Ravens lose to Titans: 3 personnel problems sticking out
3. Inside linebacker is a very inconsistent position group:
From a production standpoint, the Ravens got enough from the inside linebackers. They got 18 total tackles from the position group against the Titans and the blitz of Queen we just talked about got them an interception. Let’s be real though, Patrick Queen has been inconsistent. The game against the Patriots was bad. He kind of gets a pass for having a rookie game as a rookie. This game was a mixed bag. Queen started out at a great pace but the last four games haven’t been like the first four games.
The defensive line had multiple occasions where they had Henry bottled up and the linebackers didn’t finish. Even when there was gap sound defense from the three-man front, and the outside linebackers set the edge, running backs were able to pick up a full head of steam in the past two games.
Derrick Henry had the game-winning run and 133 yards. That’s too much. Again, it’s not just about the absence of Campbell and Williams. You knew there would be some drop-off, but the linebacker play has to be better. It’s not just about how powerful of a runner Henry is when there is nobody in a position to stop him. That was a problem too often in this game. The middle of the defense got hit too badly.
Next. Ravens lost to Titans because of heart and discipline. dark
The Ravens have to be better than they were in general. The fact of the matter is that there are more than just three problems sticking out from a personnel standpoint. The three biggest aren’t hard to find though. The Ravens need better talent on offense (a basically unfixable problem at this point of the season). Baltimore needs more pass rush without the blitz, and they need their inside linebackers to plug gaps a better in run defense.