There are jobs to be had. That should be obvious. So should the fact that in order to earn one of those jobs, the first order of business is to earn the coaching staff’s trust.
“Go make the team,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh implored late Monday night. “Show us.”
Harbaugh and the 31 other NFL head coaches want to have to make tough roster decisions this time of year. They want there to be more deserving players than there are spots available, not the other way around, where nobody emerges to take the spots.
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Through about 4 ½ weeks of training camp and three preseason games, including last night’s 20-19 victory over the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium, the Ravens’ quest to fill their final couple of receiver slots is more closely characterized by the latter. Training camp feels like it started three months ago by now, but remember that deep and spirited wide receiver competition that we all projected in mid-July? Yeah, it hasn’t exactly gotten off the ground.
Nobody is currently asking — or at least they damn sure shouldn’t be — whether the Ravens will keep seven wide receivers. The more pertinent question is whether there’s a fifth receiver that has proven himself worthy of a spot.
Of course, this isn’t so bad when you compare it to the Ravens’ issues last year throughout their receiving corps. General manager Ozzie Newsome’s offseason overhaul at the top of the wide receiver position is looking good so far.
Michael Crabtree has provided much-needed experience and toughness. John Brown was the star of training camp and his juggling 7-yard touchdown catch of a Joe Flacco pass on Monday night was a continuation of that. Willie Snead IV gets open in the slot and catches the ball. And the one likely holdover from the much-maligned 2017 receiving corps, Chris Moore, hauled in a 7-yard touchdown reception last night and has probably made more plays in camp than anybody aside from Brown.
That’s all good stuff. It’s also not enough. Brown is on a one-year deal and the 30-year-old Crabtree essentially is as well. The Ravens will need other pass catchers to emerge, not just for this season, but for the seasons to come.
That’s why it’s disappointing to see what should have been a gorgeous Robert Griffin III 30-yard touchdown pass down the far sideline clank off the hands of rookie fifth-round pick Jordan Lasley early in the fourth quarter. The former UCLA standout is clearly not lacking in talent and route-running ability, and yet drops have been an issue all summer for him.
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That’s why it’s disappointing to see Tim White, the darling of the early portion of training camp for the past two summers, fumble a punt in the first quarter and fail to make a catch while playing just four offensive snaps.
That’s why it’s disappointing to see rookie fourth-round pick Jaleel Scott play just three offensive snaps, two fewer than undrafted free agent Andre Levrone. Throw in undrafted free agent wide receiver Janarion Grant losing a fumble at the end of a nifty punt return and you had a really disappointing night for the receivers perceived to be on the bubble.
Was Harbaugh surprised that another pass-catching option hasn’t emerged with some big plays this preseason? “It’s not that I’m surprised,” he said. “I just want to see it happen. I want to know who that guy is going to be. You want to make the team, you’ve got to make the catch. You want to make the team, you’ve got to make a block, you’ve got to make a tackle.”
Here are the stats through three games for the seven receivers competing for a couple of roster openings: Breshad Perriman, six catches for 99 yards and a touchdown; Grant, five catches for 53 yards; White, two catches for 20 yards; Lasley, two catches for 20 yards; DeVier Posey, two catches for 10 yards; Scott, one catch for 9 yards; and Levrone, zero catches.
Perriman, the former first-round pick, has been the most productive in terms of statistics, but he’s also not played until the second half in back-to-back preseason games and he’s not trusted enough to play on special teams, which is a must for a No. 4 or 5 receiver. A receiver who is only going to get a handful of offensive snaps has to do something else to justify his gameday spot.
Lasley has shown the most upside of the group and he’s embraced playing special teams, but his lapses in concentration and effort are major blemishes on his work this summer. A fellow rookie draft pick, Scott has been extremely quiet this summer and his low snap count last night was alarming. Never in team history have the Ravens cut a rookie fourth-round pick in his first year with the team. However, Scott has yet to really do anything to suggest he belongs.
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Then, there’s White and Grant, who might be competing for one job if the Ravens are dead set on earmarking a spot for an exclusive punt returner. If they are not, Snead has some experience in that role. If they are, White could have really damaged his chances with the first-quarter fumble Yet, Grant returned the favor later with a fumble of his own.
“The ball is the game, the ball is our livelihood, the ball is everybody’s work, everybody’s ambitions and dreams and hopes and everything else is in your arms. You’ve got to hold onto the football,” Harbaugh said. “If we don’t turn the ball over, we’re not going to lose a game, so let’s not turn the ball over. Let’s make that priority No. 1. Certainly, the returners, those are two drives, you talk about offensive production, that were wiped away. We didn’t even get a chance. That’s just not going to be acceptable. Those guys know that. We’re not giving up on those guys by any stretch. Both those guys are young, capable of doing it. Sometimes you try and do too much when you’re trying to make the team. I just want them to calm down and be solid returners for us.”
The Ravens have two more preseason games remaining — Saturday at the Miami Dolphins and the following Thursday against the Washington Redskins. That’s two more opportunities for one of the young receivers to emerge and prove that he’s worthy of a roster spot.
As he packed up to leave Lucas Oil Stadium last night, Grant was already thinking about what he has to do.
“I got to keep [the fumble] in my mind, but I have to also get it out of my mind so it won’t get in there and mess me up. I just have to stay focused and continue to try and be great in this league,” he said. “I need everything I can get. Every chance I can get, I’m going to try and do what I can do when the ball is in my hands. It’s very important. I’m just here to make this team proud, to take the team to the next level with my ability and my skill set.”
