The Final Word

Timmy Jernigan had his best game as a rookie against the Titans, recording a sack and four tackles. In addition to the sack, he also influenced a sack that Terrell Suggs notched late in the second half that came awfully close to being a safety.

Jernigan’s sack was a result of maintaining his hustle and working through the block after the guard stopped moving his feet.

On the sack that Jernigan influenced, he collapsed the interior pocket, forcing Mettenberger to keep dropping back so Suggs could clean up coming around the corner. What stood on the play was the rookie’s technique. He was able to get his hands underneath the pads of the right guard and steer him off balance to break free.

It was interesting to see Jerningan get as many first down reps as he did filling in for Chris Canty. At least as a rusher, the former Florida State star was way more disruptive and gave the team a great push up the middle.

With his performance on Sunday, look for Jernigan to get more chances in the base defense on early downs…

When the defense went to their sub packages, Jerningan was in on most snaps along with Pernell McPhee, who has been a fixture in those situations. The only difference was that with Jernigan on the field, McPhee rushed from a two-point stance more often, showing off his versatility to rush from different positions.

Going forward, the four-man combo of McPhee, Jernigan, Suggs, and Dumervil should be the consistent nickel front for the Ravens with a little bit of Ngata and Upshaw sprinkled in situations when the run is still in play…

The last point I’ll make about Jernigan is that for all of the exciting flashes of ability he has shown on the field, he’ll need to stay healthy and translate his potential into sustainable productivity. So far so good on the snap-per-production ratio. But health has been another issue in his very young career.

By taking Jernigan in the second round, the team bypassed receivers such as Jarvis Landry, Davante Adams, Cody Latimer, Allen Robinson, Donte Moncrief, and Jon Brown. They also passed on Martavis Bryant, who fell all the way to the fourth round. Among this pack of pass catchers, my favorite was Landry. I thought he could be this year’s Keenan Allen. He hasn’t been as good as Allen so far this season, but he’s been picking up his production, and he leads the NFL in kick return average.

If you’ve been scoring at home, most of the receivers I mentioned have already made an impact this season. The only one who hasn’t is Latimer, and he’s buried on the obnoxiously deep Denver depth chart.

The hype surrounding this receiver class as one of the best, if not the best, has held up. I didn’t even mention the valedictorians of the class — Sammy Watkins, Mike Evans, Kelvin Benjamin, Odell Beckham Jr., Brandin Cooks, and Jordan Matthews. These guys were already off the board when the Ravens were coming back around in the second round to make their next pick.

The Ravens are justified for taking linebacker C.J. Mosley over the likes of Benjamin and Cooks. He is shaping up to be the Defensive Rookie of the Year and is a difference maker at linebacker.

However, were they right in taking Jernigan over some of the receivers I mentioned? Obviously, it’s too soon to tell. But it won’t be long before we revisit that question given how talented these receivers are and the glaring need the team still has for a young, up-and-coming playmaker at the position.

That being said, Jernigan could turn into a special player too, and we saw those glimpses on Sunday…

Dean Pees’ decision to start Anthony Levine at cornerback against the Titans was a masterstroke.

I didn’t see Levine being able to handle the role, but he certainly proved me wrong. The converted safety was all over the field. He was especially fast to react to plays in the flats and was consistently on the attack.

Levine’s willingness to break on the ball is exactly what the defensive backfield has been missing. Along with Danny Gorrer, the unit looked more confident and unafraid to take chances to make a play on the ball.

The back end needed the spark it gained against Tennessee, especially heading into the sizzling Superdome to face the Saints.