Odell Beckham Jr. loves a big stage, so it was no surprise to see him shine at Saturday's stadium practice.
In his first appearance at M&T Bank Stadium as a Raven, Beckham had his best practice since training camp began on Wednesday. Although his 20-yard touchdown pass from Lamar Jackson was nullified by a holding penalty, it didn't stop the fans from cheering wildly when Beckham got behind Marlon Humphrey and Kyle Hamilton to haul in a pass.
A short time later, Beckham made an acrobatic diving catch on a short toss, showing the hands and body control that have made him a star. After Beckham snared the pass, cornerback Rock Ya-Sin, who was defending on the play, gave Beckham a handshake in appreciation. After all, they're teammates now.
Beckham had some good moments at M&T Bank Stadium during his last visit, then as a Los Angeles Ram. In 2021, he secured a clutch fourth-down catch and scored a game-winning touchdown in the same corner he did Saturday. Now M&T Bank Stadium is Beckham's new home field, and Saturday's practice was another positive welcome-to-Baltimore moment as he continues preparing for the regular season.
"I think Odell has got a really good plan," Harbaugh said. "He had a nice day today. He looks a little better every day. He looked great out there. I expect nothing but classic Odell Beckham Jr. He's a hard worker. He's very conscientious about what he does, so I have no concerns about that at all."
Here are other highlights from Saturday's practice on a sultry summer afternoon:
- Second-year tight end Isaiah Likely added another strong day of practice to his resume. He caught a strike from Tyler Huntley over the middle for a big gain and followed by making his presence felt in the red zone with a touchdown catch on a post route.
- Jackson got upset with himself after missing badly on a throw to Nelson Agholor over the middle. But Jackson bounced back quickly, whipping a sidearm completion to Likely, followed by his connections with Beckham. Jackson and Beckham continued to be on the same page, building on their work together in Florida prior to camp.
- Rookie wide receiver Zay Flowers, who has impressed teammates and coaches with his performance and work ethic since being drafted, missed his second straight practice with an illness and watched from the sideline. Harbaugh said Flowers should return to practice on Monday following Sunday's day off.
- Justin Madubuike, Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo made their presence felt as pass rushers, chasing quarterbacks out of the pocket on several occasions. There were no pads and tackling during this session, but the defense would've had several sacks under live game conditions. On one play, Jackson was left spinning in the backfield with Oweh and Ojabo both bearing down.
- Huntley had his best day throwing since training camp began and spread his completions among different receivers.
- Former Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith attended practice and caught up with Beckham afterward.
- With J.K. Dobbins (PUP) missing another practice, Justice Hill took advantage of his touches, making several nice cuts on running plays and circling out of the backfield to snag a flair pass. Gus Edwards also got involved in the passing game, catching a pass in the flat.
