Head Coach John Harbaugh
Opening statement:"Welcome! Good to see everybody here. Appreciate you guys being here. We had a great day today, good work day coming off the game. As you saw, we had a guest speaker, Col. Greg Gadson, who is a friend of mine from visiting Iraq a number of years ago, and fought in the surge with Gen. [Raymond] Odierno, and that's how we got to know each other. He had just a tremendous message, tremendous message to our team, so that was a good finish to a great day. What do you have?"
What was his message? (Jamison Hensley) "He talked about what it means to be a team, and he talked about the essence of being part of a team is about trust, being able to trust one another. He told his story, which is just a tremendously heroic story, and talked about living every moment, being in every moment, in that moment, and not living in a moment you're not in. That's the one thing I remember: Don't live a moment you're not in. We can take that one with us."
It seemed like WR Marquise Brown took a step today, getting some full-team work in. How do you think he handled that, and how do you think he has progressed? (Luke Jones) "It seemed good. Yes, I was really happy with it. You never know, and the trainers kind of gauge it, and they were just telling me, 'We'll see how he does, how much he can handle,' and it seemed like he handled quite a bit. He was out there in quite a few drills, and we'll see how he responds tomorrow with that. It's a good first step. We're all happy to see it."
Any chance of him WR Marquise Brown participating or playing Thursday? (Jamison Hensley) "I don't know. It's up to the trainers and the docs, and we'll see."
Asking about a couple absences – WR Seth Roberts, RB Kenneth Dixon, CB Maurice Canady – were they from the game? (Bo Smolka) "Yes, just little things. Nothing that will keep anybody out for too long. I don't remember off the top of my head what they were. Seth just told me there that he'll be back pretty quick, within a week or so. That's what he said. The docs said it was maybe two or something, but nothing serious."
Any other serious injuries from that game? (Jamison Hensley) "Michael Onuoha had a broken wrist. He did have a broken wrist, and that'll keep him out for a little while."
It looks like QB Robert Griffin III is moving around more. Do you have any updates on his progress? (Aaron Kasinitz) "It's all the thumb. He can move 100-percent. I see him throwing a little more. He has the protective device on his thumb, so it's just a matter of gripping the ball. He won't be able to do anything until that fracture heals, which is a timeframe. I think it's three-to-four weeks before it even heals, and then we'll work from there. We anticipate the first week of the season, if all goes well."
What have you seen out of OLB Shane Ray, a former first-round pick in your camp right now? (Jamison Hensley) "I see physicality. He's a big guy. He has a pass-rush knack, very good hands, very good motor, especially rushing the passer, and he's physical. And, he showed that in the game."
You talked after the game and said of the pass rushers, "I thought they all played well. I'm going to wait to watch the tape to see the little things." When you watched the tape, what stood out when you saw the little things? (Bo Smolka) "I thought Jaylon Ferguson got to the quarterback a few times. His use of hands, he's kind of slippery in there. Tyus [Bowser] was slippery. Timmy [Williams] had some good rushes, quick rushes. They were all physical. We talked about Shane [Ray] already that way. I thought they all did a good job. It was good pressure from the edges, and they all ran some of our picks and twists really well, too."
The buzz around TE Mark Andrews seems to be increasing by the day. Does he hear it? (Bobby Trosset) "Does he hear it? Probably." (laughter) (Reporter: "And if he does, how do you handle that?")"I think guys like this, these guys, they've been around. They've played at the Oklahomas and Alabamas and those places – they're used to it – Notre Dame. These guys have played in front of big crowds with a lot of press, a lot of national media. They're kind of used to it, I think, and I think they take it well."
When you redesigned the offense this offseason, was there any consideration given to how you wanted to teach it to these guys so that they could ramp up during training camp? How important is that to have an offense that is understandable? (Jonas Shaffer) "Very important. That was the main thing – how are we going to organize it, then how are we going to install it, then how are we going to practice it in order to handle it and do things right? And we're in that process right now. We're just in the middle of it right now, so we're back to the drawing board today doing our install that we had planned for the whole training camp. Certain plays and concepts are going in very methodically, in a really organized way. We think we know how to teach. We do our best, but that was it. And then, to build the words and the verbiage and the formations and the motions and all the different concepts together in a way that they could understand them logically, not have to just remember random things that didn't have meaning to them. We wanted them to have meaning. I think they're doing a good job of it. We didn't have a lot of mistakes. We really didn't. So, it's a good sign."
How impressed have you been with QB Lamar Jackson, just his command of the offense? You see him out there and he's pointing to people, saying, "Hey, this is where you're supposed to be." For a guy that is a first-time full-year starter, how impressed have you been with that? (Jamison Hensley) "Very impressed. I think Lamar is the most succinct guy I've ever [met]. Someone asked him that, and he said, 'Well, I know what I'm doing.' (laughter) Well, good."
FB/DL Patrick Ricard, last month of the season he was inactive last year. Was there a message to him coming into this season, what he needed to do to kind of elevate his play? (Bo Smolka) "Maybe. It's tough to get on the 46- [man roster], in terms of not being a starter, and he's not going to be a special teams four-phase guy. He's 300-plus pounds, and to what impact he was going to be in the gameplan, to what degree he was going to be part of the defense, and then special teams, you just have to weigh it all out. Probably toward the end of the year, me, I didn't see enough to activate him compared to some other guys. So, I would say, if there was a message, that was probably it. The more you can do. He stepped it up in the game. He played really well in every phase, and he's making a case for himself."
This guy CB Bennett Jackson has some heart, right? (Bobby Trosset) "He does. He's been around a long time. He's worked hard. He's faced a lot of adversity with the injuries and different things. It's good to see him play well, and he's definitely good enough play in the National Football League. We'll see what happens."
Assistant Head Coach/Pass Coordinator/Wide Receivers David Culley
What has stood out to you about the wide receiver group? _(Jamison Hensley) _"Great work ethic. That starts with having Willie Snead here, who is a tremendous, tremendous worker. He's a great leader. Also, having Mike Floyd here, who has been in the league now for about seven years. Chris Moore has played a little bit around here. He's been here. They know the 'Raven Way,' and those guys have done a great job with our young guys of showing them exactly how we do it here. I've also learned that myself."
More specifically, how did you feel about what WRs Miles Boykin and Marquise Brown did today? (Vasilios Nikolaou)"Let me go to the game. First, about Miles, the one thing I felt good about Miles in the game, is that he had a couple of chances to make some plays early in the game. He didn't make the plays. He showed me that he belongs here, because he came back later in the game, he made some tough catches. He made some plays when we needed some plays made. What that told me about him is that I know he belongs, and I know he's exactly what we thought he would be when we got him. Marquise got a little bit more work today than he has previously [had]. He's still not completely ready to go full-time with us, but he's been doing a great job of doing what we ask him to do. Today, from what I saw in him and the work that he did full-speed, he did a nice job with it."
How fast did WR Marquise Brown look today? (Ryan Mink)"He looked real fast. He didn't feel fast, but I told him I didn't see anything that would say that he's been injured. He's not quite where he was before, but I like where he's at right now."
What are your impressions of WR Jaleel Scott? (Gabby DiPaula)"All Jaleel has done, all of training camp, is make plays. He did the same thing in the game, and he's improving tremendously. I like where Jaleel is right now. I think he has a bright future here, and I'm hoping he just continues to improve. I like what I see from Jaleel right now."
Beyond his health, what is the biggest challenge for WR Marquise Brown after missing the spring and being limited in the first few weeks of camp? (Luke Jones)"The first thing that happens with rookies, once you get in the game here, is the speed of the game is completely different than what they've come from in college. That will be the first adjustment he'll have to make, is just understanding that things happen more quickly. The balls get there more quickly, they're a little bit harder. They hit a little bit harder. Everything is faster. Everything is quicker. He's just going to have to make that adjustment. I do not see that being a problem with him."
With a quarterback like QB Lamar Jackson, who has to be accounted for because of what he can do athletically, how does that change what opposing defenses have to account for when you're dropping back? _(Jonas Shaffer) _"It takes one guy out of the coverage that would normally be in coverage, or that would normally be rushing. And instead of being in coverage or instead of rushing, they use a spy on him because he is such a tremendous guy with the ball in his hands that you have to account for him. When he has the ball in his hands, it's almost like having an extra runner back there. If you don't account for that, then he ends up making big plays where, normally, quarterbacks in this league don't make [them]. That's one thing that defensive coordinators hate. They hate the kind of guy that when you're back there, they've done everything they can do to get them. They have the rush, he gets out of it, and all of a sudden, there's nobody to account for him."
Is there any sense of that because you know what a defense will have to do schematically to have a spy, and does that make your job easier because you know what's coming defensively? (Jonas Shaffer)"We do know that he has to be accounted for. If he's not accounted for, that's an extra weapon there, whether it's running or throwing. That's the one thing that people have to understand about him, people talking about his running all the time and about what he does in the run game. He has made so much improvement from the start of training camp to now, in the passing game, that we're really excited about where he's headed and what he's going to do for us offensively."
What was your decision like when you joined the Ravens? Why did you want to join? (Aaron Kasinitz)"[There were] two reasons: The first one was John Harbaugh. I spent nine years with him in Philadelphia. I know what he's all about. I know the family. I knew his dad before I knew John. I have coached against Jim [Harbaugh] when he was a player, which tells you how old I am. (laughter) Again, John Harbaugh. Not only just him, but this organization and the type of organization it is from top to bottom. The second thing was Lamar Jackson. He's a franchise-type quarterback, and you always want to be able to be a part of something special there. I think we have something special going here. This team has been there and done that. Hopefully, we can get back to doing what they've done before."
FB/DL Patrick Ricard
On how pleased he was with his play on Thursday:"I think offense, I had a couple good blocks, a couple of things to clean up on, just bringing my feet, not falling off the blocks. Defensively, I was happy. I think it was my best game I've had since I've been in the NFL. Obviously, there are some things to clean up on, some technique things in the run game. Special teams, I only had one play. I was happy with that. Overall, I was happy. I was happy with the team, too. A shutout is a great way to start the preseason; that was just the start. We just have to keep rolling."
On if the next step for him from versatility is making impact plays:"Yes, I'm going into my third year, so just that itself, I have to just keep getting better and keep improving. Now, it's just expanding my knowledge of the offense, the defense, being even more versatile, learning more plays, more schemes so they can use me when I'm called. Every year, I just have to keep improving."
On his thought process and what he took from being inactive near the end of last season: "I always take it as, control what I can control. I can't control if I'm playing or not. I can control being prepared, being ready, being a good teammate, and just, if I am playing, being ready to play. That was my approach all year. That's how it still is."
T Ronnie Stanley
On how the first-team offensive line felt about its performance against the Jaguars:"We felt pretty good about our performance. We like the direction we're going in. We know there are still a lot of things we can work on to get better, but for the first game, we were happy."
On the progress of the offensive line despite not knowing who will be starting at left guard: "I definitely think that we're building on what we had last year. Even though we don't have a for-sure-locked-in guy at left guard, we still have great cohesion throughout the whole offensive line."
On learning the new offensive scheme:"For me, it's just getting the reps out here and seeing the defense in front of it. Our defense gives us great looks and helps us, visually, see what we're going to see from other teams. So, just getting reps at it and just seeing different looks [helps me]."
On if the new offensive scheme is any more complex than what it used to be: "There are different complexities of this offense than there were in the last one, but I wouldn't say it's any more confusing than last year."
On the new nutrition options in the cafeteria and how they have changed his diet: "I love the new nutritionist. She's great. Her name is Sarah [Snyder]. She's doing a fantastic job, from lunches, to getting us our protein shakes after practice, to giving us coffee shots when we need some energy. She's really in-tune with the players. She communicates a lot with us. I think it's doing a lot of good for us."
On his favorite new addition to the cafeteria:"The orange juice machine we have in the cafeteria. I hit that every morning. I have to get my orange juice in to start off the day." (Reporter: Pulp or no pulp?) "Pulp, fresh squeezed."
On T Greg Senat's progression: "I think Greg is doing a great job. He's growing, getting better. He's coming into practice with a good attitude every day. He's doing everything that the coaches have asked him to."
On why offensive linemen like playing in the type of offense the Ravens play:"As offensive linemen, we like being physical with the defensive line and not just letting them pin their ears back and pass rush every time they can. That's what they want. They want to just have a pass rush feast. So, to be able to run the ball and have them anchor down and really play physical ball is something that we like to do."
