Wednesday brought good news in Baltimore, as second round draft pick EDGE David Ojabo finally put pen to paper and signed his rookie deal. Of course, with one player joining the roster, one had to go. That was UDFA WR Trevon Clark:
The Ravens have waived UDFA WR Trevon Clark (California). David Ojabo is back on the roster after signing last night.
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) August 3, 2022
Turning our attention to Training Camp itself, Ojabo may have been lucky he’s unable to practice given the weather on Wednesday.
Today was the most physically grueling day of Ravens training camp so far.
With the heat index at 93 degrees, the Ravens practiced 2 1/2 hours in pads. Several players were cramping up by the end of it.
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) August 3, 2022
This did end up being an issue for a few players, most notably Kyle Hamilton, who left early with cramps. Jeff Zrebiec outlines the situation below:
Ravens first round pick Kyle Hamilton walked to locker room gingerly with about 20 mins left in practice. Hamilton stayed down after making a diving pass breakup. He returned to field for one plat, pulled up and then headed inside with trainers.
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) August 3, 2022
I’m sure many in attendance were worried, but no need to sound the alarms. It is confirmed this was just a matter of cramps for Hamilton.
Perhaps Hamilton’s cramps were holding him up in coverage, as Jamison Hensley highlighted a few key callouts from Wednesday’s practice. Hamilton isn’t put in the best light here:
Ravens’ one-ones:
🏈Isaiah Likely won all 3 battles vs Kyle Hamilton (last one was very tight coverage)
🏈Bateman beat Humphrey on a move to inside
🏈Fuller got beat twice (vs Victor and Bridges)
🏈Jaylon Moore with deep catch vs Denzel Williams— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) August 3, 2022
It was reported that Hamilton had a strong day on Tuesday, but he may have been dealing with some fitness issues yesterday. Kyle Fuller, on the other hand, was beat a few times after looking unimpressive when I attended the stadium practice on Saturday night.
Fuller is a veteran and may be losing his legs a bit, but he will be important depth for Baltimore. If I’m the Ravens, I’m hoping for a Brandon Carr-esque impact out of him.
It wouldn’t be one of my Out to Lunch pieces if I didn’t mention Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, but this time I won’t mention his contract. Instead, it’s worth noting that Jackson’s personal offseason quarterbacks coach Adam Dedeaux has been in attendance for Training Camp.
Dedeaux was back at the Under Armor Facility Center on Wednesday.
Adam Dedeaux (white cap, background) is back for another day of Ravens camp with Lamar Jackson and James Urban (white cap, foreground). pic.twitter.com/dwi4fb4ZXo
— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) August 3, 2022
There are sure to be mixed reactions to this, especially in the media. In my opinion, however, this is a good thing for the Ravens. While James Urban has certainly done a great job with Jackson, you don’t want him getting different instructions from different coaches. Now, Urban and Dedeaux can work in tandem with the shared purpose of improving Jackson’s performance in 2022.
Maybe this strategy is something the Ravens should have considered with Super Bowl winning QB Joe Flacco.
Speaking of Joe, the Ravens legend is off to a hot start this summer, supposedly outperforming second year QB Zach Wilson.
Several reports say #Jets Joe Flacco has out played Zach Wilson in training camp. #TakeFlight
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) August 3, 2022
#Jets head coach Robert Saleh on Joe Cool:
"He should be, in my opinion, he could start in this league. I believe that. … Joe Flacco is a starting quarterback in this league. He's really, really talented." pic.twitter.com/96p62iybcK
— Bobby Trosset (@bobbytrosset) August 3, 2022
I’m not terribly surprised by Flacco looking good early in Training Camp; Veterans typically do well with the pads off, and Watson may have a high number of facets to his game that he’s working on early.
That said, how cool would it be to see Flacco face his former team at Met Life Stadium in Week 1? It’d be a weird game to watch, that’s for sure.
I won’t say Flacco vs. Jackson is likely to occur in September, but I will say it’s very possible. Given Wilson’s performance for NY last year, a poor preseason could easily propel Flacco to a few early starts. Time will tell!
