PM Notes
Just when Adam Terry starts to get comfortable, he is uprooted.
After only three training camp practices at right tackle, the position where Terry is scheduled to start this season, he finds himself back on the left side once Jared Gaither was sidelined with an ankle injury.
Of course, Terry is no stranger to moving from right to left, left to right.
He just didn't think it would happen so soon.
"It's just like riding a bike," Terry said with a laugh. "It's unfortunate that Jared got hurt yesterday, because he started off well. But, we have a program to build, a team to build."
A second-round draft pick out of Syracuse in 2005, Terry was Jonathan Ogden's backup at left tackle before he matured into the starting right tackle role last season.
But when Ogden was felled by a painful toe injury in the opener, Terry again switched positions one quarter into the game, while Marshal Yanda took over at right. Terry's tumultuous season, which was marred by an ankle injury, eventually saw him starting four contests at each spot.
"I had no choice," he said of the quick-change, which has been compared to writing with either hand. "I did it in Cincinnati, in a live game. Doing that when you're under fire helps you."
Now, a combination of Ogden's retirement, the offseason maturation of Gaither - a 2007 supplemental draft pick - and Yanda's slide inside to right guard made Terry an easy choice to man right tackle again.
That is, as long as everybody is healthy - something that can't even be said about Terry.
The 6-foot-8, 330-pounder is still working to regain confidence in the ankle that kept him out of three games last year. He had surgery in January, and claims that the more he plays, the better it will feel.
"It's just knocking off the rust right now," Terry explained. "You just have to take care of it when you get some time off. I think it's just usage. It's only going to help me during the season."
With Terry protecting Joe Flacco, Kyle Boller or Troy Smith's blind side, the Ravens turned to Mike Kracalik at right tackle.
And even though Terry said he is comfortable in either situation, he did admit that the right side was beginning to feel like home.
"As I'm getting older, I'm starting to learn more about the game," said the 25-year-old. "It's a little easier. On the right side, there are still some things I need to work on. In the run game, Marshal and I have started clicking well.
"We're going to have to keep working."
It is just a matter of where the work will occur.
Here are some notes and observations from Sunday's afternoon session:
- A thunderstorm threatened Westminster for most of the day, but McDaniel College only got a light shower right before the second practice, which forced proceedings down to the Bair Stadium artificial turf.
Then, about 30 minutes after the final horn, the skies opened up in a deluge of rain. Good timing, clouds.
- Linebacker Edgar Jones had a nice showing during some "thud" portions, popping tight end Adam Bergen as he tried to catch a pass and crunching Aaron Walker near the sideline.
Later, Jones put a nifty move on tackle Oniel Cousins to disrupt the backfield for what would have been a sack in 11-on-11 action.
- The list of DNPs added defensive tackles J'Vonne Parker and Haloti Ngata. Ngata was carted off the field in the early session, but his injury isn't known yet.
- Fans applauded when Flacco hit Derrick Mason about 25 yards downfield, where "Mase" made a leaping grab over the middle. The duo seemed to be clicking today, as each offered words of encouragement to the other.
That is, until the first play of seven-on-seven work. Flacco thought Mason was going to cut out earlier than the wideout did, and the errant pass was intercepted by Fabian Washington for what would have been a touchdown.
For Monday:The Ravens will practice at 8:45 a.m. and hold a special teams practice at 2 p.m. Fans, please note that due to mandatory post-practice weightlifting sessions, some Ravens players, based on positional groups, will not be available for interviews or autograph signings on certain days during training camp.
Offensive and defensive linemen will lift Monday. Click here for a full schedule. Other players may also be unavailable post-practice in addition to those lifting because of meetings with position coaches, treatment, etc.
AM Notes
Rookie running back Allen Patrick may have received his "Welcome to the NFL" moment Sunday morning.
During a full-contact drill, the seventh-round draft pick hit the center of the offensive line looking to come out on the other side.
Bart Scott had other ideas.
Scott came rocketing into Patrick so hard, the linebacker's own helmet flew off. As the "MadBacker" and the rest of the defense fired each other up, it was clear that Baltimore's defense is enjoying the intensity of head coach John Harbaugh's training camp.
Harbaugh thinks the offense can match that feeling.
"They've all got the same expectations," he said of the units. "They're all competitors. The more they realize that, the better I think we're going to be."
While it is typical of the defense to be further along than their counterparts this early in the preseason, especially since the Ravens are installing a completely new offensive system as opposed to Rex Ryan's familiar defense, both sides can benefit from the heated competition.
"We just practice realizing that if the offense is going to get better, we're going to have to turn it up," Scott said. "If the defense is going to get better, the offense is going to have to challenge the defense.
"Together, we can get better as a team because it's going to take a whole team to be able to do this thing. No one side can take us to the promised land."
As Scott surmised, this version of Ravens camp is not much different than what he's seen in the past, but more live periods and a constant eye on the running game clock have ratcheted up the energy in each session.
Harbaugh said he will continue to hold full-contact sessions throughout training camp, but reserves the right to switch things up if he needs an energy adjustment.
"It's not like we've got to see a certain amount, and then we're going to stop doing it," explained the coach. "They're scheduled all through training camp. I'm sure there will be times when one is scheduled and we feel like either the numbers aren't right or it's just not something we want to do.
"Or there might be times where it's scheduled to be a 'thud,' and we might say, 'You know, we need to liven that one up because we need to get better in a certain area at something.' We're not locked into anything. It's day-to-day."
Here are some more notes and observations from Sunday's morning practice:
- Ravens fans and players went silent when defensive tackle Haloti Ngata fell to the ground during a live-hitting drill. He had to be helped up and carted off the field. It is still too early to tell how serious the injury is.
"We've got to find out as we go," said Harbaugh.
- Several starters were held out of practice. Left tackle Jared Gaither and running back Willis McGahee all sat out, joining first-string safety Ed Reed, who has yet to take the field in training camp.
In addition, wideout Demetrius Williams, cornerbacks Corey Ivy and David Pittman, running backs P.J. Ross and Cory Ross, tight end Daniel Wilcox, linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo, and guard/tackle David Hale did not participate.
Defensive tackles Trevor Pryce and Kelly Gregg were on the sideline as part of Harbaugh's "Over 30 Club," where some of his senior players will rest in certain practices.
The good news was that Chris McAlsiter was back in the secondary after missing the previous two days.
- With kicker Matt Stover taking a rest, rookie free agent Piotr Czech was on field goal duties. Czech had a solid outing on Saturday, but he missed two attempts Sunday morning, sailing one wide left and banging another off the right goal post. In Czech's defense, the one that went left was a 52-yard try.
- For the third consecutive day, safety Haruki Nakamura came up with an interception, picking a Joe Flacco attempt to Kerry Reed.
Nakamura has been playing so well of late that he was promoted to the first-team defense in Reed's absence.
- Jim Leonhard, Ronnie Prude and McAlister also notched interceptions. Prude's was close enough to the goal line that he waltzed in for a touchdown.
- During a special teams portion focusing on blocking for kicks, recently-signed tight end Aaron Walker was chastised by Harbaugh for not giving his full effort running downfield on the scout team.
"You're on the wrong team to be coming like that," said the coach.
