Pundits React to Ravens' Loss to Browns
Earlier in October, Bill Belichick said, "The Ravens' biggest opponent is the Ravens." On Sunday, their own miscues and mistakes ultimately led them falling to the Browns, 29-24, and the end of their five-game win streak. Pundits shared a similar sentiment following the game.
The Baltimore Banner's Kyle Goon: "So many things had to go wrong. They did. … The dropped interceptions and passes were the loudest part of the loss to the Browns but not nearly the only part of the game where the Ravens struggled. It was another week of offensive line and blocker penalties that stalled drives before they had a chance to get going. The run game hit a lull. The return game left a lot to be desired. The pass rush was not effective enough."
NFL.com’s Nick Shook: "Details doom Ravens. Statistically, Baltimore played well enough to win in most categories. Lamar Jackson threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns and amassed 335 total yards, and despite finishing under 100 yards, Derrick Henry still averaged 6.6 per carry. But the Ravens lost this game because they didn't do the little things right. Rashod Bateman lost a wide-open pass in the sun and had it bounce off his facemask on third down in the fourth quarter. Kyle Hamilton dropped an interception that almost certainly would've ended Cleveland's comeback chances. Eddie Jackson spent most of the afternoon getting dusted by [Cedric] Tillman in coverage. And finally, the Ravens converted just 2 of 10 third-down attempts. This was a winnable game and, in spots, Baltimore moved the ball with ease. But the Ravens will regret how they performed Sunday, especially when it comes to sorting out the AFC standings as the postseason approaches this winter."
Associated Press' Tom Withers: "It was that kind of day for the Ravens (5-3), who couldn't put away the Browns (2-6) and had their five-game winning streak stopped. Baltimore came in with the NFL's top-ranked offense, the league's leading rusher and Jackson doing MVP-type things. But beginning with a failed fourth-down conversion at Cleveland's 2-yard line on their opening drive to safety Kyle Hamilton letting a game-clinching interception slip through his hands with one minute left, the Ravens didn't play up to their standards."
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "The Ravens can't consistently get to the quarterback and [Jameis] Winston had all day unless the Ravens blitzed. The Ravens can't get off the field and the Browns repeatedly made plays on third down to prolong drives. The Ravens' secondary also is a mess and the Browns had players running free downfield all day. Cleveland's game-winning scoring drive was emblematic of Baltimore's struggles all afternoon on defense."
Baltimore Sports’ Todd Karpovich: "There were also miscommunication issues in the secondary that led to long plays and easy touchdowns. These have been problems for the Ravens the entire season, and heading into Week 9 it's not a small sample size."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "The Ravens have now lost to Patrick Mahomes (acceptable), Gardner Minshew (never acceptable) and Jameis Winston (rarely acceptable). Yes, they were playing short-handed on defense, but that's no excuse for the unit's consistently bumbling performance. Cleveland hadn't scored more than 18 points all season; it finished with 29. Cleveland hadn't finished with more than 297 yards of total offense all season; it finished with 401. Something has got to change."
CBS Sports’ John Breech: "Defensively, the Ravens melted down during a second half in which Jameis Winston threw for 224 yards and three touchdowns. … Basically, everything that could go wrong for the Ravens went wrong and they still barely lost, so although this one will certainly sting, it won't be surprising to see Baltimore bounce back big next week against the Broncos."
Lessons From Two Upset Losses?
The Ravens were unanimously picked to beat the Raiders in Week 2 and the Browns on Sunday, but both times they stumbled. This led The Athletic's Jeff Howe, Ten Nguyen, and Dan Pompei to attempt to extrapolate any lessons from the losses.
For Nguyen, he chalks it up to something unorthodox the Ravens suffer once a year. He also is unsure if the secondary will find its footing any time soon.
"The Ravens always seem to have one game a year in which they cannot catch anything; though Jameis Winston mostly played a strong game for Cleveland, he also threw three point-blank interceptions that were dropped," Nguyen wrote. "On the final Browns drive, on which they scored the go-ahead touchdown, Winston threw one right to Kyle Hamilton, who ran for a couple of steps before the ball fell out of his hands. On offense, they dropped at least four or five passes, including a deep pass to Rashod Bateman late in the game. Overall, the Ravens' secondary has been a weakness and they were beat-up coming into the game. It's going to be an issue throughout the season."
Pompei believes the Ravens are victims of their own making, but that this loss is not extraordinary. These losses happen to virtually every team, every season.
"Maybe the Ravens handle adversity better than they handle prosperity," Pompei wrote. "Certainly, they are a better team than the Browns. And the Raiders. But they didn't play their best football against either. Baltimore has a solid defense, but they gave up big plays late to a backup quarterback. The feeling here is this was a blip (the kind of which virtually every NFL team has over the course of a season, save for the 1972 Dolphins). The Ravens should learn and grow from it. They remain one of the NFL's finest."
Howe wasn't so forgiving and considers these losses to be something that has and may continue to loom.
"This has been an issue for the Ravens for a couple years, although this was one of the smaller leads that they've blown," Howe wrote. "They have some issues on the back end of the defense, and they surrendered scores on three of their last four series on Sunday. Lamar Jackson can only do so much. I don't know if they get a little too comfortable with late leads, but it's not going to be an issue that just magically disappears — it's been hanging over their heads for way too long."
Pundits Question Fourth Down Play Call
On the first drive of the game, the Ravens marched 68 yards inside the Browns' 10-yard line before facing a fourth-and-1. Head Coach John Harbaugh kept his offense on the field as Derrick Henry took a direct snap but was stopped behind the line of scrimmage.
Pundits and fans all appeared to agree with the decision to go for it but had gripes with the play call.
"[The Ravens] squandered too many points with poor execution and strange plays calls in the red zone," The Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker wrote. "They wasted a [68]-yard opening drive when they inexplicably called a direct snap to Derrick Henry on fourth-and-1, taking the threat of Jackson out of the equation."
"With no one else in the backfield, everyone in the stadium knew Henry was getting the ball. If Jackson is in the backfield with him, the threat of either of them running has to change how the defense reacts," Pressbox’s Bo Smolka wrote. "If [fullback Patrick] Ricard is in the backfield with them, that much power going forward is hard to stop at the line of scrimmage."
Pundits Point to Ravens Needing Pass Rush Help Before NFL Trade Deadline
The Ravens' pass rush has struggled to generate pressure, allowing opposing quarterbacks too much time to throw. According to advanced numbers, their time to pressure is among the lowest in the past decade.
The Browns have allowed the most sacks in the league by a wide margin, yet the Ravens sacked Winston just twice. David Ojabo was a healthy scratch.
Pundits believe the Ravens should pursue more pass rush help.
"It's a problem that has to be considered from every level: performance, coaching and personnel. But that last part is where general manager Eric DeCosta can make an impact before the Nov. 5 trade deadline with plenty of resources at his disposal," Goon wrote. "This team has the upside of one that can make the Super Bowl, but with an eight-game sample, the Ravens have to assume this defense will continue to underperform unless they shake things up."
Goon shared more revealing data on the Ravens' pressure numbers and their need to add another contributor.
"If the players along the defensive front are the teeth of the Ravens' defense, they need more bite," Goon wrote. "The Ravens had just an 18.6% pressure rate against the Browns, which is lower than their season-long 28.4% pressure rate – already in the bottom third of the NFL (last year, they were seventh). On average, opposing passers have 3.10 seconds to throw, according to TruMedia, which is the third-worst mark in the league (last year, it was 2.86 seconds, eighth best)."
Goon writes the time is now for the Ravens to push all-in for a Super Bowl, and if that means parting with future capital for a game-changing impact player this year, it's worth it.
"Jackson may never play better than this. Henry isn't getting any younger. Hamilton will soon be getting very expensive," Goon wrote. "The time to mortgage at least some of the future is now, prying open the 2024 championship window as wide as possible. Some way, somehow, the Ravens need to change this defense, which has to worry each week that a new quarterback will shred it to pieces. It needs to get the fear factor back on its side."
