The Baltimore Ravens are coming off a mini-bye week between Week 9 and Week 10, and you can comfortably say they needed it. They were throttled by the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday night, suffering their fourth straight loss, and the playoffs are in doubt.
Something obviously must change. The starting units could use a shift or two. Mentally, the Ravens probably need a reset, too.
In his press conference on Monday, Jesse Minter talked a little bit about how the team has approached its extra time off.
“A couple days [off] really gives you a chance to look and really dig deep,” Minter said. “First and foremost, making sure the identity that we talk about we want isn’t just talk … I’m excited for us to re-establish our identity. Lineup changes, I think those are all individual bases, but there’s certain things that we have to have really high standards for.”
If there’s any hope of competing, those adjustments need to come fast and furious. If not, it could be the same old Ravens down the stretch.
Baltimore Ravens’ offense must come out of mini-bye week rejuvenated
Not all hope is lost in Charm City, but it’s dwindling. On the bright side, they’re just a game out of a Wild Card spot, have a solid veteran in Jacoby Brissett, and Lamar Jackson has said he plans to return in 2026. Unfortunately, even with Brissett, the offense has a rut to dig out of.
A lot of that is mental. When you’re on a four-game losing streak and missing your superstar quarterback, it’s easy to get in your own head.
This long week is an opportunity to wipe all of that clean. This team has too much talent to be performing the way they are.
The offensive line is undoubtedly the biggest issue. They need to come into Week 10 as a new unit. While the run-blocking is solid, the pass protection is cataclysmic. They’ve allowed 23 sacks (tied for 20th) and are posting a 47% pass-block win rate (21st).
Still, you can’t deny the Ravens have starting-caliber players there. Cam Jurgens, Vega Ioane, and Roger Rosengarten are building blocks, and Ronnie Stanley is still decent enough in the face of injuries. They’ve barely had time to play together, and more time to gel could fix some flaws.
John Simpson isn’t the answer at left guard, though. Could he be one of the lineup changes Jesse Minter contemplates? Simpson won’t be benched yet — he deserves more time to build chemistry with Jurgens. However, if he doesn’t show signs of turning a corner soon, it’d be hard to justify him taking up a starting spot.
Baltimore Ravens’ defense needs to find its identity again
On defense, they haven’t been as big a disaster as fans are making it seem. Just as the Brissett addition should boost the rushing attack by building a more respected passing attack, the defense should benefit from an offense more capable of moving the football.
Still, everyone on defense needs to step up. The Ravens are paying way too much money for a unit that’s probably average at best. And between the pass rush and secondary, they’re not getting enough.
Pressures are nice, but Trey Hendrickson, Mike Green, and Nnamdi Madubuike have to turn in more sacks. Specifically, Hendrickson and Madubuike are being paid way too much money to have 3 sacks combined.
The secondary is the more interesting talking point. Minter is a defensive backs guy, and his secondary has been a huge disappointment.
Marlon Humphrey has taken a lot of the heat, and rightfully so. After a strong start to 2026, he hasn’t maintained any sort of consistency. When an opposing offense is looking for a big play, they’ll usually dial one up Humphrey’s way, and it feels like they succeed more often than not.
On Monday, Minter spoke about Humphrey’s troubles.
“Marlon would be the first to tell you that the consistency hasn’t been what any of us want. I do think there’s been some good…Explosive plays are more often than not more than one person,” Minter said. “There’s a level of respect you have for a player that’s done it for a long time. But at the same time, we gotta look at where we’re at right now; we gotta look at what’s happened this season.”
Could Humphrey be a player whose playing time decreases? Or at the very least, could he be moved away from outside corner duties? It’s certainly something worth thinking about with the way his season is going.
Ultimately, these are probably deeper conversations to have during the bye week in Week 13. However, with how desperate Baltimore’s season has become, changes must come sooner rather than later.
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