The Baltimore Ravens got an unusual jolt on Thursday, and it came from outside the NFL.
After another strong training camp practice, Spain and FC Barcelona forward Ferran Torres addressed the team during his East Coast media tour. Torres, fresh off a World Cup win, drove home a message that lined up perfectly with what head coach Jesse Minter has been pushing since he arrived: be at your best when your best is needed.
“[Torres] came off the bench in the finals of the World Cup, scored the game-winning goal. Talk about being ready when your number’s called…that’s the ultimate [example],” Minter said.
For Baltimore, the timing fit. Minter has been trying to change the tone around the team, and Torres gave that idea a different kind of weight.
His career has been a mix of high-level promise and uneven stretches since he emerged as one of soccer’s fastest-rising talents and later joined Barcelona in 2022. But when the biggest moment came, he was ready for it, and that’s the lesson Minter wanted his players to hear.
The Ravens have had their share of painful moments when the pressure has been highest. Last season, the mistakes piled up in critical spots, from Derrick Henry’s fumbles to Chidobe Awuzie slipping and allowing the game-winning touchdown in Week 18, and then Tyler Loop’s missed kick to close out the 2025 campaign. The bigger-picture problem has lingered beyond that, too, with Baltimore repeatedly coming up short in the postseason.
That’s why Minter’s emphasis has mattered so much. Since the first week of offseason program practices, the 42-year-old coach has been hammering the same point through drills and daily work: be at your best when your best is needed. Torres’ visit just gave that message an unexpected boost.
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