ExtremeRavens Posted October 2 Posted October 2 Now is the perfect time for the Ravens to play third-year running back Keaton Mitchell, and they might need to sprinkle in a little of third-string quarterback Tyler Huntley to go along with expected starter Cooper Rush. In case you haven’t heard, or live on another planet, Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson isn’t likely to play Sunday against the Houston Texans at M&T Bank Stadium because of a hamstring issue. “Well, Tyler Huntley, yes. If Lamar is down, Tyler will be up. As far as Keaton, yes, there’s a chance of that as well,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh when asked if both players would play against the Texans. Jackson is the best dual-threat quarterback in the history of the NFL, and his fleet-footedness on the outside or perimeter is what drives defensive coordinators wacky. He can hand off inside the tackles to running back Derrick Henry or dart outside for big gainers on the option play. He makes the defense defend an entire field, but his absence will cause problems for Baltimore. So, who else do the Ravens have that can break a long run or be a threat on the outside? It’s Mitchell. This isn’t to slight Henry. If the Ravens ran the future Hall of Famer 30 times Sunday, it would be understandable, but Mitchell stretches the field, which the Ravens can’t do without Jackson. Plus, Henry has been in a little funk this season. He has as many fumbles as he does touchdowns (three), even though that’s more of an indictment of the offensive line than Henry. My favorite running play is still left tackle Ronnie Stanley pulling around the corner followed by 305-pound fullback Patrick Ricard and the 253-pound Henry, but Ricard has yet to play a game this season because of a calf injury and Stanley lasted only a quarter in the Kansas City game last week before heading to the bench with an ankle injury. We’re back to Mitchell again. In training camp this summer, he showed that he had the acceleration and the speed to turn the corner, and that’s his forte. He still might be the fastest player on the team at one point, running 22.4 mph during an organized team activity. Opposing defenses have to honor that speed. As an undrafted rookie in 2023, Mitchell had 47 carries for 396 yards and two touchdowns in eight games, two of those starts. Ravens running back Keaton Mitchell, shown after a touchdown rush during the preseason, hasn't played during the regular season despite a great training camp. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) He tore his ACL in a 23-7 win against Jacksonville in Week 15 and eventually was placed on injured reserve. He had only 15 carries for 30 yards last season, but that was more of a comeback season. The comeback appears to be complete. Play him. Justice Hill and Rasheen Ali are listed ahead of Mitchell on the depth chart. Hill has his role as a third-down specialist and is a better pass blocker than Mitchell. Ali has advantage because he can play on special teams, but none of them have Mitchell’s speed. No, not one. That’s why Huntley needs to appear in some capacity, too. With Rush in the lineup, the Ravens are basically a dink-and-dunk offense with an occasional pass downfield. But Huntley can run the option and he can turn the corner. Swoosh. Gone. Houston’s offense is inept, but the Texans can play defense. They are No. 1 in the league, allowing only 12.8 points per game, and No. 5 in total defense with an average of 280.5 yards allowed. They have two strong defensive ends in Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr., who have combined for seven sacks. If the Ravens want to slow them down, then speed is the great neutralizer with Mitchell, and even Huntley. The Ravens are near a panic state, and they should use every weapon imaginable. In the past, they could outmuscle a lot of teams, but that’s not the case anymore, not with guards Daniel Faalele and Andrew Vorhees and right tackle Roger Rosengarten struggling. The Ravens have allowed 10 sacks in the past two games. Harbaugh doesn’t usually talk about offensive assistants but did attack the play calling this week after the Chiefs game. That’s nothing new, especially with a veteran like Todd Monken compared with second-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr. It could have been to deflect some of the criticism of Orr. But the Ravens have to mix and match Sunday, take a chance and maybe hit some home runs. The best player for that might be Mitchell. And add a little Huntley to really spice things up. 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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