Happy Friday, Ravens Flock. Thursday was a big news day for the NFL, as the league announced the suspensions of a handful of players due to their gambling on games.
#Colts Isaiah Rodgers and Rashod Berry and FA Demetrius Taylor have been suspended indefinitely through at least the conclusion of the 2023 season for betting on NFL games in the 2022 season, the NFL announced.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 29, 2023
While this doesn’t affect the Ravens directly, it shows how seriously the Shield takes gambling seriously. Many people thought the suspensions were too much, but the truth is that the NFL had to throw the book at these players hard to set an example. You can’t have players gambling on their own sport or while at team facilities, and the NFL already had made an example of Calvin Ridley the year before. Players know the rules, they still broke them, and the league takes a situation like this seriously.
The Ravens play the Colts this year, and McGuire was one of their better corners.
There was another suspension that also played a role in affecting a Ravens opponent:
Titans will likely be without their top RT in London vs. the Ravens. https://t.co/o2lEYLFFqV
— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) June 29, 2023
The Titans already have a sketchy offensive line, and taking away their Right Tackle certainly doesn’t help—another swing in the Ravens’ direction from these suspensions.
That is all we know for now with these suspensions.
Moving on to another topic, Lamar Jackson‘s off-season workout videos….
MVP season loading for Lamar? 👀
(via new_era8/IG) pic.twitter.com/ZHUE6LBjNM
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) June 28, 2023
This looks like your average NFL workout video. It is nice to see that Lamar and Zay Flowers have finally hooked up to practice together, but something interesting caught my eye. Last year Lamar came into camp more muscular than we’d ever seen him:
However, I am wondering if he’s dropped some muscle this year to perhaps play at a lighter weight:
There's no real news with the Ravens this time of year so…
Did Lamar trim down just a bit, maybe 5-10 lbs? I like it. He bulked up for Roman's offense but I don't think he needs to be that muscular now. https://t.co/eBJWwXzhtz
— Huddle It Up Films (@HuddleItUpFilms) June 29, 2023
At first, I thought it was my eyes playing tricks until Huddle it up Films also pointed it out, and this might be a talking point going forward. Did Lamar not feel comfortable with all the extra muscle, so he tried to slim down? Did the extra muscle slow him down last year, so his slimming down is a way to regain his speed? Who knows, but this is something to keep an eye on. Lamar didn’t have as many game-breaking plays with his legs last year, so it is a possibility that the extra muscle might have been slowing him down a bit.
To send us off today, here is a quote where Flowers praises Todd Monken and how he keeps up the energy for his offense:
"I love Coach Todd." @ZayFlowers
Go inside Minicamp in Wired ➡️ https://t.co/Dqg8AxKgkB pic.twitter.com/pJrHlmXelR
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) June 29, 2023
We are living in the best timeline. Ravens Wired is so good, and the media team is always pumping out the best content possible. The change has finally come, and the receivers are finally getting buy-in from the Offense.
What a time to be a Ravens fan.
2 Responses
The Sheild takes gambling seriously? Players knew the rules? Bullpoop! NFL was so unclear, GMs and coaches had to meet with players and clarify the rules, as EDC did. The rules don’t make a lot of sense and apply to staff differently than players. It is anything but clear. Worse, the NFL is guilty of putting this out there. They can’t resist more money from gambling so they participate and make money, and then say they’re “Serious” about gambling.
Want clear and serious? No. sports. gambling. Not home, work or in between. Not on your sport, or any sport. PERIOD! The end. Howz that!
The hype machine is at its worse in June and July