Baltimore Ravens draft Devin Duvernay: 3 big things

2. The plan the Ravens have at wide receiver:

What do Lamar Jackson, Marquise Brown, Devin Duvernay, and J.K. Dobbins all have in common? They all have good speed. It will be important for Boykin to take the next step because he’s really the only receiver the Ravens have with size. Baltimore has built a track team around Jackson. It’s going to put defenses into a bad spot. If you play man to man coverage against the Ravens it presents two problems. First, you turn your back to the fastest quarterback alive. Secondly, you have to keep up with speedy receivers with a quarterback that can keep a play alive if he’s got nothing.

The Ravens will see a lot more zone coverage. That should help Jackson be able to find windows in the passing game. Finding the open window in a zone happens to be a strength of Duvernay’s. This may or may not be the type of combination the Ravens wanted. They certainly will have one of the smallest receiving corps in football. They will also have an abundance of quickness, speed and sure hands. Brown and Duvernay both play bigger than their size and can go up and make tough catches. James Proche fits into a very similar mold as Duvernay with less speed.

Duvernay gives the Ravens another weapon that can stretch the field, so it’s not just Brown that teams need to worry about. The biggest threat the Ravens pass catchers will offer a defense (especially when you put Mark Ingram and Dobbins into the mix) is yards after the catch. That’s why it is so crucial that Jackson hits his weapons in stride. These play-makers will use the open field to rack up big numbers in this offense. The Ravens have weapons that can take a slant route or a shallow crossing route and get huge gains out of them. The plan the Ravens have is one that really works well with Jackson. If the defense is chasing receivers down the field, and they have to worry about Jackson, the entire width and length of the field is of their concern on every single play.