ExtremeRavens Posted September 16 Posted September 16 A shared sense of sloppiness reverberated throughout the Ravens’ locker room Sunday after their 26-23 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders dropped them to 0-2 on the season. The defense blamed its inability to slow quarterback Gardner Minshew II and wide receiver Davante Adams late in the collapse on it. Lamar Jackson, Ronnie Stanley and Derrick Henry cited self-inflicted mistakes as reasons for their fourth-quarter collapse, too. “When you’re going through your week of preparation, there are certain things you’re going to think about more than others,” said Stanley, Baltimore’s starting left tackle. “We as a group need to put more collective focus on these details. It’s time to sharpen it all up and make things more disciplined and more clean because these are types of games we can’t lose.” Baltimore is winless through two weeks for the first time since 2015. It was a loss that felt eerily similar to a few last-minute crumbles a year ago when answers eluded the Ravens late and resulted in devastating defeats. After another one Sunday, it’s clear the Ravens are still searching for themselves in several facets. “We’ve got to find our mojo,” said Jackson, the NFL’s reigning Most Valuable Player. “That’s not us at all.” The fourth quarter, in which the Ravens coughed up a 23-13 lead in less than 10 minutes, was full of mistakes. Nnamdi Madubuike’s facemask penalty (though replay reviews showed he grabbed Minshew’s shoulder) erased a sack and energized a Raiders drive that ended in a field goal. Baltimore faced a third-and-1 on its next possession, but the short-yardage situation was lost after a false start on Henry. The running back’s miscue forced Baltimore to punt one play later. Ravens defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike, right, is called for a facemask penalty on Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew II in the fourth quarter Sunday. Baltimore was penalized 11 times for 109 yards Sunday. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) The Ravens committed 11 penalties for 109 yards, a 94-yard disparity from the visiting team. Three of those calls gave the Raiders first downs. Cornerback Brandon Stephens’ end zone pass interference on Adams on a near-impossible third-and-goal from Baltimore’s 17-yard line set up the game-tying touchdown. (CBS Sports rules analyst and former NFL official Gene Steratore said he disagreed with the call.) Others negated large gains or important stops. “I’m not a ref or an official, but felt like a couple of those were kind of BS calls,” safety Eddie Jackson said. “But that’s not my job, I’m a little biased.” But in the end, it wasn’t a penalty that gave the Raiders prime field position for their go-ahead field goal. Jordan Stout’s 24-yard punt, which traveled half the distance of his average 2023 punt, meant Las Vegas only needed 23 yards before handing it over to Daniel Carlson. And when the Ravens knew clock-killing runs were coming, the Raiders easily got their kicker within range. There were versions of Sunday’s loss in 2023. In the Ravens’ four regular-season losses, they were tied or held a lead entering the fourth quarter in all of them. There was the overtime loss to Minshew’s Indianapolis Colts. They were outscored 14-0 in the final quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers. And a 14-point blown lead handed them a loss to the Cleveland Browns. Sunday’s defeat followed a similar script. Afterward, standing in front of microphones and cameras at the podium or their lockers, players blamed their own mistakes. “There’s a lot to clean up,” Stanley said. “I think it’s our own lack of discipline that’s causing these problems on ourselves. I’m very confident we’re gonna figure it out. Those details are making a difference for us right now. “This just felt more self-inflicted,” he continued. “Feel like there was many, many opportunities for us to really put the nail in the coffin, and we just didn’t end up doing that.” Sloppiness, players said, was at fault for the Ravens’ second loss. While penalties and errors surely aided the opposition, the Ravens only have their own shortcomings to blame. “They were the better team. That’s why they won,” Henry said. “We didn’t make the plays when we needed to.” View the full article Quote
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