ExtremeRavens Posted September 18 Posted September 18 Baltimore Sun columnist Mike Preston will answer fans’ questions in the middle of each week throughout the Ravens season. The Ravens suffered a demoralizing home defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, dropping them to 0-2. Baltimore travels to face the Dallas Cowboys (1-1) on Sunday afternoon in search of their first win of the 2024 season. Here’s Preston’s take on a handful of questions from readers: (Editor’s note: Questions have been edited for length and clarity.) Now at 0-2 this season, how will the Ravens do against Dallas, Buffalo and Cincinnati in the next three weeks? What do they need to do to turn things around? — Ed Helinski It’s not hard to figure out, Ed. I’ve been saying this for decades: If your five big guys beat their five big guys on the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, then you will win most games. The Ravens beat the Raiders on the defensive side of the ball, but they couldn’t control Las Vegas, which has one of the best defensive lines in the NFL. Against all three upcoming opponents, the Ravens have to establish the running game and keep three talented quarterbacks off the field in Dak Prescott, Josh Allen and Joe Burrow. It’s not a big secret. The Ravens’ offensive line has struggled in the first two games and that will be a problem all season. The group will get better as the season progresses because timing is a major key for developing an offensive line, but all three of the upcoming opposing quarterbacks have legitimate No. 1 receivers and can score from anywhere on the field. Another key is consistency, not just on the offensive line, but on defense as well. When the game moved into crunch time against the Raiders, the Ravens allowed two field goals and a touchdown on the Raiders’ last three possessions. Ideally, you want your defense on the field in that situation. The Ravens, though, couldn’t match up with Las Vegas despite their secondary playing extremely well throughout training camp. How long will Ravens fans accept mediocrity? How long will Ravens management accept mediocrity? — Carl Wright Sorry, Carl, but I wouldn’t call the Ravens’ play on the field “average.” There are 12 teams that haven’t won a Super Bowl and the Ravens have won two since moving to Baltimore from Cleveland for the 1996 season. Average? Last season, they played in the AFC championship game and suffered a disappointing 17-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, who might become the first team in league history to win three straight titles. Fans need to calm down. The Ravens are 0-2, and it’s an uphill climb, but it’s not impossible. If they don’t make the playoffs this season, then there is something to discuss. There are still 15 games remaining and a lot of football to be played. In Baltimore, after each loss, fans want to fire coach John Harbaugh, general manager Eric DeCosta and both the offensive and defensive coordinators as well as Poe the mascot. Let’s see how this all shakes out. This league is full of parity, and the Ravens are still in the mix. When will the front office take accountability for poor game decisions? We’ve replaced the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and other coaching positions, but the head coach has remained the same. Do you think Eric DeCosta is too close to Harbaugh so he won’t make the tough decision? It is widely known they are friends and neighbors. — Ryan Chojnowski When the final decision on Harbaugh will be made, if there is one, it will come from owner Steve Bisciotti. He will get input from those close to him, such as Ozzie Newsome and DeCosta, but he will make the final call. I don’t always agree with Harbaugh’s game decisions, especially in the final four minutes, but he has been very successful. Has he lost his voice with this team? I haven’t seen or heard that yet, but Harbaugh is always at his best when the Ravens struggle. He has a knack for rallying his team, so Sunday’s game against Dallas will be interesting. Is the Kevin Zeitler move Anquan Boldin 2.0 in terms of being penny-wise, but pound-foolish? Why is Mark Andrews being criminally underutilized? Why is Derrick Henry not being used as a receiver in space … where he excels? — Allan on X When you pay a quarterback $50 million a season, weaknesses will be exposed. It’s happened before and it will happen again. For this season, those liabilities were on the offensive line. As for Boldin, I thought he played well in the postseason but not necessarily in the regular season when the Ravens won the Super Bowl in the 2012 campaign. Andrews will be used more and so will Henry. In the first two games, the Ravens have been very predictable, but I assume that will change. Regardless, it still comes down to the offensive line. If that group can’t run block, which it didn’t do in the first half against the Raiders, Henry can’t run. If the pass protection isn’t there, what difference does it make if quarterback Lamar Jackson is throwing to Andrews, Rashod Bateman or Henry? Football games are won at the line of scrimmage. That, Allan, will never change. Ravens fans want to see more of star running back Derrick Henry, who has 31 carries through Baltimore’s first two games. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) You have always stated that most games are won (and lost) in the trenches. That was evident in the fiasco against the Raiders. But after allowing three starters from the offensive line to leave after last season, why did the Ravens hierarchy think that the remaining linemen could do just as well as those that left? What were they thinking? And due to Jackson’s massive contract, I assume reinforcements will not be forthcoming this season because of the salary cap. What can the Ravens possibly do? — Bob in NC You work hard and hope the starters develop. If not, then offensive linemen will become a priority in the draft. It’s hard to find good offensive linemen, especially with the development of the passing game in college football. But if a team feels a tackle or guard is the key to getting back into a Super Bowl, I think the Ravens will do whatever is necessary. They gambled this year, but that happens when you roll the dice with a quarterback, regardless if it was Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh or Peyton Manning in Indianapolis. What did Ben Cleveland do to remain in Coach Harbaugh’s doghouse? Whatever it is, it has to be better than the Daniel Faalele experiment at right guard. Is there something we are missing? — Dan from Elkton Nope, you aren’t missing a thing. If Cleveland was better than Faalele, he would be in the starting lineup. That’s it. I have to ask about Faalele. He’s a huge man who gets no push in the run game. He also lacks the agility that you would expect from a converted tackle. What are we missing? If Ben Cleveland is that bad, why can’t you start Rosengarten at right tackle and slide Patrick Mekari to guard? It feels like every year Harbaugh dies on a hill to prove a meaningless point. — Stuart I don’t think he is dying on a hill. Mekari is a veteran and I would have started him against Kansas City in the opener instead of a rookie. Rosengarten is going to be a good player, but needs a strong offseason in the weight room. Mekari could be the starting right guard at some point with Rosengarten taking over the tackle position, but it’s highly unlikely Mekari will make it through the entire season healthy. I don’t like rotating offensive linemen, but I understand what the Ravens are trying to do. They are preparing for the future, and we’re not talking long term. Changes might be made in the regular season. I know it’s early in the season, but so far it doesn’t look like the secondary is playing as well as they did last season. I was more concerned with losing coaches Dennard Wilson than I was Anthony Weaver in the offseason. How much is the loss of Wilson impacting the defense so far? — Paul in Orlando Losing both Weaver and Wilson hurt the Ravens. From what I saw in the Raiders game, both cornerbacks, Marlon Humphrey and Brandon Stephens, looked tired late in the game. The Ravens sold out the week before in their loss to Kansas City, and it might have caught up with them. I know they had 10 days of rest and Las Vegas was playing on a regular seven-day routine, but the Ravens didn’t have that extra gear. Even Jackson lacked explosiveness on runs off the edge. As for Weaver and Wilson, both were established and had good relationships with the position players. It takes time to build those relationships despite some believing it can be done overnight. It’s not that easy. Is Father Time starting to catch up to Justin Tucker? Since the start of last season, he is 1-for-7 on field goal attempts of 50 yards or more in the regular season. Is it a bump in the road or reason for concern? — Bill C. from Alexandria, Virginia Father Time catches up with all of us and Tucker has been in the NFL since the 2012 season. But under any circumstance, I’d put him up there with any other kicker in the NFL. I’ve seen him practice, and he is still money. View the full article Quote
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