Seven things we learned from Ravens’ mandatory minicamp

A lot of things go on during an NFL practice.

One of them on Thursday included Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey occasionally sidling up to team owner Steve Biscotti as the 63-year-old observed the proceedings from a nearby golf cart. The two have become close since Baltimore drafted the former Alabama standout and future All-Pro 16th overall in 2017.

What were they talking about?

“If I’m really being honest, we were talking about ladies, specifically my lady,” Humphrey said. “He was giving me some advice on love, actually, believe it or not. At football practice, we were talking about love. So, he gave me some good advice there.”

It was a moment of levity at the end of the offseason and conclusion of the three-day mandatory minicamp in Owings Mills, the last time players will be together until the start of training camp in late July.

Of course, there were many more pertinent things to be gleaned from the final practices of the offseason, with the sessions providing a healthy dose of insight and intrigue. Here are the seven things we learned.

1. More drama could be brewing

Just when the Ravens got through one drama (Lamar Jackson’s eventual contract extension), another one could be on the horizon. Running back J.K. Dobbins, who skipped three weeks of voluntary organized team activities, didn’t participate in the mandatory minicamp, either.

While he didn’t explicitly say why, it didn’t take any squinting to read between the lines: Dobbins is in the last year of his rookie contract and wants a new deal.

“The business side is very hard,” he said in an interview with WJZ-TV’s Mark Viviano on Thursday afternoon, shortly after the conclusion of the practice that he did not attend. “The thing I can say is I would love to be a Baltimore Raven for the rest of my career. … I hope that happens.”

While the 2020 second-round pick out of Ohio State declined to say if he’s been battling a soft-tissue injury, coach John Harbaugh didn’t decline to share his thoughts, saying he expected the running back to practice that day, but that it “wasn’t in the cards.”

Coordinator Todd Monken also mused earlier in the week about not having Dobbins on the field to work in the new offense.

“Would we love him to be out here? Of course,” said Monken, who was hired in February. “Would we love him to be able to go through practice and be able to see that? As I told him today, I’m excited. ‘Give me something. Run a swing route. I don’t care. Just jog down the field. Do something. Give me something to get excited about.’ It’s what we do.”

It’s understandable that Dobbins would like a hefty long-term contract — he has a career average of 5.9 yards per carry for one of the league’s best rushing attacks. But he has also missed 27 of 50 regular-season games because of injuries, and the market is practically nonexistent when it comes to teams spending top dollar on the position.

Will Dobbins hold out, or will the two sides come to a peaceful accord?

Harbaugh made it clear he expects everyone at training camp. That includes Dobbins.

2. Is running back depth an issue?

With Dobbins not participating and Gus Edwards limited to drills, Justice Hill got the bulk of the work during minicamp and performed well, with Harbaugh noting that he made the most of his opportunity.

Likewise, Ben Mason saw all the action at fullback with Patrick Ricard headed for the physically-unable-to-perform list as he continues to recover from offseason hip surgery.

But even if all the backs are healthy and happy, it seems likely the Ravens would want to add another one, particularly given the injury history of Dobbins and the 28-year-old Edwards, who tore his ACL in September 2021 and didn’t return until October of last year. They’ll have options if that’s the case.

One of them — undrafted free agent Keaton Mitchell, a 5-foot-8, 179-pound shifty speedster out of East Carolina who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.37 seconds at the NFL scouting combine — is already on the roster. His father Anthony was also a member of the 2000 Ravens’ team that won the Super Bowl.

Though Mitchell flashed his speed during camp, he is something of a long shot. There are also plenty of inexpensive veterans on the free-agent market, including Kenyan Drake, who was on the team last year.

3. There could be a surprise at left guard

One of the more interesting developments was that sixth-round draft pick Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu took the bulk of first-team snaps at left guard.

It said as much about the competition at the position as it did about the ability of Aumavae-Laulu, who played right tackle almost exclusively at Oregon. At 6-foot-5 and 317 pounds, he’s not as big as Ben Cleveland or even John Simpson, but that might be the point with Monken’s offense needing linemen who are fleet a foot more than straight power blockers.

Cleveland, meanwhile, shifted to right tackle and struggled there, too.

The starting job won’t be determined until training camp, but Aumavae-Laulu might have emerged as a possible favorite.

“He has done a great job, and he’s in the mix right now,” Harbaugh said. “One thing we always try to do, and I think this is a little bit rare, we want to see what guys look like with the first group. You can speculate all you want, but if they start doing a good job with the second group or the third group and you feel like they’re up to it, I want to see how that fits. And it looked like it fit well.”

4. Nelson Agholor stood out among receivers

When the Ravens signed veteran Nelson Agholor this offseason, it was hardly the splash that adding Odell Beckham Jr. or drafting Zay Flowers was. After all, the 30-year-old’s career has been marked by inconsistency and he’s had fewer than 500 yards receiving in five of his eight seasons and has never topped 900.

But the 2015 first-round pick out of Southern California, whose resume includes stints with the Philadelphia Eagles, Raiders and New England Patriots, was impressive.

On the first day of minicamp, he got past Humphrey with an inside move and beat him down the sideline, though Jackson missed on the throw. The next day, he beat Rock Ya-Sin on a 10-yard fade to the corner of the end zone, and this time Jackson did connect.

“Nelson is looking great,” Ya-Sin said.

Added Harbaugh earlier in the month: “He has been on point … he’s a talented guy. Former first-round pick; he looks it — rangy, big catch radius. All the things you saw today, I feel like he’s been doing all along.”

Though the pecking order of the top three receivers between Beckham, Rashod Bateman and Flowers is still to be determined, Flowers did have some drops and that will have to be cleaned up. Agholor, meanwhile, had good chemistry with Jackson and figures to be right there with Devin Duvernay, who also had a good camp in his return from a broken foot, for the fourth spot.

From there, things get interesting. The Ravens aren’t going to carry more than six receivers, so the final spot figures to be up for grabs between Tylan Wallace, Laquon Treadwell, James Proche, Shemar Bridges, Andy Isabella, Tarik Black and Dontay Demus.

Wallace didn’t see a lot of action in camp but has already proven a solid special teamer. Treadwell is a veteran and had some strong catches. Bridges wasn’t cleared for team drills, while Isabella’s best work came on the last day of camp when others were absent. Black and Demus are long shots.

As for Proche, he struggled at times. If that continues, he could eventually be the odd man out.

5. Ravens could be thin in the secondary

The Ravens addressed one of their biggest needs this offseason with the addition of Ya-Sin, who worked mostly at the outside cornerback spot opposite Humphrey during minicamp. The top two safety spots are also clear: Marcus Williams and Kyle Hamilton.

But there are myriad questions beyond that.

Simply put, the Ravens don’t have a lot of depth at defensive back.

Cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis will be in the mix for the third spot, but he was limited in minicamp as he continues to work his way back from a hip injury from last year. Damarion “Pepe” Williams didn’t participate and also is dealing with an injury. And Kyu Blue Kelly is a rookie who didn’t face a lot of starters.

Brandon Stephens, meanwhile, was moved to safety but could be all over the field again given his versatility. He’s the most likely to start at nickelback, and Geno Stone will be a contributor again. But it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Ravens bring in a veteran to bolster the secondary, particularly at cornerback.

What the Ravens have in versatility, they lack in depth.

“It’s great to say that we’re interchangeable parts, and that is true, and in the beginning part of the offseason, we do teach everything conceptually, so that guys are just learning X’s,” defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald said. “But as we get going into the fall, we’re going to want to start to slot those things, kind of, more full-time, so guys get used to playing next to guys that they’re going to be [next to] in the game.

“There are some things that are definitely up for competition out there. I think you know the usual suspects out there, and we’re just trying to really just kind of let them cook in there and get used to playing with one another.”

6. There’s pressure on young edge rushers

There’s little question that expectations are high for outside linebackers David Ojabo and Odafe Oweh this year, especially when it comes to generating a pass rush.

They showed flashes through minicamp, too. Expect them to have more freedom to attack the backfield during the preseason.

“We’ve definitely been holding those guys back; it’s a pass-rushing technique camp, but we’re staying away from the quarterback — and we will be in training camp, too, but we’ll have one-on-ones and things like that,” Harbaugh said. “I can’t wait to see those guys roll for the games. Preseason games are going to take on a big-time added interest [with] watching those guys rush the passer.”

As for Tyus Bowser, he worked off to the side on the final day of minicamp with a sore knee, but he is expected back for training camp.

A 2017 second-round pick, the 28-year-old tore his Achilles tendon in January 2022 and didn’t return until November. Having him back healthy will be important to the pass rush.

That said, the Ravens will also likely have an interest in adding another edge rusher.

Justin Houston had a team-high 9 1/2 sacks last season and remains a free agent. Bringing the 34-year-old back would make sense in a lot of ways — if he wants to return.

7. Ravens aren’t lacking confidence

The Ravens enter the summer, at least on paper, as a “very scary” team, as Humphrey put it.

Harbaugh was more tempered in his assessment, but still happy with where they’re at — for the moment.

“The roster is good enough to go play — with no changes — and it’s never so good that it can’t be improved,” he said. “So, if there’s an opportunity, I’m sure that — because that’s how [general manager] Eric [DeCosta] thinks — we’ll make the most of it.”

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