Lamar Jackson and Zay Flowers are taking their offseason work in a different direction. Instead of the usual grind, the two Ravens have been training with boxing, working alongside performance coach Dawson Saint Jour.
The idea behind it is pretty straightforward: boxing can sharpen reaction time, build endurance, and help connect upper- and lower-body movement. That’s the lane Saint Jour works in, using the sport to help athletes improve their strength, conditioning, and functional athleticism. Jackson and Flowers already bring plenty of those traits to the table, but the point is clear - in this league, standing still is falling behind.
There was also a different kind of crossover in Cincinnati, where Jesse Minter made a recent public appearance by visiting to watch the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles won two of their three games against the Cincinnati Reds, though they dropped Sunday’s game after Minter had already left town. The timing was enough for a little joke, and the Ravens will be hoping for a similar result when they head to Cincinnati to face the Bengals in October.
And there was encouraging news on the injury front, too. Teddye Buchanan has returned to the field just seven months after tearing his ACL. The 23-year-old, a 2025 fourth-round pick, was injured in December and saw his rookie season cut short after he had emerged as the Ravens’ No. 2 linebacker.
Getting Buchanan ready by Week 1 and fully settled into a new defense still sounds like a stretch, especially with Baltimore’s usual cautious approach to players coming back from major injuries. Even so, the fact that he’s back on the field is a strong sign that he could get back to his role next to Roquan Smith sooner rather than later.
In Other News...
Ravens Just Got A Fresh Warning About Trey Hendrickson
Baltimore went into the offseason looking for a proven edge presence, and Trey Hendrickson fit the bill as a four-time Pro Bowler with a track record that includes a 17.5-sack season. The Ravens paid accordingly, giving him a four-year, $112 million deal to bolster a defensive front that wanted more disruption and more finishing power off the edge.
Still, not everyone is treating the move like an automatic win. Bleacher Reports Moe Moton re-graded the signing as a B- rather than a clear upgrade, pointing to the size of the contract and the questions that come with bringing in a player coming off an injury-shortened campaign. Baltimore clearly believes Hendrickson can change games, but the early skepticism is centered on whether the price tag matches the risk. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens May Have One Last Answer To Their WR Problem
Baltimores wide receiver room still looks like a work in progress beyond Zay Flowers, and that has kept the possibility of a veteran addition alive as training camp approaches. The Ravens drafted two receivers in 2026, but the depth chart still has the feel of a group that needs one more proven piece if the team wants more certainty behind its top option.
Former Raven Femi Ayanbadejo floated Deebo Samuel as the kind of versatile weapon who could make sense in Baltimore, especially for a team that likes to create matchup problems in different ways. The catch is obvious: the Ravens already have a strong starting trio and a return man in place, so even if the fit is intriguing, finding an actual roster spot would be the part that gets complicated. [Read more 🡒]
Ed Reed Is Now The Blueprint For A Future NBA Star
A young guard learning the pro game can usually use a little help on the defensive end, and in this case the lesson plan reaches back to one of the NFLs best safeties. The Utah Jazz have been steering a promising rookie toward Baltimore legend Ed Reed as a model for how to see the floor, jump passing lanes and turn defense into something that creates offense.
The comparison makes sense because the player in question built his college reputation on off-ball disruption and the kind of ball-hawking instincts that change possessions without always showing up in a box score. For a shooting guard trying to become a true two-way threat, Reed is more than a name from another sport. He is the standard for the mentality and anticipation that can separate a solid defender from someone who tilts games. [Read more 🡒]