OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Lamar Jackson dropped back near midfield and lofted a ball deep down the middle for Mark Andrews, who was closely guarded by safety Kyle Hamilton. Andrews went up in the air and had his hands on the ball, but he lost control as he started to land, and Hamilton ended up with the ball for an interception.
The heads-up play by Hamilton — who somehow grabbed the ball after it hit his leg and chest while he was on the ground — continued what has been an outstanding training camp for the Ravens secondary, and it underscored how the deep passing game was a struggle for Jackson during the steamy, padded training camp practice.
Jackson took plenty of shots during full-team drills, but he rarely connected with his receivers in the deep passing game.
During the same 11-on-11 period as Hamilton’s interception, Jackson tried to find Rashod Bateman deep, but Jalyn Armour-Davis had good coverage and the ball fell incomplete. In a 7-on-7 period, Jackson couldn’t connect with Zay Flowers down the right sideline as Marlon Humphrey ran right with Flowers.
Jackson and Bateman had a couple of other missed chances as well. One of Jackson’s deep passes down the left sideline led Bateman a bit far and out of bounds, and in a later period, they failed to connect with Brandon Stephens covering Bateman.
Jackson did throw a touchdown pass of about 30 yards to Tylan Wallace, who made a leaping catch with Armour-Davis and Marcus Williams bearing down on him. Wallace took a hit from both, the defenders fell, and Wallace managed to keep his feet and waltz into the end zone.
Running back Derrick Henry was also an offensive standout as he had perhaps his most assertive practice of camp. Whether it was a designed run or swing pass, Henry at times got a full head of steam and turned a corner, where Ravens cornerbacks such as Marlon Humphrey and Arthur Maulet were probably pleased that these aren’t full-contact workouts.
“I think everybody that knows football knows the challenge that Derrick Henry poses when he gets going downhill with the football,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “So our goal is going to be to get him going downhill with the football.”
In addition to Hamilton’s pick, the Ravens defense recorded two other interceptions. Rookie safety Sanoussi Kane picked off rookie Devin Leary in a 3-on-3 period, and linebacker Malik Harrison went up high to pick off a pass from Josh Johnson.
Harrison had a strong day. He later recovered a fumble by Rasheen Ali and made a couple of nice plays against the run.
Harrison, who signed a one-year deal to return to the Ravens for a fifth season, is expected to be a starting outside linebacker in the Ravens base defense, but he can also move inside and play down along the line of scrimmage.
After practice, Harbaugh praised the versatility of Harrison, likening him to a defensive version of super-utility offensive lineman Patrick Mekari, and also noted that Harrison is a special teams mainstay.
“He’s a very valuable player,” Harbaugh said, “and I see him playing all of those positions during the season as it comes up.”
NOTEBOOK
HARTY, MULLEN STILL OUT, CLEVELAND LEAVES EARLY: Kick returner and wide receiver Deonte Harty missed his fourth straight practice with what Harbaugh said was a soft-tissue injury, and Harbaugh said he expected Harty back “very soon.” The only other absence, other than players on the PUP and NFI lists, was cornerback Trayvon Mullen, who suffered a shoulder injury last weekend.
Guard Ben Cleveland left practice early after getting hit in the head, Harbaugh said.
SPECIAL TEAMS WORKS INDOORS: Practice usually begins with about 15-20 minutes of special teams work as other players straggle onto the fields. But with the temperature approaching 100 degrees, Harbaugh opted to hold the special teams period indoors.
“We decided we wanted to shorten up a little bit of the time that they were out here with the humidity and everything,” Harbaugh said. “So, I think it helped.”
ONE-ON-ONE SHOWDOWNS: The Ravens again ran one-on-one matchups between pass catchers and defenders, always a highlight of a camp practice. Kyle Hamilton, who went 0-2 against Isaiah Likely one day recently, won both reps against the tight end this time. On the first, Likely lost his footing with Hamilton right on him and the ball fell incomplete. On the other, Hamilton had good coverage on a deep ball down the left sideline. Likely did win a rep against rookie Beau Brade, and afterward, pass game coordinator and longtime secondary coach Chris Hewitt had a long chat with Brade.
Mark Andrews had one of the top catches for the offense, as he made a sliding grab against Eddie Jackson on a throw from Lamar Jackson.
Dayton Wade got a step on Bump Cooper Jr. for a long touchdown pass from Josh Johnson, and Isaiah Washington did the same with a nice double move against Christian Matthew.
The defensive play of the day in the 1-on-1 competition came from Arthur Maulet, who dove and got a hand in to tip a pass away from Malik Cunningham.
FRIDAY PRACTICE SCHEDULED TO BE SHORTER: The Ravens are scheduled to practice for just 90 minutes Friday instead of their usual 2-2 1/2-hour workouts. The abbreviated workout surely will be welcomed by players who are in the midst of six straight practice days on among the hottest days of the year.
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