ExtremeRavens Posted December 5 Posted December 5 Here’s how the Ravens (8-5) have graded out at every position as they enter their bye week following a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday: Quarterback Lamar Jackson has completed 254 of 379 passes for 3,290 yards and 29 touchdowns. Even more amazing is that he has thrown only three interceptions. Jackson has also rushed for 678 yards on 111 attempts. He has played extremely well this season, but it appears more teams will play zone defense against Jackson to cut down on his rushing attempts. Jackson likes to throw to his first read but appears slower going through his progressions and holding onto the ball too long. Grade: A Running back The Ravens have done a good job in getting the maximum out of star Derrick Henry and they are going to need him in the final four games of the regular season as well as into the playoffs. Henry has rushed for 1,407 yards and 13 touchdowns on 240 carries. His body doesn’t appear to be worn out for a stretch run, especially in the cold months when the weather becomes unpredictable and teams find it hard to pass. Justice Hill has split time with Henry even though he is more of a pass-catching threat out of the backfield. Hill has 322 yards on 37 catches compared with 191 yards on 43 rushing attempts. It remains to be seen how the Ravens will use second-year running Keaton Mitchell, who missed most of the season with a knee injury. Patrick Ricard still is the No. 1 blocking fullback in the NFL even though he has slowed in recent weeks. Grade: A Offensive line The Ravens might have the top-ranked offense in the league, but the team’s 8-5 record shows they aren’t perfect. The Ravens have to run the ball to be successful because it opens up the play-action passing game as well as the run-pass option (RPO) plays. But when they can’t run, the team struggles. Why? Because this group needs to improve in pass blocking and it’s hard for them to come back from a deficit. Overall, tackles Ronnie Stanley and rookie Roger Rosengarten have played well, but neither dominates if the offense becomes one-dimensional. Both guards, Patrick Mekari and Daniel Faalele, have been sufficient, but Mekari appears to be slowing down. Center Tyler Linderbaum is good when uncovered but struggles with big nose guards on top of him. Jackson makes this group better than it appears in pass protection: Grade: C+ Receivers Zay Flowers has become the workhouse with 60 catches for 863 yards and four touchdowns. He has been a versatile performer playing outside and in the slot as well as taking handoffs and handling quick screens. Tight end Mark Andrews, believed to be the forgotten player at the beginning of the season, is emerging as Jackson’s favorite target, especially inside the red zone. Andrews has 43 catches for 490 yards and seven touchdowns. Rashod Bateman (35 catches, 574 yards) has had his moments and been a complementary receiver to Andrews and Flowers. Bateman, though, needs to become more consistent on the outside as well as veteran Nelson Agholor. He has lived up to his reputation in New England and Philadelphia for dropping easy passes. Reserve tight end Isaiah Likely seems to have cooled in the past couple games after having a strong start. Likely has 33 catches for 384 yards and four touchdowns. Grade: B- Defensive line When healthy, the Ravens have one of the best lines in the NFL, especially when it comes to stopping the run, but this unit can’t stay on the field intact for several games. Tackles Michael Pierce (calf) and Travis Jones (ankle) have been in and out of the rotation for several games. Jones has 30 tackles, but Pierce has only 15. Broderick Washington has played well for most of the season with 17 tackles. End/tackle Nnamdi Madubuike has 28 tackles, including five sacks, but hasn’t played as well as anticipated when the Ravens signed him to a four-year, $98 million contract during the offseason. Regardless, he still draws double teams and forces the opposition to at least slow him down. The return of Pierce will help improve the run defense, which is allowing only 3.6 yards per attempt. The Ravens still need to mount more of an inside pass rush. Grade: B- Linebackers Middle linebacker Roquan Smith finally brought his “A” game for the first time this season against Philadelphia. He anticipated well and shot gaps to slow down running back Saquon Barkley for nearly three quarters. But like most of this defense, Smith has struggled despite leading the team with 121 tackles. Malik Harrison (39 tackles) is a decent weakside linebacker but very one-dimensional in terms of stopping the run. Second-year performer Trent Simpson (72 tackles) has played well at times but also has disappeared in several games. Veteran Kyle Van Noy has eight sacks, but both he and fellow outside linebacker Odafe Oweh (8 sacks) need to be stronger holding the edge. Second-year outside linebacker Tavius Robinson (23 tackles) might become a threat in the future, but he needs to have more than one move when rushing the passer. It’s impossible to bull rush an opponent for an entire game. Grade: C Secondary The Ravens’ defensive backs have made progress in the past two games, but they stunk it up in the first 11. They allowed teams to throw over the middle of the field, both long and in the intermediate areas. Finally, the coaches benched Marcus Williams and waived fellow safety Eddie Jackson. Kyle Hamilton (88 tackles) has played well around the line of scrimmage and on the back end. Hamilton appears to work well with fellow starting safety Ar’Darius Washington, even though the Ravens haven’t faced a strong passing offense in recent weeks. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey is playing well in the slot, but the Ravens need improvement at the corner positions where Brandon Stephens, Tre’Davious White and rookie Nate Wiggins are the starters. Wiggins has the potential to be good, but White appears to have lost a step or two. Stephens still can’t find the ball and needs to improve his tackling. Grade: C- Special teams Justin Tucker has made only 9 of 17 field goal attempts from 40 yards out, and that has caused some major problems. Tucker is usually reliable but has struggled this season with most of his kicks going wide left. Tucker has also missed two extra point attempts, which is why coach John Harbaugh has hinted he might bring in a kicker to work on the practice squad. Regardless, that will give the coaching staff a chance to look at other kickers before the start of the 2025 training camp. Jordan Stout has been consistent, averaging 47.9 yards on 42 punts, but he has been shaky in several big games. Stout has put 15 punts inside the 20-yard line. The Ravens’ return game has added little, and those guys look indecisive. Grade: D Coaching Harbaugh does well as far as organizing his team, keeping them focused and preparing them to play. However, his game day decisions when it comes to play selection and clock management are still poor and could come back to hurt the team. First-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr has struggled, but that was to be expected, especially with three top assistants moving on from a year ago. Coordinator Todd Monken has called some really strong games and has done well working with Jackson and this offense the past two seasons. There are times, though, where he becomes too predictable and allows a game to get out of his control. Grade: B Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article Quote
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