Zay Flowers Blames John Harbaugh's Practices for Ravens' Injuries in New Trending Video

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers thinks one of the biggest benefits from replacing John Harbaugh with Jesse Minter will be how practice is handled.

Appearing on the 4th and South podcast (starts at 8:30 mark), Flowers explained that he felt one of the reasons the Ravens often dealt with injury issues is because of how they practiced under Harbaugh:

"Full pads all the time. However many practices in pads you can get, every single one. We're doing one-on-ones in Week 17. Week 17, we're doing one-on-ones, everybody out there, we're tired, we're still going. ... That's why we had a lot of injuries. Because of how we practiced, how we went. The load was heavy."

Flowers was also complimentary toward Harbaugh, praising his ability to prepare for games and "getting you ready to play" without having to worry about being surprised by what an opponent is going to do.

After the Ravens hired Minter, Flowers said on the podcast that he asked the new head coach about how physical things would be in practice:

"He worked with Harbaugh in 2017, so he knows how it was, how we worked with Harbaugh. So he says, 'You're going to get your work, but it's going to be a little easier on your body. You're going to be fresher for the game.' That was the first talk I had with him: How's practice going to look?"

The Ravens actually had the 12th-fewest games lost to injuries in the NFL last season, but some players who missed multiple games were essential to their success.

Lamar Jackson missed four games due to hamstring and back injuries. Nnamdi Madubuike didn't play after Week 2 due to a neck injury that has left his playing future uncertain.

Isaiah Likely and Rashod Bateman both missed at least three games.

Last season marked the third time in the last five years that Jackson has missed at least four games. The Ravens finished under .500 (8-9) and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2021.

Harbaugh was fired on Jan. 6, ending his 18-year tenure as head coach in Baltimore.

The Ravens landed on Minter as Harbaugh's replacement. Minter previously worked on the staff in Baltimore from 2017 to '20, then spent the past four seasons working with Jim Harbaugh between Michigan and the Los Angeles Chargers.

Minter is entering new territory since he has never been a head coach at any level. He was incredibly successful during his two years as the Chargers defensive coordinator. They led the NFL in points allowed in his first season and ranked ninth in 2025.