The Baltimore Ravens have a leadership problem. That’s expected with a new head coach — Jesse Minter and his coaching staff were bound to hit some early-season speed bumps. However, the on-field leadership is the bigger problem.
That became blatantly obvious after giving up 35 unanswered points in their Week 7 loss. In his Monday press conference, Minter revealed some guys in the locker room need to step up as leaders.
“We have guys that care and want to do it right, but there are also moments in the game where it’s like, ‘Who’s the guy that’s going to grab everybody and get them together on the sideline?’” Minter said. “As a team, we’re working through who that is. Who is that person? Who are those players? … I think there are moments where we need a little bit more.”
That poses an overwhelming question: Who will step up?
On offense, it’s obvious; it’s always been Lamar Jackson. He's done an excellent job of staying involved even while injured, but he can't be everywhere at once. The defense needs leaders of its own.
Baltimore Ravens’ defense needs a leader to take them to new heights
Having talent is one thing. And this Ravens defense has it. Trey Hendrickson, Nnamdi Madubuike, Kyle Hamilton, Nate Wiggins, Roquan Smith, Travis Jones; several of these guys would start on most NFL teams.
But when you don’t have a go-to voice to turn to when the sky starts falling, as it does in Baltimore, everything can turn into a disaster. Fans have seen too many blown leads, and this apparent lack of leadership and energy in the dull moments feels like the root cause.
When this team starts blowing a lead, they can look unmotivated. All it takes is one touchdown to flip a switch — the body language on the sideline changes for the worse. They look scared, quiet, and listless.
Momentum can completely swing a matchup, and when adversity hits, someone has to send a lasting message before things spiral out of control.
All the best defenses have those players.
Think of the Ravens' defenses of the past. Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Haloti Ngata, and even the units way back had Rod Woodson, Tony Siragusa, and Peter Boulware. It felt like there were leaders at every position, which translated into defensive dominance and some of the NFL’s greatest defenses ever.
For the 2026 team, those players should be guys like Trey Hendrickson, Kyle Hamilton, and Roquan Smith. Baltimore elected them to the 10-man leadership team for a reason. Live up to it.
It sounds like Hendrickson has what it takes, too. In a postgame interview, he was pretty transparent about the Ravens’ problems finishing games.
“The game isn’t over until it’s over. And we have a standard of our play, so continuing to go out there and finishing the game was most important,” Hendrickson said. “I can't speak for everybody else, but there is a standard to the way we should prepare, and nobody should be having these side conversations on the sideline, if there is any.”
100% locked in, 100% of the time. That’s the player Hendrickson is, and he made that crystal clear. As one of the team’s leaders, he needs to set the tone on the field and on the sideline.
Then there’s Hamilton and Smith; two guys who are the nuclei of the defense and are making a combined $93 million in guaranteed money on their current contracts. You can make all the plays you want, but if you aren’t commanding the room on and off the field, you’re not living up to the standard in Charm City.
They both wear the captain patch, as well. Wear it with pride.
You could also lump Calais Campbell in there. He’s another captain, and no one questions his leadership with his 19 years of experience. However, not being a starter and playing a bit less than others can make it harder to have that effect on his teammates, especially in the middle of big drives.
While the old Baltimore defenses played a loud and proud brand of football for four quarters, the last few years haven’t seen that on a consistent basis. It starts with finding the leader of the pack.
Who’s going to be the Ray Lewis or Ed Reed?
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