Ravens' David Ojabo focused on playing fast, having fun after first healthy offseason

New York Times

12 hours ago

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — It was only a preseason sack, an uncontested one at that, but if there was any Baltimore Raven who could benefit from making a play, it was outside linebacker David Ojabo.
Ojabo has dealt with a litany of injuries, long recoveries, healthy scratches and the backlash from not producing at the level that was expected when the Ravens made him a 2022 second-round pick following a standout season at Michigan. Now, he enters his fourth NFL season amid the perception that he's firmly on the 53-man roster bubble.
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The Ravens return outside linebackers Odafe Oweh and Kyle Van Noy, both of whom had double-digit sacks last year. Tavius Robinson is a coaching staff favorite and part-time starter. The Ravens used a second-round pick on Mike Green, widely considered one of the best pass rushers in the draft. Adisa Isaac, a third-round pick last year, is healthy after missing much of his rookie season with injuries.
Baltimore typically doesn't keep six outside linebackers because it leaves the team thin at other positions. That means Ojabo's chances to make the roster hinge on the Ravens either keeping six edge rushers or him beating out Isaac. The latter seems highly unlikely because the Ravens typically don't give up on early-round rookies so soon.
'I haven't heard anything about that, honestly,' Ojabo said Monday when asked about the logjam at outside linebacker. 'I'm out here. (When I) just get the call, play fast, have fun and control what I can control, which is my effort and my attitude.'
Ojabo, 25, has four sacks in parts of three NFL seasons, while being limited to just 18 games. Ojabo's career started inauspiciously after he tore his Achilles tendon during Michigan's pro day in March 2022. He was projected to be a mid-first-round pick before the injury, thanks to his breakout 11-sack season for the Wolverines in 2021. The Ravens wound up getting Ojabo in the second round with the 45th pick.
He did a chunk of his Achilles rehab with the team and made his NFL debut in mid-December that year, playing in two games in 2022 and getting a strip-sack against Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. The Ravens and Ojabo expected that 2023 would be different as the edge rusher was a year removed from the Achilles injury. However, he sustained a knee injury that knocked him out after three games and lingered into the offseason.
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Ojabo was never able to carve out a regular role last season, finishing with two sacks and six quarterback hits in 13 games and playing just 33 percent of Baltimore's defensive snaps.
'It is my first true offseason healthy,' Ojabo said Monday. 'I feel like myself. Feel confident and just kind of letting it rip. I'm not thinking about rehabbing. I'm just thinking about football. I'm doing good. Just keep getting better day by day.'
In the Ravens' preseason-opening win against the Indianapolis Colts, an unblocked Ojabo slammed into quarterback Anthony Richardson, who dislocated his finger on the sack. Ojabo played 37 defensive snaps and four on special teams, finishing with one sack and two tackles. Ravens coach John Harbaugh praised Ojabo for 'playing in a very direct way.'
'The thing about David Ojabo, he's not a guy who played a lot of football,' Harbaugh said. 'He was late to football in high school, might've played one year of high school football. He really only played one year of college football as far as a full season. Then, he got hurt coming out.
'So, football is kind of one of these games where the more you play it, the better feel you have for it. It's like any sport, probably, but I think his upside is really there, and I believe that we'll see it. I think we've seen it already in camp. I'm looking forward to the games so everybody can see it.'
After many of his teammates had gone inside following a relatively long and hot practice, Ravens second-year undrafted free agent Corey Bullock was on Field One, working through some drills with veteran left tackle Ronnie Stanley. This is a daily occurrence for Stanley, who stays after practice on most days and either works on his technique or helps young offensive linemen with theirs.
The post-practice work came after a workout in which Bullock again got extensive reps at center with starter Tyler Linderbaum taking a breather for parts of practice. It was the latest evidence of Bullock's ascent up the Ravens' depth chart following a year spent on the team's practice squad. Bullock, who played guard in his final college season at the University of Maryland, also started the Ravens' preseason opener at center.
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'I would say he's made dramatic improvement (and) just works so hard all the time,' Harbaugh said when asked about Bullock on Sunday. 'It's showing up in how he's playing. He's playing both center and guard positions and has just done well. I see him blocking people. That's usually a pretty good (sign). Isn't that what linemen do? They block. So, he's making a lot of blocks.'
One of the team's unresolved roster questions is at backup center. The favorite coming into camp to win that job was Nick Samac, a seventh-round pick last year. The Ravens also had the option of using veteran Ben Cleveland at center, where he's taken reps over the past couple of years, or playing Darrian Dalcourt, a second-year undrafted free agent who started at center for Alabama.
However, it appears that Bullock has surpassed them all on the depth chart.
• After a spirited padded practice Sunday, the Ravens were in shells Monday and had what Harbaugh described as a 'mental' practice. They gave their backups a lot of snaps and worked extensively on different situations. But a practice that didn't feature a ton of highlight-worthy plays peaked with Lamar Jackson connecting with DeAndre Hopkins on a 40-yard touchdown to end a two-minute session. It was Hopkins' biggest play of training camp, and it came after the veteran receiver sat out Sunday's practice.
The second-team offense wasn't as productive in its final two-minute session, as quarterback Cooper Rush was intercepted in the end zone by undrafted rookie Keondre Jackson while trying to get the ball to Devontez Walker.
• Rookie first-round safety Malaki Starks intercepted Lamar Jackson in the back of the end zone. Jackson bought himself some time and was trying to get the ball to wide receiver Keith Kirkwood, but Starks stepped in front and took the ball out of the end zone. On the very next play, Jackson fired a nifty pass to Zay Flowers. Just as Flowers was about to pull it in, cornerback Marlon Humphrey slapped the ball out of his hands. Humphrey celebrated by doing cornerback Jaire Alexander's sword gesture.
• The Ravens have two weeks before they'll have to cut their roster down to 53, and one decision that probably will come down to the wire involves Isaiah Likely. The tight end had surgery to repair a small fracture in his left foot about 10 days ago, and his availability for the first few weeks of the regular season is in question. Harbaugh agreed with the initial assessment of an approximate six-week absence. That would put his return right around the Sept. 7 opener in Buffalo.
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If the Ravens feel Likely will be ready or will only miss a game or two, they'll probably keep him on the initial 53-man roster. If they project his absence to be longer, then Baltimore has the option to put Likely on injured reserve, which would guarantee that he'd miss at least the first four games.
The Ravens will still have tight ends Mark Andrews and Charlie Kolar and fullback Patrick Ricard on their roster. That could be enough to get through a couple of games without Likely. If they feel otherwise, then one of their other tight ends, Zaire Mitchell-Paden, Scotty Washington or Baylor Cupp, could be in line to make the team.
Washington, 28, has emerged from that group over the last couple of days. He made a diving catch in the end zone in Sunday's practice and followed that up by making several big plays Monday.
Offense 🔥 pic.twitter.com/QZM0eHhkUG
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) August 11, 2025
• In Sunday's practice, the Ravens had wide receiver Malik Cunningham, a former college quarterback, throw two passes as part of a drill that was designed to work on the defense's reaction to interceptions deep in its own territory. In Monday's workout, the Ravens had Linderbaum holding on field goal attempts for punter Jordan Stout. Kicker Tyler Loop also got a holder rep for Stout. It's all part of the Ravens' practicing contingency plans in case of in-game injuries.
• Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton, who appeared to tweak his groin early last week, missed his fourth straight practice Monday. Harbaugh has said on multiple occasions that Hamilton's injury is not a major concern. For the second time in three days, Hamilton ran sprints on an adjacent field during practice and didn't look compromised.
Also not practicing for the Ravens: running backs Keaton Mitchell (groin) and Marcus Major (concussion), Likely (foot), offensive tackle Emery Jones Jr. (shoulder), inside linebacker William Kwenkeu and Alexander.
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