Mike Preston’s Ravens observations on Lamar Jackson and Odell Beckham Jr. getting up to speed, a rookie to watch and more

If the expectations were that Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. were going to light up the field on the first day of minicamp, then Tuesday’s practice was a disappointment.

In the first of three mandatory workouts, the Ravens looked very much like a team trying to learn a system implemented by new offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

Jackson was solid but could have been better, especially during the opening seven-on-seven period. As for Beckham, he practiced like a veteran who has been in the NFL since 2014 and was once considered one of the game’s top players.

He did very little.

Beckham participated in some individual drills but was held out of most of the team-oriented drills.

It was all planned, some of it by Beckham. First of all, Beckham is trying to rebound from a torn ACL that forced him to miss all of last season. Then there is the superstar status. A lot of them don’t participate in offseason team activities, regardless if they are under contract or the practices are mandatory.

“He’s going to be full go as far as health, but I expect us to ramp up,” coach John Harbaugh said. “It will be kind of see as you go.”

That’s logical. There is no sense putting him in danger for a minicamp practice. But there were some flashes of quickness and superb route running that once made Beckham one of the most dangerous receivers in the game.

As for Jackson, it’s going to take him a while to get used to running the offense after operating under former coordinator Greg Roman for nearly his entire NFL career. The Ravens have spent more time developing the passing game, and it’s apparent that Harbaugh wants the offense to work at a faster pace.

Also, on every passing play there is a quick option so that Jackson doesn’t have to hold the ball unless he chooses to do so.

This newfound freedom for Jackson to change plays at the line of scrimmage is a work in progress. Jackson has to be willing to put in more time in meetings and practices to earn that right, and that wasn’t always the case in the past.

Maybe that will change under Monken.

“Lamar has always prepared really hard, but it’s going to be a different type of preparation,” Harbaugh said. “There are going to be different things he’s going to be responsible for looking at. It will be a different lens he’s going to be looking through.”

Don’t fret over offense

I agree with Beckham that there is too much emphasis on learning a new offense. Beckham has been in this offense before as a receiver in Cleveland when Monken was the Browns’ offensive coordinator in 2019.

Football is football. A lot of the plays are the same as they were decades ago, except that each team has its own terminology and style. Winning football still comes down to blocking, tackling, passing and catching. It will never change.

“Conceptually, there are a lot of things where it might have been called this over there and it’s called this over here, so I’m just familiarizing myself with the offense, the playbook, everything,” Beckham said.

Actions speak louder

Harbaugh said this group of receivers might be the best in team history, but that’s nothing to brag about.

The Ravens have Beckham, Rashod Bateman, Nelson Agholor and rookie Zay Flowers, but the Ravens haven’t produced a deep, quality group of receivers since 1996, when they had Michael Jackson, Derrick Alexander and Jermaine Lewis.

Because of the team’s inability to draft a quality No. 1 wide receiver, the Ravens should dampen their enthusiasm about how good this group will become.

Let’s see it on the field first.

Standout plays

The best noncatch of the day belonged to Agholor, who broke cornerback Marlon Humphrey’s ankles on an inside move and left him a couple yards back at the line of scrimmage. Unfortunately, Jackson missed Agholor down the sideline.

The best catch of the day belonged to wide receiver Tylan Wallace, who snagged a one-hander on the right side of the field from backup quarterback Tyler Huntley for a 15-yard gain.

Rookie to watch

Rookie outside linebacker Malik Hamm, an undrafted free agent from Lafayette, continues to impress. The 6-foot-3, 246-pound Baltimore native and City graduate not only has strength and quickness, but a strong motor.

He refuses to stay blocked and has good pursuit. Finding more outside linebackers, especially for special teams, will be a concern for Harbaugh going into training camp.

Left guard intrigue

The Ravens like to rotate offensive linemen, especially on the interior, but rookie Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, a sixth-round pick out of Oregon, took all the repetitions with the starting group at left guard.

He is expected to challenge third-year player Ben Cleveland for the starting left guard spot, but Cleveland is more of a power run blocker and the Ravens will need more speed and quickness in Monken’s offense.

Running back help needed?

The Ravens were without top running backs J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards on Tuesday, as well as starting fullback Patrick Ricard.

Justice Hill was the top running back in practice and Ben Mason took most of Ricard’s repetitions. Dobbins — who sat out with a minor soft-tissue injury — and Edwards were solid last season while returning from major knee injuries, but Harbaugh might want to find some insurance on the waiver wire. There are plenty of veterans available this time of year.

Hill, though, has practiced well while breaking off several cutback runs.

Passing the torch

Veteran defensive tackle Calais Campbell played only three seasons in Baltimore before signing with the Atlanta Falcons earlier this offseason, but he made a long lasting impression with his teammates.

“He’s really loud, if you know what I’m saying,” said defensive tackle/end Justin Madubuike, who’s entering his fourth season. “He was the old vet, but he showed us a lot of great things, and I definitely want to pass that forward and just definitely be a leader by example.

“There’s a lot of young guys asking me questions. They like the way I work; they tell me that. So, I like to inform them about stuff that I was informed of by older guys. I’m just trying to pass it down, but also try to work hard and try to make sure that I’m leading by example and just doing the right things and just focusing on the little details more than anybody else.”

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