OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers took out his frustration over missing last season's playoffs on some nearby hills.
After recovering from a right knee injury this offseason, Flowers put on a weighted vest and attacked the inclines in South Florida. He'd tuck a football under his right arm and weave around cones while racing up the hill.
"I felt like I got faster. I got stronger," Flowers said. "I felt better than I did before I got hurt."
Flowers made team history last season when he became the first Ravens player to reach the Pro Bowl as a wide receiver. He was the No. 1 target for quarterback Lamar Jackson with 1,059 yards receiving, which is the most by a Baltimore wide receiver in 10 years.
But Flowers wanted to get even quicker this year to become more of a downfield threat. Last season, he caught one pass that traveled at least 30 yards in the air. There were 46 players who made multiple such receptions, including his teammate Rashod Bateman, who had five.
Flowers is convinced that will change this year.
"Oh yes, I think we're going to hit a lot more, way more than we did last year," Flowers said. "We've been working on it, too, so I think it'll show throughout the season."
Flowers has already showed moments of explosiveness this summer. He grabbed Jackson's first pass of training camp and blew past a couple of defensive backs for a long touchdown.
Flowers missed the end of the second week of training camp with a "camp-type" injury and has since had a quiet camp. Most of Jackson's highlight-reel throws this summer have gone to lesser-known wide receivers such as Devontez Walker and Dayton Wade.
The next step for Flowers is stretching the field. His average air yards per target last year was 10.71, which was 40th in the NFL.
"I'm looking for Zay to be the best," Harbaugh said. "[I want him to] go out there and just make explosive play after explosive play. But really, [I want to see him] just take a deep breath, keep it simple and just try to do your job, one play at a time. Because when you work as hard as he does, and you have the talent that he has, good things are going to happen, if you keep it simple, which I think he does a great job of."
A first-round pick in 2023, Flowers became the focal point of the Ravens' passing attack last season. He finished with 74 receptions, which were 19 more than anyone else on the team.
But Flowers' productivity declined during the season. In the first nine weeks, Flowers averaged 72.6 yards receiving per game. In the final eight games, he averaged 50.6 yards.
"We've just got to get Zay the ball more," Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken said. "That's really it. The problem is we have a lot of those guys. He's an unbelievable football player."
Jackson loves throwing to Flowers because he repeatedly gets open. Few receivers get as much separation as Flowers.
Last season, when Flowers was targeted, he was five or more yards away from the nearest defender 30.8% of the time. That was the highest rate among wide receivers with at least 100 targets.
"Zay is a matchup problem anywhere on the field," Ravens wide receivers coach Greg Lewis said. "If you can get him the ball, something special is going to happen."
The Ravens can only imagine how Flowers could have impacted their postseason last season. He injured his right knee in the season finale against the Cleveland Browns, and he was sidelined for both of Baltimore's playoff games, including a 27-25 loss at the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round.
"It sucked to miss that time and miss the playoffs, because you work all season, then you get hurt [in the] last game," Flowers said. "It definitely motivated me to get back on the field, push my rehab, my therapy, and get back right to where I was, but I feel better than before."