Second-year receiver poised for a breakout campaign after a flash-filled rookie season
The Ravens’ 2020 draft class offered some genuine hope for the future. The up-and-down campaign of the first-round pick Patrick Queen was filled with enough splash plays to whet the appetite, Justin Madubuike looks to be a real find on the defensive line and J.K. Dobbins… well, that dude looks like he could leave embarrassed defenders reading the back of his jersey for years to come.
One rookie who sparked plenty of hope with limited opportunities was Devin Duvernay, a 5’11” inch, 205-pound receiver out of the University of Texas.
The pure speed he showed on his 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against the Chiefs on Monday Night Football dropped jaws across the country, and he added 22-yard and 42-yard runs against the Bengals that sent the RavensFlock into a collective hype parade.
His final receiving totals of 20 catches for 201 yards are modest, to be sure, but we all saw it, right?
Electricity. Pure electricity.
By the end of the season, Duvernay had a comfortable hold on both the kickoff and punt return jobs, which is a nice contribution from a rookie, but the hope is that there’s, even more, the team can tap into going forward. There will be opportunities for the second-year-player in 2021.
Willie Snead is probably a longshot to return, which opens possibilities in the slot for Duvernay. Also, we can probably assume — as dangerous as that can be — that Chris Moore and Dez Bryant have cashed their final checks from owner Steve Bisciotti. That’s three receivers going out the door, and a full, regular offseason of growth, to go with, what we hope, is an evolving offense around him.
One thing I hope to see from the Ravens offense this coming season is more of that hurry-up, quick-passing game we saw them break out in the second half of that game against the Colts. In that half, against a formidable defense, we saw quarterback Lamar Jackson turn to quick passes and completed all 10 of his attempts.
It was as efficient a performance I saw from the offense last season, and one I hope the Ravens’ brain trust looks at thoroughly as they begin their adjustments for the 2021 campaign.
This is where Duvernay can shine, as well. His ability to take a quick pass and turn upfield is unquestioned after seeing what he did on end-arounds and returns his rookie year. He does a nice job of running through arm tackles, and his ability to accelerate and explode is rare, even for the rarified athletes found in the NFL.
With Marquise Brown and Mark Andrews demanding attention from opposing defenses, and the Ravens’ dominant run game keeping defensive coordinators awake in a cold sweat at night, there should be opportunities for Duvernay to find cracks in zones while exploiting athletic mismatches against safeties and linebackers in man coverage.
It’s important to remember scheme and opportunities when forecasting production for players in the league, and it feels like this team, with the system around it, should allow Duvernay to be that underneath weapon the Ravens need, while obliterating Cover 0 defenses the Ravens sometimes see due to their intimidating rush offense.
It appears the future is bright for young Mr. Duvernay. That could translate very well for the Ravens’ fortunes in 2021 and beyond.