The fact that the Ravens ranked last in the league in pass defense through the first seven weeks was surprising considering how much talent is in their secondary, yet fairly explainable.
They had faced a string of some of the top quarterbacks in the league this season – Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Jayden Daniels, Baker Mayfield.
To a degree, they had also been unlucky. They were close in coverage, but their opponents had completed an unusually high (statistically speaking) number of tightly-contested passes.
Those two factors changed Sunday in Cleveland, as Baltimore faced backup veteran quarterback Jameis Winston and a wide receiver corps that had lost its top target, Amari Cooper, via trade.
The Ravens defense was among the league leaders in tight window throws forced, per Next Gen Stats, entering the game but surrendered too many easy completions to Winston and his receivers.
Here's a closer look at what's hurting Baltimore's pass defense and more standouts from the tape:
Are the Ravens trying to disguise too much?
Let's start with this. If the Ravens catch even one or two of the interceptions that Winston threw them, it's a very different game and conversation.
Winston let it rip. Sometimes that results in him throwing it to the other team (as he did), but it also means he's going to take shots and stress a defense. He gave the Browns offense a spark.
The Ravens gave up too many underneath completions when they were rotating coverage, which led former NFL quarterback Kurt Benkert to question whether Baltimore's defense is trying to disguise too much.
"The Ravens give so many free completions because they're just out of alignment all the time," Benkert said on the “Pocket Presence” YouTube show.
Head Coach John Harbaugh said you can't just line up against top quarterbacks and show them what coverage, pre-snap, you're going to be in, but that the Ravens' execution of their disguises can improve.
"We've been a big disguise team; we've been a big [simulated pressure] team; we've blitzed from both sides; we've shown blitzes one way and blitzed the other way and run out of it; we've shown one way and come that way; we've shown edge and come to the middle. We try to keep it moving, [and] we try to keep people guessing. It's a big part of our defense," Harbaugh said Monday.
"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. [Do] I think it's part of the learning curve? Yes, I do think it's part of the learning curve, and I do believe the curve is going to keep getting better as we go forward."
Winston had to throw into a tight window just 17.1% of the time, per Next Gen Stats. The Browns often stayed in favorable downs and distances with an efficient running game and shorter completions, which allowed them to also do damage with their play-action fakes that gave Winston even more time to throw.
Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith had another tough day in coverage, allowing four completions on four targets for 37 yards, per Pro Football Focus (PFF). Without Marlon Humphrey (knee) and Nate Wiggins (illness), Brandon Stephens and Jalyn Armour-Davis gave up nine completions on 11 targets for 134 yards and a touchdown, per PFF. The touchdown came on a broken coverage when Baltimore's defense didn't get lined up before the snap.
"There's a lot of moving parts to the offenses, and when you're trying to match personnel and match formations, you have to be on point, and we were not on point with that play," Harbaugh said.
What were the other options on the Ravens' final play?
Lamar Jackson did an incredible job driving the Ravens into position for a potential game-winning touchdown on the final play of the game, but unlike the Commanders, Baltimore didn't pull off a miracle finish.
Jackson, again, kept the play alive with a scramble to evade three Browns defenders, buying himself time. He could have tried to run from about 30 yards out but it would've been tough to score from that distance – even for Jackson.
Tight end Mark Andrews wanted a jump ball in the back of the end zone, but Jackson fired across the field to a streaking Zay Flowers, who seemed to bump into fellow wide receiver Rashod Bateman before stumbling to the turf.
What were the other options on the Ravens' final play?
Lamar Jackson did an incredible job driving the Ravens into position for a potential game-winning touchdown on the final play of the game, but unlike the Commanders, Baltimore didn't pull off a miracle finish.
Jackson, again, kept the play alive with a scramble to evade three Browns defenders, buying himself time. He could have tried to run from about 30 yards out but it would've been tough to score from that distance – even for Jackson.
Tight end Mark Andrews wanted a jump ball in the back of the end zone, but Jackson fired across the field to a streaking Zay Flowers, who seemed to bump into fellow wide receiver Rashod Bateman before stumbling to the turf.
Why did the Ravens' fourth-down direct snap get stopped?
Part of the allure of Derrick Henry is that he can be such a factor taking direct snaps in short-yardage situations because it frees up an extra blocker. The Ravens saw it themselves when Henry was a Tennessee Titan.
Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken tried to tap into that on a fourth-and-1 in the red zone against the Browns, but Henry was stuffed behind the line of scrimmage.
Any play call, especially one that takes the ball out of Jackson's hands, will be debated. It didn't work, however, because Ronnie Stanley, who was playing off-tackle on the right side, was pushed into the backfield and tight end Charlie Kolar lost control of his block.
Zay Flowers keeps cooking opponents.
Zay Flowers' health was a question mark coming into the game after suffering an ankle injury last week, but he turned out another big day that was nearly even better.
Flowers posted seven catches for 115 yards against the Browns, and even beat top cornerback Denzel Ward once on a deep ball with a wild (seemingly adlibbed) route on third-and-21.
