Stock Down
In his return to the field after a month-long absence, Watkins did not look like he did before his injury. He’s a step slower out of his releases and in the open field and it has triggered a precipitous drop in Sammy stock. His fumble was extremely costly and his target in the back of the end zone looked at best catchable and at worst a ball that you need to make a play on, which he did not.
Did Sammy Watkins lose this in the lights or think he was out of bounds? pic.twitter.com/4IAloGck4p
— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) November 12, 2021
If he’s not 100 percent, it feels weird to rush him back with the rest of the receiver group playing all of their best football individually.
With the rest of the receivers playing well, it seems inevitable that the Watkins we saw pre-injury will never be back. Rashod Bateman is back and playing better and even Devin Duvernay has proved to be dynamic with the ball and certainly warrants more use. Watkins ran only 16 routes on Lamar Jackson’s 53 dropbacks, fewer than Bateman, Duvernay and Marquise Brown. His usage will continue to fall, and so will his production.
Offensive Line
It’s the focal point nearly every week. The beaten and battered offensive line was bound to catch up to the Ravens at some point. A unit on several second and third stringers was not going to hold together forever, and their collective stock hit rock bottom on Thursday.
The Dolphins pressured Lamar Jackson whenever they wanted to. By the fourth quarter, Miami would line up six, seven and even eight defenders on the line of scrimmage, you knew what was happening next, and you were proved right. Jackson was sacked four times and the pressures and QB hits were in the double digits.
Watching live, it’s hard to place the blame on any individual lineman. We’ll have to wait to watch the film to figure that out. For now, the entire line catching the brunt of the talk will do. The unit is on their second left tackle, second left guard and third right tackle. Some reinforcements are on the way with Ben Cleveland and Patrick Mekari slated to return soon, but it’s a positional group that has been ignored for far too long in recent drafts. Some legit reinforcements are needed come April.
AVG starts it and Roberts finishes it. Lamar Jackson sacked again. pic.twitter.com/idR2phiH0Q
— FinCuts (@FinCuts) November 12, 2021
Unfortunately, it appears Father Time has caught up to Koch. The 39-year-old did not have his best game on Thursday, averaging only 40.1 yards per punt. For reference, the 32nd ranked punter all season long in average yards per punt, Tampa Bay’s Bradley Pinion, has a 42.8 yards per punt total. Entering Week 10, Koch is 20th league-wide in yards per punt, 15th in net average yards per punt and 18th in punts inside the 20.
When addressing the weaknesses of the team, punter is the last of the concerns. Koch has been rock solid for over a decade so it’s hard to even fathom a world without Koch as the punter in Baltimore. He’s under contract through 2022, but you have to think that’s it for the Ravens legend.
[The Good, Bad & Ugly: Dolphins 22, Ravens 10]
Stock Up
Rashod Bateman
The rookie finished with a career high with six catches and matched his previous high of eight targets. He’s being increasingly involved and incorporated into the passing game, and deservedly so. It is frustrating, however, to not see him used more in a matchup that was perfect for him.
The Dolphins dominated the Ravens offensive line, sending more than they could block frequently. The Ravens countered with a quick passing game, but it was one that never involved Bateman and one that never found success. I think he could have been of great use in that department, running slants or anything quick breaking where the ball could have gotten out to him quickly.
His usage was frustrating Thursday night. While the career high in catches was great, he finished with fewer snaps played than Devin Duvernay and it felt like Watkins was stealing some snaps and targets. Overall, it was a good day for Bateman but one that could and should have been better.
Lamar Jackson frustrated on the Ravens sideline tonight. pic.twitter.com/4VJV8JtBMl
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 12, 2021
Run Defense
For the second straight week, the Ravens defensive line completely bottled up an opposing running back. Miami RBs combined for 37 yards on 13 attempts, good for 2.8 yards per carry. This comes after defending Minnesota’s Dalvin Cook well last week, who averaged a similar yards per carry total if you take away his 66 yarder that came on an outside run.
The interior of the defensive line has been stellar recently, even without Brandon Williams and Derek Wolfe. Calais Campbell and Justin Madubuike are leading the way. Both had great games tonight and were integral parts of multiple sacks and big stops against the run.
