OTL: Leaky Defense Becomes a Tsunami

At first, it was one of those things where you kind of shrugged your shoulders and said, “Eh. They’ll figure it out.”

And now it’s become a borderline disaster.

The Ravens’ defense — typically considered a reliable mainstay in a league where fortunes and team personalities seem to change from snap to snap, let alone year to year — is not good. It’s bad.

And that’s taking into consideration the fact that the team has been one of the best run defenses in the league. When you are able to take away half of what opposing offenses want to do, it would stand to reason that it would be easy to focus on the other half. You know… make a team one-dimensional and then hunt. We heard Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs preach this for years.

But now they don’t hunt much. They have been prey.

Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Banner dove into the subject in a recent article.

“Under coach John Harbaugh, the Ravens want to muddle the picture for opposing quarterbacks,” explained Shaffer. “That can be difficult when not everyone on defense gets the picture.”

“We try to keep people guessing,” Harbaugh said Monday, per Shaffer. “It’s a big part of our defense, and the execution part of it, for the most part, has been good, but there have been plenty of times where it hasn’t been good.”

Shaffer added that the once-vaunted, and usually feared, Ravens defense has allowed the most passing yards and passing touchdowns in the league. As an additional bonus, they also lead the league in dropped interceptions.

So… yay?

“If schematic bewilderment were quantifiable, the Ravens would probably lead the NFL in that, too,” said Shaffer. “Coverage busts have derailed the defense in nearly every game, a trend made all the more vexing by the relative continuity in the team’s defensive system. When rising-star coordinator Mike Macdonald was named the Seattle Seahawks’ head coach this past offseason, Harbaugh hand-picked Orr, then the Ravens’ inside linebackers coach, to be the unit’s new play-caller.”

But it’s not that simple. Shaffer compared tendencies of this year’s defense with Macdonald’s unit last year.

“It’s not for a lack of trying, though,” Shaffer explained.  “According to Field Vision, the 2023 Ravens disguised their coverage — usually showing a two-high look before shifting to one high close to the snap, or vice versa — on 41.3% of their plays, one of the league’s highest rates. The 2024 Ravens are at 41.5%.

“The 2023 Ravens ran a simulated pressure — where the threat of five or more pass rushers forces offenses to adjust their protection rules and keep blockers in, only for the defense to send just four pass rushers after the quarterback — on 27.4% of their plays, also one of the league’s highest rates,” he continued. “The 2024 Ravens are at 26%.”

Still all hope is not lost. Shaffer explained that Macdonald’s first year also started out with a unit that looked borderline hapless at times, before switching things around halfway through the season.

“The Ravens have done it before,” said Shaffer. “In 2022, Macdonald’s first year as a coordinator in Baltimore, his defense allowed more passing yards over its first eight games (2,134) than all but four teams. But over the Ravens’ next nine games, bolstered by a midseason trade for Smith, they allowed the 11th-fewest passing yards.”

So, there’s hope. And hope might be all we have right now, barring a trade for another force multiplier to pull things together.

The Ravens brought in a new receiver this week via trade in Carolina’s Diontae Johnson, but he is probably best-remembered by Ravens for his time in Pittsburgh. Upon his arrival to his new town, he was asked about the coming match-ups against his former squad.

Sports Illustrated’s Zach Dimmitt shared that exchange.

“I’m looking forward to that game,” Johnson said, per Dimmitt. “But I’m focused on right now.”

What does he remember most from his previous Ravens-Steelers match-ups?

“Just how hard we competed against each other,” Johnson said, according to Dimmitt’s piece. “Getting the football out; just making plays and everybody tackling. It’s a big rivalry game, so just to be on this side now is different. I’m excited.”

Also of note:

Ravens or Steelers: Who Takes AFC North Crown? | FOX Sports

Ravens Rookie Diary: Nate Wiggins Reflects on Highs & Lows | Baltimore Banner

2024 Team Leaders in Offensive Touchdowns:
1. Detroit Lions – 28
1t. Baltimore Ravens
3. Buffalo Bills – 27
3t. Tamp Bay Buccaneers
5. Green Bay Packers – 23
5t. Washington Commanders
7. Cincinnati Bengals – 22

The Lions are the only team listed above to play only 7 games.

— Al Karsten (@FootballGuy_Al) October 31, 2024

The need for speed#NextGenStats powered by @awscloud pic.twitter.com/WmpeqSEUte

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) October 30, 2024

“That’s part of being a good football player. You’ve got to let the good stuff go, let the bad stuff go.” pic.twitter.com/dBGonTjz08

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) October 30, 2024

Welcome to Baltimore, @Juiceup__3 pic.twitter.com/Gwi4S0yO6s

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) October 30, 2024

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