Ravens wide receiver coach praises traits and mentality of undrafted rookie sleeper

Greg Lewis likes what he is seeing from first-year pro Dayton Wade thus far in training camp.

Baltimore Ravens wide receivers coach Greg Lewis knows what it takes to make it in the NFL coming from humble beginnings. After not hearing his name called in the 2003 NFL Draft coming out of the University of Illinois, he signed with the Philadelphia Eagles and defied long odds by making the team.

Lewis would eventually carve out a role on offense as a complementary in the passing game and go on to have an eight-year career that featured some impressive snags in big-time games. He hauled in a 30-yard touchdown Super Bowl 39 and earned a share of an ESPY with Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Farve as a member of the Minnesota Vikings in 2009 for a 32-yard game-winning touchdown catch he made in his first game with the team.

Among the Ravens’ most promising undrafted rookies on this year’s team is wide receiver Dayton Wade who Lewis believes possesses uncoachable traits and the right mentality to contend for a roster spot.

“Quickness [and] confidence, and those two things, those are in you,” Lewis told reporters Saturday. “They’re not really coachable type of deals. He’s a confident kid [who] does a great job of going out there making plays, utilizing his speed, and then he has quickness where he understands how to get open, and quarterbacks love guys that can get open, because it makes it easy for them to throw them ball. He’s done a great job of that.”

Despite being undersized for his or any position outside of a kicking specialist at 5-foot-9 and 184 pounds, Wade plays much bigger than wideouts who tower over him and possess all the desirable physical dimensions. He finally got a chance to break out in his final year of college for Ole Miss in 2023 and he led the Rebels with a career-high 55 catches and recorded personal bests in receiving yards (830), touchdowns (four) and yards per reception (15.1). His senior highlights were littered with clips of him climbing the ladder to make contested catches including some with just one hand.

The Ravens coaches have been utilizing him at different positions and are impressed with how he has “picked up and grasped the playbook and the offense.” His willingness to grind and learn all he can so he can play anywhere there is a need is helping him separate himself in their eyes.

“He just continues to want to work,” Lewis said. “That’s what I love about him – being an undrafted guy, I had that mentality – and you see it in him. I love that about him, and I just want to see him continue to grow and do what he needs to do.”

Wade still faces long odds to make the final or even initial 53-man roster as the Ravens’ top five to six spots on the wide receiver depth chart are pretty much set. However, consistently strong showings in practice and carrying it over to the preseason will go a long way towards putting himself in a position where he is too promising to cut and risk getting claimed off waivers or at least play into prime practice squad consideration.

Last season the Ravens had a pair of undrafted rookies land on the higher end of that spectrum as both outside linebacker Malik Hamm and Keaton Mitchell made the initial 53-man roster before being placed on injured reserve with minor injuries sustained in the preseason. While Hamm spent the entire 2023 season on the shelf, Mitchell emerged as not just one of the most explosive playmakers on the team but in the whole league for a six-week stretch before suffering a season-ending torn ACL in Week 15.

Suggesting Wade has the potential to be this year’s Mitchell is putting the cart way before the horse given the incredibly high bar that was set last year. However, the former SEC standout is one of many exciting and intriguing young Ravens players on either side of the ball to keep an eye on once exhibition action gets underway starting this Friday when the team hosts the Philadelphia Eagles for their preseason opener on Friday night at M&T Bank Stadium with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. EST.