While there’s widespread panic in the streets of Baltimore over the Ravens’ disappointing performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, NFL seasons are not made or broken in Week 2 … unless, of course, a franchise player suffers a devastating injury.
Quarterback Joe Flacco and Lamar Jackson did avoid costly injuries. However, C.J. Mosley, the leader of the defense, is out indefinitely with a bone bruise in his knee.
[Related: Ravens Flounder without Mosley]
While there is plenty of football remaining in the 2018 season, there are some disturbing trends emerging once again for the Ravens:
— Breakdowns in the secondary are leading to big plays.
— Some of those challenges can be directly linked to the Ravens’ almost non-existent pass rush that allowed Andy Dalton to pick them apart.
— Turnovers by Flacco are directly leading to costly points for opponents. He is not equipped to single-handedly carry the team and needs the players around him to perform better.
— Flacco is still not throwing to the first-down marker on third down, and as a result, the Ravens are failing to extend drives.
— Marty Mornhinweg has not fully committed to the running game — the team had a total of 66 rushing yards against the Bengals. Granted the Ravens were playing from behind, but there were several short-yardage opportunities that appeared suited for Alex Collins.
— The play-calling — especially on fourth down and decisions to bypass field-goal opportunities — has been troublesome.
— The offensive line struggled mightily against Bengals, especially with Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins. Flacco was sacked four times with eight additional hits, threw two interceptions and lost a fumble under constant pressure.
While some of these challenges should be correctable, many of these issues have seemed to resurface each week for several seasons now.
Have the Ravens reached their ceiling with this current group of players and coaches?
After the game, the Ravens still showed confidence and were ready to move past this game:
— Marshal Yanda: “This is the NFL. It’s a week-to-week business, and everyone understands that. It’s one game at a time. You can win by 40 one week and lose by 40 the next week. There’s a lot of good players in the NFL, and they made more plays than us.”
— Terrell Suggs: “The journey that we’re on, it’s not a straight path. It’s a forest. We’re not worried about it.”
— Eric Weddle: “We’re fine. It’s a 16-game season. You’re not going to play great every week, but you have to find ways to win, and we didn’t do that tonight. The sky’s not falling, but we have to correct some things. That’s why we have practice and coaching. Everyone in this room is accountable. We will take a look at ourselves first and see what we can do better and get back to work.”
— Joe Flacco: “You have to keep your head up and believe what you’re building around here. This is the NFL; nothing is promised, and we know that. We fought tonight. It wasn’t pretty and we didn’t come out with a win, but it’s a long season. We have to keep our heads up and be positive. I think we have a good football team, and guys reacted well to what happened tonight. We just have to move on.”
The Ravens should be able to take care of business in Week 3 against the Broncos. However, the focus is on the big picture and making the postseason for the first time since 2014.
If the team falls short of this goal, there will be some wholesale changes.
Even the owner has a limit to his patience.
There is plenty of time for the Ravens to get back on course.
However, the sense of urgency will grow each week.
