Earl Thomas and Mark Ingram II Feature

EARL THOMAS

SHOULDN'T BE FLYING UNDER THE RADAR

BY John Eisenberg BALTIMORERAVENS.COM columnist If you polled Ravens fans on which player they’re most excited to see in 2019, I’m sure Lamar Jackson would win.

Earl Thomas III seemingly is flying a bit under the radar.

The Ravens have seldom possessed an offensive player so fast and electric, and this one touches the ball on every play. A lot is riding on Jackson in his first full season as a starting quarterback.

Thomas III, 30, is a superb defensive player, one of his generation’s best.

In nine years in the NFL, he has made the Pro Bowl six times and earned AllPro honors three times. Intimidating both as a tackler and ballhawk, he has few active peers, if any, who have proven to be as much a differencemaker in the secondary.

Finishing right behind him in the poll, I’m sure, would be rookie WR Marquise "Hollywood" Brown, a new offensive piece generating a ton of buzz. There’s also a lot of anticipation about veteran running back Mark Ingram II, another new piece, and second-year tight ends Mark Andrews and Hayden Hurst.

I get it. The Ravens have rebuilt their offense around Jackson, and they’re hoping for an uptick on that side of the ball. Inevitably, that generates excitement.

But amid all the interest in the 2019 offense, the Baltimore debut of safety

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Again, I get it – or at least, I think I do.

If he’d signed anywhere else, all eyes would be on him and trumpets would be blaring as he prepares to make his debut.

But he signed with the Ravens, whose fans have cheered for so many Hall of Fame-caliber defensive players over the years that, well, having one has become kind of commonplace.

Ray Lewis played here for 17 years.

He’s only one of the best linebackers ever, and already enshrined in the Hall. Ed Reed, who played here for 11 years, joined his longtime running

mate in Canton a couple of weeks ago. Terrell Suggs plays elsewhere now, but his 16-year run in Baltimore likely will propel him to a place alongside Lewis and Reed.

Thomas III's career arc is similar.

Calling it impressive is an understatement.

But after nine years in Seattle, he may have landed in the only place where the reaction to his presence falls along the lines of “It’s great to have him, but been there, done that.”

For the record, that’s not the case with me. Thomas III is right at the top of my list of Ravens I’m anxious to watch in 2019.

The intensity and purposefulness Thomas III brings to the job are already evident around the Under Armour Performance Center, but no doubt, the best of him is yet to come.

In my book, it qualifies as must-see football.

MARK INGRAM

Gives Ravens’ Young Offense a Strong Spine

BY John Eisenberg BALTIMORERAVENS.COM columnist Mark Ingram II is listed as an RB, a running back, on the Ravens’ roster.

But it would also be appropriate for his position to be listed as CC – camp counselor.

Seriously, have you considered what the nine-year NFL veteran sees when surveying the other skillposition players the Ravens are counting on to shoulder major loads in 2019?

Lamar Jackson, the starting QB, is all of 22 years old, in his second season.

The other RBs include Gus Edwards, also in his second season, and Justice Hill, a rookie. Kenneth Dixon, 25, is battling for a roster spot and a role.

At tight end, the team hopes Mark Andrews and Hayden Hurst, a pair of second-year players, will catch passes and stretch the field. Nick Boyle, who’ll also receive a lot of playing time, could qualify as a grandfather in their company. This is his fifth pro season.

At wide receiver, it’s still not clear who’ll start, but there’s little doubt what the Ravens want. They didn’t draft Marquise "Hollywood" Brown at No. 25 overall this year thinking he might need a year or two to get going in the NFL. They’re hopeful he can start and contribute now, as a rookie.

They’d also love to see Brown’s fellow rookie WR, Miles Boykin, a third-round pick, start on the other side.

Shouldn’t the front office focus on the team’s more pressing questions, such as who’ll rush the passer?

Either way, another relative grandfather, Willie Snead IV, 26, will man the slot receiver role after leading the team in receptions in 2018.

But now, months later, I entirely see what they were thinking. They have a new quarterback when counting from a year ago, a new offense and a new generation of speedy, young playmakers. That’s a whole lot of new.

They need a steadying force amid it all, a dependable veteran who can be counted on to contribute, no question marks attached.

Decades ago, when Baltimore’s other major league team, the Orioles, cast their lot with a bunch of young starting pitchers, fans called them “the Kiddie Corps.”

It’s a nickname that also fits the 2019 Ravens, at least offensively. There’s no doubt the organization is casting its lot with youth and speed over experience and track records when it comes to moving the ball.

But there’s one outlier in the blueprint – Ingram II, 29, who is in his first season with the Ravens after spending eight with the Saints, the team that drafted him back when dinosaurs roamed the earth in 2011.

Ingram II's impressive career totals of 1,549 touches, 7,605 total yards and 55 touchdowns easily exceed the combined career totals of every other skill-position player the Ravens are counting on. He might as well be Moses, gazing down from on high.

The Ravens targeted Ingram II before free agency began and quickly signed him to a three-year, $15 million deal, and I admit, I didn’t quite understand their thinking at first. Their running backs performed well in 2018, especially Edwards down the stretch.

They need, quite simply, an adult to serve as an anchor in that huddle of youngsters.

They couldn’t have found many players better suited for the role. Ingram II is mature and consistent, a pro’s pro. He can handle Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman’s complex running scheme and help show others what to do. His advanced statistics suggest he’s still in his prime, picking up tons of yards after contact.

Most importantly, he brings greater versatility than the Ravens had at running back a year ago. He’s adept at catching passes out of the backfield.

Built like a tank, he identifies and negates opposing blitzers – a key skill.

And he can hit holes anywhere along the line after taking a handoff.

The organization is all about building a fast, darting offense around a fast, darting quarterback. But with Ingram II lined up beside Jackson, that offense still has a strong spine.

Yeah, I get it now.

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