Ravens vs. Saints: The good, bad and ugly for Baltimore
The Ravens lost in devastating fashion to the New Orleans Saints, but there are plenty of points to takeaway from the game (positive and negative).
The good:
John Brown:
John Brown was unstoppable throughout the game vs. the Saints. “Smokey” gave New Orleans a classic smoke show. Brown was making great catches throughout the game, including his massive 57-yard pickup that set up a Ravens touchdown, their first of the game. Then on what was supposed to be Baltimore’ drive to tie the game, Brown found himself wide-open in the end-zone for the potential game-tying score.
Brown ended his day with seven receptions for 134-yards and a touchdown. Brown’s speed has been on display all season long and Sunday’s match-up vs. New Orleans was no different. With the rest of Baltimore’s wide receiving core being average as a whole, Brown has stood out in a big way in 2018.
Offensive creativity:
Despite coming up short in crucial situations, you have to appreciate the Ravens play-calling vs. New Orleans. Eight different players for Baltimore had at least one rushing attempt, while the Ravens also got Lamar Jackson heavily involved on offense and saw the rookie score his first NFL touchdown. We mentioned John Brown above, but Michael Crabtree also came to play and made some awesome contested catches.
The offensive line was devestated with injuries, but they still did a solid job providing protection for Joe Flacco throughout the day. Speaking of Flacco, the man played well as a whole and led the Ravens on what should’ve been a game-tying drive. Overall, the offensive play-calling and production was on point.
The bad:
Jimmy Smith:
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Maybe it’s the Achilles injury that prematurely ended his 2017 season that’s holding him back, but Jimmy Smith has left a lot to be desired for the Ravens. On Sunday against the Saints, we highlighted Smith as the catalyst for slowing down the Saints offense by controlling the match-up vs. Michael Thomas. Fair to say he lost.
Even against receivers not named Michael Thomas, Smith has looked like a shell of his former self. The Ravens are hoping Marlon Humphrey can get back in a hurry, because Smith has not instilled any confidence as the team’s top cornerback after Sunday’s game.
Banged up offensive line:
While the offensive line did their absolute best against the Saints, it still sucks to see the unit continually get decimated by injuries. Sunday would see rookie Bradley Bozeman consistently get banged up and eventually left the game with a calf injury. The Ravens are now looking at one of the most depleted offensive line units in the league.
Baltimore is missing so many pieces along the line and this is a terrifying situation for the team moving forward. We’re hoping players like Alex Lewis can return to the field sooner rather than later…
The ugly:
Ravens 4th down defense:
The Saints came into this game with a fantastic fourth down offense and it was no different when they played in Charm City on Sunday. It didn’t matter how many times they stalled out on third down because they were so confident in their offense that they left them on the field for fourth downs and almost always converted their attempts. To say this broke the will of the defense would be an understatement.
The big story line from this game will be how the Ravens defense finally gave up a touchdown in the second-half of a game this season, but the real issue has to be closing out drives and coming up clutch. The Ravens had one turnover (which came on a fourth down) and a single sack after recording a franchise best 11 sacks last week. The defense needs to find a way to stay consistent week-to-week, on every down.
Willie Snead:
Everyone will be quick to blame Justin Tucker for the loss, but will be even faster to forget about Willie Snead’s putrid performance against his former NFL team. Snead recorded three receptions for just 23-yards, but it honestly felt like he dropped more passes than he caught. It was unbelievable.
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You’d think he’d go into the game with a chip on his shoulder. A team who declined your option as a Restricted Free Agent and let you leave. You’ve probably had this game circled on your calendar since the schedule was announced. Instead, you dropped it, both literally and figuratively. The loss resides in your terrible, brick hands, Willie Snead.