Baltimore Ravens: Notes and Quotes from Week 1 of Training Camp

The Baltimore Ravens are back in action at the Under Armour Performance Center in Owings Mills, Maryland, for training camp 2015. 

The first day of practice was July 30, and the team is now a week into what hopes to be a productive camp that leads to another winning season and playoff berth. 

Here's a look at some of the biggest stories to come out of Ravens camp thus far, including some of the most notable quotes from players and coaches. 

Be sure to voice your thoughts on each note and quote from Ravens camp in the comment section.

C.J. Mosley Looks Good in Return from Wrist Surgery

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Back in April, Ravens Pro Bowl linebacker C.J. Mosley underwent offseason wrist surgery.

So far in training camp, Mosley has shown nothing to suggest he isn't fully healed from the procedure.

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"So far, everything is going smooth," Mosley said, via ESPN. "The timing of the injury -- everything is healing at the right time. I'm protecting it, but still going all out. So, everything is going well. I feel 100 percent. I have all the confidence I can have with it. It's healed now, so I don't have any excuses."

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Now in just his second full NFL season, Mosley is expected to have a big year in Baltimore's defense while continuing to establish himself as one of the league's best young inside linebackers. 

That's what Mosley did last year after being the No. 17 pick out of Alabama in the 2014 NFL Draft. Mosley led all rookies and the Ravens with 133 tackles in 2014 while starting every game during Baltimore's 10-6 regular season and run to the divisional round of the playoffs. 

If he can just play at the same level in 2015 as he did in 2014, the Ravens defense should again be among the NFL's best. If Mosley actually improves upon his rookie season, Baltimore may end up having one of the league's two or three best defenses. 

Matt Elam Suffers Serious Injury

Nick Wass/Associated Press

It didn't take long for the Ravens to suffer their first major injury of 2015.

It came on Sunday when third-year safety Matt Elam was forced to leave practice with an apparent arm injury. It has since been revealed he suffered a torn biceps that will likely cost him the entire 2015 season, according to the Baltimore Sun. 

It's a sad development for Elam and a tough blow to the Ravens secondary. Elam's 2014 struggles have been well documented, but so too has his resurgent offseason. 

Even though Elam was benched in favor of Will Hill last year, he still ended up playing in 696 defensive snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. Elam was poised to be a big part of the Ravens secondary in 2015, even if it wasn't as a starter. 

Head coach John Harbaugh was also expecting big things for Elam heading into his third NFL season. 

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“I’m sure it’s very disappointing for him, and he told me that,” Harbaugh said, via BaltimoreRavens.com. “Here’s a guy who came back with a renewed attitude. He had a better approach than he’d had the first two years. He just had grown up a lot. He’s very serious and he was in tremendous shape, and then he gets a fluke injury. That’s disappointing.”

“His job is to come out the other end of this adversity and make the most of it."

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If Elam does miss the entire 2015 season, he'll enter 2016 in the final year of his rookie deal if Baltimore does not pick up his fifth-year option. Considering that would pay him around $6 million in 2017, don't expect it to be exercised. 

That means Elam will have a lot to prove in 2016 if he wants to remain in Baltimore while also getting a nice paycheck in the process. 

Kendrick Lewis Taking Command in Secondary

Gail Burton/Associated Press

With Matt Elam now likely out for the year, it is even more likely that Kendrick Lewis wins a starting job this year.

Lewis was signed as a free agent this offseason after spending 2014 as the Houston Texans' starting free safety. He was already pegged the favorite to win the job in Baltimore this year, and now it's even more likely with Elam out. 

Even before that, Lewis has been making a great impression on the Ravens with his knowledge of the game and leadership skills.

Defensive coordinator Dean Pees pointed out both attributes early on in training camp. 

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“He’s very definitive,” Pees said, via BaltimoreRavens.com. “He’s not wishy washy. Boom, I make the call, we play it, and I like that. That’s what you want back there.

“We had heard that he was a very intelligent football player, but there are a lot of guys that are intelligent football players and you find out maybe they’re not. He’s everything as advertised and more.”

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In Lewis' previous five NFL seasons, he racked up 256 total tackles, nine interceptions and 28 pass deflections in 69 games with 62 starts. He has the most NFL experience of any Ravens defensive back in terms of starting experience, so it shouldn't be too big of a surprise that he's taken such a strong command of the secondary so quickly. 

Jimmy Smith Wants to Prove He's Elite Cornerback

Gail Burton/Associated Press

The Ravens pass defense fell off of a cliff in 2014 after losing star cornerback Jimmy Smith.

During the team's Week 8 loss at Cincinnati, Smith was lost early in the game with a foot injury. It was later revealed to be serious enough to end Smith's season after just eight games.

In the eight games in which Smith played last year, Baltimore surrendered just seven passing touchdowns. In the eight games Smith was out, the Ravens allowed 15 passing scores.

That's how big of an impact Smith made on the secondary as a lockdown corner. Though his season ended prematurely in 2014, Baltimore still opted to give him a four-year, $41 million extension this offseason, per Spotrac. 

It makes Smith one of the higher-paid corners in football, but Smith thinks he's one of the league's four or five best corners. 

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“It’s very important for me for the league to know who I am as a cornerback,” Smith said, via BaltimoreRavens.com. “To be the best, you get paid the best. I feel like I got a great contract, so I’m not mad about it, but I do feel like I’m a top-five corner in the league.”

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Head coach John Harbaugh seems to agree with Smith's sentiments, calling the fifth-year pro the prototype for what an NFL corner should look like. 

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“If you draw up a corner and build one by yourself, you’d make him look just like Jimmy Smith,” Harbaugh said. “He’s just what you’re looking for.”

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If Smith can stay healthy and play in close to every game in 2015, the Ravens secondary should be significantly better than it was in 2014 when it finished 23rd in passing defense.