We are halfway through the Baltimore Ravens season, and the team is sitting at 7-2. They are in a great spot to make a run to the playoffs. There have been plenty of surprises and disappointments in the first half of the season. So, in a great way to look back, we can hand out some awards at the midseason point.
Baltimore Ravens team MVP: Lamar Jackson
This one is pretty obvious at this point. When Lamar Jackson starts for the Baltimore Ravens in the regular season, they are 52-18. The defense is great, and they help him immensely, but this team goes as he goes, and he brings them the ceiling that has Super Bowl hopes.
One of the big differences for Jackson this season is his completion percentage, jumping to 71.5% so far this year. That is up from his career rate of 64.4% and well above 66.1%, which is his career high. One of the bigger differences is that he is throwing a lot more screen passes.
He is throwing a screen 14% this year, which is up from 7% last year and 4% the year before that. His intended air yards are at 7.8 this season, which is below his career-low coming into the year of 8.3. Todd Monken is giving him more layups, and it is giving him more confidence to be a better passer to all areas.
Also, he is running a bit less but working to success a bit more. His five rushing touchdowns is on pace to smash his career-high of seven. This Jackson is slightly more efficient than previous versions and may give them a higher ceiling.
Some candidates for the award would include Roquan Smith and Geno Stone, but the winner is Lamar Jackson.
Baltimore Ravens Offensive Player of the Year: Tyler Linderbaum
This one may surprise some. However, with Lamar Jackson winning the MVP, you cannot put him here. None of the wide receivers have done enough, and Gus Edwards has not been consistent enough. On the offensive line, almost everyone would agree that Tyler Linderbaum has been the best and most consistent player. So, it came down to Linderbaum and Mark Andrews. Andrews is having a great season and could easily be the answer. However, while we are getting a typical or slightly better Andrews season, we are seeing Linderbaum go from a good rookie to one of the better centers in the NFL, so he gets the slight nod. Plus, Andrews missed one game, and the Ravens won; Linderbaum missed two games, and the Ravens went 1-1. They clearly missed him in the loss.
According to PFF, he has had one of the best pass protection performances of the season based on expectations.
Interior OL: pic.twitter.com/k63UmxniC9
— Timo Riske (@PFF_Moo) November 1, 2023
That is impressive because last season, Linderbaum was much better in the run game than he was in pass protection. He has improved his weakness to being a strength, and his run blocking has not gotten any worse, either.
The Ravens offense has been the clunkier unit at times, and it is the reason they lost two games more than the defense. However, as Linderbaum has improved, you have started to see the scoring increase in recent weeks. He is that valuable to this operation.
Baltimore Ravens Defensive Player of the Year: Geno Stone
This feels so disrespectful to Roquan Smith. Smith not only should be right with Lamar Jackson for the MVP of the entire team, but he is right here with Geno Stone as the best player on the defense. Roquan Smith is a team player, and he has to understand that, like Linderbaum, this award is about shining some praise on a player who does not always get it.
However, like Linderbaum, he deserves it in every way. What can you say about the way that Geno Stone has played this year? He leads the entire NFL interceptions, and he started the year as a backup. The Ravens even benched him after he filled in for Marcus Williams, and Williams returned. An injury to Williams pushed Stone right back into the lineup, and now he is playing so well that you cannot bench him.
What is great about Stone is that he has filled in at free safety but could play the strong safety role if needed. His addition has allowed Kyle Hamilton to move around a lot more, and in the coming weeks, that will be the case as well.
You could argue that the Baltimore Ravens have two of the top five candidates for Defensive Player of the Year in the entire NFL. Between Roquan Smith and Geno Stone, you cannot go wrong, but leading the NFL interceptions is just enough to get the nod.
Baltimore Ravens Rookie of the Year: Zay Flowers
This one is pretty obvious. First, who else would win this award? Trenton Simpson is active solely because of special teams. Tavius Robinson has played 214 snaps, but last week, he played just nine. The addition of Kyle Van Noy and the return of Odafe Oweh have pushed him aside, and when he was on the field, fans were screaming for an upgrade.
Kyu Blue Kelly is no longer on the roster, and Sala Amuave-Laulu has not been active this season. The obvious answer is Flowers. This is not to say that Flowers has had a bad season, either.
Flowers is second among NFL rookies in targets and catches. However, he is fourth in yards and ninth out of 14 qualified rookies in yards per route run. That is because his average depth of target is 11th, and 30% of his targets are screens. No player, rookie, or veteran has more targets on screen passes than Zay Flowers.
Flowers has been great, but now they need to see him take another step and show what he can do as a route runner down the field.
Baltimore Ravens Comeback Player of the Year: Michael Pierce
This one should be obvious in most cases. Yes, Lamar Jackson was hurt last year, but he was also great. Ronnie Stanley being healthy is amazing, but he is not quite the same player that he once was. The biggest comeback story of the year has been Michael Pierce and what a comeback he has had.
He was playing some of his best football around 2018 and 2019. However, in 2020, after he signed with the Minnesota Vikings, he sat out the year due to the pandemic. He came back in 2021 but was not quite the same. He played just half of the year and then was placed on the IR with an elbow injury.
Pierce hoped to return to his form in 2022, but after just three games, it was a biceps injury that ended his year. So, we had not seen the prime Pierce since 2019, and 2022 was his most devastating injury. At age 31, that may have been a wrap. Instead, we are seeing him at his best.
Pierce has always been talented as a run-stopper, but what has impressed me is his improvement as a pass rusher. Coming back from multiple season-ending surgeries at his age and position should be commended.
Baltimore Ravens Most Improved Player: Brandon Stephens
Last year, Brandon Stephens had a 92.3 passer rating allowed. It was his first year starting as an outside cornerback, but he did not play well, and the team tried to move him back to safety. The only reason Brandon Stephens did not move to safety this summer was because the Ravens had so many injuries at cornerback, and they were healthier at safety.
The Ravens had to platoon Ronald Darby and Rock Ya-Sin, and they had Marlon Humphrey on the sideline. This opened snaps for Brandon Stephens to play the entire game. This year, Stephens has been excellent.
His passer rating allowed is down from 92.3 to 68.1. With the return of Marlon Humphrey, you would think that teams would test Stephens even more. Stephens has been one of the highest-targeted cornerbacks in the NFL, but he has held down strong. Going from being questioned if he even has a career at that position to being a solid starter is one heck of an upgrade.
Baltimore Ravens Best Off-Season Addition: Jadeveon Clowney
The Baltimore Ravens have to be loving the move that they made to sign Jadeveon Clowney late into free agency. They only signed him because Tyus Bowser was on the PUP longer than expected, and David Ojabo suffered an injury in training camp. The move has been stellar.
Clowney has 3.5 sacks this year, but his pass rush win rate is as good as it was back in his prime days. More than that, he is on pace for a career-high in quarterback hits, and his run defense has been impactful for one of the best rushing units in the NFL.
The Ravens had injuries to David Ojabo and Odafe Oweh in the season, so they had to rely on guys such as Jeremiah Moon, Tavius Robinson, and Malik Harrison to play on the edge across from Clowney. As the leader of the pack, he held down this unit for about a month. They finally signed Kyle Van Noy, and now, with Oweh back, he is getting better with the help around him. Sunday was one of his best games.
The Ravens added Nelson Agholor, who has been solid, and we already covered the best draft pick. You could argue that Geno Stone was an off-season, but he was with the team last year. The biggest addition to this roster that they did not have last year was obviously Jadeveon Clowney.
Baltimore Ravens Coach of the Year: Mike MacDonald
This one is pretty obvious as well. Todd Monken gets a lot of talk about the scheme changes he brought and how the offense is different than what Greg Roman brought to the table, but his offense has been clunky at times. The offensive line coach, Joe D'Alessandris, has done a good job, and you could argue the secondary, Chris Hewitt, can get some love. However, Mike MacDonald is on one.
MacDonald has seen his defense take off after he added Roquan Smith. He has that piece in the middle and can move things around based on that. What is impressive is how he gets pressure without blitzing. He throws in stunts and will drop linemen and show simulated pressures to mix up who comes and goes. It allows the Ravens to mix things up but also drop more men into coverage than a typical, blitz-heavy unit.
It is hard to find many units that are better coordinators than the Ravens' defense this entire season. Now, the only question is how long does MacDonald stick around before the head coach calls start to roll in. He is the obvious coach of the year on the Baltimore Ravens.