The Baltimore Ravens are officially running full throttle into the Jesse Minter era. Free agency is mostly over and done with, the 2026 NFL Draft has passed, and their schedule has been released. It’s time for Minter to mold his group into the best version of themselves ahead of a pivotal season.
There are tons to learn in the coming months. Rookies will be fighting for reps and a roster spot, and many veterans are looking to rebound from a horrendous 2025 campaign. And under Minter, things are going to look a lot different.
As a first-year coach leading a team with playoff aspirations, Minter will have to get the guys up to speed quickly. That’s been a point of emphasis all offseason, but it’s getting pretty close to go time. On Monday, we learned of a couple of key measuring sticks. The Ravens be holding joint practices with the Minnesota Vikings and Washington Commanders.
Baltimore Ravens face telling measuring sticks ahead of 2026 regular season
The Ravens will head to Minnesota for their first of two joint practices on August 19 and 20, which will come ahead of their Week 2 preseason game against the Vikings on August 22. The following week, they’ll host the Commanders for a practice on August 26 ahead of their preseason finale on August 28.
Usually, joint practices don't catch too much attention. It’s just a practice after all, and most of the attention will be turned toward the actual game that’ll come days later. However, for the players, these opportunities are still very crucial as they fight to earn their coaches’ faith. It’ll also be a chance to get in form ahead of the real test on the gridiron in Week 2 and Week 3. And again, the Ravens need all the reps possible as they get adjusted under a first-year head coach.
Minter knows these days with be incredibly beneficial, too. On Monday, he talked about the importance of joint practices.
Jesse Minter: “There’s a lot of value in joint practice sessions We’re excited to have multiple days of quality work against different teams during this year’s training camp.”
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) May 18, 2026
In addition to all that, after what we saw last year, fans might be paying a bit closer eye on what goes down against the Vikings and Commanders. Before the preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts last year, things got very chippy between players, which eventually led to Nate Wiggins being removed from practice after throwing punches. Obviously, no one wants that to happen again, but it’s clear that these moments still mean a lot to players.
Overall, the Ravens needed some joint practices on the menu to get acclimated to the new era. They got that with the Vikings and Commanders, which should offer a major platform to dot their i’s and cross their t’s before the regular season kicks off. Simply put, we're going to see just how good Minter's team is.
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