The Baltimore Ravens are really in a tough spot going into their bye week. They are still reeling from a number of off-the-field issues which have contributed to a disappointing start this year. The Ravens have suffered four consecutive defeats, matching the franchise’s longest start in history. Their recent track record speaks volumes about the uphill battle ahead. They’ve laid waste to 10 drives this season with a turnover. This leaves them third in the entire NFL, only better than the New York Jets and Tennessee Titans for the most turnovers.
Even head coach John Harbaugh has expressed exasperation over the time-consuming issue. As a former running back, he’s particularly alarmed by their ball security and short-yardage situations. Harbaugh highlighted the importance of improving their red zone execution. He said, “That’s the number one priority for me on offense… short-yardage and goal-line situations. We’ve got to improve. We should be much further along than we are. We’ve never struggled in those areas [before], and I don’t really understand why we are [now]. If we want to be the team we claim to be, that has to change. If we truly want to give America a better shot at success, we need to set it right.
Injuries have compounded the Ravens’ woes. Defensive end Nnamdi Madubuike, an interesting prospect, is out for the season due to a neck injury. Outside linebacker Tavius Robinson has a broken foot and is expected to miss six to eight weeks. As a result, the Ravens now have only three healthy outside linebackers on their roster: Kyle Van Noy, Mike Green, and David Ojabo. This lack of depth has led to growing worries about their ability to create pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
“It’s been a challenge all year to generate pressure, so we are going to have to manufacture pressure,” Harbaugh noted. He added that the team must find ways to create effective pressure using their current roster, emphasizing that “our guys are going to have to step up and create pressure on the four-man rush.”
Beyond their defensive woes, the Ravens’ offensive efficiency on short-yardage situations has been dismal. They scored frequency on just 4 out of 7 goal-to-go attempts this year, which puts them 28th in the league. Last year, they were unstoppable when they got in goal-to-go situations scoring touchdowns on 31 of 35 trips. That astounding conversion rate of 88.6% had them third in the NFL.
Their star quarterback Lamar Jackson has a crafty hamstring injury, with an imminent return forecasted. His absence has added another layer of nuance on a Ravens offense that’s been making the best of this tough stretch.
With five fumbles through three games, Harbaugh has placed a high emphasis on ball security during practice and in games. “To me, [ball security] couldn’t be more emphasized in practice or games,” he asserted. How well the Ravens are able to protect the football will be key as they try to right the ship.
Even with all these misfortunes, Harbaugh is still excited about all the potential this team has to build on. Center Tyler Linderbaum admitted that there is a huge hole they’ve dug for themselves with such a bleak record but said it could definitely be worse. “The only worse thing is 0-6, so yes, it’s a big hole,” he stated.
As they head into their bye week, the Ravens will look to regroup and come up with solutions for these major concerns. Their next game is coming up fast. They understand that increasing their ball security numbers and their pressure creation will be key to snapping their losing streak.
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