It makes sense that the first day of school and the first game of the NFL season are so close together. When Thursday night’s kickoff in Kansas City arrives, a lot of you probably will have failed to complete your assigned summer reading on the Baltimore Ravens.
We get it. Undrafted-free-agent signings and veteran-minimum deals don’t stir the soul nearly as much as pick-sixes and thundering, tackle-breaking runs. Maybe you just brushed the dust off your Ed Reed jersey but don’t know that much about the present-day roster. Maybe you just need to get back up to speed — to rewire your brain for football season and rediscover your feverish fandom as a member of the flock.
The air is getting cooler and soon we’ll all be at (the renovated) M&T Bank Stadium, shouting our lungs out at referees for missing obvious holding calls. But before then, here’s what you need to know before kickoff so you have a grasp on what your fellow Ravens buffs are talking about next time they pepper you with questions.
OK, so the Ravens are playing in the first game of the season. Who are they playing?
They’re playing Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Andy Reid. The defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs are hosting them Thursday night on NBC.
Wait, wasn’t that the team that ended their season last year?
Yes, indeed. The Chiefs topped the Ravens, 17-10, in an error-filled AFC championship game in Baltimore that broke Baltimore’s heart. Among the bummers: Rookie receiver Zay Flowers fumbled while reaching for the end zone, a late Lamar Jackson interception, and eight penalties for 95 yards. Initially Mahomes and the Chiefs had the Ravens’ defense on its heels, but the unit solidified and held Kansas City scoreless in the second half — Baltimore simply failed to take advantage.
One key shortcoming identified by fans, media and coaches was that the Ravens’ run game dried up in the second half, even though it was Baltimore’s key offensive strength and Kansas City’s defensive weakness. The Ravens have had more than seven months to chew on what went wrong.
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But the Ravens still have Jackson at quarterback. That’s good, right?
It’s very good. Jackson won his second MVP award last season while throwing for a career-best 3,678 yards and accounting for 29 total touchdowns while Baltimore went 13-4 to clinch the AFC’s top seed. It was Jackson’s best season ever for downfield passing, while still leading the Ravens in rushing (821 yards). Jackson has also slimmed down this offseason to a listed 205 pounds, leading a handful of his teammates to speculate that he’ll be back to the lightning speed of his early career.
What about those shortcomings in the run game against Kansas City? Have they been addressed?
The Ravens signed former NFL Offensive Player of the Year Derrick Henry to bolster their run game, which is a bit like bolstering your squirt gun collection with a fire hose. Henry has 9,502 career yards and has rushed for at least 1,000 yards in five of his previous six seasons. The 6-foot-2, 247-pound back is known for his bruising physicality while still reaching elite speeds in the open field.
While he’s fairly old for a running back, Henry was still the second-leading rusher in the NFL last season, and he’s never played with a quarterback as good as Jackson who helps supercharge the run. The Ravens have had a top-five rushing offense in each of the past six seasons.
It sounds like the Ravens offense shouldn’t have any weaknesses, then …
Well, there’s a significant one: the offensive line. Baltimore is replacing three veteran starters along the front, and coach John Harbaugh has been reluctant to reveal his hand outside of Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum and left tackle Ronnie Stanley. General manager Eric DeCosta conceded that the franchise chose to make some difficult OL cuts to squeeze under the salary cap. The group hasn’t looked very steady in the preseason, and they’ll likely have to rely on one or two first-year players.
Also, while the Ravens have two very talented tight ends in Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely, the receiving depth is thin. Their best returning receiver is Flowers (858 yards), but Rashod Bateman and Nelson Agholor both had fewer than 400 yards last season.
The other side of the ball should pick up some slack, right?
Based on their talent, definitely. The Ravens return All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton and linebacker Roquan Smith as the centerpiece playmakers. Baltimore’s big offseason extension went to Nnamdi Madubuike, who is a force along the defensive line. Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Williams also are healthy to start the season in the secondary. Adding first-round pick Nate Wiggins at cornerback gives an added dose of speed that should make the Ravens just as talented (if not more talented) as they were last season, when they led the NFL in points allowed, turnovers and sacks.
Did the defense lose anyone significant?
The Ravens lost two key playmakers to free agency: Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Queen went to Pittsburgh, and sack artist Jadeveon Clowney is now in Carolina. Defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald was scooped up to be Seattle’s head coach, while assistant head coach Anthony Weaver and defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson moved on to new teams as well.
The Ravens put the headset on 32-year-old Zach Orr, a former Pro Bowl linebacker who has swiftly risen in the coaching ranks. Macdonald etched his reputation on well-disguised schemes and coverages. The energetic Orr will have to showcase his own chops.
OK, so facing the defending Super Bowl champions in Week 1 feels like a big test. Does it get easier after that?
Not much. The Ravens play Week 2 at home against the Las Vegas Raiders, but follow up with tough matchups against expected contenders: at Dallas, hosting Buffalo and heading to Cincinnati. Notably, they’ll face four potential MVP candidates — KC’s Mahomes, the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott, Bills’ Josh Allen and Bengals’ Joe Burrow — during the opening five-game stretch. The Ravens also have the latest bye week possible in December, followed by an immediate stretch of three games in 11 days (including on Christmas against the Houston Texans).
Sounds hard. Is there more pressure to get to the Super Bowl this year than others?
Undoubtedly. In becoming just the 10th man to win two MVP awards last season, Jackson is now the only one in that elite group without a Super Bowl ring. Harbaugh won the Super Bowl after the 2012 season, but has struggled to break through again despite earning the No. 1 seed twice in the last five years. He’s coached 22 playoff games, tied for second among active head coaches, with a 12-10 record.
It doesn’t help that their first opponent, Kansas City, invites natural comparisons between the two franchises, with an elite quarterback in Mahomes and coach in Reid, Harbaugh’s former mentor. The Chiefs are looking to add their fourth title in six years. Baltimore has yet to reach the Super Bowl in the same span. Jackson is on the record as saying he doesn’t care about winning MVP trophies, only Super Bowls. And given how close the Ravens have been, that’s the attitude you’d hope to see.
Well, there’s always next year, right? How long will Baltimore be able to compete for Super Bowls?
It’s unclear, but there is a clock. The Ravens have given out big extensions to stars in the last few years, most notably Jackson’s $260 million deal, which is already forcing the front office to make tough spending decisions. The Ravens’ upside relies a lot on Jackson himself, who will turn 28 this season. Baltimore is also typically very successful in the NFL draft, with picks like Hamilton, Linderbaum and Madubuike paying off huge last season. But as star salaries take up larger chunks of the salary cap, the Ravens will be more limited in their options to add free agents (Henry was their big offseason splash, with a two-year, $16 million deal) and may have to allow homegrown talents to walk, like Queen did this offseason.
What about the positives? Who are some players who might be pleasant surprises this season that I can talk about to impress my friends?
Start with Trenton Simpson, a second-year linebacker from Clemson who is stepping into Queen’s starting role and has impressed this preseason with his speed. The Ravens are hoping for a step forward from edge rusher Odafe Oweh this season after he notched five sacks and two forced fumbles, and anything at all from fellow linebacker David Ojabo, who has been injured for most of his first two seasons. Wiggins could be the rare rookie who really stands out, based on his speed and ball skills that have impressed his teammates quickly.
On offense, big things are expected from Likely, who stepped in convincingly after Andrews was injured last season. Bateman is a great route-runner who has been slow to develop chemistry with Jackson.
Anything else I should know before the season starts?
Well, the kickoff itself will look a little different: The kicker will line up in the back by his lonesome while each special teams unit will line up 5 yards across from each other in a free-for-all somewhere in the middle of the field. If it looks unfamiliar, it’s not just you — NFL special teams coordinators will probably be figuring out how to handle kickoffs for the next few weeks, at least.
Everything else, your heart should tell you. When the Ravens kick off on Thursday, hopefully you won’t need notes to remind you how to cheer. The only other reminder I can offer is to make sure you have enough chips in the pantry — you don’t want to interrupt the game with a halftime snack run.
