Ravens practice report: Injury scare, interception and medicine balls highlight OTAs

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As practice wound down and the heat pressed on, Ravens players, coaches and staffers clumped together near the edge of a practice field Tuesday afternoon.

It had been another steamy workout, almost two hours in mid-90s heat. And now, coach Jesse Minter was bringing out ... medicine balls. With the team split into offense and defense, the goal was simple: Hurl the ball as far as possible — farther than the teammate next to you.

Rookie wide receiver Elijah Sarratt outdistanced rookie cornerback Chandler Rivers. Then rookie tight end Josh Cuevas beat second-year outside linebacker Kaimon Rucker. In the third and final round, rookie guard Vega Ioane edged rookie outside linebacker Zion Young.

Minter, who at his introductory news conference had underscored the Ravens’ need to “be at our best when our best is needed,” said he ends every practice with a period that reflects that ethos.

On Monday, the Ravens’ first day of organized team activities, they got into a “plank” position for two minutes, testing their core strength. On Tuesday, the losing team in each round was punished with pushups.

“Right now, you can’t really do the football competition, and so I thought it would be something different, something fun,” Minter said. “I try to get guys to not know what’s about to happen and answer the bell when their number’s called, and it’s as simple as that. That’s really all we’re trying to get done with that and make it fun, have the guys pull for each other. I love the energy there.”

The competition made for some spirited moments.

Left tackle Ronnie Stanley was the offense’s most vocal player during the competition, chiding the defense after each win. Quarterback Tyler Huntley rubbed it in after the sweep, looming over some defenders as they did pushups. And rookie wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane punctuated Ioane’s win with a backflip.

“The guys love it,” running back Derrick Henry said. “It’s something different. It gives us a chance to compete against each other and do things together. I think [Minter] just adds a new aspect to the practice and the vision he has for us, and what he sees that will help us get better.”

Injury scare

Henry hasn’t missed a game in his two Pro Bowl seasons with the Ravens. But a collision near the line of scrimmage Tuesday cast a pall, if briefly, over his 2026.

After knocking knees with a teammate in an 11-on-11 drop-back — “live” contact during OTAs is prohibited, but accidents do happen — Henry fell to the grass and grabbed his knee. He remained on the ground as some players knelt around him and an athletic trainer walked over.

After about a minute, Henry got up under his own power and started walking back to the offensive sideline without any help. He rejoined team drills minutes later.

“The ground felt like a bed for a little while,” Henry joked. “And I saw you [reporters] all looking hot and bored, so I was like, ‘I need to give them something to tweet and write about.’”

End zone

• Cornerback Robert Longerbeam, who missed his rookie season after suffering a knee injury midway through training camp, had the Ravens’ best highlight Tuesday. Late in practice, he broke on a pass from quarterback Skylar Thompson, stepped in front of tight end Mark Andrews and ran his interception back 35-plus yards for a touchdown. Longerbeam also helped force an incompletion earlier with tight coverage on Sarratt, who was running a crossing pattern.
• Wide receivers Dayton Wade, a practice squad member last year, and Xavier Guillory, who re-signed with the team in April after being cut last summer, had the afternoon’s best catches. Wade made a tough diving catch over the middle, managing to keep the ball off the grass as he fell. Guillory had his own diving highlight near the end of practice, beating tight coverage on a pass over the middle from rookie cornerback Lardarius Webb Jr.
• Kicker Tyler Loop, whose rookie season ended with a missed 44-yard field goal as time expired in a Week 18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, was 6-for-6. With rookie punter Ryan Eckley holding, he made kicks from 25, 33, 38, 43, 48 and 63 yards, though his final try was negated by a presnap penalty.
• Presnap penalties popped up throughout practice, including a false start on Andrews and an offside on outside linebacker Trey Hendrickson. Both had to leave the field for a play after the infractions.
• Even with quarterback Lamar Jackson absent, wide receiver Zay Flowers looked like the best skill player on the field, getting open regularly on intermediate routes and freezing defenders with his open-field jukes. Wide receiver Devontez Walker also had a handful of catches early in practice.
• Wide receiver LaJohntay Wester, who struggled with his hands in training camp last year, couldn’t bring in a pass on an out-breaking route. Cornerback Marquise Robinson had him closely guarded.
• Tight ends Matt Hibner and Cuevas, and fellow rookies Sarratt and Lane, were all active in the passing game. Sarratt showed good open-field vision on a couple of catches, while Lane earned a few targets during scrambles. His best catch came after Huntley threaded a pass down the seam, just beating converging inside linebackers Roquan Smith and Trenton Simpson.
• Young was one of the draft’s best run defenders, but the second-round pick appeared to lose his leverage on one big run. Lined up over left tackle Diego Pounds, an undrafted rookie who was expected to be a Day 3 pick, Young gave up ground as he engaged the block and soon found himself out of position, clearing a hole for running back Rasheen Ali.
• The voices of some Ravens assistant coaches rose above the rest during practice. Special teams coordinator Anthony Levine Sr. was especially vocal — and prone to onomatopoeia — as he exhorted his players during one drill to play with a requisite level of physicality. And offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford, whom guard John Simpson praised for his teaching of “the smallest little details,” complimented his players for how smoothly they broke the huddle before one play.