The Ravens opened their offseason program on April 6, and Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry and Trey Hendrickson were among the players who showed up Monday morning at the Under Armour Performance Center as Jesse Minter began his first spring in charge of the team.
For Minter, the date was no accident. He said last week at the NFL owners meetings that April 6 had been the target from the moment the staff was hired, a day to get players back in the building and start laying the foundation. He said the work begins with relationships, with players spending time together and learning how he operates. In his words, the process starts with getting around the guys, working together and helping them understand his personality and how the team wants to function.
The early turnout matters because the Ravens are entering the first offseason program under a new head coach, and the voluntary workouts come before OTAs next month. Jackson, Henry and Hendrickson were not required to be there, but their presence at the building on day one sends a clear message about how the spring is expected to unfold under the new staff.
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There is also a deeper layer to the first month of work. Jeff Zrebiec identified 10 Ravens players who could use a strong first impression with Minter and a productive offseason to help shape their roles. That includes Andrew Vorhees, who played only 49 offensive snaps last season after recovering from shoulder surgery, and Adisa Isaac, a rookie sixth-round pick who logged just 71 defensive snaps and spent most of the year buried in the line rotation. They are the kind of players for whom a quiet spring can turn into a crowded fall.
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Marlon Humphrey, meanwhile, sounded far more comfortable with where the roster stands. “We’re where we want to be,” he said, a line that reflects confidence inside a team that is trying to translate last season’s foundation into a clean start under a new coach. The Ravens have the talent to make the first week look easy. The harder part is turning attendance into trust, and trust into the kind of spring that decides who matters when the games start counting again.
