Ravens News 8/15: Practice notes, red zone efficiency and more

Ranking the first-round rookie quarterbacks after preseason Week 1 - Neil Hornsby

Lamar Jackson wasn’t great under pressure but being harried on 58 percent of his dropbacks is a ton and that type of volume is always going to lead to issues even for the best players.

Jackson remains the biggest concern particularly from an accuracy standpoint and although he’s shown some quality stuff as a runner, he’s taken a lot of hits in the process.

Lamar Jackson’s overall grade was 54.3, well below Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield but still better than Josh Rosen.

Red-Zone Efficiency: Highest red-zone grades among returning NFL WRs - Austin Gayle

.Michael Crabtree, Baltimore Ravens | Red-Zone Offense Grade: 87.3

Standing out as the only receiver on this list on a new team in 2018, the former Oakland Raiders (2015-17) and San Francisco 49ers (2009-14) receiver in Crabtree has always drawn rave reviews for his efforts in the red zone, and his 2017 campaign was no different.

Despite playing just 40 snaps in the red zone all last season, Crabtree hauled in seven of his 14 red-zone targets for 20 yards and five touchdowns with the Raiders a year ago, fueling his first-ranked offense grade (87.3) and third-ranked receiving grade (85.4) inside of the 20-yard line. He also didn’t drop a single catchable pass thrown his way and caught three of his seven contested red-zone targets for touchdowns.

Crabtree’s success inside the red zone couldn’t keep him from being shown the door in Oakland, but his release has maybe put him in a better position to show his strengths.

Michael Crabtree is in good company. His red zone grade leads a top five that includes Davante Adams, Stefon Diggs, Alshon Jeffery and A.J. Green.

Harbaugh: WR John Brown exceeding expectations - Kevin Patra

“He has been better than we expected,” coach John Harbaugh said, via the Baltimore Sun. “Obviously, we’ve had high hopes for him, but [he’s] better than advertised -- probably even better than what the tape showed, I would say. He’s been a complete receiver for us.”

“I really think that’s a credit to [Brown] and just how well he can get off the ball and get going vertical and put those DBs in a bad position,” Flacco said, via ESPN.com. “When you don’t get that, it makes it a little bit tough to hang back there and figure out where you’re going to put the ball. I think him in particular, he’s just been doing a great job of beating guys off the line and showing guys what he’s made of.”

“[Flacco] knows with Smokey that he just lets it fly and he’s not going to underthrow him,” safety Eric Weddle said.

Based off the daily reports of John Brown making splash plays all over the field, he should be in line to start opposite Crabtree in two receiver sets.

News & Notes 8/14: Time to Finally See What Kenneth Dixon Can Do - Ryan Mink

Count Head Coach John Harbaugh, who said he’s happy for the third-year running back, [Kenneth Dixon] among those who can’t wait to see what he can do in a game.

“He looked good in practice the past few days, [he] looks like he’s healthy, so to see him in a game will be exciting,” Harbaugh said.

“I’ll be holding my breath and looking forward to seeing him make one of his signature moves and make somebody miss and all that. If he can do that, that would be good for our team.”

Kenneth Dixon will have a three game audition to prove he is worthy of a precious regular season roster spot.