Ravens lose to Browns: Takeaways from a bad game

Ravens vs. Browns wasn’t very fun for Baltimore:

The week 4 game against Cleveland was one of the sloppiest Ravens games I’ve ever watched. From the get-go there seemed to be no fluidity on the defensive side of the football for the Ravens. Given, there has been a surplus of injuries so far this season; however Baltimore has always been known for their “next man up” mentality.

So far this year, it seems as if some defensive players don’t even want to be on the field. Ravens fans have been notoriously spoiled by their hard-nosed run stopping defenses. Week 4, Baltimore allowed Browns’ running back Nick Chubb 165 yards on the ground along with three rushing touchdowns. Chubb has undeniable talent, but running backs shouldn’t have games like this in Baltimore.

This was an offensive performance from the Browns that simply felt like a punch to the gut of the Ravens’ defense. The injuries to Jimmy Smith and Tavon Young have been haunting Baltimore more and more each week now. It seemed as if Marlon Humphrey was the only defensive player who left his heart on the field this week. He locked up Odell Beckham Jr. with only two receptions for twenty yards.

Also a good performance today from CB Maurice Canaday, who was recently called back up from the practice squad. He had what was in that moment a big interception  along with another pass breakup for what would have been a touchdown.

Overall, there were way too many careless errors on both sides of the football during this divisional showdown. Chris Moore was out of bounds on what could have been a huge momentum gaining play for the offense and the Ravens’ offensive line allowed Browns’ players to have their way with Lamar. Offensive stalls and turnovers along with continued defensive errors was the recipe for this weeks disaster.

Jarvis Landry and Ricky Seals-Jones simply tore the Baltimore defense apart, taking advantage of this weakened secondary with tons of yardage and a TD for Seals-Jones. But what could be the biggest concern was the performance by the run defense without Brandon Williams. Sadly, the offensive line also needs to improve after this season if Baltimore plans on extending Lamar Jackson‘s career.

Baltimore needs significant defensive improvement if they wants to reclaim their title of “Kings of the North.” This game left fans very frightened for the future of the season. Baltimore seems to be lacking some heart on defense; which has always been something to bank on. All that can be done from here on out is to search for the swagger that the Ravens’ defense has been missing without Terrell Suggs. Next week’s match up against a Big Ben-less Steelers will be a huge test of heart.