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The Baltimore Ravens continued to start their 2022 campaign on a strong note with a 24-17 win over the Arizona Cardinals on August 21, 2022 and extended their impressive preseason winning streak to 22 in a row. Plenty of players entered the night with a lot to prove, and many of them didn’t disappoint and some even far exceeded expectations in the exhibition game.
Stock Is Up
TE Isaiah Likely
The fourth-round pick out of Coastal Carolina coasted through the Cardinals’ coverage as he rumbled and willed his way to a phenomenal performance. Likely carried over the momentum from a strong preseason opener and training camp into this game and was the most dominant player on the field in the first half.
In just two-quarters of work, he recorded nearly the same amount of receiving yards as the rest of the team finished with by the end of the game. Likely led the team with eight receptions for 100 receiving yards and hauled in a touchdown with three defenders around him. The aspect of his performance that was even more impressive than sheer numbers themselves was the nuance he showed in accumulating them. He showed an ability to find the soft spots in zone coverage of seasoned pro, made catches against man coverage with a defender draped all over him, and displayed a prowess for breaking tackles and racking up yards after the catch.
Is 8 catches for 100 receiving yards good? Likely.
CB Damarion ‘Pepe’ Williams
While Likely was the Ravens’ most impressive rookie on offense, his fellow fourth-rounder earned that mantle on the defensive side of the ball with his incredibly strong performance. He excelled in coverage, as a tackler in the open field and made up for the interception he dropped in Week 1 with the first of his career in Week 2. On his lone tackle of the game, he executed it with perfect form and stopped the receiver well short of the line to gain to force a third down that resulted in a turnover on downs the very next play.
PEPE INT ❗️
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ILB Malik Harrison
The 2020 third-round pick entered his third training camp and second preseason with a lot to prove and he played like it in the first half of the game against the Cardinals. In just two quarters, Harrison racked up four tackles including one for loss and half a sack. He was a one-man wrecking machine on Arizona’s last drive before halftime when he made a pair of stops at and behind the line of scrimmage on back-to-back plays near the goal line to force a short field goal attempt. He teamed up with a teammate to bring down his former teammate and fellow 2020 draftmate, Trace McSorley for a sack and after coming unblocked off the edge, brought down the running back for a loss of two yards.
Malik Harrison brings the 🔨
DT Travis Jones
The third-round rookie was an absolute menace and virtually unblockable at times in just his second career game before having to exit late with a hyperextended knee. While this was his last time seeing the field until the regular season, he showed more than enough glimpses both as a run stuffer and interior pass rusher to entice excitement among fans, pundits, and his coaches alike about the impact he can have on the Ravens’ defense in year one and beyond. Even though Jones didn’t register any stats in the box score sheet, he was consistently disruptive and showed off his incredible strength and power with the way he tossed aside offensive linemen like rag dolls.
Still can’t get over how much pure power and strength Travis Jones shows here
Just annihilates Trace McSorley
Backup Quarterbacks
As brightly as a Likely shined on offense, both of the Ravens’ reserve signal callers were almost equally as impressive with the way they played exceptionally well against the Cardinals. Third-year pro Tyler Huntley had already established himself as one the better backup quarterbacks in the league down the stretch last season in place of an injured Lamar Jackson. However, through the first two preseason games of 2022, he has made a strong case for being one of the better quarterbacks in the league period with his improved accuracy, pocket presence, and ability to throw on the move instead of taking off to run when the play breaks down. He went 13-of-14 for 129 passing yards and a touchdown and led two scoring drives in the first half.
Undrafted rookie Anthony Brown had a near flawless performance as well outside of one ill-advised decision in the fourth quarter that resulted in the team’s only turnover of the game. He went 10-of-13 for 91 passing yards and threw a pair of touchdowns. Whether Huntley gets traded this year or next offseason, he is positioned to be the Ravens’ next developmental dual-threat quarterback.
An absolute dime from @anthonybrown_2 🎯
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ILB Josh Ross
The undrafted rookie out of Michigan continued to impress after a strong NFL debut in Week 1 with an even stronger outing in Week 2 of the preseason. He appears to have picked up where he left off in his breakout senior season with the Wolverines in 2021 where first-year Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald called plays before returning to the organization this offseason.
Ross was flying all around the field making tackles, filling and shooting gaps in the run game, and excelled in coverage as well. He finished with five total tackles and earned a 90-plus Pro Football Focus grade for the second week in a row. The first-year pro has the makings of being the next undrafted gem at the inside linebacker position that thrives on both defense and special teams.
DT Isaiah Mack
Likely wasn’t the only player with his first name to stand out and Jones wasn’t the only interior defensive lineman that flashed his potential as a pass rusher in this game. The fourth-year pro recorded three total tackles and had a couple of key pressures including one on the Cardinals’ first drive of the game that forced an incompletion and resulted in a missed field goal on fourth down. Mack only appeared in two games with the Ravens last season and recorded a sack. While he’d be an ideal candidate for the practice squad if cut by the Ravens, he most likely wouldn’t clear waivers given the increasing value of interior pass rushers around the league.
If the Ravens can sneak DT Isaiah Mack onto the practice squad, it would be a minor miracle. A couple of really nice pass rushes tonight.
RB Tyler Badie
The sixth-round rookie had a relatively quiet NFL debut in the preseason opener but was much more involved in Week 2 against the Cardinals. He showed some nice flashes and looked strong running in between the tackles but was most impressive as a pass catcher out of the backfield and as a pass protector in the backfield. Badie had key blitz pickup of a nickel corner in the fourth quarter made Brown’s second touchdown pass possible. He finished with 39 scrimmage yards on 14 touches and scored his first career touchdown on a short thee-yard pass in the third quarter.
.@Only1Badie for 6 ❗️
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OG Ben Cleveland
The second-year pro has bounced back with a vengeance since taking a little more time to pass his conditioning test and is likely the front runner to emerge as the victor in the competition for the starting left guard spot. While the Ravens’ only produced 75 yards in the ground game, it wasn’t a result of poor blocking on Cleveland’s part. The mountain of a man continued to impose his will on his opponents both as a run blocker and pass protector in exhibition action for the second straight week. He took snaps at both guard spots and his level of play didn’t drop off at all in the transition after others shuffled around to different spots.
CB Kyle Fuller
The eight-year veteran had a rough training camp and looked underwhelming according to reports from ESPN’s Jamison Hensley heading into the game. He showed off the instincts and ball skills that made him a two-time Pro Bowler and a First Team All-Pro with the Chicago Bears on the first of the Ravens’ two interceptions in the game. Fuller will provide the Ravens will quality depth at cornerback behind starters Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters who recently returned to practice.
Kyle Fuller comes down with it ‼️
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P Jordan Stout
The Ravens had outstanding performances by fourth-round rookies in all three phases of the game with the masterful outing that the former Penn State Nittany Lion had on special teams. All three of Stout’s punts pinned the Cardinals inside their 20-yard with two being downed inside the five-yard line. While he didn’t get to attempt a field goal, he still got to show off his versatility as a placekicker by successfully making an extra point attempt on the Ravens’ final touchdown and he handled all kickoff duties after Justin Tucker kicked the first of the game.
WR Raleigh Webb
The undrafted rookie out of Citadel continued to show his ability to make plays downfield for a second straight week on his first career touchdown. He connected with Brown on a 38-yard strike down the seam of the defense and stiff-armed a defender on his way to the end zone. He finished with the second most receiving yards on the team with 49 on just two catches.
.@raleighwebb_2 38 yard TD ❗️❗️
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OLB Chuck Wiley
The wild week for the undrafted rookie in which he was released and brought back after the initial round of cuts came full circle late in the game when he helped the Ravens’ pass rush come alive and turn up the heat late in the game and secure the win. He recorded 1.5 sacks on back-to-back plays on the Cardinals’ final drive to set up a third-and-25. On his first sack, Wiley beat the right tackle around the edge with a nice rip move to take down the quarterback for a loss of seven yards and teamed up with his fellow undrafted rookie Rayshad Nichols on the very next play for a loss of eight more yards. The Ravens are light on healthy outside linebackers at the moment and his performance against Arizona could give him an edge over Jeremiah Moon and Daelin Hayes heading into the last week of the preseason.
And we have a Chuck Wiley sighting. Jarrett Guarantano saw him a lot closer than he’d have liked to. Taken down by the Chuckster 1.5 times on back to back plays. @UTSAFTBL
DB Ar’Darius Washington
The second-year pro was on track to be on the stock down list after allowing the touchdown that made it a one-score game. However, he rebounded nicely with a pair of clutch pass breakups on the Cardinals’ final drive of the game to force a turnover on downs and help secure the win for the Ravens.
Stock Is Down
IOL Ben Powers and OL Tyre Phillips
The two offensive linemen are competing for the starting left guard spot but are also being experimented with at different positions. Neither performed well at their alternate spots and further proved that they are best suited playing between the center and tackle, not playing center or tackle. Phillips was flagged three times while playing left tackle including two false starts and continues to struggle slowing down speed rushers off the edge. Powers blocked well but struggled to snap the ball in his trial by fire at center, a position he has never played before at any level.
OLB Daelin Hayes
After being one of the stars of the offseason program through Mandatory Mini Camp, the second-year pro has not been as disruptive as he was before the pads came on or replicate the same level of success that he had in the preseason that he had last year as a rookie. Against the Cardinals, he didn’t generate much of a pass rusher against their subpar offensive tackle and didn’t look good in coverage. He allowed a few long gains and key conversions to running backs coming out of the backfield and finished with three tackles. Hayes played well into the second half so his roster spot is far from secured despite being the only viable option on the roster that could backup temporarily start in the place of Tyus Bowser at the SAM outside linebacker spot as he works his way back from a torn Achilles suffered in the 2021 regular-season finale.
DB Brandon Stephens
The second-year pro showed some nice ability in coverage at times but also several poor examples of poise, composure, and technique. He got flagged for unnecessary roughness on the first play from scrimmage of the game for shoving a wide receiver to the ground well out of bounds and struggled to keep up with the Cardinals’ undersized wideout Andy Isabella in coverage for most of the game. He finished with a team-leading six solo tackles, most of which came against Isabella who finished with five receptions for 54 receiving yards
ILB Zakoby McClain
Coming out of college, the former Auburn standout was praised for his natural feel and ability to excel in coverage. He not only did not display that prowess but he struggled in that area against the Cardinals and allowed some key conversions in the second half. McClain finished with four total tackles but was outperformed and outshined by the stellar performance of Ross.
CB Daryl Worley
Coming off a preseason debut in which he recorded an interception, the seven-year veteran had a poor outing on both defense and special teams. He missed the initial tackle that allowed a 48-yard return on the Ravens’ second kickoff of the game and had a rough day in coverage as well. While he finished with three total tackles and half a sack, his overall performance was uninspiring.
DT Broderick Washington
The third-year pro entered training camp already on the roster bubble and while he hasn’t looked bad in the preseason, he has been outplayed by other players at his position such as Jones, Mack, Nichols, and Aaron Crawford. He’ll need a strong performance in the preseason finale to gain ground on them in the running for the fifth or maybe sixth spot on the defensive line depth chart.
After an outstanding NFL debut in which he led the team in receiving yards and hauled in an impressive touchdown, the undrafted rookie free agent recorded just one catch for eight yards. While the amount and quality of targets that come his way aren’t in his control, getting open and maximizing the opportunities he does get are well within it. The competition for the last spot or two at the wide receiver position got even tighter with the recent addition of veteran Demarcus Robinson so Bridges and his fellow longshots will need to step their game up in the preseason finale on both offense and special teams to earn a roster spot in Baltimore or elsewhere.
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Ravens Stock Monitor: Rookie Class Steals the Show & Position Battles Heat Up