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You can't learn a ton by watching minicamp practices because of the lack of contact during the sessions.
Once training camp begins and players strap on full pads for contact drills, you can pick up a lot more about how a player is performing and where the team stands as a whole.
But one thing that's evident when watching minicamps is the enthusiasm of the players and coaches and the life that practices seem to have.
Because it's only May, it would be easy for the players (especially the veterans who have jobs locked up) to go through the motions during OTAs.
That's far from the case with the Ravens.
While a few veterans (Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs, Willis McGahee and Trevor Pryce) have opted not to attend the voluntary practices, for the most part, attendance has been pretty good.
And the guys who are on the fields at Ravens HQ have been going full speed and maintaining their intensity from the opening whistle until the end of each session.
"I guess the big thing is that, guys, they like being here," head coach John Harbaugh said. "I think the guys, they like football. You guys saw it out here. There's a lot of enthusiasm. They're competing. They're having fun. They enjoy being around one another.
"To me, it was the first day of the mini-camp and now OTA No. 6, I think we're on right now, it's the same. It's not going to change through the rest of the OTAs and I'm sure we'll have that same feel in training camp. It's just a good bunch of guys to be around and guys that you really enjoy coaching."
