Ravens minicamp report: Lamar Jackson has up-and-down opener; tight ends and Arthur Maulet shine

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson started his first day of mandatory minicamp in a groove. He ended it in a rut.

Unofficially, the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player went 20-for-26 in 11-on-11 work and 9-for-10 in seven-on-seven work Tuesday afternoon. But Jackson, who over his career has consistently avoided turnovers in minicamp and training camp, threw three interceptions, including back-to-back picks near the end of practice.

Jackson’s first interception could be chalked up to bad luck: After throwing an accurate swing pass to Derrick Henry in the left flat midway through practice, the running back bobbled the ball into the hands of cornerback Brandon Stephens, who would’ve scored on the return.

Jackson’s next two picks came on underthrown balls. He opened a red-zone period by targeting wide receiver Nelson Agholor in the front corner of the end zone, only to watch cornerback Arthur Maulet box him out for the ball and secure the takeaway. After a false start, with the offense now backed up near its goal line, Jackson then tried to thread a pass over the middle to tight end Charlie Kolar. But All-Pro Roquan Smith, one of the NFL’s best linebackers in coverage, got a hand on the pass as he dropped into Kolar’s zone and tipped the ball to himself. Smith seemed to delight in needling tight ends coach George Godsey as he celebrated the turnover.

“I knew most quarterbacks are taught, when the defender’s back is turned going up the middle chute, just to lay it up, so I knew I had to get my back turned,” Smith said, “and then somehow made a play.”

For much of the 2 1/2-hour, pad-free practice, Jackson and backup quarterback Josh Johnson, who together took the majority of the offensive snaps, had taken care of the ball. Most of Jackson’s completions came on short and intermediate looks. He found tight ends Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely and Kolar often over the middle of the field and threw a handful of check-downs to his running backs and wide receivers.

Jackson’s best drive came just before his rough patch near the end of practice. In a move-the-ball drill emphasizing pace of play, he went 4-for-6, including back-to-back highlight-reel throws to cap the touchdown march. On his first such completion, he backpedaled away from pressure as he lofted a pretty pass that led Agholor into open space over the middle of the field. On the next, he found wide receiver Tylan Wallace for a score on a back-shoulder pass against Stephens.

Jackson and quarterbacks coach Tee Martin are scheduled to meet with reporters after Wednesday’s practice.

Attendance report

Safety Kyle Hamilton and wide receiver-returner Deonte Harty did not practice Tuesday, but their on-field absences were excused.

Hamilton is recovering from a minor elbow operation, according to head coach John Harbaugh, who indicated that the All-Pro safety had small fragments of bone or cartilage that had broken off inside the joint and needed to be removed. Hamilton, who took in practice as a spectator, is expected to be ready for training camp in late July.

Harty, who missed all of OTAs after signing with the Ravens in mid-April, is tending to his 5-week-old daughter, who was hospitalized this past weekend. “He felt like he couldn’t really leave his family,” Harbaugh said, “so we understood and we excused him for that.”

Rookie outside linebacker Adisa Isaac, sidelined since rookie minicamp by a hamstring injury, was not dressed for practice, but the third-round pick did participate in conditioning drills with an athletic trainer. Undrafted rookie safety Beau Brade (Maryland) participated in individual drills after missing OTAs with a minor ankle injury, and later joined Isaac in conditioning work.

Running back Keaton Mitchell (knee), defensive lineman Rayshad Nichols and cornerback Christian Matthew were also absent.

Stock report

• Likely had perhaps the catch of the day, a leaping, one-handed grab to secure a floated pass from Jackson in between the second and third level of the defense. Former Ravens wide receiver and returner Jacoby Jones, one of about 80 former players at practice, was so taken aback by the play, he turned away from the field in mock disbelief.
• Andrews, though, might’ve been the best receiver on the field. He beat Smith for a catch after a nice route he sold with an inside release before bending it back outside, got a step on cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis for a jump ball completion down the right sideline and had a full-extension catch against safety Ar’Darius Washington on an out-breaking route. (Receivers won most jump ball routes, as defenders generally avoided contact at the catch point.)
• Wallace emerged as a popular target over the second half of practice, catching several passes from Jackson. Rookie wide receiver Devontez Walker also had a handful of catches.
• Safety Marcus Williams isn’t afraid to make himself heard. On an outside running play where the offense appeared to have the numerical advantage, he loudly instructed the defenders closest to the ball how they should handle their leverage, helping to limit the play’s damage.
• Wide receiver Zay Flowers had some trouble with ball security during OTAs, and his issues have carried over into minicamp. On the second play of 11-on-11 action, Flowers seemed to secure a short pass from Jackson, only to have the ball punched loose by Maulet, who recovered the fumble.
• Undrafted rookie wide receiver Isaiah Washington was the day’s surprise standout. In 11-on-11 work, he connected with Johnson after beating rookie cornerback Ka’dar Hollman down the left sideline on a fade route. In a later 11-on-11 period with Johnson, the Rutgers product had impressive back-to-back downfield grabs, including one on a jump ball along the right sideline.

• In an early half-field drill, with only a few players running routes, undrafted rookie quarterback Emory Jones found wide receiver Rashod Bateman, who’d beaten cornerback Marlon Humphrey on a stop-and-go route, for a deep completion. Humphrey came back a few minutes later to break up another pass to Bateman, who was running a short in-breaking route.
• In the same drill, inside linebacker Trenton Simpson earned praise from Smith after blanketing running back Justice Hill. “He’s still learning, for sure, but I think the way that he doesn’t make the same mistakes over and over every day … I think that’s crucial when you’re young, being able to not make the same mistakes twice,” Smith said of Simpson afterward. “I know he doesn’t understand how fast, how explosive and how powerful he is, but once he actually understands that, which I think will be very soon, watch out.”