Ravens Defensive Coordinator Wink Martindale Praises Debut Of Veteran Calais Campbell, Rookie Patrick Queen
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Some of the newest faces on the revamped Ravens defense are already receiving high praise from the coaching staff, including rookie linebacker Patrick Queen.
Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale said Queen was "very active" in his NFL debut.
"He's very active," Martindale said. "You want to have your best improvement from game one to game two. That's our focus, and he did a lot of good things. He knows there's a lot of things now where he came back and said, 'Ah, I see what you guys are talking about with this and that.' So, it was a great first outing for him. He is very active in there."
Queen was nominated for NFL Rookie of the Week for his Week 1 performance against the Cleveland Browns. He racked up eight tackles, recorded one sack and a forced fumble.
Queen was selected by the Ravens 28th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft out of Louisiana State University. In just three seasons with the Tigers, Queen racked up 85 tackles, three sacks and an interception. He also helped the Tigers win a National Championship in 2019.
Veteran defensive end Calais Campbell, who the Ravens acquired from the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason, also made his presence immediately felt.
"You saw the impact he made in the Cleveland game," Martindale said of the five-time Pro Bowler. "… He's probably going to go down as a Hall of Fame pass rusher at the end of his career, drop him out on the first third down and he causes an interception. He's one of the most unselfish players I've ever been around, and he's been great since he's been here and it's a lot of fun to have him."
Campbell finished the game with one tackle and three pass breakups.
The Ravens defense will have their hands full Week 2 when the team travels to Houston to take on Deshaun Watson and the Texans.
Martindale said the team is not going into the game overconfident despite last year's rout of Houston.
"We're not overconfident, trust me," he said. "[Watson] gets better every year. He's a Pro Bowl quarterback for a reason. He, to me, is like a Lebron James type player in the NFL instead of the NBA. He's a general, he's a point guard out there, and we all respect his game."
