Day 17 of training camp kicked off under sunny skies with temperatures in the mid 80’s at the Under Armour Performance Center in Owings Mills.
Players donned full pads once again and kicked off the session engaged in positional drills before getting competing in seven on seven and 11 on 11 team drills.
Missing in Action
OLB Elvis Dumervil, WR Steve Smith Sr., WR Breshad Perriman and RB Lorenzo Taliaferro remain on the physically unable to perform list.
TE Dennis Pitta (sprained thumb), TE Maxx Williams (unknown), CB Sam Brown (unknown), CB Sheldon Price (unknown), CB Kyle Arrington (unknown), S Kendrick Lewis (unknown), TE Daniel Brown (unknown) and OL John Urschel (contusion) did not participate in practice on Wednesday.
RB Justin Forsett, WR Michael Campanaro, C Jeremy Zuttah and OL Marshal Yanda received a veterans’ day off.
Studs of the Day
Terrell Suggs had a standout day in his first full practice back since coming of the physically unable to perform list. The veteran rush linebacker made his presence known from the time the opening horn sounded to the final whistle blew. Suggs, the Ravens all-time sack leader looked quick off the snap in positional drills and during full team activities. He had several QB hurries and finished the day with a pick six off Flacco.
Running with the second and third team defenses, undrafted rookie linebacker Victor Ochi has quietly put together a solid second week of training camp. While he’s still adjusting to the speed of the NFL on a daily basis, the former pass rush specialist from Stony Brook is making progress as a run defender as well. During 11 on 11, Ochi stuffed RB’s Buck Allen and Terrance West in the offensive backfield for losses. Ochi also had pressures on Ryan Mallett and Josh Johnson.
While Clarence Brooks may no longer be at the helm of the Ravens defensive line, it’s clear his teachings have influenced Joe Cullen’s coaching style. Led by Brandon Williams, the defensive front was ferocious throughout the morning practice. From run stuffing to pass rushing, they dominated the trenches. Brandon Williams, Timmy Jernigan, Carl Davis and Kapron Lewis-Moore were relentless running with their respective units. The run game didn’t stand much of a chance during their second consecutive padded practice.
Duds of the Day
The running back corps sans Justin Forsett, turned in their worst performance of training camp. They struggled to hit open running lanes as well as in pass pro and catching balls out of the back field. It’s true the offensive line was missing three starters, but the absences of Zuttah, Yanda and Urschel had nothing to do with the second and third team running backs. Buck Allen, Terrance West, Kenneth Dixon and Stephen Houston had significant drops in the pass game and missed several key blocks while attempting to protect the passer.
As good as Jimmy Smith has looked over the last week of practice, the veteran cornerback struggled for most of the day. Smith had a tough start to practice including his poor performance in one on one cornerback vs. receiver drills. Twice, Smith was burned by tight end Darren Waller for big gains. Secondary coach Leslie Frazier was seen on the sideline coaching Jimmy up following both plays.
Play of the Day
Terrell Suggs easily turned in the Play of the Day during 11 on 11 drills near the end of practice. During a play while practice situational third down scenarios, Flacco dropped back to pass for what he thought was an easy completion to Mike Wallace down the sideline. But as he released the ball, Suggs managed to tip the pass to himself and returned for a touchdown. The play drew the loudest cheers from the fans in attendance all camp.
Other Observations
Secondary coach Leslie Frazier was back at it with the tennis ball drills on Wednesday. The drill, designed for locating the football when in coverage has been well received with those in the secondary. Each member of the defensive backfield took two reps and only Jimmy Smith had a drop. Will Davis secured a one-handed catch and even Terrell Suggs got into the action and also secured a catch.
With Marshal Yanda, Jeremy Zuttah and John Urschel sidelined the first team offensive unit consisted of Ryan Jensen at center, Alex Lewis at left guard and Vladimir Ducasse at right guard at the onset of practice.
Safety Eric Weddle showed his ability to deliver crushing hits when he needs to. During 11 on 11 drills, Weddle administered a big hit on tight end Nick Boyle causing him to drop a pass as the offense was driving down the field. No flag was thrown as the hit was ruled clean.
Jerraud Powers put together a solid practice in the slot corner position. The veteran free agent pickup was effective in coverage while contributing an interception and several pass breakups against the second-team offense.
Brandon Williams showed onlookers just how athletic he can be. Williams, 6-1, 340 pounds was seen walking on his hands for almost ten yards during a down moment in practice.
Rookie cornerback Tavon Young returned to practice and did not appear limited. Young participated in positional and full team drills.
Rookie wide receiver Chris Moore practiced for the second-straight day however was limited to just positional drills. Moore was seen working on the sidelines with Bobby Engram while team drills were going on.
Flachometer
While it’s true that three of his starting offensive linemen were out, Joe Flacco had a rough outing for most of Wednesday’s practice. His throws were off for much of the morning. There were several miscommunication’s between him and his receivers resulting in incompletions. Flacco did throw a nice touchdown pass to Keenan Reynolds who split his defenders however he had some costly interceptions. Both Terrell Suggs and Jerraud Powers recorded picks on the day.
Quote of the Day
Any play I’m not getting the ball, you’re f—–!” Ravens OLB Terrell Suggs to the offensive as he trotted onto the practice field.
On Deck
The Ravens will hold their final day of practice this week tomorrow beginning at 8:45 a.m.. The team will have a closed walk-through on Friday before traveling to Indianapolis to play the Colts Saturday evening.
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