We are a couple of weeks from the Baltimore Ravens starting training camp, and plenty of questions remain. Many of yours concerned the state of the Ravens’ offensive line and contract negotiations with quarterback Lamar Jackson.(Note: Questions have been edited for length and clarity.)Why do people outside the Ravens frequently talk about the Ravens not extending Lamar? It makes me so mad because he’s the best QB in the league right now and not extending him would be a colossal blunder. — Nathan G.I’ll give you two possible reasons, Nathan. One, contract negotiations between Jackson and the team were extremely difficult the first time around, and I think people remember that, know Jackson and the team didn’t appear to be on the same page for parts of last season and assume that will carry over into these negotiations. And two, neither Jackson nor his extremely tight inner circle leaks anything to the media, and the team is extremely protective of all things Jackson out of respect for him. Outsiders perceive the silence as an indication that the negotiations are going nowhere and a breakup is inevitable. To be clear: I’m not suggesting that. I just think that’s why the speculation becomes rampant.Why talk about Lamar Jackson's contract will only get louderJeff ZrebiecWhat do you think the chances are that the Ravens and Lamar reach a deal before the season? I think the Ravens are playing a dangerous game if they let this linger into next offseason. — Chris L.Mostly because of what I said in the question above in regards to the cloak of silence on both sides, I abstain from handicapping the Ravens’ negotiations with Jackson. But I wouldn’t characterize it as the Ravens playing any games. Owner Steve Bisciotti was very clear to Jackson about the team’s desire to extend him. I could absolutely be wrong here, but I still get the sense that there’s a general understanding on both sides about the timing of these contract talks and the Ravens will be ready when/if Jackson is ready.Heard nothing but great things about Dwayne Ledford when he was in Atlanta, and that has continued with him in the building. But what specifically makes him such a good OL coach, and how high should our expectations be for this unit? — Connor D.The things you consistently hear about Ledford are that he’s a very good teacher from a technical/fundamental aspect and also a strong motivator who knows how to relate to players and push the right buttons to get the best out of each guy. He’s known as a coach who upholds certain principles as non-negotiable, like exploding off the ball, but is also flexible in terms of playing and coaching to his players’ strengths. As for the unit as a whole, they’ll presumably have three new starters. Health is always a question with left tackle Ronnie Stanley. Right tackle Roger Rosengarten needs to play better than he did last year. We’ll see what, if anything, they do to bring in another center. But I think this unit should be significantly improved. I’m not ready to predict a top-5 O-line because all of these pieces need to mesh, but the talent level has been upgraded and the Ravens have a much better mix up front.What is your gut feeling about the center competition, and will they bring in an extra field goal kicker? — Brad K.I’ve been saying since the draft ended without them addressing the position that I believe the Ravens’ Week 1 starting center will come from outside the organization. I’m going to stick with that, although I fully acknowledge that the closer we get to the start of training camp, the more my belief in that prediction will wane. If they don’t make a move, I expect Danny Pinter to win the job. At kicker, I could see them bringing in an extra camp leg just to get through the early practices. However, I think bringing in legitimate competition for that job will only happen if they are concerned with how Tyler Loop is kicking the ball in workouts. If he starts to falter a little bit and their concerns heighten, that’s when I think we’ll see a notable veteran kicker added.How likely are we to actually make a trade for a center, and who are the top available targets? — Ryan D.There seemed to be a level of confidence from team officials immediately following the draft that they’d be able to pull off a trade. I’m not saying I don’t sense that same confidence, but Ravens folks are keeping their plans much closer to the vest. It’s just hard to find teams that feel they have a surplus of offensive line depth. The name you hear most is Garrett Bradbury from the Chicago Bears. It isn’t clear whether he’s available, but it is easy to connect the dots. The Bears used a second-round pick on Iowa center Logan Jones. Bradbury, meanwhile, is an experienced, solid option who was coached by Ledford at North Carolina State and started in a Super Bowl roughly five months ago.Who will be at center for the Ravens?Jeff Zrebiec and Madison EadesIs there a chance we see an unexpected positional shuffle on the interior offensive line, something like Emery Jones Jr. or (Vega) Ioane getting snaps at center? — Robert G. I don’t foresee Ioane getting snaps at center, but I do think you’ll see some shuffling as they work to decide the nine or 10 offensive linemen they’ll keep on the 53-man roster. It’s important to give guys an opportunity to develop their versatility. Jones is an interesting case. He played mostly guard last year after returning from the shoulder injury, but for much of this offseason, we’ve seen him back at tackle, his natural position. Adding center to that strikes me as a bit much, but the Ravens need to play their best five.I’m curious about what you’ve noticed from Eric DeCosta since John Harbaugh was fired. Do you believe his approach has changed this offseason? Is there a difference in how much influence the new coaching staff has on personnel? — Brad K.He’s operating with what appears to be a greater sense of urgency, although I’m not sure that’s a byproduct of Harbaugh being gone. DeCosta and every other organization decision-maker were highly disappointed with how last year played out. This is a proud organization and going from a popular preseason Super Bowl pick to not even making the playoffs had to embarrass and humble a lot of people on One Winning Drive.Whether Harbaugh was back or not, I fully expected DeCosta to be aggressive in trying to fill the team’s holes, and for the most part, I think he has been. The Maxx Crosby trade agreement was out of character, but I think they viewed that as a unique situation to get a transcendent talent at a position that was arguably the team’s biggest need. At least right away, I wouldn’t think Jesse Minter and his staff have as big an influence on the personnel decisions as Harbaugh did. Harbaugh and DeCosta worked together for 18 years, a period during which the organization enjoyed great success. Longevity, a longstanding relationship and a lot of wins typically give you more say in the decision-making process.It feels like every offseason under Harbaugh, there was always talk about the big changes coming to the team. Now that he’s gone and there’s a completely new coaching staff, that sort of narrative is amplified. How much do you think the Ravens will do things differently this year on an operational level versus merely being good PR talking points? — GSWLINIt’s a good question, but it’s also tough to answer, given the limited exposure we’ve had to the daily operations so far. Still, I think it’s worth remembering a few things. One, the Ravens didn’t fire Harbaugh because they believed a total organizational makeover was necessary. If they believed that, they wouldn’t have replaced him with a guy who shares some of Harbaugh’s coaching principles. Two, the Ravens believe there are a ton of things they do right and well and they have no desire to get away from those things. Those are beliefs from the owner down. Three, Minter will enact his own ideas and wrinkles. We’ve already seen a few of them with the “be at your best when your best is required” phase of practice and cutting the mandatory minicamp from three days to two. Minter has also switched training camp practices to the morning after they had been in the afternoon in recent years.We’ll notice more differences — some less subtle than others — in the days ahead, but I don’t expect a drastic change in how the organization goes about its business.Had the Ravens signed Trey Hendrickson earlier in the free-agency period and the failed Crosby deal not occurred, would the Ravens have re-signed more lost players from last year’s roster? If so, who? — Colin P.I don’t think that changed too much, only because of the way the Ravens approach free agency. They put a value on their own players and they don’t often substantially deviate from it. They never got close to re-signing Tyler Linderbaum. That ship sailed when he hit free agency. I think there was interest in keeping guys like Dre’Mont Jones, Jordan Stout, Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar, but there was also an understanding that they’d probably get more elsewhere than the Ravens wanted to pay and the team wanted to get younger and cheaper in areas.Which of the new position coaches (outside of Ledford) do you see having the most impact? — Zack S.Secondary coach/pass game defensive coordinator Mike Mickens was regarded as one of the top assistants at the college level. He worked with quite a few future NFL players while at Notre Dame and Cincinnati. Minter, a former defensive backs coach, will obviously have an impact on the secondary too, but Mickens has an opportunity to help a talented group of defensive backs that underachieved last year and get them playing at a much higher level.Outside looking in, it still feels like the biggest area of weakness on the team is the offensive and defensive line. What are your perceived areas of need on the team? — Daniel S.That’s probably a fair assessment, and I’d say that because of the uncertainty at center and the uncertainty in regards to the future of Nnamdi Madubuike. Wide receiver depth also could become an issue with an injury to one of the frontline guys.Adam Randall ran for 814 yards in his one season as the starting running back at Clemson. (Kirby Lee / Imagn Images)Chances Adam Randall wins the RB2 job? — Anonymous U.I can’t see that happening from the jump. The Ravens view Justice Hill as a good complement to Derrick Henry and really value his ability out of the backfield and in blitz pickup. Randall certainly has potential, but he’s spent less than two years as a running back. Understandably, he still has a lot to learn.Are there any changes in the front office? — Robby S.Nothing especially notable, at least to this point. The Ravens recently put out a list of front-office promotions, and there were a good number of them, but the only outside addition was JoJo Wooden, a longtime NFL executive and former Chargers interim general manager. Wooden, who will be an area scout on the West Coast, has been consulting with the Ravens since last year, and he’s now a full-time member of the personnel staff.