The Ravens’ young replacements weren’t ready when pressed into action against the Texans
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OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — John Harbaugh sees Baltimore’s defensive problems right now as a matter of experience and execution, not effort.
“I thought our defense played really, really hard — really hard — and there were some big mistakes,” the veteran coach said Monday. “There were some mistakes that some young guys made that hurt us.”
The Ravens took the field severely undermanned last weekend, with quarterback Lamar Jackson and several other All-Pros and Pro Bowlers out. They’d said the right things about trying to overcome their injuries, but they looked like a decimated team from start to finish. Their 44-10 loss to Houston matched the most lopsided home defeat in franchise history, and Baltimore wasn’t competitive on either side of the ball.
It wasn’t hard to see why. Only three Baltimore players were in for every defensive snap, and all were rookies: safety Malaki Starks (first round), linebacker Teddye Buchanan (fourth round) and safety Reuben Lowery III (undrafted).
Two other rookies — second-round edge rusher Mike Green and undrafted cornerback Keyon Martin — were in the starting lineup. Second-year cornerback T.J. Tampa played 60 snaps after playing 59 in his entire career previously.
Some of those players could certainly become solid contributors in time, but asking them to replace an All-Pro like Roquan Smith or a versatile star like Kyle Hamilton proved to be untenable. And the Ravens don’t have many other options.
There was no update Monday on Jackson’s status, but the Ravens (1-4) look like a team that will give it a shot this weekend against the Los Angeles Rams — but is really just anxious to get to its open date in Week 7 and then regroup.
And hope the season is still salvageable.
What’s working
Very little. But Zay Flowers has 28 catches for 377 yards and is on pace for career highs in both.
What needs work
Baltimore has had to pick and choose where to commit money the past few years, giving out significant contracts to Jackson, Smith, Hamilton, defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike and tackle Ronnie Stanley. Then the Ravens had to play a game without any of them.
You can’t have a star at every position, but if Baltimore was hoping some unheralded youngsters could keep the team afloat in the short term, last weekend was eye opening. A lot of players on the field didn’t look ready.
“You can’t sit there and say, ‘All is lost.’ We just don’t,” Harbaugh said. “Year after year, it’s proven that that approach gives you the best chance to be successful. We’ve done it before, other teams have done it before, so we’re going to go to work on that and try to make that happen.”
Stock up
File not found.
Stock down
Cooper Rush was serviceable as a backup quarterback in Dallas last season, going 4-4 as a starter, but he couldn’t keep the Ravens close against the Texans. His three interceptions weren’t all his fault, but he managed only 179 yards passing.
Harbaugh was asked if he’d consider giving Tyler Huntley a shot.
“We’ll consider everything,” he said. “Every part of it to try to get the win. That’ll be talked about the next 24 hours.”
Injuries
The Ravens did manage to avoid any major new injuries coming out of Sunday’s game, but Harbaugh was unusually candid about Patrick Ricard’s situation. The All-Pro fullback hasn’t played yet this season because of a calf problem, and the hope now is for him to return against Chicago in the first game after the bye.
“It was supposed to be a two-, three-week injury when it first happened in training camp, and then he re-tweaked it, and it was supposed to be another two or three weeks,” Harbaugh said. “If we’d have known it was going to be this, we’d have put him on (injured reserve) the first week, and we’d have another roster spot. Nobody is more frustrated than Pat.”
Key stat
The Ravens had just 40 offensive plays Sunday, the fewest in franchise history.
Up next
Baltimore hosts the Rams, whom a much healthier Ravens team needed overtime to defeat at home in 2023.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL