There was a different feeling last season when Ronnie Stanley was getting ready to face Browns pass rusher Myles Garrett, the future 2023 Defensive Player of the Year.
Stanley was grinding through nagging knee pain. The Ravens had started to use a platoon at left tackle, something the former Pro Bowler had never experienced. He wasn't sure about either his physical or mental abilities to block such a defensive monster.
Garrett ended up with 1.5 sacks that day in a 33-31 Browns victory. Though they weren't Stanley's fault, it was a rough day.
Entering this Sunday's matchup in Cleveland and another rematch with Garrett, Stanley feels like he more than measures up. He's back – mentally and physically.
"I just feel like when I'm playing how I know I can play, I can compete with the best of them," Stanley said this week. "So I know he's a formidable opponent. He's a great player. But like I said, I'm focused on myself and making sure I have my stuff right. Because when I focus on myself and make sure I have my stuff going right, good things usually happen."
Stanley finished ranked as Pro Football Focus' No 45-ranked offensive tackle last season. That's far from the worst, but far below his standards. The No. 6-overall pick in 2016 and first-team All-Pro in 2019 had established himself as one of the best in the game, but that wasn't it.
Lacking strength in his lower and upper body, he had trouble anchoring, allowing defensive linemen to bully him into the backfield too often. He had trouble exploding out of his stance or getting out and moving as a run blocker because of his bulky knee.
That sack/strip that Stanley was beaten on in the AFC Championship game against the Chiefs was a crucial play in the loss. Stanley openly admitted the next day as he cleaned out his locker that he hadn't played up to his standard.
"It's tough. Definitely messes with you, your confidence and stuff," Stanley said. "It's tough when you're not playing with how you know you can play.
"Your mind wants to do one thing, but your body can't do it. I don't have enough time to sit there and think about how I'm going to move against, you know, a quick move by Myles Garrett. Your body just has to be able to make that movement."
This offseason, Stanley went about remaking his body and mind. One of the players he trained with in Los Angeles, Jets cornerback D.J. Reed, recommended a mental coach that Stanley hired. They talked about purpose, belief, confidence, etc. He read a number of books on confidence.
"I saw a lot of comparisons between offensive linemen and golfers when it comes to messing up one shot and that kind of makes it seem like you're having a bad day," Stanley said on "The Lounge" podcast. "But the best, they don't even remember that bad shot. They keep going. That's how the greatest players in that sport stay at the top is because they don't even remember those bad shots."
Stanley also focused on his physical health, being as fluid and athletic as possible. His health problems dated all the way back to his ankle injury suffered midway through the 2020 season, which not only knocked him out for the rest of that year but required a second surgery that cost him nearly the entire 2021 campaign. He only played 11 games in 2022 and missed four last season.
His groundwork of training this offseason put him in good shape for summer practices and he didn't miss a single one, unlike other offseasons when he was in and out of practice. Now Stanley often stays after practice to get in extra work.
"He's just stronger," Head Coach John Harbaugh said. "The ankle [and] the feet, they're stronger. His whole lower body is stronger, because he [had the ability to] train. It's definitely showing up."
"That was the only thing with Ronnie, just the injuries," quarterback Lamar Jackson added. "He was just trying to get back to where he was, and I feel like he's feeling pretty good now, and he's just the same Ronnie I knew ever since I entered the league."
Stanley is the only offensive tackle in the league with at least 50 pass blocking attempts that has yet to give up a sack, according to Pro Football Focus. He has only surrendered nine pressures on 224 pass blocking opportunities. Last week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' heavy blitz, Stanley didn't allow a single pressure.
He's currently graded as the AFC's best offensive tackle in pass blocking, only trailing Philadelphia's Jordan Mailata and Tampa Bay's Tristan Wifts overall.
"I feel like I can just kind of let my subconscious take over a little bit," Stanley said. "I feel like I'm thinking less and just, you know, just playing with more confidence and belief in myself."
Stanley has also been a highly effective run blocker and major reason why Baltimore's rushing attack leads the league. On runs to the outside left, the Ravens have a 44.7% success rate, per Next Gen Stats, and have rumbled for a whopping 428 rushing yards.
Any way you slice it, Stanley has returned to elite status.
"He's doing fantastic. He's really helping out the line too as a whole. He always does extra," left guard Patrick Mekari said. "He's really locked in, focused on the details, and he's kicking ass this year."
It's widely known that the Ravens restructured Stanley's contract this offseason, essentially making it a prove-it year. Stanley said his goal has always been to play 15 years in the NFL. This is only his ninth, so there's a long way to go for the 30-year-old. But he said he's not looking ahead to what's going to happen beyond this year.
"You know, I feel like I just focus on being the best player I can now, and I feel like all that stuff is going to take care of itself," Stanley said.
"I'm not looking back, trying to be my 2019 self. I'm looking at, like, if I were to play from that year, how would I expect myself to improve? And I'm trying to be better than that."
