It’s always interesting to see what kinds of way-off-football topics become headline news each offseason. In the case of the 2024 Baltimore Ravens, it’s all about food preferences.
Patrick Queen didn’t just leave Baltimore for the arch-rival Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason. He went out of his way to take a swipe at Maryland cuisine, specifically seafood.
Queen referred to the local fare in his new hometown as “real food.”
New Ravens signing Derrick Henry responded by saying how much he loves all the great seafood available in his new home.
So when Ravens rookie cornerback T.J. Tampa took time out of his busy offseason conditioning schedule to chat with us (part one of this exclusive can be found here), the food feud was top of mind.
“I’m a picky eater,” Tampa said exclusively to Ravens Wire.
“I don’t really care to try too much, I’m definitely more a chicken wings and fries type of person. I don’t really eat too much but I definitely do enjoy a good steak.”
The Ravens’ fourth-round draft pick enjoys both surf and turf, and he said that he definitely considers seafood to be “real food.”
Tampa agreed that the back-and-forth between Queen and Henry has given the media a little more to talk about, during this slow period of the year.
“You got to be able to talk about something…it’s pretty quiet right now,” he said.
We then asked Tampa if Lamar Jackson does indeed look faster this offseason after his much-publicized weight loss.
“We’re not allowed to hit him, so we’re not really running with him, but you can definitely see how fast and quick he is. And once he sees the hole he’s gone,” Tampa responded.
He’s also excited about Jackson pairing with Henry in the offensive backfield, and the very special things that this team could achieve this season.
“It’s going to exciting to watch them,” he responded.
“Things will pick up once we get to training camp, but you can tell it’s going to be an exciting year.
“Everybody on the team knows that we’ve always been playing winning football here and now in this new year, nothing needs to slow down.
“We need to pick it up and keep moving forward- it’s what we plan to do.”