The Baltimore Ravens need to make sure they solidify the offensive line for Lamar Jackson‘s game to keep growing.
Let’s take a look at some quarterbacks that currently have and ones that had monster success in the NFL. Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers in 2020, and Patrick Mahomes (before the last Super Bowl). What did they all have in common?
Great offensive lines gave each of them plenty of time in the pocket to make throws downfield. Without those great lines, who knows how good those players would’ve been.
Lamar Jackson is a fantastic player and is still growing, but it would be great if he had more time in the pocket to go through his progressions. We see it often where the offensive line is being pushed back into him and he scrambles out and makes an off-balance throw.
With an emphasis on upgrading the line, Jackson would be able to make better decisions and find the open target. Even those deep shots to Marquise Brown would be on the money if he had more time to set his feet in the pocket.
Everyone keeps harping on upgrading the receiver position, but I’m thinking we fix the offensive line and then see how well Lamar Jackson and the receivers do.
Another thing to consider is all of the new offensive hires that the Ravens have made this offseason, especially Tee Martin who will be the wide receivers coach. It might be a good thing to bring in new blood instead of having the same coaches year-in and year-out.
Remember the year the Ravens won the Super Bowl with Joe Flacco? The offensive line play that playoff run was spectacular and Joe Flacco had one of the best playoff performances of all-time. If Lamar Jackson had that type of offensive line play, then the Ravens’ offense will be unstoppable. That would be a dream come true for all Ravens fans.
We all have seen how special Lamar is, but he is still learning the position and will be even better. His desire to win is and improve on his mistakes is one of his best qualities as a leader of the Baltimore Ravens.
It would be a shame if the Ravens’ front office didn’t do whatever it took to bring in important offense talent to surround Jackson. It would be like the Joe Flacco situation all over again. We never really got to see Flacco play to his full potential behind a solid offensive line during his 10-years as the Baltimore Ravens quarterback.
The Bottom Line:
I sure hope I’m not the only one that thinks the offensive line needs help even when Ronnie Stanley comes back in 2021. You improve the line, give Jackson more time in the pocket to go through his progressions, and the deep passing game will improve.
If that happens, then you can rest assured that the Ravens will finally get past the Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs and be the team to beat in the AFC for years to come.