Ravens React to Proposed Offseason Overhaul

The Baltimore Ravens have mixed feelings on a proposal that could eliminate OTAs altogether.

Jan 28, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (center) questions a call against the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half in the AFC Championship football game at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports / Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

As the Baltimore Ravens and other teams work their way through organized team activities, a major proposal is in the works that could eliminate that phase of the offseason entirely as soon as next year.

Last week, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that the NFL Players Association is putting together a proposal that would eliminate voluntary workouts in the spring, including OTAs, in favor of “a longer training camp ramp-up, with players reporting in mid-June to early July.” Essentially, this proposal would get rid of the five- or six-week lull between mandatory minicamp and training camp and consolodate the offseason as a whole.

As this proposal potentially represents a seismic shift in the NFL, it was inevitable that the Ravens would comment on it themselves. On Thursday, coach John Harbaugh described the proposal as “really interesting,” but added that it could use some tweaks.

“I think there’s a lot of science behind that, and the thing I’m really encouraged by with a proposal or a thought like that is the fact that the union and the league are working together on it,” Harbaugh told reporters. “To me, that’s really good, because we want to do the best we can to keep guys as healthy as we can [and] get them ready to play football.

“Right now, it’s not probably perfect. I think the different studies [that] they’ve done would say that the timeline is not really great, and so if they can kind of make the timeline better somehow and both the union and the league agree that this is the best way to do it, that would be fantastic.”

Of course, there are plenty of pros and cons to this proposed change. On one hand, consolodating the offseason and giving players a longer break could drastically reduce injuries, especially beneficial as the NFL inevitably adds more games to the regular season. On the other hand, it could lead to more players showing up out of shape for training camp.

“I don’t really mind [the way it’s set up right now],” tight end Mark Andrews told reporters. “I think this is a good time period of guys coming back here, working. You’re able to get with the team, get the plays in, and then you get that extra break off, which is kind of nice for your body. It’s kind of nice for everything, just getting your head back right, but I don’t know the right answer to that.

“It could be both. I haven’t done it the other way. For the NFLPA – they ask everybody in the league, [and] they ask all the guys. And, [hopefully] they [will] make sure that’s a consensus that guys would want to [change the schedule], because I really don’t have a problem with the way it’s set up right now.”

An official decision is likely still months away, so until then, the Ravens and other teams will simply go about their business as usual.