ExtremeRavens Posted 14 hours ago Posted 14 hours ago The Ravens were 10 minutes away from icing one of their biggest wins of the season, a prime-time contest against the 11-win Patriots. Instead, the defense fell apart and Baltimore abandoned its reliable running game yet again in a game’s final moments. Baltimore’s playoff hopes aren’t mathematically dead, but with Lamar Jackson battling a new back injury, it’s hard to imagine the Ravens getting the breaks needed in Weeks 17 and 18 to make the postseason. It’s a brutal turn of events for Baltimore, which held a two-score lead going into Sunday’s final 10 minutes. Here’s what national analysts had to say about Baltimore’s 28-24 loss to the Patriots. ESPN’s Tim Hasselbeck “Lamar just didn’t seem right this year, if I’m calling it like it is,” he told Scott Van Pelt after the game. “The hamstring injury, whatever else was bothering him, he just didn’t seem right. He is normally the scariest player when things break down. He’s going to either take off and run or create. We just didn’t see enough of that.” Jackson exited Sunday’s game in the second quarter, although the offense performed admirably in his absence. Baltimore’s backup quarterback Tyler Huntley led a pair of second-half touchdown drives, finishing the game 9-for-10 passing for 65 yards. Jackson was 7-for-10 for 101 yards. Patrick Peterson, CBS Sports “We’ve seen this time and time again,” the longtime NFL defensive back said on a postgame show. “When they need to lean on Derrick Henry late in the game, here’s nowhere to be found. I don’t know if it’s because of the fumbles early in the game that’s causing [offensive coordinator Todd] Monken to shy away from him, but they have to find a way to keep him engaged in the game, especially when he’s having the game he was having.” Henry’s lack of usage was a major postgame storyline. The bruising running back carried the ball 18 times for 128 yards and two touchdowns, but he didn’t play a snap over Baltimore’s final two drives. Most analysts took issue with Henry’s lack of usage in the waning moments of the fourth quarter. Bryant McFadden, CBS Sports McFadden, on the same show as Peterson, had the same opinion. “I don’t want to tackle him in the fourth quarter. He was rolling … but for some reason, they took him out of the game,” McFadden said. “They did the Patriots a big-time favor by doing that.” New England’s comeback came as the Ravens abandoned Henry in the running game. Shannon Sharpe, Nightcap “They might as well just go ahead and shut Lamar down,” the former Ravens tight end said on his YouTube show. “He has not been the same since he came back.” Sharpe says that Jackson’s limited mobility greatly hampered Baltimore this season. He also thinks that the franchise needs to take a serious look at John Harbaugh, the team’s longtime coach. “I don’t really advocate for anything like this, but it might be time for the Ravens to get a new voice … they need to go in a different direction,” he said. Sharpe suggested that Baltimore’s roster has become too old and too slow to compete. He’s in favor of the Ravens getting a new coach and overhauling portions of the roster. He says that the team’s lack of a high-end pass rusher is a clear weakness that needs to be fixed in the offseason. Michael Hurley, NBC Sports Boston “Derrick Henry averaged over 7 yards per carry and the Ravens only gave him the ball 18 times in a must-win game where Lamar Jackson got hurt before halftime,” he posted on X. “That’s unconscionable.” Henry’s lack of touches in the final minutes will likely be discussion fodder for weeks as Ravens fans and NFL media members try to determine what the heck went wrong Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium. Have a news tip? Contact Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin. View the full article Quote
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