OTL: OTAs Roll On, and Yes, QB1 is in Attendance

As OTAs progress into Week 2, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson continues to prove haters wrong in terms of his attendance and participation in Baltimore’s offseason. To much excitement, the franchise QB was back on the practice field on Tuesday:

Ravens open their second week of voluntary OTAs today and Lamar Jackson is in attendance. https://t.co/rqw52nh2qm

— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) May 26, 2026

Former Raiders CEO Amy Trask met with Jason LaCanfora and walked through the impact Jackson’s presence can have on the team’s chemistry and future plans at the position. Interestingly, she noted how an early rapport with the likes of OC Declan Doyle could do for the likelihood of a long-term extension:

Former Raiders CEO @AmyTrask weighs in on Lamar Jackson’s situation in Baltimore. #RavensFlock

With a massive coaching shift underway, should the MVP be prioritizing face time in May to lock down his next extension?

Watch the FULL episode:https://t.co/5tct5Qn0sI pic.twitter.com/77fawylJdb

— The Daily Flock Show (@DailyFlockShow) May 26, 2026

As we well know, however, the play on the field will be just as impactful:

These two are gonna set the league on fire pic.twitter.com/RQDtZI1b0e

— JacksonMuse (@Jackson_Muse) May 26, 2026

A huge part of the ability for Doyle and Jackson to succeed in the first part of their partnership will be the QBs ability to build a similar rapport with the wealth of rookie weapons GM Eric DeCosta brought in through the draft.

That was apparent early and often on Tuesday:

8 is in full build mode at OTAs: pic.twitter.com/jK4QxsNag7

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) May 26, 2026

Lamar Jackson throwing Dots to Ja’Kobi Lane and Elijah Sarratt pic.twitter.com/kuyrbIdlDu

— JacksonMuse (@Jackson_Muse) May 26, 2026

While Baltimore’s newest targets may not have the athletic profiles of true separators, the Ravens will need big play production out of the offense somehow. Though they continued to put up solid offensive numbers, the inability to regularly create explosive plays limited them in 2025.

This year, they’ll look to reverse that trend:

Most explosive offenses

Top and bottom as advertised pic.twitter.com/2hPnGuvvaQ

— Stick to the Model (@StickToTheModel) May 26, 2026

If they can’t, we’ll need to rely on another special teams breakout in the form of rookie Punter Ryan Eckley. I won’t pretend to know a lick about punting, but Long Snapper Nick Moore, who met with Kevin Oestricher of “Locked On Ravens,” sure does:

Ravens long snapper Nick Moore gave his early impressions on rookie punter Ryan Eckley

“I think he’s done really well. To me he’s a lot like Sam Koch was, very precise with his directions” pic.twitter.com/RoS2sp3EgU

— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) May 26, 2026

If Eckley is anything like Sam Koch fans will come to love him, but let’s hope we rarely have the opportunity to see the resemblance.

Either way, a fun thought experience raised by Roster Grids, was which Ravens positional group is the strongest and weakest:

Which position group is strongest, and which is weakest on the new #Ravens roster?#RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/F3FIvQNtYx

— RosterGrids (@RosterGrids) May 25, 2026

I’d venture to say the Safety and QB rooms give me the most confidence, but would circle a few as potential weak spots, all for different reasons.

First and foremost, the Center room has been the talk of the town. I won’t harp on it, but also don’t expect Baltimore to stand pat at the position. As Bears writer Ben Devine highlights, Chicago has two potential starters at the position. Will they really hold on to both?

Some positional battles to watch during Bears OTA’s this week:

Starting LT – Braxton Jones, Jedrick Wills

Starting C – Garrett Bradberry and Logan Jones

Starting LBs – TJ Edwards, D’Marco Jackson, Jack Sanborn, Keyshawn Elliott

Starting CB2 – Tyrique Stevenson, Malik Muhammad

— Ben Devine (@Chicago_NFL) May 26, 2026

Whether it’s the Bears or not, the point is that Baltimore can wheel and deal with other teams to upgrade its Center. It may not want to do that, however, at ILB. Here, Roquan Smith has a point to prove while Teddye Buchanan hopes to return from injury early.

Again, this is a major question mark that could leave the position as Baltimore’s worst. I personally don’t view Trenton Simpson as a true interior player, which leaves us with an unproven fan favorite from last year:

Can’t wait to restart the #Agenda pic.twitter.com/F0m3P1rEjd

— Cole Jackson (@ColeJacksonFB) May 25, 2026

It’s fun, but it’s not inviting confidence. In the Tight End room, the lack of experience beyond Mark Andrews (and Andrews’ own production, for that matter), means more unproven names will be relied upon.

So with that in mind, can we truly say that Baltimore has the championship pedigree that Daniel Jeremiah outlines here?

I’d like to revisit this concept for every NFL team. To build a championship foundation, you need to fill these 12 spots:
QB-1
Off Playmaker-3
Quality OL- 3
Pass Rusher- 2
Def Playmaker-3

Fun exercise to compare teams with this focus

— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) May 26, 2026

I’ve included my stab at this below, but we want to hear your voice.

• QB: Lamar Jackson
• Offensive Playmakers: Derrick Henry, Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews (?)
• Quality O-Linemen: Ronnie Stanley, Vega Ioane, Roger Rosengarten (?)
• Pass Rushers: Trey Hendrickson, Nnamdi Madubuike (?), Mike Green (?), Zion Young (?)
• Defensive Playmakers: Kyle Hamilton, Trey Hendrickson, Nnamdi Madubuike (?), Roquan Smith (?), Marlon Humphrey (?)

There’s no doubt that Baltimore has a number of these “needs” covered in a big way. That said, complementary pieces like Andrews, Madubuike, Green, Young, Smith and Humphrey all have questions surrounding them.

Is that something we’re comfortable with? Sound off in the comments!

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