{"id":11579736,"date":"2025-07-25T17:10:44","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T21:10:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/?p=11579736"},"modified":"2025-07-25T19:02:16","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T23:02:16","slug":"ravens-observations-training-camp-lamar-jackson-mike-green-nate-wiggins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/25\/ravens-observations-training-camp-lamar-jackson-mike-green-nate-wiggins\/","title":{"rendered":"Ravens observations: New-look secondary strapping in, standing out"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ravens coach John Harbaugh isn\u2019t looking ahead just three days into training camp.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not too big picture right now,\u201d he said Friday. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot of little things.\u201d<\/p>\n

But on a day when the temperature soared near triple digits in Owings Mills, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson\u2019s accuracy was a tad cold on some of those little things. To borrow from A.I., the great philosopher and former NBA star Allen Iverson, it\u2019s just practice.<\/p>\n

If there\u2019s a player coaches and teammates aren\u2019t worried about, it\u2019s the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, who is coming off career highs in touchdown passes and passing yards.<\/p>\n

Jackson also, of course, did make some nice throws, connecting with Rashod Bateman on a couple of passes over the middle in 11-on-11 play. New receiver DeAndre Hopkins<\/a> also bailed him out twice, pulling in one crossing throw that was slightly behind him as he had a step on cornerback Jaire Alexander<\/a> and then making a sliding grab on an off-the-mark throw during 7-on-7 work with cornerback T.J. Tampa trailing.<\/p>\n

The only player to throw for at least 4,000 yards and rush for at least 900 in the same season, Jackson also had a nifty run in which he faked the toss one way then broke the other, leaving the edge defender in his wake.<\/p>\n

Unlike earlier in the week, when Jackson was able to connect with Bateman on a 60-yard touchdown with the receiver getting behind Nate Wiggins, the two were unable to link up on a similar play this time. Bateman had a step on Wiggins again, but with the ball underthrown, the speedy corner was able to close the gap and swat it away.<\/p>\n

As Bateman came to a jog, he extended his arms, a signal for Jackson to get the ball deeper as he had earlier in the week.<\/p>\n

Where’s Mike Green?<\/h4>\n

A year ago, Mike Green led college football with 17 sacks. Through the first few days of camp, the controversial edge rusher out of Marshall who fell to the second round because of a pair of sexual assault allegations<\/a> is still looking for his first.<\/p>\n

It’s early, but he hasn’t been close to getting to the quarterback, no matter who has been in.<\/p>\n

On one play Friday, Green raced into the backfield only to get gobbled up by undrafted rookie fullback Lucas Scott. On another, he got off the line quickly and sped by rookie fifth-round tackle Carson Vinson, but the former Alabama A&M standout still kept him away from the quarterback on what should have been a pressure, if not a sack.<\/p>\n

\"Baltimore
Ravens linebackers Mike Green, left, and Chandler Martin run a drill Friday. Green has struggled to make an impact thus far at practice. (AP Photo\/Stephanie Scarbrough)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Green’s speed and quickness are obvious, but so far he hasn’t registered more than maybe a single pressure.<\/p>\n

On Monday, players will be in pads for the first time. Green, who is expected to be a significant contributor in Baltimore’s pass rush this season, will be worth watching to see if he’s able to dial it up.<\/p>\n

Tyler Loop\u2019s best day<\/h4>\n

Tyler Loop has kicked at two of three training camp practices, sandwiching a scheduled day off Thursday, and has been perfect both days. But Friday\u2019s session featured the first real look at the rookie\u2019s boot, as he connected from 60-plus yards out.<\/p>\n

Loop first took four attempts in red zone situations. The offense would run a play, then trot out the field goal unit. Those were all inside 25-yard attempts. After that, Loop ripped one kick after another.<\/p>\n

He nailed five tries between 30 and 45 yards, inching back with each effortless make. Then came the real test. Loop fired a kick from 63 yards away off the right hash. It split the uprights with a few extra yards to spare, much to the delight of his teammates, coaches and the onlooking fans suffering through the July heat.<\/p>\n

The Ravens also said on their team website that Loop converted a 68-yard attempt<\/a> on the opposite field on a non-team drill.<\/p>\n

After a solid, but not overly impressive minicamp and OTAs, which included one 60-plus-yard miss, Friday was Loop\u2019s best kicking day of the offseason\u2019s open practice portion.<\/p>\n

\"Baltimore
Ravens rookie kicker Tyler Loop has been perfect so far in training camp, including a 63-yard field goal Friday. (AP Photo\/Stephanie Scarbrough)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Strap in<\/h4>\n

Whether Jaire Alexander invented it is up for debate. But during the veteran cornerback\u2019s time in Green Bay, he certainly popularized what is known colloquially as the seatbelt celebration. The hand-across-the-chest move that mimics strapping in a seatbelt \u2014 a reference to strapping down a receiver \u2014 is popping up in the early days of Ravens camp.<\/p>\n

Alexander debuted it Wednesday after breaking up a pass from backup Cooper Rush. On Friday, Marlon Humphrey whacked the ball out of tight end Isaiah Likely\u2019s hands, stood up and promptly clipped the imaginary seatbelt to his waist.<\/p>\n

Then Wiggins, on his second pass breakup of a productive practice, did the signature celebration alongside Alexander.<\/p>\n

Safety Kyle Hamilton was asked if he might get in on the big play f\u00eate. He thought about it for a second and decided maybe if it was a crazy play. Either way, the All-Pro safety has enjoyed the extra juice.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe probably needed some of that,\u201d Hamilton said. \u201cGuys can be a little eccentric at times. I\u2019m more even keeled so I need that brought out of me a little bit. Jaire does that for us. Everybody follows his lead when it comes to the energy. He\u2019s only been here three practice days but everybody can feel the difference with him here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Miles ahead of where I was\u2019<\/h4>\n

Hamilton was the 14th overall draft pick in 2022 and finished his rookie year with the highest Pro Football Focus grade by a first-year Ravens defender in the previous 16 years. He ascended to All-Pro status by his sophomore season and has been awarded two Pro Bowl bids in three seasons.<\/p>\n

Hamilton believes that first-round pick Malaki Starks is \u201cmiles ahead of where I was at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne, he\u2019s just uber-talented,” Hamilton said of the former Georgia star. “He does amazing stuff without even trying and probably doesn\u2019t even know that he\u2019s doing it. He\u2019s just so instinctual. And he\u2019s that little holding him back but that\u2019s just cause he hasn\u2019t been in it a long time. Once that clicks, he\u2019ll be a great player.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hamilton said that his rookie counterpart knows the playbook better than he did at that time, he\u2019s confidently talking through plays and he\u2019s a sponge in meeting rooms.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s generous,\u201d Starks said with a smile.<\/p>\n

Starks hauled in his first interception of training camp Thursday, his first time picking off Jackson. Beyond the one highlight, he\u2019s looked comfortable in live situations. Starks said that he often goes right to Hamilton trying to make sense of different scenarios.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s so smart,\u201d said Starks, who himself was lauded for his football IQ<\/a> throughout the draft process. \u201cYou think you know football until you get around people who know football and you realize you don\u2019t know that much about football.”<\/p>\n

Wiggins stands out<\/h4>\n

If there was a player the day belonged to, it was Wiggins.<\/p>\n

In the first 11-on-11 period, he broke in on a short pass to Anthony Miller and nearly intercepted Jackson. A moment later, he crashed in to blow up a sweep play.<\/p>\n

Later, he tracked down Bateman on Jackson’s deep ball and easily poked it away.<\/p>\n

Even with adding a few pounds, the listed 182-pound Wiggins is still rail thin, but he has been sticky in coverage and can fly.<\/p>\n

“I think he’s gonna be one of the best in the league,” Hamilton said. “He’s one of those guys that’s not afraid to line up against whoever.<\/p>\n

“Today especially, he’s competing at a high level. He’s done that the past three days. … I think he’s probably gonna have one of the bigger jumps from last year to this year than anybody on the team.”<\/p>\n