Why the Baltimore Ravens are better off without preseason football

The Baltimore Ravens absolutely need training camp to get ready for the season yet the preseason could be proven completely unnecessary:

The Baltimore Ravens in no way shape or form need the preseason. One argument for why the Ravens need the preseason is that the rookies need it to get used to the speed of the game. We need to stop with this one.

If the NFL even manages to get a preseason game (which looks extremely doubtful) it will not be an accurate depiction of the regular season opener. It will be treated like the fourth preseason game, where only rookies and roster bubble players play. It’s the most boring form of NFL there is and it’s not making Devin Duvernay or Justin Madubuike more ready for the start of their NFL career.

The Ravens won’t have preseason games. There’s just not a reasonable reason for the exhibition contests in the face of COVID-19. At best it would be a nothing-burger game to recoup some revenue; at worst it would be a mistake that increases risk of COVID-19 hampering the start of the season. What the Ravens will have is practices.

The Ravens will replace the preseason game with more eleven on eleven scrimmages that feature their offense against their defense. The Ravens, who figure to be one of the best teams in the league have plenty of talent to test the merits of their rookies with. While preseason games have often helped rookies and roster bubble players, coaches don’t need preseason games to know what a player offers them. Practice is a more controlled setting any way, which may help them make better roster decisions.

The Baltimore Ravens return the MVP of the NFL and the 2019 NFL Coach of the Year. If any team is going to get some benefit of the doubt (at least in the regular season) it’s Baltimore. Then you add on to it that the Ravens have Greg Roman returning as the offensive coordinator and Don Martindale returning as the defensive coordinator. The Ravens have some new faces but the ship didn’t change captains and the crew knows what the mission is.

The Bottom Line:

Last year the Ravens didn’t let Lamar Jackson get too involved in preseason play. His play didn’t seem to be hurt by that and the Ravens dropped 59 points on the Miami Dolphins. Jackson is a hard worker who puts in the work in the offseason. He transformed his whole game in one summer. Through social media we’ve seen some crazy awesome training from Marquise Brown. The Ravens have the kind of self-motivated players that will be ready. Plus, it’s not like there will be no training camp. It may be different but the NFL knows that camp is needed.

https://twitter.com/Primetime_jet/status/1280678690217775104

Last year the Ravens caught the NFL by surprise. Not having preseason games will make it easier for the Ravens to hide what adjustments they’ve made for the 2020 season. While the preseason may not hurt Baltimore, how much could it really help?

And if fans aren’t allowed in the stands, which is very possible, is the game worth it to the NFL? The preseason has some benefits, but those perks could be proven irrelevant by a year without exhibition games.