Tonight's game will offer
a glimpse of team's future
Right now, you can get a pretty good ticket to tonight's preseason opener between the Ravens and the NFC champion Carolina Panthers for maybe 20 bucks. If you wait until close to game time, somebody might drive to your house and give you one.
Of course, it's a weeknight and the Olympics are all over your cable package and, yes, it's a preseason game that most of the top stars will be watching along with you, but this one is going to be worth your time for a number of reasons.
The future, for instance.
The Ravens will be debuting what they need to be a landmark draft class, because some of those injured veterans who will be standing on the sideline are going to be replaced in the next couple of years.
If you need any proof of the importance of this year's rookie class, just remember the collective shudder of the fan base when offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley, the Ravens' top draft choice at No. 6 overall, walked out of Saturday's public workout with an athletic trainer in tow.
The Ravens entered this year's draft needing to get their mojo back, and they believe the 11 players they selected — and maybe even an undrafted rookie or two — will produce some key members of this year's team and cornerstone players for the future.
The process for determining whether that view is correct begins in earnest tonight at M&T Bank Stadium.
Stanley, who left the field Saturday with what team officials characterized as a soft-tissue injury, returned to practice Tuesday and his status for tonight's game was described by coach John Harbaugh as “probably a game-time decision.”
Fans at the public practice got to see a lot of rookie running back Kenneth Dixon, and they are going to see a lot of him during the four preseason games. The Ravens appear to have solid depth at the position, with Justin Forsett returning from injury and several young backs that got repetitions in his place late last season.
Still, for the third year in a row, the Ravens drafted a running back in the fourth round, giving them a lot to look at before the regular-season opener Sept.?11 against the Buffalo Bills.
Tonight's game also will feature the professional debut of popular Navy star Keenan Reynolds, who is attempting to make the transition from triple-option quarterback to punt returner and slot receiver. He got off to a difficult start in camp, but will have a chance to make an impression as he shares punt-return duties with Kaelin Clay.
Reynolds also should get a lot of reps as a receiver because much of the Ravens receiving corps will not be available.
The rookie defensive player getting much of the attention in camp has been linebacker Kamalei Correa, drafted in the second round out of Boise State. The Ravens love his aggressiveness but had to reel him in a bit after he got a little too physical in the team's first public workout. He'll be able to let it all hang out against the Panthers.
It won't all be about the rookies. The Ravens also will be debuting some well-known veterans. Wide receiver Mike Wallace, a former Pittsburgh Steeler, is hoping to bounce back from a statistical downturn in 2015 to provide the Ravens with an experienced deep threat. Benjamin Watson signed during the offseason to provide a veteran presence at tight end after a career year in New Orleans. And former All-Pro safety Eric Weddle has brought added experience and toughness to the secondary.
Harbaugh has not explicitly ruled quarterback Joe Flacco out of the game, but it appears highly unlikely he'll take any snaps and — along with linebacker Terrell Suggs and wideout Steve Smith?Sr. — could stay on the sideline for all four preseason games. Flacco, who tore his ACL and MCL in November, has looked very good in camp, but there is no logic to putting him on the field for an early preseason game.
Clearly, Harbaugh is more interested in player development at this point, and he's looking forward to watching the new rookie class line up against one of the teams they watched in the Super Bowl.
“It's going to be a big test for us, and not just for us, but mostly for our young players,” Harbaugh said Tuesday. “It will be mostly our young players playing. It will be guys that we want to find out about. They're going to be in there from the beginning playing the game, and we're going to be looking forward to seeing who makes the blocks and who makes the tackles and who makes the plays. That's where we're at.”
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