The Baltimore Ravens and the Washington Commanders will put an end to their week-long affair on Monday. After spending Tuesday and Wednesday together by staging some joint practices, both squads will square off on an ESPN, nationally-televised matchup today.
Baltimore is aiming at their 25th consecutive victory while the Commanders will be looking to win a game, full stop, even if it's a meaningless mid-summer one. However, judging by how they got cooked and manhandled and bodyslammed by the Ravens earlier last week, that's hard to see happen.
With John Harbaugh unadvertedly and shockingly spilling the beans last Saturday and revealing the final members of the cornerbacks, linebackers, and quarterbacks rooms ahead of the 53-man roster announcement, there are only a few training camp battles still active.
Here are four players that will need to put on an excellent outing on Monday if they don't want to decisively fall off the race to earn a spot in the Ravens' final roster.
Offensive Lineman - Ben Cleveland
Following the departure of starting guard Ben Powers, the Ravens knew from the get-go that they would be in for a tough choice come crunchtime.
Everybody expected veteran Ben Cleveland to end up taking on the starting LG role for the 2023 season, but that didn't last long as the Ravens started to fade him in favor of John Simpson and rookie Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu.
Cleveland has fallen so out of the picture, in fact, that he wasn't even listed on the first unofficial depth chart released by the franchise a few days ago, instead getting slotted on the right side of the line.
Simpson started the first preseason game a week ago, but Sala got a few more reps and snaps than his teammate. Cleveland, meanwhile, got destroyed by a Philadelphia Eagles rookie...
This feels like a last-chance type of opportunity for Cleveland, who in a span of a month has gone from incumbent starter to being on the verge of getting cut and left out of the 53-man roster.
Running Back - Melvin Gordon III
It would have been fair to write Keaton Mitchell's name here instead of Gordon's, but the latter has much more at stake considering his age, the position he plays, and the depressed running back market.
Gordon signed with the Ravens as a late-addition free agent with the training camp already ongoing to make up for then-absent J.K. Dobbins. With Dobbins now back in the fold and training having put an end to his hold-in, it's possible the Ravens have no use for him going forward.
Even more, it's possible that Gordon himself decides that he's better off moving on from a crowded backfield in Baltimore than staying put with the practice squad and whatnot.
The only way Gordon can make the final 53-man roster of Baltimore next week is by having two incredible preseason games starting with one on Monday against Washington.
Dobbins, Gus Edwards, and Justice Hill are all locks to make the final roster. If the Ravens decide to name four RBs, then the decision will be down to choosing between Gordon and UDFA Mitchell.
Odds are Mitchell is the pick because he's younger and he would accept a practice-squad role without complaining about it. On top of everything, Gordon's contract doesn't have any guaranteed money, so the Ravens would have no problem cutting ties with him at any point.
Wide Receivers - Tylan Wallace & Laquon Treadwell
The Ravens have penciled in five wide receivers as their go-to players at the position. Nobody would ever question that Fantastic Five: Odell Beckham, Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman (starters), Nelson Agholor and Devin Duvernay (rotation).
The sixth spot, though, is very much still up for grabs with two main contenders still in the race to snatch that role: Tylan Wallace and Laquon Treadwell.
The latter was a first-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in 2016 and if he makes it to the final 53-man roster he will do so helping Baltimore make history: the wide receiver room would feature six first-round picks!
The former has yet to crack the 10-target barrier for the Ravens after becoming the franchise's third-round selection in the 2021 draft. However, Wallace has been a prominent performance on special teams plays appearing in 278 (59%) and 121 (51%) snaps in the past two seasons.
While Treadwell had a stock-up boost earlier in the offseason with a good set of training camp practices, it feels like Wallace is now leading the race above the former first-round pick. Wallace's all-around skill set and his presence in ST units could give him the edge over Treadwell.
Last weekend, against the Eagles, Wallace started the game and got seven snaps, running four routes and scoring a touchdown, per Pro Football Focus game charting. He was the Ravens' slot receiver, although that position will be occupied by Zay Flowers in the regular season.
With James Proche virtually out of the race already and Wallace the most-productive player in actual play, odds are he ends up with the final roster slot unless Treadwell puts on an absolute show against the Commies on Monday.