Top takeaways from release of Ravens initial depth chart

The Baltimore Ravens have revealed their first depth chart as compiled by the public relations staff based on observations from training camp thus far. While no input from coaches was taken into account for this slotting of players, it does provide a glimpse of who is in pole position to win starting and primary backup jobs.

Here are some of the top takeaways from the initial depth chart on both sides of the ball and in all three phases of the game.

Starting offensive line could be coming into focus

The rebuild of the Ravens’ trenches on offense is by far, the biggest question circling the team in training camp and heading into the 2024 season after they parted ways with three of five starters in the offseason. Both guard spots next to Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum are up for grabs as is the right tackle spot.

Per the initial depth chart, second-year pro Andrew Vorhees remains the leader in the clubhouse to be the Ravens’ fourth straight different day-one starter at left guard since 2021. Third-year pro Daniel Faalele’s experiment at right guard seems to have landed him the starting right guard gig and veteran utility lineman Patrick Mekari is set to open the season next to him as the starting right tackle.

Vorhees spent his entire rookie year recovering from a torn ACL he suffered at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine but prior to his injury was projected to be an early-to-mid-round pick. The Ravens traded back into the seventh round of last year’s draft to select him and general manager Eric DeCosta went on record stating that he would be “playing meaningful football” for the team in 2024. It appears that the time has come as he has been running with the first-team offense all of training camp thus far.

“I was beyond grateful when I got the call from Mr. DeCosta, and the Baltimore Ravens decided to select me as one of their choices,” Vorhees said last Thursday. “They poured into me all last year, and I gave them everything I had. [It] just felt like the foundation that I built for myself and the belief and the work ethic I had with everyone on staff in our weight room, our training room, and even our position coaches and stuff – [it] just felt like it all has paid dividends, and I’m forever indebted and grateful to this organization for believing in me and giving me a shot, given my circumstances.”

Faalele has never played on the interior before and had exclusively been an offensive tackle through high school, college and his first two years in the league. In an effort to see which combination gave the team their best starting five, they didn’t want to limit the 6-foot-8 and 380-pound mountain of a man to just one position which was projected to be right tackle where he starred at the University of Minnesota. He has taken to the position switch well by most media reports and the coaching staff themselves with some expected growing pains that could get ironed out during the preseason with more live reps and joint practices.

“His footwork is not bad. He’s learning a new position. Playing inside, everything happens faster – the movement happens faster, [the] decisions [happen] faster, communication happens faster,” offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris said on July 26. “He’s growing in that area, and we have to just continue to [teach him to] use his hands better to relocate – either to place your hands on him – relocate the hands, etc.

The Ravens would prefer to have Mekari as their super-sub sixth man on the offensive line due to his incredible five-position versatility but him being projected to open the season as the starter doesn’t mean he will ultimately remain in that full-time role. Rookie second-rounder Roger Rosengarten is his chief competition and as recently as last week, began taking reps with the starting unit. He could be on an Orlando Brown Jr.-like arc to begin his career where he begins his rookie campaign as a primary backup to a versatile veteran in a similar way that the eventual four-time Pro Bowler did in 2018 with former Ravens undrafted gem James Hurst.

“It’s been good to stack days, focus on one position and get better every day,” Mekari said last Thursday. “I just want to play, and I want to help the team. In whatever way that looks like that’s up to the coaches and front office. That’s for them to decide.”

Travis Jones projected to be a starter

The third-year pro has been one of the most disruptive defensive players during training camp this far and has garnered high praise from coaches and teammates alike including being described as being a “superhuman” type player. Many of them believe he is poised to have a breakout season and according to the initial depth chart, he will be doing so as a full-time starter for the first time in his career as he is listed as the starting defensive end/five-technique in the Ravens base defense over 11-year veteran Brent Urban.

“[I see Travis Jones playing the] nose [tackle], 3-Technique or 4-, 4i- or 5-Technique,” head coach John Harbaugh said Friday. “He can play anywhere in there – absolutely.”

Jalyn Armour-Davis ahead of Nate Wiggins

The third-year pro and former fourth-rounder has not so quietly been one of the bright standouts in training camp to the point he is listed as a primary backup to fourth-year pro Brandon Stephens at outside corner in front of the first-round rookie. Harbaugh went as far as to say that Armour-Davis, who is in the midst of a pivotal camp after struggling with injuries to begin his career, is “playing like a starter.”

“He’s been here, he knows what he’s doing, he’s very talented,” Harbaugh said Friday. “He’s always played very good football. He’s had nicks and things like that, kind of unfortunate situations, but we expect him to have a really good year. I think he’s playing like a starter, and he’ll be on special teams, and he’ll be playing in our secondary in packages. I expect him to have a great year.”

Deonte Harty tops returner slots but buried on offensive depth chart

The Ravens brought in the former Pro Bowler and First Team All Pro to replace two-time Pro Bowler and fellow former First Team All Pro Devin Duvernay as the team’s primary return specialist. While it appears he is still in line to have both the starting kick and punt returner spots on lock, a minor soft tissue injury that has held him out of practice the past week has prevented him from climbing the wide receiver pecking order. The sixth-year veteran is tied with undrafted rookie Isaiah Washington as the fourth option at No. 2 receiver behind Rashod Bateman, Nelson Agholor and fourth-round rookie Devontez Walker.

“He’s got a nagging soft tissue, lower-leg deal,” Harbaugh said. “He’s had those in the past – it’s something that he does deal with. I think he’ll be fine and get plenty of reps. He’s had so many return reps generally, but you would want him out here in this new [kickoff rule], getting a feel and the timing for it.”