The Baltimore Ravens are sitting at 8-3. Cleveland and Cincinnati do not have their starting quarterback, and Pittsburgh drafted a backup quarterback in the first round. So, all of a sudden, the division is wide open for the team.
What should we see moving forward to ensure that the Ravens can wrap up the division?
3. Should the Baltimore Ravens take Patrick Queen off of the field more?
The Baltimore Ravens need to get better play out of Patrick Queen. His first six games were great, and he looked better than we had ever seen. His last five games look like the same old player that makes Ravens fans nervous. In six games to start the year, he missed just three tackles, but that is up 10 in the last five games. Also, he went from 23 yards allowed per game to 52 yards yards per game in coverage.
The Ravens are starting to ask more from him, and it is not working. One way to help in coverage may be to take him off of the field in obvious passing situations. Queen has played 98% of the snaps this season, so a small drop may not hurt.
Kyle Hamilton is so valuable because he can play everywhere. The Ravens can have Hamilton back as his dime linebacker role, which he played as a rookie. Then Arthur Maulet can play in the slot.
With the addition of Daryl Worley, they could also bring in Worley for Queen. This would leave Hamilton in the slot. Worley and Maulet are not as big as Queen, but both are sturdy against the run for their positions. This could be the added wrinkle that is needed for a playoff run. It could even bring out the best in Patrick Queen. The team has a few games to experiment with it, starting with the Chargers, who pass heavy and have Austin Ekler, who could be better for Hamilton to defend than Queen.