ExtremeRavens Posted August 24 Posted August 24 As NFL teams trim their rosters this week for the start of the regular season, the Ravens need to look over the waiver wire to add a veteran offensive lineman or two. The Ravens could use a quality starter, particularly at guard, but they also need some depth. On Saturday, the Ravens were beaten, 30-7, by the Packers in both teams’ preseason finale in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Like most NFL teams this time of year, the Ravens held out most of their starters but had only 177 yards of total offense. They were also playing with both of their starting guards in second-year player Andrew Vorhees on the left and third-year player Daniel Faalele on the right. Both linemen, as well as rookie right tackle Roger Rosengarten, looked slow and lethargic as the Ravens mustered only 98 rushing yards. None of the offensive linemen got much movement off the ball, and the running game has been the staple of the offense for the past six years. If the Ravens can’t run, then they can’t win. So this week, the Ravens need to see if there are any salary cap casualties and maybe they might be able to add a lineman or two who can at least push the current group. It’s unlikely that any team will release a quality player at this point with the start of the regular season less than two weeks away, but Green Bay simply outhit the Ravens — not only in Thursday’s joint practice, but in Saturday’s game as well. In addition, Ravens rookie center Nick Samac, starting in place of Pro Bowl selection Tyler Linderbaum, went down in the second quarter with what was believed to be a lower leg injury. Ravens coach John Harbaugh has said that Linderbaum, who has missed most of training camp with a neck injury, will be ready for the opener Sept. 5 against the Chiefs in Kansas City, but you never want to hear that a lineman is dealing with a neck injury. If Linderbaum does play, Patrick Mekari is likely to start at right tackle and Ronnie Stanley on the left side, which will make the Ravens stronger. A lot of teams struggle at one guard spot, but not usually two. It’s time to scan the free agent list. “We’re playing a couple of guys here and there. It’s an individual type of an evaluation, so you have to look at it and see what those guys did per play,” Harbaugh said of evaluating the offensive line. Rookie QB Devin Leary struggles Harbaugh’s theme of the week has to be ball security. He can talk about preparing for the Chiefs, but the Ravens had four turnovers Saturday. Baltimore lost two fumbles and rookie quarterback Devin Leary completed only 6 of 13 passes for 34 yards and threw two interceptions. Those passes were picked off not because Leary tried to place the ball in a tight window, but because he stared down receivers from the snap. That might work at Kentucky, where Leary became a sixth-round draft pick, but not in the NFL. The quarterback has to look off the safeties at this level. “I just feel like your typical rookie growing pains,” Leary said, “making sure that every day you’re locked in in practice, whatever reps you do get, making sure you make the best of them, watching extra film, making sure you’re asking as many questions as possible, and ultimately — like I said earlier — just doing what you’re coached to do, operating [as] a quarterback at a high level [and] making sure you’re doing your job the way it’s supposed to be done.” Ravens outside linebacker David Ojabo tries to work around Packers lineman Travis Glover during the first half of Saturday’s preseason game in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images) Need to see more from David Ojabo There was interest in David Ojabo because the third-year outside linebacker played so well against the Atlanta Falcons in the second preseason game last week, but he wasn’t much of a factor versus Green Bay. Ojabo, a 2022 second-round pick out of Michigan who has missed most of the past two seasons with leg injuries, didn’t have a sack or a tackle. He had one quarterback pressure when he beat a tight end one-on-one in the first half. Consistency is the key to greatness, not just an occasional appearance. Not much room on kickoff returns The Ravens like receiver Deonte Harty as a return specialist, but with the new kickoff rules, there is not a lot of time to be juking or running laterally. It’s very simple: Take one step, hit the hole and goodbye. Now, it’s different returning a punt, but there is no time to fool around on kickoff returns. One player who seemed indecisive on kickoff returns was running back Owen Wright. He averaged 30.3 yards on three returns Saturday, but Harbaugh said the former undrafted free agent broke his foot against Green Bay. Beau Brade should be here to stay There was talk about him earlier this week, but the Ravens have to find a way to keep rookie safety and former University of Maryland star Beau Brade. He was the team’s leading tackler Saturday with eight and had one for a loss. The kid has no fear and is a hitter. There might come a day when he would start next to Kyle Hamilton, giving the team one of the hardest-hitting safety combinations in the NFL. “I think [Beau and fellow rookie safety Sanoussi Kane have] shown flashes of physicality, both on defense and special teams,” Harbaugh said. “They’ve shown up here and there, pretty well today, even. [It’s a] big-picture evaluation. Again, you have to see all of the plays to have a feel for that, but they did flash a few times.” Room for improvement on defense The Ravens were without starting middle linebacker Roquan Smith, defensive end Justin Madubuike and Hamilton, but they still gave up 193 rushing yards on 39 carries against Green Bay. Baltimore was sloppy and its tackling technique was poor. Regardless of if this is the second or third string defense, coordinator Zach Orr can’t be happy with what he saw on the field. Weakside linebacker Trent Simpson knows there is a lot of room for improvement. “There are some things we can clean up,” said Simpson, who finished with six tackles and an interception. “We’ve definitely got some time to get it right before the Chiefs [in Week 1]. We’ve got to start cleaning it up, but I feel like [we just have to] continue to improve as a defense; everybody stays positive, and it’s just one game. We’ve got another game — a big game [against] the Chiefs. Just continue to get ready [and] be prepared for that.” View the full article Quote
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