The Ravens can enjoy a bye-week bailout
If the Ravens were destined to have this loss, it couldn’t have happened at a better time.
Losses like this week’s hurt, there is no avoiding it. Having glaring issues revealed and exploited is worrying, but regularly there is so little time to correct those mistakes before another game.
Harbaugh and the coaching staff have an extra week to digest everything the Ravens have put on film, particularly the issues they showed against Cincinnati, look for solutions, and coach those issues – they also have the chance to get a little healthier.
As history shows, this will be kind for the Ravens.
Under John Harbaugh, the team is 10-3 in the week following the bye and is 5-1 after the bye having lost the week before.
Overall, the Ravens have thrived after the bye under Harbaugh. The Ravens are 70-35 after the week off, a .667 win percentage, versus just 49-39 before (.556).
The extra time to evaluate what has been, and prepare for what is coming, has been taken advantage of by the Ravens. There is no reason to believe they can’t continue that trend.