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Training camp is not only a time for roster bubble players to make a case for making the team but for established players to showcase a potential breakout. For the Baltimore Ravens, it looks like defensive tackle Travis Jones could be in the beginning stages of that breakout in his third year and coaches are noticing.
Head coach John Harbaugh spoke to the media following practice on Friday, August 2 about the big man and said, “It’s a superhuman feat almost when somebody blocks him in there. He’s like a superhuman player.”
Big praise coming from Harbaugh who has coached some of the best defenders in the league. He expects a lot from the DT coming into his third season.
Harbaugh said, “I expect his next step to be a breakout season. You know he’s a dominant guy in there right now.”
Jones must be showing out in practice for Harbaugh to come out and heap this amount of praise on the DT. Harbaugh acknowledged he is putting a lot of pressure on Jones but is hoping that he can take the next step to stardom in the midst of this already dominant defense.
If Jones does take that next step, combined with the already dominant All-Pro DT Justin Madubuike, the Ravens defensive line could be the best in the league.
DT Travis Jones Took Step in Freshman to Sophomore Season
Jones was a third-round pick by Baltimore in the 2022 draft and though the sample size was small, he improved in second season almost across the board.
During his rookie season Jones played in 15 games and had 1.0 sack and 24 combined tackles. Pro Football Focus graded him out as 62.5 as a rookie.
Jones played in 324 defensive snaps as a first-year player and added another 116 on special teams. In his second season Jones took the first step in his progression as a professional.
The big tackle increased his snaps to 453 defensive snaps (he played in 17 games) and 165 special teams snaps. For his counting numbers, he had 1.5 sacks, 36 combined tackles, and 5 QB hits.
What is interesting is that Jones appears to be along a similar pattern as his fellow defensive lineman Madubuike (more on this below). Jones also improved his Pro Football Focus grade in 2023 as he graded out at 68.1 overall.
Jones ranked 38 out of 130 interior defenders in the league as a second-year pro. Currently, he is listed as the backup nose tackle behind veteran Michael Pierce but based on Harbaugh’s comments it would not surprise anyone if he took over the starting job by the end of the season.
Travis Jones Wants to Be Like His All-Pro Teammate
Jones himself told reporters of his desire to follow in Madubuike’s footsteps. On Friday, August 2 he said, “Since I got here, Madubuike’s been a big role model for me. I’ve been looking up to him for the past two years. ”
A fellow third round pick (2020), Madubuike through his first two seasons had almost identical numbers to Jones. He had 3.0 sacks, 55 combined tackles and 7 QB hits through his first two seasons (.5 sack more, 5 combined tackles less and identical QB hits).
If Jones were to follow that pattern than this season should see a significance increase in his numbers as well as his playing time. Madubuike took his All-Pro step in his fourth season when he catapulted into stardom.
The All-Pro jumped up to 13.0 sacks and was one of the key players on the Ravens’ defense.
“I want to follow in his footsteps,” Jones told reporters. It is hefty pressure to put on himself, but with Jones’ work ethic and what coaches are saying about him during camp, he could be on his way to fulfilling that desire.
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