Ravens T-Camp: Derrick Henry? Yeah, he's still a unicorn...
And more musings from our two days in Owings Mills.
Hello from beautiful Owings Mills, Maryland.
Our travels continued this week with a trip to Ravens County. Be on the lookout for a feature and a column in the future.
Before I hit the road to drive home, here are a handful of thoughts I posted on Substack Notes. A good opportunity to remind everyone to download the Substack app ahead of this 2026 NFL Season. Another awesome way for us all to connect.
Also, once you’ve got the app, you can listen to audio narrations of all stories. A great feature if you want to take in our content on the road or mowing the lawn.
Thank you for making Go Long your home for longform.
Our two-part series on Kyler Murray and the Minnesota Vikings is live for subscribers.
Tuesday Thoughts
Sweet Jesus. There’s something about seeing Derrick Henry up close, man. There is zero comp for this monster. How this running back — who turns 33 (!) years old in January — keeps his body in Peak NFL shape should be made into a book. Or a documentary. Or an entire podcast. We’d devour every word. Training camp isn’t the AFC North In January but the 6-foot-2, 252-pounder still looks damn quick in the hole. Saw him juke one linebacker silly. We should probably remember how potent this offense was in 2024 when both QB and RB were healthy. The Ravens sure haven’t forgotten about losing that divisional playoff game to the Bills.
Lamar Jackson will be playing under center more. Not a foreign concept to him. Obviously new HC Jesse Minter and OC Declan Doyle want to extend Lamar’s peak years. But I think they also see the opportunity at more explosive runs from this play design, too. The QB ripped around the edge of the defense for one touchdown today. Still nobody like him in open space. You don’t want to take that away.
Baltimore may lead the NFL in rushing attempts. Their personnel is strongest at QB, RB and OG. Losing center Tyler Linderbaum is a blow, but fielding a pair of 330-pound ass-kickers at guard sure helps. John Simpson & Vega Ioane play with the Old Ravens, nasty temperament that’s been missing in recent years. Beyond Zay Flowers, at wideout, there are questions.
Defense had an phenomenal day. PBUs, batted balls, picks. No chance this unit starts as poorly as they did last year under Zach Orr. Can’t forget they surrendered 37+ points in each of their first four losses through a 1-4 start.
The Unknown: What does Trey Hendrickson have in him? The Ravens flunked Maxx Crosby on his physical, kept their first-round picks and paid the Bengals’ disgruntled pass rusher. He’s no run stuffer, but that’s OK. If he’s hungry — if he’s the guy who had 35 sacks in ‘23 and ‘24 — Baltimore can hang with any of the elite QBs in the AFC. Hendrickson turns 32 in December.
Ravens dodged a bullet. Cornerback Nate Wiggins — a rising star — was taken off on a cart during practice. It was a scary scene with the team’s head trainer taking time to speak to both GM Eric DeCosta and Minter. Multiple reports suggest no ligament damage. Doesn’t sound like a long-term injury. They can’t lose him. Here’s Minter on Wiggins: “Nate Wiggins is a high-caliber, first round pick corner, great player. You’re not just going to be like, ‘Oh, everything’s the same,’ because it’s built around the talents of the players. I just know that we’ll be able to do things however it shakes out. I feel good about the secondary.”
Cool seeing Ozzie Newsome walking around. He’s still involved, taking in practice daily and talking to DeCosta regularly. Enjoyed chatting with Newsome at length for “Blood and Guts.” Revolutionized the position. One of the true greats whose rise doesn’t get nearly enough attention. (HEY, how did THAT link get there?!)
One common theme I hear? These Ravens — like those Buffalo Bills — sorely needed a breath of fresh air at HC. John Harbaugh has an edge to him, and it’s something the New York Giants need right now. In Baltimore? It was time for someone younger. His message grew a bit stale after 18 seasons. Each roster requires something different. The Bills of 2017 needed Sean McDermott. More you talk to players on each team, the more it’s obvious both changes were needed.
Ladies ‘n gents, there’s a fan favorite: Third-round pick Ja’Kobi Lane. I know, I know. It’s so easy to fall in love with the Wide Receiver Du Jour each August. But it sounds like Lane’s consistently been making plays — a good sign. Baltimore could use a weapon opposite Flowers. Even the kids are all-in. At one point a boy who couldn’t have been older than 12 screamed from the front row: “Ja’Kobi! I’m going to name my firstborn son after you!” Autograph seekers wanted Lane more than anybody. Classic risk-reward prospect out of USC. Caught 49 balls for 745 yards with four scores last fall. Here’s what one scout told our Bob McGinn last April: “Talentwise, he’d be in the third round. But there is some character stuff with him that could drop him a little bit.” (As we learned, risk can be a good thing.)
Tyler Loop was a perfect 7 of 7. What on earth is going through the kicker’s mind each day? His miss ended Baltimore’s season in 2025. His first kick in the clutch this 2026 season will be fascinating. Mental state could swing either direction.
Blocking is back, baby. The Tight Ends Arms Race was on this past offseason. Teams seek the unpredictability. Mark Andrews is still Baltimore’s breadwinner at the position, but expect Doyle to use two or three plenty. Here’s tight ends coach Zack Grossi on the need to block. Music to our Go Long ears:
“Yeah, I think that’s the part for the young guys that is the most foreign to them based on what they had to do in college, based on what we’re asking them to do. And that’s the part where they’re learning the most technique, fundamentals, all the different ways we make Mike points, all the runs. They’re attacking it.
“And look, we have to be able to block in this league as a tight end. We have to be able to win the C gap and all the different places that we put tight ends and we put them on the ball, off the ball. We do two-back runs. We line up as receivers. We do perimeter schemes, all different types of zone schemes, gap scenes. So you have to be versatile and you have to be able to handle different types of blocks.
“We don’t have one-trick ponies and we’re not looking for one-trick ponies in a running game.”
Wednesday Thoughts
Our second day at Ravens camp was fairly uneventful on the field. Minter wrapped up things early.
Afterward, I caught up with safety Jaylinn Hawkins and tackle Ronnie Stanley for a column you’ll see down the line. Figured I’d share a quick quote from each.
Hawkins inked a two-year, $10 million deal with the Ravens after a breakout season on New England’s Super Bowl team. Minter likes utilizing three safeties in his defense, so expect to see Hawkins plenty. Last season, he had 45 tackles, four interceptions and 1.5 sacks.
What will be the identity of this defense? We’ve seen it with the LA Chargers. But now, Minter is in charge of everything. Hawkins views this scheme as simple, yet strategic in nature.
“We want to be violent. Communicating, sound defense,” he says. “All play violent and all attack the ball. Playing violent, well-executed defense. And playing relentless, that’s what we want to be.
“It’s about being sound. And understanding things. When we understand the defense, it allows us to anticipate and play faster.”
Meanwhile, Stanley has been here for 11 years. The only head coach he’s known up to 2026 is John Harbaugh. Now, it’s Minter’s show.
I asked him why a different message was needed here.
His answer:
“I think a lot of those little things is what separates being great from being elite. And I think those things take consistent focus and takes a lot of conscious effort. And I think some of those things show up naturally just from people being who they are and the effort they give. But for it to be like a culture-wide thing, it takes a lot of conscious effort, conscious awareness of what is the focus, what are we trying to value here. Our mentality. The whole thing. I think trying to separate yourself amongst the best — there are very few things that can be differentiators and that is one of those things that can make a difference.”
Thanks, all.
Time to head back to the fam.
We’ll have more for you soon.