Ebony Bird
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Ravens: 5 things we have learned 5 things we haven’t learned

By Chris Schisler

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - NOVEMBER 01: Quarterback Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium on November 01, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - NOVEMBER 01: Quarterback Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens celebrates a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium on November 01, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Aug 19, 2020; Owings Mills, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Don Martindale watches defensive player drills during the morning session of training camp at Under Armour Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

What about the coordinators?

Learned: Don Martindale is as good as we thought he was

Let’s give Don Martindale some credit for being a great defensive coordinator. The Ravens have had defensive missteps, but the overall result has been great. The defense kept the Ravens in it against the Indianapolis Colts, and they ended up winning the game. The defense did its fair share against the Pittsburgh Steelers and the offense let them down.

The defense dominated the Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals. Even in some of the defensive unit’s iffier winning games, they held their opponent down when it mattered most. For example, The Washington Football Team and the Houston Texans were able to pick up a decent amount of yards but the defense kept them under 20 points.

That’s more than good enough. The Chiefs were the only team to drop 30 points on the purple and black.

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The pass rushers at his disposal have still been an issue this year for Martindale. Even after the trade for Yannick Ngakoue, Baltimore had to deal with Calais Campbell‘s multi-week absence due to injury. The Ravens still have an impressive total of sacks and they are a top 10 defensive unit. Injuries in the backend haven’t slowed the Ravens down either.

Losing Tavon Young, Anthony Averett and Terrell Bonds wasn’t part of the plan. Cutting Earl Thomas in training camp wasn’t either. Martindale deals with what he has to work with no matter what. He almost always gets the job done with his unit.

Haven’t learned: Is Greg Roman the right offensive coordinator for the Lamar Jackson era?

While Martindale is justifying his candidacy for a head coaching position, Greg Roman has had a much more frustrating season. Roman has been under constant scrutiny all season long. The run game has been good but less stellar than it was a year ago. Lamar Jackson has been solid, in fact at times great, yet this offense isn’t taking anybody by surprise any longer.

You have to really question whether or not Roman is the guy moving forward. It may be a good thing for the offense if Roman gets a head coaching job. Remember when the Ravens lost Jim Caldwell to his head coaching gig with the Lions? It gave the Ravens Gary Kubiak, the only untouchably good offensive coordinator Baltimore has had.

Who knows what comes next? What does seem certain though is the Ravens need to change things up on offense. Roman has a chance to show that he’s the guy. We haven’t gotten to judgment day and we need more data to come to a decision. That seat though is quite warm.

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