CAMP NOTES: Flags Fly in Owings Mills

The Ravens offense has struggled with pre-snap penalties throughout the first week of training camp, and Saturday’s practice was no different.

Flags were flying throughout the afternoon as the offense committed five false starts. On another play, they had to re-huddle after lining up at the line of scrimmage; in a game, that’s essentially burning a timeout. It can be a frustrating sight after coaches said that pre-snap penalties were an emphasis in spring practices.

Todd Monken, however, is preaching patience.

“It’s real easy to get frustrated, which I do,” said Monken when asked about the penalties. “I’m the king of overreacting.” He acknowledged that using cadence at the line of scrimmage has been a problem but expressed optimism that the team would improve.

“Why can’t we be elite at cadence? Why can’t we?” asked Monken. “Other teams can, [so] we sure as heck can be and should be.”

Monken was surprisingly upbeat after the offense’s struggles on Saturday, but he has plenty of reason to be excited about his job right now. He’s working with the best group of weapons in his career and Ravens franchise history, not to mention a superhuman quarterback. And almost every single one of them was a part of last year’s record-setting offense.

Monken referenced that continuity several times during his press conference, starting with his coaches. The entire offensive staff is returning, and for most, it’s their third year in the system. The only turnover last offseason was in the offensive line room, where the tragic passing of Joe D’Alessandris and the departure of Mike Devlin brought OL coach George Warhop and assistant Travelle Wharton to Baltimore.

The familiarity helped the coaching staff evaluate their offense and identify areas of improvement this offseason. Two that Monken mentioned were “lost-yardage plays,” like those penalties, and “starting fast.” For both, continuity was the answer.

“We know each other better than we did last year,” explained Monken. “I’ve got to do a better job, but I know we have a better idea of who we are and what wins for us with the players that we have.”

Those players, of course, are the best collection of offensive talent ever seen in Baltimore. And though Monken spent three years with Mike Evans and early-career Chris Godwin in Tampa Bay, the Ravens’ group of skill players are the best he’s ever coached.

It’s already a tough enough puzzle with three wide receivers, two tight ends, and two running backs who all deserve touches. And then there’s the ascending talents who are making the case to get the ball in real-game scenarios so they can develop.

Devontez Walker is one of those young players who is spending the summer pushing for more offensive involvement than the 57 snaps he got as a rookie. I missed his first two catches on Saturday, so I’ll get an assist from Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Banner.

Tez Walker’s been knocking on the door in camp, and he’s breaking through today.

He followed a nice sliding grab of a Cooper Rush pass with a win downfield vs. Nate Wiggins for a 30ish-yard catch on a Lamar Jackson bomb.

— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) July 26, 2025

I did see Walker’s third highlight catch, one that speaks to his development over the last year. He lined up against Jaire Alexander in a 1-on-1 rep and was immediately pressed off his route by the veteran corner. Walker stayed in gear and kept climbing, and as soon as he saw Alexander turn his hips, he broke off his route and caught a back shoulder ball from Cooper Rush. It was a smooth, savvy play from the second-year receiver that shows he can be more than just a vertical threat.

Another positive sign is the volume of targets that Walker commanded in the spring, which has continued into the summer. He’s catching balls in the flat and over the middle, oftentimes as the third or fourth read, which will typically be the case when he’s on the field this season. The next challenge will be run blocking, which should pick up when padded practices start on Monday.

Blocking will also be a factor in Keaton Mitchell’s role. Physically, he looks like he’s back to his pre-injury form from two years ago. It’s not just his speed; it’s also his lateral agility to weave through traffic and make sudden cuts to erase pursuit angles. The third-year running back can still produce explosive plays on the ground and has been looking increasingly natural catching the ball in stride out of the backfield. Still, he’s third on the depth chart behind one of the best rushers in the NFL and a criminally-underrated third-down back.

“Two years ago, we didn’t have Derrick [Henry], let’s just say it like it is,” said Monken when asked about Mitchell’s role. “It’s a fight to get touches in the backfield. Justice Hill is an established, outstanding football player.”

Monken specifically mentioned pass protection and special teams as key opportunities as Mitchell fights for those touches. Again, blocking with pads on will be the test of the former, but Mitchell has already been impressing special teams coordinator Chris Horton as a kick returner.

“Obviously, Keaton has done a tremendous job for us when he has been back there, just the body type, the style of play,” said Horton. Mitchell’s speed and shiftiness obviously lend themselves to a kick returning role, especially with the latest tweaks to the kickoff that will encourage more returnable kicks. To him, it’s an opportunity to start offensive possessions with an explosive run before Henry or Lamar Jackson are even on the field.

The last young weapon vying for more snaps is tight end Charlie Kolar. He proved himself as a blocker last year while making the most of his 11 targets. His performance in Saturday’s practice reflected another important aspect of getting snaps in the Ravens offense: chemistry with QB1.

In 7-on-7’s, Jackson threw the ball behind Kolar and indicated after the play that he wanted his tight end to sit down. A few plays later, Jackson was buying time behind the line of scrimmage and lofted it to Kolar after he turned up field. Beau Brade made a nice play to break the pass up, but it shows that Kolar is working to pick up Jackson’s cues.

Though they’re all making a case for more touches, Walker, Mitchell, and Kolar are all blocked on the depth chart by more proven players. Monken has previously called it a good problem to have, and he also thinks it presents an opportunity to spread out the physical burden.

“You’d rather have too many players that want the ball than not enough or that deserve it,” he said on Saturday “Without a doubt, we should be in a position where we can keep guys fresh.”

If you do the math, the Ravens have the numbers. Five receivers, three tight ends, and three running backs, not to mention blocking weapon Patrick Ricard, gives Monken 12 eligible receivers to rotate throughout a game. He can change personnel and formations to shift gears across the run-pass spectrum in his playbook in a way that will both tire and confuse opposing defenses.

Of course, all this requires getting the little things right. Like lining up and snapping the ball.

Best of the Rest

● Derrick Henry has been picking up chunks of yards in training camp, which will continue on Monday when pads come on. Usually, that gives the defense a chance to get more physical to limit catches and yardage. Henry is one of the few offensive players that gets more dangerous when the threat of contact is introduced.

● Nnamdi Madubuike has been getting pressure on Jackson in training camp and batted down a ball on Saturday.

● Rasheen Ali raced around Mike Green on a wheel route and reeled in a well-placed ball from Rush. Ali is firmly on the roster bubble and the math isn’t in his favor, but he’s starting to live up to his draft billing as a receiving back.

● Zach Orr said that the Ravens “might” consider having Nate Wiggins follow opposing WR1s. That’s probably not in the cards this year with Jaire Alexander on the opposite boundary, but Wiggins could prove himself as that type of player this season.

● Tyler Loop made all six of his kicks with a long of 41 yards, while John Hoyland converted his first three and missed his 41-yarder. When asked about each kicker, Horton praised Loop’s strong leg and technical ability and Hoyland’s consistency. Horton also said that there is no timeline on the kicker competition and indicated that both would kick in the preseason. Those in-game scenarios will be telling.

The post CAMP NOTES: Flags Fly in Owings Mills appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2025/07/28/camp-notes/penalties-slow-practice/