Will Baltimore Ravens continue to play Marlon Humphrey in the slot?

One of the biggest highlights of the Baltimore Ravens' win over San Francisco was cornerback Marlon Humphrey logging 23 defensive snaps in the slot. It had been discussed that the slot is where Humphrey is at his best because of how physical he can be in the run game and how he can match up with bigger slot receivers and tight ends. The Ravens had hardly done it before this week, as he had just two snaps coming into the game.

The Baltimore Ravens moved Marlon Humphrey into the slot more

Part of the reason comes down to injuries. Not only did Arthur Maulet miss the game, and Pepe Williams has not been activated yet, but Kyle Hamilton also missed 22 snaps in the game. The Ravens had to move Humphrey into the slot for the majority of those plays. However, there were a handful of snaps where they made this move before Hamilton went down.

The Ravens played Humphrey in the slot with Ronald Darby and Brandon Stephens on the outside. Then, they shifted Kyle Hamilton back to strong safety to play with Marcus Williams. This puts Geno Stone in a lighter role, which may be better because his play has decreased since Williams returned from injury. 

At times, this bit them. George Kittle had a huge gain on third down with Humphrey in the slot. However, Humphrey was able to blitz, and his interception came from an alignment in the slot. 

He also made big plays in the run game, which was huge against San Francisco. Miami brings a similar run scheme that could use his presence in the slot. 

Hamilton will be back this week, so we will see if the Ravens continue to play Humphrey in the slot or if that was just a minor wrinkle that got a little more major this week.

The question will ultimately come down to whether they would rather have Geno Stone or Ronald Darby on the field and then Humphrey outside with Hamilton in the slot or Hamilton at strong safety with Humphrey in the slot. The ability to do all of these combinations is helpful.