headline play in Hall of Fame Game Yesterday
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the Hall of Fame Game featuring the Bears and Ravens lit the torch for football in 2018, and fans stuck around through the second half as they clamored for Lamar Jackson. But the rookie quarterback was not the star of the show, not by a long shot.Our friends at Pro Football Focus sent their ‘PFF insights,’ and there is a lot to be excited about.OFFENSEWhile the later second- and third-team offensive line gave up far too many pressures, Jermaine and Orlando bullied anybody in their way. The rookie is a star in the making.The pressures were likely far more related to the left side of line allowing any rusher to run right by, but not every play can be pointed to just the blockers. Decision making is key, and it was the first game back in over a year for RGIII and the first NFL contest for Jackson. Also, Jackson getting third-string blockers was ugly.DEFENSEUnreal. Absolutely unreal play by the linebacker. We all put him as a by-gone, and it is time to eat crow. Correa, go prove every one of us wrong.The hyped up late-round pick from Texas brought down the hammer on a forced fumble tackle. He looks like he will suffer from the helmet rule, though, so he will need to be careful when lighting up ball-carriers in the future.The Ravens are attempting to salvage early-round busts with training camp experiments Heading into training camp, the Baltimore Ravens have several early round selections whose careers have not panned out the way many were expecting. Most notably, 2015 first-round pick Breshad Perriman, 2016 second-round pick Kamalei Correa and 2016 third-round pick Bronson Kaufusi. With each of the aforementioned players on the roster bubble, the Ravens are attempting to utilize them in different ways to revive their careers in Baltimore. WR Breshad PerrimanPerriman’s career started off poorly as he suffered a knee injury on the first day of training camp, which ultimately ended his rookie season before it ever started. He did not make an appearance in the preseason or regular season that year.The following season, Perriman suffered another minor setback before training camp, but he was able to return to the field before the regular season. He appeared in all 16 games and recorded 33 receptions for 499 yards and three touchdowns. This was an encouraging sign from Perriman as many thought he was taking the next step in his development as a starting wide receiver. He did struggle at times as he had five drops on 66 targets and a catch rate of 50%, per Fox Sports. Perriman’s most memorable momentwas his 53-yard touchdown reception against the Miami Dolphins. This was one of the few times in his entire career that he showcased the reason why Baltimore drafted him: his speed. He was able to take a short pass and turn into a long touchdown as he merely outran several defenders.Entering the 2017 season
Youth John Brown Jersey , Perriman was one of, if not the most hyped up player on the Ravens roster. There was talk of him potentially becoming the No. 1 receiver over Mike Wallace and Jeremy Maclin, but that was far from the case. He struggled to catch the football consistently, which led to him being a healthy scratch for four games. He missed a total of five games in 2017 as he suffered a concussion against the Chicago Bears in week six. His final stat line was 10 receptions for 77 yards, including four drops on 35 targets and a catch rate of 28.6%, per Fox Sports.With his back against the wall, the Ravens are trying to utilize Perriman in different ways to boost his roster stock.In the early portion of camp, he has been taking reps as a gunner on special teams, which is a position he has not played in the NFL. “Well, as we all know, there are only so many guys active on Sunday. And, with our current roster construction, Breshad [Perriman] is going to have a different role,” Special Teams Coordinator Jerry Rosburg said, via the team’s official website. “There’s only 46 active players, so when Breshad is up on Sunday, he’s going to help us in other ways.”As for his role as a receiver, Perriman faces an uphill battle to make an impact. With Michael Crabtree, John Brown, Willie Snead and Chris Moore locked in to be the team’s top four receivers
Youth Matt Skura Jersey , snaps may be few and far between for Perriman. Despite his inconsistent start to training camp, Jordan Lasley is expected to have a role in the offense as is Jaleel Scott, who has been impressive in the first few practices. Not to mention Tim White has been turning heads with his strong play, which could push Perriman on the wrong side of the roster bubble. LB Kamalei CorreaCorrea’s struggles in Baltimore have been a mystery. The former second-round pick was a defensive end at Boise State, but the Ravens immediately switched him to an inside linebacker. Despite intriguing measurables and solid athleticism, Correa has not panned out.He is seemingly not the same player he was in college, and he lacks the instincts to play the inside linebacker position. In two seasons, Correa has only made four starts. He has been a solid special teams contributor, but he has yet to make a sack in the NFL. His most memorable moment came during his rookie season in week seven against the Jets. This was a remarkable play by Correa that was likely forgotten as Timmy Jernigan recovered the fumble, then fumbled the ball back to the Jets. Correa not only pushed the defender into Matt Forte, but also had the awareness to punch the football out. The Ravens are beginning to give him snaps at outside linebacker, which many believe is his natural position, including himself. “His natural position probably is on the edge, ‘Sam,’ ‘Rush,’ coming off the edge, and he believes that,” Harbaugh said during OTAs. “It’s funny, I talked to him earlier in the week and said ‘versatility is also your friend.’ If you can play every linebacker position for us that would be a big edge.”The Ravens currently have a logjam at the outside linebacker position with Terrell Suggs, Matthew Judon
Youth Michael Crabtree Jersey , Za’Darius Smith, Tyus Bowser and Tim Williams. Snaps for Correa at that spot seem rather unlikely, barring injuries. At inside linebacker, he could also be on the outside looking in. C.J. Mosley is the leader of Baltimore’s defense, but starting alongside him is still up in the air. Patrick Onwuasor, who beat out Correa last year, is returning in addition to Albert McClellan and Kenny Young. The Ravens also have intriguing UDFA options with Alvin Jones and Myles Humphrey. Correa’s roster chances slightly increased as Bam Bradley will likely start the season on the PUP list. Correa will also be fighting an uphill battle, but the Ravens are giving him snaps at outside linebacker, which should only increase his roster stock.DE Bronson KaufusiKaufusi’s NFL career has been far from ideal. He suffered a season-ending ankle injury during training camp in 2016. He was expected to compete for a starting spot at the five-tech position in his second season, but he lost that position battle. Not only did he not win the starting job, but he rarely was active on gameday. Kaufusi was only active for three games last season, in which he recorded five combined tackles. Kaufusi played 32 defensive snaps and 14 special teams snaps in 2017. Even with Brent Urban suffering an injury early in the season, Kaufusi failed to take advantage. Willie Henry saw a considerable increase in snaps, while Kaufusi struggled.Kaufusi’s most memorable moment came in week one of the preseason against the Washington Redskins, where he sacked quarterback Nate Sudfeld.The Ravens showed a blitz initially, and they rushed five. Kaufusi performed a quick rip move and had an open lane to record the sack. As a former basketball player, he is an athletic defensive lineman with ideal size. Kaufusi’s issue is not lack of size, but rather his inability to develop into an NFL-caliber player. His skill set is still raw, and he has yet to showcase multiple moves at the line of scrimmage. Another highlight from Kaufusi came in week three of the preseason against the Buffalo Bills. Kaufusi was unable to get to the quarterback as his pass-rush attempt was stonewalled, but he had the awareness to jump up and swat the pass attempt. His size and length are enticing
Womens Marlon Humphrey Jersey , but again, he has yet to bring it all together.It has also been reported that Kaufusi has been taking snaps at outside linebacker, which would allow him to utilize his athleticism in a different way.“The big thing out there is he’s on air, and he’s on space where he can get off quickly. Like most of the time in our three-four packager, our base defense, he’s basically playing on a tackle on space,” defensive line coach Joe Cullen said via the team’s official website. “It gives him an opportunity to use his athleticism more than being inside. In other positions, he will be an end.”With Brandon Williams, Michael Pierce, Willie Henry, Brent Urban, Chris Wormley, and Carl Davis all roster-locks, there may only be two spots left on the defensive line. That competition will likely come down to Patrick Ricard, seventh-round pick Zach Sieler and Kaufusi. Although it should be noted that Ricard is a near-lock, which makes the competition for the final spot if there is one, a must-watch during the preseason.