseason for a reason. Harrison plays strong-side linebacker on early downs, setting the edge against the run and being tough with running backs and tight ends in addition to being a vital member of the special teams unit. Harrison is a strong backup inside linebacker for the team as well. The 26-year-old had his best day to date during what has been an extremely impressive start to camp. He has received reps at both places throughout the summer. He reached up to intercept a mid-field ball from Josh Johnson. Rasheen Ali, a rookie, fumbled, but he also retrieved it. Kane
• Wide receiver Tylan Wallace produced the game’s best offensive play, making a challenging catch of a Jackson pass with safety Marcus Williams and cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis pursuing him. Following the contact, Wallace regained his composure and made his way to the end zone for a score. In his quest to secure a job as a reserve receiver, Wallace has had a rather quiet start to training camp. He did, however, make the squad the previous season thanks to some impressive preseason play. He will have that chance once more this year.
go OFF @OfficialTylan2 pic.twitter.com/3IrpabbNZU
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 1, 2024
• Aside from that, Armour-Davis had one more exceptional practice. In their one-on-one, he pressured Wallace into an out-of-bounds infraction. During practice, Armour-Davis was also in a good position for two or three more incompletions. More than anybody else on the team, the third-year cornerback who has had trouble staying healthy has likely improved his situation over the first two weeks of training camp.
• Just as the quarterback was getting rid of the ball on the opening play of full-squad practice, Travis Jones got a step on Vorhees and touched down Jackson for a sack. Jones is hosting an incredible camp. He has greatly increased awareness at Owings Mills and is expected to play a big part on defense.
(Photo: Nick Wass / Associated Press)
