The Ravens finally earned their second win of the year, and it will hopefully serve as a spark to get things back on track. It was a thrilling victory over the Chicago Bears, but not without its share of mistakes. Let talk about it.
The Good
Tyler Huntley: What a performance. Huntley came in and did everything in his power to keep the Ravens’ season on track this year. He went 17/22 (77%) for 186 yards, a touchdown, and most importantly, no turnovers, though he got away with a few mistakes. He also ran for 53
yards on eight attempts, extending drives and getting into Bears territory multiple times. He kept the Ravens in the game, all game, and rightfully earned the permanent backup job over Cooper Rush.
Derrick Henry: Once again, the Ravens made an overt effort to get Henry going. He ran the ball 21 times on Sunday, totaling only 71 yards but punching in two touchdowns. His per-carry average yards per was a little lower than expected for someone of Henry’s caliber, but he also had multiple bursts going for eight to ten yards. Hopefully, we’ll see the explosive runs return when Lamar Jackson gets back.
Zay Flowers: Though the Ravens leaned on the run game with Huntley under center, they were not afraid to attack a Bears secondary missing their top three cornerbacks. Flowers was the tip of the spear, catching all six of his targets for 57 yards in the first half. As the game went on, he drew more attention from the defense which opened up space for his teammates elsewhere on the field. Flowers added two more touches for 14 yards to finish with 71 yards on the day.
Keaton Mitchell: After the game, head coach John Harbaugh said there was an emphasis during the bye week on getting Mitchell involved in the offense. It showed today. He had carries for 43 yards, including a big 25-yard run, as well as two good kick returns. Why did it take so long to get someone as explosive as Mitchell on the field? I don’t know, but I hope it continues.
DeAndre Hopkins: Another game, another impact play from Nuk. He still isn’t playing a ton of snaps, but when he is targeted, it matters. Take today, as an example. The Ravens had the ball with less than four minutes to go and were trying to put the game away. They got into a 3rd-and-long situation, and Huntley went right to Hopkins in a 1-on-1 matchup on the outside. The veteran wideout used his physicality to get separation and make the catch to extend the drive.
Nate Wiggins: Wiggins followed Davante Adams in Week 6 with mixed results. This week, he seemed to line up with Rome Odunze on a consistent basis. The Bears picked on Wiggins early on, but the second-year cornerback kept his head in the game, making multiple tackles around the line of scrimmage and delivered arguably the biggest play of the game in the fourth quarter. Wiggins used his closing speed to undercut a throw to Odunze to put the Ravens offense on the field inside the Bears’ 10-yard line. Baltimore converted the turnover into a touchdown to extend their lead and put them in control of the game.
Roquan Smith: Smith’s return from a hamstring injury was a return to form for the captain of the Ravens’ defense. He lead the team with 12 tackles, often shutting plays down quickly to limit yards after contact/the catch. Smith didn’t make any splash plays; it was more of a lunch pail day for him, the kind of performance that is expected from him week in and week out. He’ll need to maintain that floor moving forward, and elevating to his former All-Pro level would do even more for his unit.
Mike Green: It took a while, but Green has arrived. The rookie edge rusher got his first career sack, and it was a big one. The Bears had a 3rd-and-5 in the red zone, and Green surged into the backfield to cut down Caleb Williams and force a field goal try. Outside of the actual counting stat, Green finally looked the part on the field. He used a clean cross chop to win on the sack, along with winning other ways, including a bull rush, and doing a good job on his contain assignments. Look out for the rookie report for a more in-depth breakdown, but hopefully this is the start of a post-bye-week breakout from Green.
Pressure Schemes: Outside of Green’s quick win, the best of the pass rush came on blitzes. The Ravens only had the one sack today, but forced multiple incompletions and intentional grounding penalties (which should be counted as sacks for the player who causes it). The blitzes seemed to work, and multiple guys got free rushing lanes up the middle. Zach Orr will need to keep this up until and unless the Ravens figure out a reliable four-man rush.
Special Teams: Outside of allowing a long kick return, the special teams units had a great day. Jordan Stout and Tylan Wallace downed a punt at the four, leading to the Wiggins interception. Tyler Loop hit all six of his kicks today and was mistake-free on his kickoffs. Keaton Mitchell and Rasheen Ali each had long kick returns. On a day when they were needed to be impactful with Jackson sidelined, they answered the bell.
Coaching Staff: A lot has been said about the Ravens’ coaches this season, most of it warranted. The bye week only allowed for more chatter. Head coach John Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Zach Orr have both been consistently called out by fans wanting them fired. Multiple articles published articles with anonymous sources criticizing Todd Monken. The weekend brought drama involving Lamar Jackson’s practice status. But the staff came up with a great gameplan and pulled out a win to keep their season alive.
Orr’s defense played some of its best football all season, Monken’s offense dropped 30 points with a backup quarterback, and Harbaugh kept the team together for the win. I even liked Harbaugh’s challenge on the Marlon Humphrey should-have-been turnover. Now, they’ve got to keep it locked in for a game in five days in Miami.
The Bad
Four-man rush: With all the effort put into the blitzes and pressure schemes, it was obvious the Ravens still could not get to opposing quarterbacks with a four-man rush. Right now, more than anything, it feels like the Ravens just simply don’t have the horses with Nnamdi Madubuike out for the year. Mike Green looked improved today and grabbed a sack on a clean pass rush move. Carl Lawson was recently added and could add a boost, too. But for real improvement, the Ravens are going to have consider a move at the trade deadline.
The Ugly
Red zone play calling: One of this team’s biggest issue is converting in the red zone, especially in goal-to-go situations. The Ravens did convert all three of their goal-line opportunities on Sunday, but they stalled out in the red zone twice in the third quarter. That kept their lead to 10 points, which was quickly shortened to three by a Bears touchdown on their next drive. Suddenly, the game was very close, and fans are all-too-familiar with fourth-quarter collapses. The Ravens would score two more touchdowns to seal the victory, but reaching the end zone those third-quarter drives would have given the defense a much more comfortable cushion.
Hopefully, Jackson’s return on Thursday, as well as another game with Ricard, will fix those issues. Last year, the Ravens led the NFL by scoring touchdown on 74% of their red zone opportunities. They need to get back to that if they want to start a magical run following this win.
