Quick Hits and Quotes from Day One of Ravens Mini Camp

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— The Baltimore Ravens kicked off their mandatory mini-camp on Tuesday. It marked the return of Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil for the 2015 season. The Ravens welcomed back most of the veterans for the three day mini-camp.

There were a few veterans not at practice including: Center Jeremy Zuttah (hip), Right Tackle Rick Wagner (foot), Wide Receivers Mike Campanaro (quad) and Aldrick Robinson (knee) and Tight End Dennis Pitta. Pitta is still waiting to be cleared to practice and is not likely to return until at least training camp. Campanaro and Aldrick Robinson are also going to be out until July’s training camp.

The Ravens wide receivers had a solid practice today. Steve Smith Sr. made a series of very nice catches, two of which were deep receptions during team period. He beat Lardarius Webb on a double move on the first play of team practice. Smith Sr. is clearly ready to go and is showing zero signs of age.

Rookie Breshad Perriman continues to do an outstanding job of attacking the ball. He had a few drops during individual periods but he rebounded well as practice went along. It is clear that the Ravens are looking to take frequent deep shots to Perriman.

Jeremy Butler continues to impress and he has become a favorite target for Joe Flacco. Butler is working at the slot position and as an X receiver. It is clear that Flacco trusts Butler and is targeting him frequently. Undrafted rookie free agent DeAndre Carter also turned in a solid day, hauling in consecutive catches in the corner of the end zone.

Quick Hits:

Kicker Justin Tucker drilled a 68 yard field goal and had room to spare. The field goal caused Steve Smtih Sr. to turn to General Manager Ozzie Newsome and yell; “Pay the man.” Tucker missed from 58 yards on his next attempt.

Left Tackle Eugene Monroe looks a lot slimmer. His body appears to be leaner and he moved well during offensive lineman drills.

Safety Kendrick Lewis had the first interception of the day when he stepped in front of a pass from Matt Schaub that was intended for Perriman.

Rookie tight end Nick Boyle made a catch but had the ball taken away from him by cornerback Quinton Pointer. Pointer returned it for what would have been a touchdown. Boyle walked off the field and was scolded by Steve Smith Sr. for doing so after giving up a turn over for a would be touchdown. Boyle was sure to secure the ball during the receptions that he made afterwards.

Second year safety Terrence Brooks continues to progress as he recovers from his knee injury last year. He participated in seven on seven and some team periods.

Rookie tight end Maxx Williams landed awkwardly on his right shoulder as he dove for a pass. He had his abdomen looked at by trainers but returned for the rest of practice.

Rookie Guard Robert Myers and Wide Receiver Cam Worthy were both out of practice.

Notable Quotes:

John Harbaugh: Defenses don’t have a face. We have a lot of leaders. Terrell Suggs is a huge part of this team. He’s an emotional leader and vocal leader. There are a bunch of leaders out there but Terrell Suggs takes a backseat to nobody.

Harbaugh: Matt Schaub is a veteran quarterback that knows how to run things. It seems you guys want to always write about the interceptions and it’s almost like he only throws an interception when you guys are here. He didn’t throw one since the last time you guys where here. (laughs)

Marshall Yanda: We should have a great year. The offensive line did well last year and we want to keep building on what we did last year. I am not getting into the best offensive line talk. We will let the pads do the talking when it’s time to play in September.

Yanda: We will worry about the contract when the time comes. We will get the deal done when we get it done. I am not too worried about it.

Terrell Suggs: Haloti and I are very close. It was weird coming back and him not being here but the show must go on. We wish him tremendous success when he is not playing us.

Suggs: Brady is a winner. He has won with whatever personnel that he’s had. People need something to write about. I don’t think it has tarnished his legacy.

Suggs: I didn’t want to stress about anything. I am not out of shape but I am definitely not at my fighting weight. I am pretty much at my walk around weight but I will be ready by July. I owed it to myself to pace myself so I have something left in the tank come week nine of the season.

Elvis Dumervil on Za’Darius Smith comparisons to Pernell McPhee: Is it because he looks like him? I guess they’re dark skinned and have dreads. I haven’t seen much of Za’Darius but I watched him when he was in Kentucky. I’m sure Ozzie brings nothing but talent here. So far he works hard, so that’s a great thing. He just has to follow the lead.

Dumervil on what he has learned from Terrell Suggs: He’s a student of the game. I think more than his physical gifts, I think he’s a really smart player and his awareness is really…At this point, even if his physical aspect started to diminish, that’ll carry him out because he’s a smart football player.

Perriman: The speed has gone up tremendously with all the vets here. It was already fast but we can really see a difference now. I am doing good but have a lot of work to do, but I am striving for more and expect more from myself.

Perriman: I try not to think about a starting job because I feel like I will get thrown off track. For the most part, I just come out and compete at all-time high and work on my craft, the little things that I need to do to become a good receiver.

The Ravens will have two more sessions of mini-camp in the next couple of days. After that, they will have a break until training camp begins in late July.