After cornerback Nate Wiggins went down with a lower-body injury during Tuesday's practice, the Ravens' cornerback depth was tested again on Wednesday.
Cornerback Marlon Humphrey exited practice about an hour in with members of the Ravens' medical staff shortly after forcing an incompletion while guarding wide receiver Ja'Kobi Lane during 11-on-11. It's unclear what happened, but Humphrey didn't return.
Like Head Coach Jesse Minter on Tuesday, Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver expressed confidence in the Ravens' cornerback room after Wednesday's practice.
"Fortunately, I think we have a bunch of good ones," Weaver said. "There's a bunch of guys that can step in if needed."
One cornerback who's stepped up is T.J. Tampa, who had an up and down practice, but such variance is the life of even the league's best defensive backs. Lane's size proved to be too much on a deep ball during 11-on-11, as the rookie wideout spun and hauled in a huge gain. Lane also beat Tampa during one-on-ones with a vertical route down the right sideline, and Tampa fell down at Lane's feet right before the latter made a catch at the front right pylon.
But Tampa also had a pass breakup on another vertical route down the right sideline, this time against speedy wide receiver Devontez Walker. Tampa closed the gap, pinned Walker against the sideline, turned his head to find the ball, and broke up the pass.
Tampa has tallied a handful of deflections over the past few practices and has looked the part of a starting-caliber cornerback. Weaver said Tampa has had a "tremendous" camp so far.
"He's found the ball," Weaver said. "He's one of those guys that rarely makes the same mistakes."
Here are other notes from Wednesday's practice:
- Defensive lineman Nnamdi Madubuike participated in a positional drill for the first time during training camp. He had only previously done individual drills, and he did so with Weaver after the positional drill that involved the rest of the Ravens' defensive linemen.
- The Ravens' first-team offense had another arrhythmic day. Receivers were sparsely open down the field, and quarterback Lamar Jackson couldn't get into a groove passing the ball. Outside linebacker Tavius Robinson had a "sack" on a free rush at Jackson from the right side, which set the offense back during 11-on-11.
- Tight end Mark Andrews, however, had arguably his best day of training camp, including catching a touchdown pass in the red zone from Jackson over Tampa during 11-on-11. It was a classic Jackson-Andrews play in which the quarterback bought time with his legs and then put it up high for Andrews, who then threw the ball up in the air in celebration. Andrews also caught a slant in the middle of heavy traffic near the goal line. The Ravens focused on short-yardage situations in Wednesday's practice, and Andrews shined.
- Cornerbacks Chandler Rivers and Keyon Martin combined to make the defensive highlight of practice. Wide receiver Cornelius Johnson caught an out route near the right sideline, but Rivers used his shoulder pad to knock the ball away from Johnson. It popped up straight in the air and landed in Martin's lap for a takeaway. Martin may have returned it for a pick-six in a game.
- One-on-one reps between pass catchers and defensive backs were particularly spicy, which included the moments involving Tampa and Lane. Wide receivers LaJohntay Wester and Xavier Guillory both made one-handed catches with their left hand through tight coverage (Guillory also caught a deep touchdown while falling onto his back). Wester beat Rivers deep for a touchdown on a perfect throw from Jackson and was so pumped up about it that, when he tried to throw the ball at the fence behind the practice field, Wester accidentally threw it over the fence. Rivers had a wonderful pass breakup on a comeback route by Elijah Sarratt, but the latter got a get-back with a contested catch while being guarded by Martin.
- Wide receiver Dayton Wade returned to practice, while wide receiver Rashod Bateman, running back Rasheen Ali, safety Jahquez Robinson, linebacker Carl Jones Jr., and defensive lineman Rayshaun Benny didn't practice. Benny exited Tuesday's practice with members of the Ravens' medical staff after a play during 11-on-11.
- Newly signed quarterback Austin Reed made his Ravens training camp debut wearing No. 15. The last Raven who played on offense to wear No. 15 in the regular season was quarterback Cooper Rush, who appeared in four games last season.
