The Baltimore Ravens’ passing attack lacked juice in Week 2. They could move the ball, but they couldn’t finish drives or find a consistent rhythm. Notably, it was an extremely quiet day for rookie tight ends Matthew Hibner and Josh Cuevas—they had a combined total of 0 receptions and 0 targets.
That can’t happen, especially with Zay Flowers and Ja’Kobi Lane out.
Baltimore got production from the tight end room in Mark Andrews, who posted 6 receptions for 49 yards. However, the depth has clearly taken a massive hit.
Going from Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar to Hibner and Cuevas is exposing a significant receiving issue at tight end. There’s no depth to trust right now. The rookies need to show more.
Baltimore Ravens need more from Matthew Hibner and Josh Cuevas
Getting a strong start from Mark Andrews is a great sign. Getting almost no production from backups Matthew Hibner and Josh Cuevas is concerning. Sure, they’re Day 3 rookies, but they’re stepping into voids left by reliable weapons Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar.
It’s a clear drop-off from what the Ravens are used to.
After a strong preseason from both Hibner and Cuevas, it seemed the two were on the rise and preparing to carve out worthwhile roles on offense. Unfortunately, Week 2 saw neither get in on the action.
Hibner saw 19 offensive snaps against the New Orleans Saints. In those reps, Hibner didn’t see a single target. Last week, he saw 23 offensive snaps and caught his first and only career reception thus far for 13 yards.
On the other hand, Cuevas’ duties have been limited. He was on the field on offense for just five plays this past week, and like Hibner, wasn’t targeted once. He wasn’t targeted on six snaps in Week 1 either.
Again, this shouldn’t be something to panic over. It’s expected for late-round rookies to have scarce opportunities early on. The issue is the players and production they’re replacing.
Specifically, it’s the loss of Likely that’s immensely frustrating. He’s already going crazy with the New York Giants.
In four years with the Ravens, Likely was that mismatch, contested-catch threat who Lamar Jackson could turn to fearlessly. If he threw the ball up there, there was a high chance Likely would catch it. He’s doing the same thing with the Giants—two games in, and he has 13 receptions for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Safe to say, Baltimore would like to have that back in their offense.
In the long run, Hibner and Cuevas very well could fill the responsibilities of Likely and Kolar. It’s just that at the moment, there’s not much to get excited about. And their slow starts have been a bit of a problem two weeks in.
The Ravens need something extra from their passing attack to keep defenses honest; hopefully that can come from Hibner and Cuevas.
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