The Baltimore Ravens improved to 3-1 in Week 4, with their rookies involved in back-to-back wins after defeating the Tennessee Titans, 24-18. It wasn’t a pretty victory, but the NFL is filled with learning how to win ugly and the rookies did just that.
OG Vega Ioane
Ioane continues to show why he was the best pick for the Ravens at 14th overall in the draft. After a couple of really good games as the right guard, Ioane stepped up and made his first career start at center for the Ravens. The Ravens are now missing
all three of the guys they brought in to compete for the center job. So, the rookie drafted to be a perennial Pro Bowl guard slid over to play center for the first time since 2024, across from All-Pro Jeffery Simmons. All Ioane did in the start was give up zero pressures and be one of the highest-rated players on the Ravens offense, according to PFF. No big deal.
OLB Zion Young
After a great game against the Cowboys and with Trey Hendrickson out, many were hoping for a big game from the second-round pick. While it wasn’t a bad day for Young, he didn’t flash at all in the pass game against Tennessee after making an impact versus the Cowboys. He ended the game with zero pressures and a 0% win rate on his pass rushes. He did play well against the run, grading out at 62.9 according to PFF, and used his power on the inside multiple times to knock back linemen. Young will have a big opportunity next week against Atlanta, where the Ravens will surely try to utilize his skill set to help neutralize Bijan Robinson.
WR Elijah Sarratt
Sarratt saw the first snaps of his NFL career and grabbed his first catch while he was at it. It was also a day filled with mistakes for Sarratt. He had multiple penalties and, at one point, ran the wrong route, which put him in the way of a ball meant for Zay Flowers that Sarratt reached out for but couldn’t catch. There’s a very good chance that a lot of the mistakes were rookie jitters after waiting four weeks to finally get snaps. However, with Lamar Jackson looking like he’s going to miss some time, plus Ja’Kobi Lane’s likely lining up when Jackson will get back, it’s hard to see Sarratt getting another extended chance anytime soon as the offensive game plans will get more condensed with Tyler Huntley in.
TE Matt Hibner
Hibner caught another two passes on two targets yesterday for 34 yards and is becoming trusted more as time goes on. His role will likely expand as veteran tight end Durham Smythe’s season ended early with a torn Achilles. Hibner is going to be asked to replace a lot of what Smythe did as a run blocker. We will have to see how quickly the Ravens can develop their rookie tight ends, but Hibner has already been doing well in the run game. Now, we will see what he can do with even more snaps. The Ravens are going to need him to do a bit of everything as the main partner to Mark Andrews.
TE Josh Cuevas
Cuevas didn’t get much action in this one till Smythe went down, but his role against the Titans was exclusive to run blocking. That’s going to have to change with Smythe’s injury. The Ravens are going to need their rookie tight ends to grow up quick, but Cuevas has a skill set to be utilized. He’s an excellent chip blocker, excelling at squaring his target and releasing quickly to become a quarterback-friendly target fast. He can block well when he stays in as a pass blocker, being capable of setting an anchor, but he struggled more as a run blocker to dig out and push defenders. He’s also underrated as a vertical threat when I watched his Alabama tape. He runs excellent vertical routes and gets to top speed quickly, especially when designed targets go his way. The Ravens are going to have to find his role fast with Smythe down for the season.
CB Chandler Rivers
Rivers’ snap count remained around same as previous weeks. That didn’t change despite Marlon Humphrey’s disappearance due to injury. Nearly all of his snaps came against the pass, where PFF wasn’t kind to him (55.3 grade). PFF coverage games don’t add up to much because they don’t know the play calls and chart reception responsibilities to simply whichever defender was the closest, whether it was their guy to cover or not. By my eye test, River’s hasn’t been a liability or picked on despite being a fifth-round rookie surrounded by starting talent veteran corners. Expect his role to grow as Minter continues to install his defense.
P Ryan Eckley
Eckley had six punts against the Titans, averaging 47.3 yards on them and pinning four of them inside the 20. Eckley’s stats haven’t been out of the world, but the biggest thing is the rookie punter seems to be both consistent and avoiding mistakes that put his defense in bad situations, which is all you can ask. His holding for kicker Tyler Loop also seems to have been consistent, though his hold on the Loop’s miss in the game may have contributed to the wide left miss.
Wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane and running back Adam Randall remain on injured reserve, with defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny on the practice squad. Randall is capable of returning from IR starting this week.
