The Ravens have had the week to put the shocking Week 2 loss to the Dolphins in the rearview mirror. The 4th quarter meltdown by the Ravens defense overshadowed what was 3 solid quarters of football and a brilliant performance by Lamar Jackson. It’s certainly difficult to see the good in the wake of a soul crushing, embarrassing home loss to a conference opponent but all is not lost in this writer’s opinion. No NFL team is defined by what they do in Week 2 and I certainly expect the Baltimore Ravens to come out swinging this weekend in Foxboro.
With that said, I have a few observations as we prepare for this Sunday’s matchup vs the New England Patriots:
- I don’t want to rehash the entire saga that was the Week 2 game vs Miami but there are some situations that I feel are worthy of putting out there for further consideration. Outside of the Ravens first drive, they were never able to piece together another drive that was longer than 6 plays. Even when the offense put points on the board, it did so on quick strike, long plays, which in turn put the defense back out on the field. This is not to absolve the defense for their 4th quarter failures but rather to highlight the importance of playing complimentary football. To put things into perspective, after the Steven Means injury, Odafe Oweh played 58 snaps (82%) and 33 year old Justin Houston played 49 snaps (69%). Also, elder statesman, Calais Campbell logged 45 snaps (63%), some of which were on the edge. Ideally, this is not where you want these guys to be, particularly when you need to generate pressure in the latter part of the game. This is where one thing begets the other…..the lack of pass rush put increased pressure on a secondary that was without Kyle Fuller and Brandon Stephens, had a hobbled Marlon Humphrey that couldn’t finish the game, along with a returning Marcus Peters, who was on a pitch count. The result? A lot of pressure was put on rookies Jalyn Armour-Davis and Pepe Williams. Asking them to try to contain Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle proved to be too tall a task; blown assignments didn’t help either. To bring it full circle, referring back to complimentary football, the Ravens offense had 10 opportunities where they needed 1 yard to score a touchdown or convert a 1st down (not counting the Hail Mary at the end of the game) and they only converted on 3 of those. That simply can’t happen.
- I’m sure the Ravens defense is champing at the bit to reestablish themselves and the New England Patriots appear to be the ideal “get right” opponent. By the numbers, the Patriots are 22nd in the league in total yards, 17th in passing yards, 19th in rushing yards and 29th in points scored. When you look at the production from New England’s skill position players, you have Damien Harris averaging 5 yards per rushing attempt thus far and then there are some good yards per reception numbers from Nelson Agholor. Overall though, the Patriots offense is pretty much below average to average. With Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills looming in Week 4, it’s imperative for the Ravens defense to have a confidence building performance against an offense that they should be able to handle.
- An interesting new wrinkle to the Ravens offense through 2 games is seeing Lamar Jackson taking snaps from under center. Granted, it’s a small sample size but so far in 2022, Jackson has taken 22.4% of his snaps from under center. For some perspective, in 2019-2021, Jackson’s under center snap percentages were 6.6, 4.5 and 5.1, respectively. It’s worth noting, of Lamar’s 9 dropbacks (8 throws) from snaps under center, he’s 8-8, for 85 yards and a touchdown. I see this as a bit of a double edged sword because, whereas it does show the league that Lamar can execute as a “traditional” quarterback, I believe the use of more under center snaps has been detrimental to the running game. The Ravens success on the ground since Lamar Jackson’s ascension to starting quarterback has been predicated upon use of the pistol/shotgun, misdirection, pulling offensive linemen and the threat of Jackson as a ball carrier, thus forcing the defense to account for him. Don’t misunderstand me, any time Jackson has the ball in his hands, he’s a threat to make some defenders miss and break off a run. However, with the Ravens showing an inability to line up in a more standard formation and run the football with any iota of success is something that may need to be reexamined by the offensive staff. Whereas there is hope that a returning JK Dobbins and eventually Gus Edwards, will breathe life into a virtually nonexistent rushing attack, the presence of more talented backs may not be enough to overcome opposing defenses dominating the line of scrimmage and making plays in the Ravens backfield. Roman and company should look to reintroduce some RPO looks and do whatever they can to help out the floundering rushing attack and balance out the offense.
Through 2 games, the Baltimore Ravens have certainly been a mixed bag. This Sunday’s road contest in Foxboro presents an opportunity to clean some things up on defense and right the proverbial ship. They must resist the urge to look ahead to the Week 4 showdown with the Buffalo Bills, which most of us believe will have major postseason ramifications. Needless to say, these are not the Patriots of Tom Brady and this upcoming matchup provides the Ravens their best chance at notching their first regular season victory in New England. Will they be up to the task?
Jamie has been a Baltimore sports fan since he can remember. He grew up in Gwynn Oak and currently resides in Hampstead with his wife and 2 kids. He graduated from UMBC with a Bachelor of Arts in History. He’s currently employed at Verizon Communications in Hunt Valley.