And That’s a Wrap on Training Camp

It was family and friends day today during camp at 1 Winning Drive on Saturday, and shortly into practice, Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family” played over the loudspeaker. For some Ravens players, that family is getting a little bigger, as at John Harbaugh’s press conference, it was announced that DL Brent Urban and his wife welcomed a baby:

Head Coach John Harbaugh congrats @urbanlegend96 on his family’s new addition: pic.twitter.com/FJBKxMGh7U

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 19, 2023

Congrats to the Urbans from all of us at RSR.

On the field, the practice seemed a little less intense than others, but there was still plenty of excitement for the fans. One new addition garnered a lot of eyes in his first time on the field at The Castle:

A look at Jadeveon Clowney’s first practice with the Ravens pic.twitter.com/RZsFYBBuO6

— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) August 19, 2023

He didn’t get a ton of action – and reasonably so – but Clowney looks quick out the gate. The veteran still looked to be in great shape, though his frame was much thinner than I’d expected. For someone with both inside and outside flexibility, Clowney wasn’t the biggest, but he’s earned the excitement with his track record.

In 11-on-11 drills, the offense certainly didn’t have its sharpest day, but some spectacular plays toward the end kept spirits high:

It wasn’t all pretty, with Jackson missing Beckham and others a few times deep who had a step or more on his defender, but the few deep completions were good to close out with.

— Kyle Phoenix Barber (@KylePBarber) August 19, 2023

One such shining moment came from Odell Beckham Jr., who reached out behind his head for a signature one-handed grab, not unlike the one that propelled him into the spotlight with the Giants:

Practice has ended in Owings Mills.

Holy Odell Beckham Jr.

Lamar Jackson connected with him deep and he hit the trademarked one-handed catch behind his head. It’s only family and friends day and the crowd roared

— Kyle Phoenix Barber (@KylePBarber) August 19, 2023

It was tough to tell if OBJ kept himself inbounds while completing the catch, but the chains moved, so we’ll have to count it! After the camp finale, Harbaugh quipped that this sort of play shouldn’t be a surprise:

John Harbaugh was asked whether Odell Beckham Jr.’s catch today was his best one-handed grab since he joined the Ravens.

“That’s kind of his thing,” Harbaugh said. “Did you know that?”

— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) August 19, 2023

He went on to note that all he cares about is whether the catch is made.

On top of Beckham’s spectacular catch, the longest connection was between Lamar Jackson and Rashod Bateman, who’s still working his way back to speed. He looked fully fit on Saturday, blowing by his defender to snag a pretty, deep ball in stride. Bateman may not have scored, but he reminded fans of why he’s a former first-round pick.

Check out the play here, courtesy of the Ravens:

Lamar Jackson and Rashod Bateman, together again at last pic.twitter.com/WoANUlDVf6

— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) August 19, 2023

[Related Article: Tough Decisions Loom For Players, Front Office]

Lastly, my favorite camp highlight came from Jackson and this year’s top pick, Zay Flowers. Very late in practice, Jackson escaped pressure by backing out of the pocket, backpedaling to his left and tossing a beautiful deep ball to Flowers.

The receiver was streaking down the sideline, leaking behind CB Tae Hayes on the broken play, and he easily hauled in Jackson’s pass for the longest touchdown of the day.

Noteworthy action was limited on Saturday, but one name to look out for is Dontay Demus, who quietly made a few tough grabs. The first, which seemed to kickstart things on offense, was a back-shoulder catch from Josh Johnson. The receiver did a great job of boxing out Marcus Williams along the sideline and finished the play with a cradled one-handed catch while staying in bounds.

Later in practice, Demus caught a short pass after being bumped off stride at the start of the route by a linebacker. Playing through the contact fired up many on the offense, and it prompted Nelson Agholor into shouting “and one!” in excitement.

To reiterate, Saturday wasn’t the Ravens’ best practice.

But it certainly had its moments!

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