Today’s practice was a perfect example of why fans should visit McDaniel College much earlier in Training Camp. The players were lethargic at times and went through the motions a bit this morning. That doesn’t necessarily mean that none of the play was spirited yet it seemed that many have their sights set individually and collectively on the end of camp versus the task at hand which was to prepare to play the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night.
Jonathan Ogden was once again off to the sideline or relegated to the second field as he worked alongside brother Marques with Strength and Conditioning Coach Jeff Friday. Brian Rimpf also ran through a series of delicate leg stretching exercises. B.J. Ward remains sidelined with migraines although one team official did say that Ward was beginning to feel a bit better. Tight end Rob Abiamiri was out again today (leg).
Clarence Moore returned to practice (more on him later) and Haloti Ngata ran with the first team despite showing signs of soreness in his knee yesterday. Today those signs were not nearly as visible. David Pittman practiced and seemed a bit more active today although not nearly 100% just yet.
Early observations during practice: Demetrius Williams continues to impress and is rather fearless in traffic, while continuing to demonstrate a well crafted ability to make tough catches; Brian St. Pierre hit Quinn Sypniewski on a deep sideline route for 25+ yards over linebacker Dennis Haley; Aubrayo Franklin is seeing plenty of time with the first unit and looked impressive on the goal line alongside Haloti Ngata during live red zone drills; Musa Smith showed nice body control and lean in third and short situational plays. “Way to pour it in there 32”, was heard from the collection of players lined behind the offensive huddle .
The defense practiced defending screens, a staple of the Eagles offense; B.J. Dean and Gary Stills nearly tussled but cooler heads prevailed; The Ravens continue to emphasize the hard count and the offensive line has developed discipline in holding their ground; Steve McNair unveiled a new play today during which he faked a pitch left to Jamal Lewis, pivoted and rolled right and hit Todd Heap on an out pattern; McNair’s deep passes were a bit better today than they have been up to this point during camp. Today he placed his deeper throws in places where only his receivers could make a play on them; Jamaine Winborne had a couple of picks today and is pressing for a roster spot. One pick came on a St. Pierre pass intended for Sypniewski that Winborne jumped and returned for 6.
The first team offense again ran through the two minute drill with the ball on the 40 and 1:30 on the clock with a timeout:
1-10-40: Mason false start
1-15-35: McNair to Clayton, 14 yards
2-01-49: Incomplete to Mason (dropped had first down)
3-01-49: QB Sneak, 2 yards (1:04)
1-10-49: Dirt ball
2-10-49: McNair to Clayton 9 yards
3-01-40: Incomplete to Heap (Broken up by McAlister)
4-01-40: Musa Smith, loss of 1 (Bart Scott) (0:30)
The situation was reset with 0:24 left:
1-10-35: McNair to Wilcox, 15 yards (Wilcox could have gone out of bounds but chose not to)
1-10-20: Dirt ball (0:08)
2-10-20: McNair throws it away with no one open (0:03)
Stover 37 yard FG is good
Stover then tried one from 47 and Billick said if he nailed it, practice would be over. The snap was clean, the placement good, the kick was off, a shout of “let’s go home” hung in the air as the ball curled left…….NO GOOD.
Other notables and quotables: It’s easy to see why the Ravens coaching staff and front office are enamored with the possibilities presented by WR Clarence Moore. He is deceptively fast once he gets into gear plus defenders have to adjust to his stature which effectively slows them down and takes them out of gear. The result is a mismatch downfield. If Moore can develop confidence with his hands and physicality he becomes a deep threat and a red zone force (Moore did drop and easy catch in traffic in the end zone later during practice). The trouble with Moore is that he is so one dimensional and offers little value on special teams. Given the heated competition for roster spots, Moore must make plays to secure his place among the final 53 and if he does, that places added pressure on third year third round pick Devard Darling to do exactly the same.
Speaking of Moore, Ray Lewis jumped a short route on a pass that Drew Olson intended for more and nearly picked it off for 6 the other way. Lewis had both hands, arms and torso on the ball and he should have easily intercepted it. After the drop, he kicked the ball through the end zone. Chris McAlister chanted repeatedly, “Give me ten boy!” Whenever McAlister and Ed Reed drop interceptions, they do 10 pushups.
On the very next play during 7 on 7, Olson hit a streaking Romby Bryant down the right sideline on a 40 yard connection. Bryant made a standout play to stay with the ball, adjust and haul it in while falling to the turf. Olson continued as the trigger man on noteworthy plays a bit later during the practice. He was intercepted by Chris McAlister who pitched it to Samari Rolle who then pitched it to Terrell Suggs who continued unabated down the field. Dennis Haley then later made a nice pick on yet another Olson throw.
In red zone activity from the 15, McNair hit Todd Heap at the goal line. McNair delivered the pinpoint pass throw traffic while Heap demonstrated strong hands while holding on for the score…A few plays later Kyle Boller zipped a rocket that cut the air like a razor to Quinn Sypniewski who held on for the score…LB Tim Johnson had the hit of the day laying out Cory Ross on a third and goal from the 1 for a 3 yard loss. The hit brought ooos and ahs from his defensive mates.
“This is a big play defense and you’ve got to make bit plays. It’s pretty cool when you look in the huddle, especially a young guy like me, and look around and see guys you watched play when you were younger.” That was Mike Smith on playing with perennial Pro Bowl defenders.
“More mental than physical” is how Dawan Landry described football in the NFL. He explained that at the NFL level, there are so many great athletes and they are separated by their understanding of the game and the mental aspects that require classroom study and preparation.
