Welcome to Baltimore Beatdown’s Week 12 mailbag! Thank you so much for submitting your questions, and keep them coming in the comments of this post and any others. If you don’t see your question listed
below, fear not! We will likely use it in a future mailbag. Read on for our staff’s answers about the Ravens.
How we fix the O-line problem? Will Harbaugh change something someday? (Fernandovaldez20) What is Ben Cleveland doing in practice that is so bad that he can’t crack this starting lineup? (Jack AKA potato jones) Is it possible that Cleveland can look more lost than Faalele? (MadStorkSociety) Do you have any information on how Emery Jones has looked in practice? Is there something about his game that would make the Ravens justified in not substituting Faalele for him? (Thezone27)
I can’t say I’m surprised to get so many questions about the offensive line. It has been the Ravens’ biggest and most consistent weakness this season, especially the interior trio in pass protection. As you allude to in the questions, the most obvious fix is a personnel change, and the most obvious switch would be replacing Daniel Faalele with Ben Cleveland and Emery Jones.
Faalele’s biggest strength is dominating blocking encounters. The trouble, of course, is his frequent inability to locate and lock on to defenders. In my view, continuing with Faalele’s high-variance play runs counterintuitive to the rest of the offense. Talent at other positions, especially the two-time MVP under center, mean that consistently serviceable play at right guard will help the offensive operate smoother.
For my money, Cleveland has been that type of player whenever he has been asked to play. Those opportunities have often come off the bench, an especially tough situation for offensive lineman. He has also appeared to be a reliable player in executing his assignments and picking up different types of pressure packages. My favorite quality is that he loses slowly. But, in my opinion, he has not received a legitimate chance at a starting job in years. Given the current state of play at right guard – where Cleveland has played his best ball – he should get a shot.
Jones’ situation is a bit more complicated. The Ravens were hoping that he would recover from his shoulder surgery much sooner and push for a starting guard spot. Instead, he didn’t make his practice debut until Week 5 and needed physical ramp-up time, not to mention getting acclimated to a new offense. It’s possible that he progresses quickly enough to push for playing time, but ultimately, a change just feels unlikely. The Ravens have stuck with Faalele at this point, and they may be hoping he makes some late-season progress like he did in 2024. – Nikhil Mehta
Why is Aeneas Peebles so deep in the Harbaugh doghouse? (Phkiernan)
I’m a big believer that the Harbaugh doghouse still exists. But I’m actually going to say that Fub isn’t in it. While a lot of what Harbaugh says I take with a grain of salt, his explanation for Peebles makes sense to me. Right now, the Ravens pass rush is mostly scheme created. It’s lining up guys like Kyle Hamilton, Dre’Mont Jones, Trenton Simpson in weird spots and sending other defensive backs to get the quarterback. To make that work, the Ravens have to set up third and long. In order to do that, you need to stuff the run. Keeping a large rotation of run-stuffing linemen fresh and healthy is paramount to this defense’s success. In 2024, they were a great running stuffing unit naturally so they didn’t need a lot of extra help. That’s not the case in 2025. There has to be concerted effort towards stopping the run. That leaves Peebles, who frankly isn’t a good run defender, on the outside. – Zach Canter
Outside of an OL change to strengthen the inside running game, how can the Ravens improve their red zone offense? (Spruce35)
The one thing the Ravens haven’t done in the red zone a ton seems to be spreading it out. They really like to get Henry going up the middle or those sprint out plays. The sprint out play in particular have irked Ravens fans but I do remember they used to work a lot. Right now, I don’t think they are working well cause teams aren’t keying in on Jackson’s legs and are staying home. The Ravens seem intentional about not using Jackson’s legs in the red zone so the next best option in my opinion is to spread out offensively. Force teams into lighter boxes with red zone targets like Andrews, Bateman, Likely and Hopkins outside while keeping Henry as an option.
Lamar Jackson is one of the best red zone quarterbacks I’ve ever seen. Remember he had that incredible streak to start his career without an interception in the red zone. So spreading it out and letting him decide what to do would be where my head goes. – Zach Canter
Is John Harbaugh’s job safe if the Ravens win the AFC North/make the playoffs? (RavensDylan)
I think so. At this point I think the only way Harbaugh departs is on his own terms or due to a complete disaster (like missing the playoffs). I believe that as long as we keep making the playoffs he’s not going anywhere. – Mark Myers
