For the first time in the career of Lamar Jackson, his Baltimore Ravens made a concerted effort to upgrade the wide receiver position. There hadn’t been a team in the NFL that spent fewer assets at wide receiver during Jackson’s tenure than Baltimore, but that all changed this offseason.
In free agency, the team signed Nelson Agholor early on and made their big splash a few weeks later when they won the Odell Beckham Jr. sweepstakes. Those two, along with Rashod Bateman, would have been a solid trio for Jackson to work with. But, general manager Eric DeCosta didn’t stop there.
With their first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Ravens selected wide receiver, Zay Flowers. Some talent evaluators believed Flowers was the best player at his position in the 2023 draft class and he has done nothing but prove those people right in the early going.
Flowers was a standout during team activities in the spring and has carried that momentum over into training camp. Per NFL Rookie Watch on Twitter, the Boston College product has been virtually impossible to cover during drills at camp.
When matched up in one-on-one situations, Flowers has roasted his opposition with regularity and ease. He has been leaving defensive backs in the dirt and running in the wrong direction trying to keep up with his excellent route running.
Right now, Flowers is cementing his status as one of the top two wide receivers on the Ravens’ depth chart. It sounds as if everyone else on the roster is looking to catch him as head coach John Harbaugh has been blown away by his performance despite being a rookie.
Flowers has earned the nickname ‘Joystick’ from Jackson and it is certainly fitting. His quickness and speed are something normally only seen in the virtual world, as his speed and agility look like something out of a video game.
With new offensive coordinator Todd Monken ready to open things up through the air, the Ravens are going to look vastly different in 2023 than in years past. Flowers will be a huge beneficiary of the scheme change and is in for a huge rookie season.
