After their 14-2 regular season campaign that saw them pegged as Super Bowl favorites by many, the Baltimore Ravens were shown the door in the playoffs by the Tennessee Titans, losing 28-12 in the divisional round. While the Ravens proved to everyone that they have the talent to compete with any team in the NFL, being ousted from the playoffs after one game for the second year in a row has raised a lot of questions about this team.
In order to get over the hump and make a push for a Super Bowl, Baltimore is going to need to focus on a few key aspects. From players to scheme, let’s take a look at the six biggest questions the Ravens face this offseason.
Wide receiver corps
Baltimore has changed their wide receiver room each offseason for the last two years heading into this season. Two years ago they let Jeremy Maclin and Mike Wallace go. Last year, they let Michael Crabtree and John Brown walk. While Marquise Brown, Willie Snead and Miles Boykin are all returning for 2020, it’s safe to say Baltimore needs to get Lamar Jackson some more help on the outside.
Both Seth Roberts and Chris Moore are some of the Ravens’ pending free agents and I wouldn’t expect either to be back. Moore has never really made the most of his opportunities and after being supplanted as the team’s deep threat by Brown, it’s difficult to tell what his role would be if re-signed. There are more scenarios where Roberts could come back but a huge drop against the Titans will be fresh in Baltimore’s mind if they sit down at the negotiating table. After being selected in the 2018 NFL draft, Jaleel Scott has been active in just three games and has caught just one pass for six yards. He’ll likely return for training camp but he’s in real danger of being cut if he can’t impress early and often.
At his end of the season press conference, coach John Harbaugh noted that they have their eyes on two different style of wide receivers this offseason.
Though he failed to expand upon what they were or if they’d be draft prospects or free agents, there’s plenty of room for the Ravens to add talent.
If Baltimore decides to keep six wide receivers on the 53 man roster like they did in 2019, the Ravens would have three wide-open spots if Roberts, Moore and Scott don’t return. The Ravens will have to ask themselves if they want to bring in free agents like A.J. Green, Emmanuel Sanders or Robby Anderson, or look towards the early rounds of the NFL Draft with players like Henry Ruggs III, Justin Jefferson or Tee Higgins to fill the void.
Lamar Jackson
Jackson had a spectacular season and is likely on his way to receiving the NFL’s MVP award because of it. While some are using his playoff losses to define his early career, that’s foolish given what he’s done in the regular season. No, the question for Jackson is how much he’ll improve once again this offseason.
Absolutely no one expected Jackson to develop as much as he did from his rookie campaign to 2019. But he put in the hard work during the offseason — on his own, with quarterback coaches and his teammates — to improve. And sure enough, that’s exactly what happened to the tune of 36 passing touchdowns in just 15 games.
Jackson proved to anyone willing to be persuaded that he’s more than just a running quarterback. But he’ll need to make further strides this offseason on the mental side of his game to continue raising the bar. If last offseason is any indication, there’s plenty to be excited about.
Pass rush?
It was no secret the Ravens struggled to generate a pass rush in 2019. They ranked 21st in the NFL with just 37 sacks this season. But it’s a little more nuanced than that.
While Baltimore was able to get pressure on the quarterback, they got almost no pressure from their interior defensive line and sometimes their pass rushers couldn’t win one-on-one battles. That led to Don Martindale’s defense blitzing the highest percentage among NFL defenses this season. While Martindale loves exotic blitzes, having pass rushers who can win one-on-one battles helps the rest of the defense do their jobs better. Players aren’t sacrificed from elsewhere to send pressure and the entire defense can better defend both the run and the pass.
To make matters worse, team sack leader Matthew Judon is set to be an unrestricted free agent. He accumulated 9.5 sacks while also grading out well against the run. He’s likely looking for a similar contract to what Za’Darius Smith earned last year (4 years, $66 million). If Baltimore decides not to pay him they’ll have to make up for it in free agency and the draft. Even if the Ravens do bring Judon back, they’ll have to give him some help so offenses can’t key in on him all game long.
Compensatory draft picks
The Ravens love playing free agency carefully in order to accumulate as many compensatory picks as possible. They’re willing to be a little more stingy with contracts in order to hopefully acquire an early-round pick without overpaying for players. We saw all of that last offseason as C.J. Mosley and Za’Darius Smith signed huge contracts alongside the losses of Terrell Suggs and John Brown.
The problem now is with Earl Thomas and Mark Ingram likely cancelling out Smith and Suggs’ comp picks, Baltimore was really counting on Mosley and Brown. And with both Brown and Mosley dealing with injuries, it likely has pushed their value down to the fourth round, according to Over The Cap.
That slight change could have serious ramifications for the Ravens in the 2020 NFL draft. A third-round pick is worth a lot more than a fourth, making trading up a harder and more costly endeavor. But no one 100% knows what the NFL’s algorithm is for comp picks, meaning we’ll have to wait until the league announces them.
Marshal Yanda
Perhaps the biggest question this offseason is whether Yanda will retire or not. Though the likely Hall of Fame guard didn’t want to discuss retirement immediately after the season, he did say he’s going to reflect this offseason in order to make a decision.
Yanda proved he still has it this season, adding another Pro Bowl nod to his resume and helping pave the way for Baltimore’s NFL record-breaking rushing attack. But Yanda will also be 36 next season, which certainly makes returning for another training camp, preseason and long regular season difficult. Absolutely no one should begrudge Yanda if he decides to hang up his cleats here.
However, that would make things really difficult for the Ravens, who don’t seem to have an answer for how to replace him yet. Replacing a Hall of Fame player to the same standard is almost always impossible but the answers on Baltimore’s roster right now include Bradley Bozeman and Ben Powers — who have 17 combined starts and 31 games active between them.
Finding Yanda’s heir will either be a need or the absolute biggest need the Ravens face this offseason, all depending on whether the big man retires or not.
Offensive scheme changes
The Ravens had one of the greatest offensive seasons in NFL history in 2019. Led by Jackson, the team ranked No. 1 in rushing yards, No. 2 in total yards, No. 1 in points scored and were the first team in NFL history to average 200-plus passing and rushing yards per game. They were practically unstoppable for quite a large chunk of the regular season, even against playoff teams.
The question now facing offensive coordinator Greg Roman and Baltimore is just how they can tweak that to make it better?
They’ll undoubtedly add some new wrinkles in the form of players this offseason as well as Marquise Brown returning to full health. But Roman is going to have to craft better ways for guys to get open and better utilize the speed the Ravens have. Taking a page from both the San Francisco 49ers’ and Kansas City Chiefs’ playbooks might not be a bad idea.
Rest assured, we’ll see some scheme changes next year but just exactly what they’ll be is still up in the air.
