Training camp tour -- Ravens and Skins (Part 1 of 2)

This week my NFL training camp tour continued with stop offs in Westminster, Maryland, for the Baltimore Ravens' camp, and Ashburn, Virginia, for the Washington Redskins' camp.

This weekend's trip started late Thursday night, heading down to the Ravens' camp.

On Friday, the team had a two-a-day, with morning practice at their new facility, which is supposed to be some incredible complex, when it is finally fully built.

That was followed at night, when they had an offense versus defense scrimmage, the first this season.

In the morning, after driving around Westminster for a half-hour, we finally got to practice to see the last half-hour or so.

There really wasn't much going on during this practice, a couple of walk through seven on sevens.

The only thing I do remember was seeing ex-Giants head coach, now Ravens senior offensive consultant, Jim Fassel coaching on the sidelines.

Between practices was the best part.

We hung around the team's motel, and had the opportunity to speak to head coach Brian Billick, pro bowl tight end Todd Heap, pro bowl Offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden, Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year, Terrell Suggs, and secondary coach/former giants defensive coordinator Johnnie Lynn.

I asked Billick what he thinks Jim Fassel brings to the team, and he said, "Another pair of veteran eyes, and Jim is very good with young quarterbacks and will help Kyle (Boller) progress."

I also asked the same question to Todd Heap, who responded by saying, "He has put in a lot of new routes that he has had success with that can make our offense more dangerous."

Heap is a classy guy, who was a pleasure to talk to for the five minutes that I did.

His most appealing statements were, "I will be a very happy man if they enforce the pass interference rules, like they say that they will. I'm sure they will be enforced during the pre-season, but come the regular season, I will believe it when I see it."

Heap is also a very team oriented guy, who said "the attention will come my way over time, and although (Jeremy) Shockey and Tony G (Gonzalez) receive it now, it doesn't bother me, but I enjoy learning from the two guys on film."

The major issue surrounding camp is that of Jamal Lewis' impending trial.

For those of you who don't know, Lewis is set to go on trial sometime this year for felony drug charges, in which he conspired with a friend several years ago, to sell drugs.

The Ravens believe the trial will take place after the season, but are prepared to play without Jamal for a few games, if it happens during the season.

They have depth at the running-back position with Musa Smith and Chester Taylor.

Billick even went far enough to say, "That if we had Musa (Smith) and Chester (Taylor) in 2001, when Jamal was hurt and we lost in the divisional playoffs, I believe we would have had a legitimate chance at that back to back Super Bowl."

I also asked Jonathan Ogden, how important is it to have Lewis on the field for all 16 games?

His response was, "Jamal is a huge part of our offense and we hope that he can get his legal issues resolved and we keep our fingers crossed that he will."

Behind Lewis on the depth chart are Smith and Taylor.

Smith is in his second year from Georgia and Billick believes would be a number one back on other NFL teams. In his career, he has a total of nine carries for 31 yards and two touchdowns.

Taylor is also a young running back, entering his third season of pro football. In his career, he has 99 carries for 398 yards and two touchdowns.

The Miami Dolphins were said to be interested in acquiring him, after the retirement of Ricky Williams.

In the night scrimmage, I personally thought Taylor was the best player on the field. He had several big runs and showed a combination of power and speed, for a 5'11", 213 pound back.

The defense as always expects to be one of the best in the league.

Last year they ranked third, but with another year under the belt of guys like Pro bowl safety Ed Reed and AP Rookie of the Year linebacker Terrell Suggs, the sky is the limit for this defense.

One of the keys is getting Pro bowl cornerback Chris McCallister to report to camp. He is currently holding out.

Still, secondary coach Johnnie Lynn is confident that he will be back soon.

"When the time is right for him, he will be here," Lynn said. "But for the time being, we have to work with the guys that are here."

Suggs said of the defense that, "I can't put into words how good we can be, but people are already starting to compare us to the 2000 defense."

The Ravens also added a linebacker, Roderick Green, in the fifth round of this year's draft, and after listening to people talk about him, he might be another playmaker for this defense.

In the night scrimmage, there wasn't much of a chance to see the starters, since it was the first scrimmage of the pre-season.

Ray Lewis and Ed Reed were really enjoying the defense's effort, but surprisingly the offense went on to win with a final touchdown.

Taylor looked real sharp, and another player that stood out was rookie tight end Brett Pierce, who must have had 10 receptions in the game.

On offense, Lewis had a couple of carries, but nothing of note.

Starting quarterback Kyle Boller connected with Travis Taylor on a few plays, which the Ravens hope will happen more often this year.

As a rookie, Boller led the team to a 5-3 record before getting injured. His best game last season was against the Bengals, in which he went 15 for 27, for a total of 302 yards and two touchdowns.

When I spoke to him, he was very excited about the chance to have 16 games as a starter to look forward to.

His main target last season was Heap, but the addition of wide receiver Kevin Johnson, can also help bolster the No. 32 ranked passing offense.

It seems that the Ravens are very high on KJ.

"The difference between the No. 32 ranked passing offense last year and the No. 15 ranked passing game was 35 yards per game," Billick said. "We believe KJ can make up for that. He is a guy who averages 60 catches a season, and will bring a lot to this offense."

Heap was also very high on him saying, "Every time I watch the ball thrown to him, he catches it. He is going to be a very valuable part of our offense, as we try to improve on our passing game."

The quote of the day at camp had to go to Ed Reed though.

When I asked him why are there so many great players from Miami -- is there something in the food, in the water, he responded with, "If I told you, I would have to kill you."

My response was, "In that case, don't tell me." Then we both had a good laugh.

If the Ravens have Lewis for the entire season, this team can be very dangerous. If their passing game starts clicking, they can be even better.

This is definitely a Super Bowl contender.

Questions or Comments: grmschwa@indiana.edu