October 1, 2024 • 42 mins
Team insiders Ryan Mink and Garrett Downing break down the tape to discuss why the run game is flourishing, how the pass defense bounced back, the strong play of two rookies, what both coordinators did to keep the Bills guessing, and what's next for the passing game and Mark Andrews.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome into the Lounge presented by DraftKings. I'm Ryan mink
here with Garrett Downing and we are going to take
the deep dive into the Ravens thirty five to ten
Whooman of the Buffalo Bills and Garrett. When you beat
a team that's as good as the Bills like that,
the film is going to look good. Okay, and confirmed
(00:25):
it looked good, and so we're going to go through this.
One thing I want to say at off the jump
is I thought that Todd Monkin and Zach Orr were
in their bag on Sunday night, like those guys called
great games. I thought Todd, you know, just followed up
that Dallas performance with the run game with another really
(00:46):
good game. And for zach Orr, I thought this was his,
you know, best game so far as the coordinator. Yeah,
and so you couple that with really high level execution.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
When those two things can meet, you can.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I think the Ravens have the talent to blow out anybody,
anybody in the league. And the Bills were, you know,
they are still I think one of the best teams
in the NFL, and the Ravens just smoked them well.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
After the game, John Harbaugh gave both zach Or and
Todd Monkin game boss in the postgame locker room, and
I think that was an indication of what you're talking about.
And we got an email here. We're going to get
to another email over the course of the show, and
you can always email us to the lounge at Ravens
at NFL dot net, and Kaidagner wrote, and he sets
you up here in talking about both Todd Monk and
(01:37):
zac Orr, and he said, aside from incredible, aside from
the incredible execution from the players, it really seemed like
Monkins calls kept the Bills guessing and that Oors calls
stifled what they.
Speaker 4 (01:49):
Were trying to do.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
It's pretty hard to beat a team on both sides,
and then Lamar doesn't have to be superman. So I
think that that's just speaks to what you're talking about here,
that both coordinators had excellent games and the Ravens were
able to have a lot of success as a results
of it. So appreciate to email from Kyle.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Yeah, absolutely, yeah, we're going to get into that, and
let let's start with the running game and Todd Mounkin
what he did, and obviously Derrick Henry pat Ricard in
this offensive line, everybody the tight ends.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
You have to start with the run game right to
because that was the story of the game. The start
of the game was the run.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Game, and then it continued from there exactly. So let's
start with the start, yeah, exactly. The first offensive play
from scrimmage for the Ravens, the Derrick Henry eighty seven
yard touchdown run and just breaking that play down. And
we heard some of this from Ravens players in the
locker room afterwards, that that was that was something that
(02:42):
was planned all week. That was the call for the
first play of the game, and it was to basically
take advantage of an aggressive Buffalo Bills defensive front. The
Bills liked to hit those gaps and try to get
in your backfield and disrupt you that way, right, they're
not lining up right over your offensive lineman taking those
blocks and then trying to move that lineman peeking out
(03:05):
over bow shoulders seeing which way the run's going, right,
when when they lined him right up over top of
your blockers, Okay, that's that's.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
A little different. They're trying to build that wall right
to stop the run game.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
The Bills don't play like that they want to get
in those gaps right between the guard and the center,
right right between the tackle guard and try to shoot
those gaps. Well, the Ravens and Todd Munkin used to
play that they haven't used this season, and it's a
it's a bit of a roll of the dice. It's risky,
and it's kind of a it's got a crack, it's
(03:34):
kind of a trap wham concept. And so what they
do is and what they did is they let Ed
Oliver basically just shoot that gap right between uh, Daniel
foul Lele and Roger Ersgarten. And as soon as he
came through there untouched, you could see Ed Oliver being like, what's.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Going on here?
Speaker 1 (03:56):
And he looks at the last second and here comes
Patrick Riccard who was lying up in the backfield, and
he just traps him inside right, So boom, he's already trapped.
And what that does is it allows now Roger Rosengarten
and Daniel fole Lele to climb up to the second level, right,
and so those two guys immediately have a free release
(04:17):
to take out the linebackers.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Right. So now you've created that hole.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Derek Henry shoots that gap Dereck Henry or Mark Andrews
had a really nice block coat over the top on
the on the Bill's safety and Derek Henry did the
rest off the races.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
But you know, I think it's a credit to Derrick Henry.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Ay, he ran the right track on the play and
b he had the finishing speed to take that to
the house eighty seven yards. But also he wasn't touched. Yeah, right,
and so that speaks to the really high level blocking
that he got on that play too.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah, it is kind of funny that there was so
much talk about that play and the Rayvens saw good
about that play coming into the game, and Derek told
me after the game and he felt like there's going
to be an opportunity for a big play to open
things up with that, and.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
It worked out.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
I feel like to some degree, when it works perfection,
then all of a sudden, the story becomes a little
bit magnified where it's like we all knew this was
there was a chance for this one to break big,
and it's like, did anyone have the eighty seven yard
touchdown on there on the script here for how this
thing would play out? Probably not to that extreme, but
I do think that there's merit to this thought that
(05:24):
they felt like this is an opportunity the way that
the Bills play, as you just broke it down for
them to have success, and I thought it was really
There was all these questions that Derek Henry got during
the off season about running backs hitting thirty and longevity,
and this is a guy that has carried the ball
aton in his career. Nobody's gotten more carries than he
(05:45):
has over the course of his career, and so can
you sustain it? He hit twenty one point twenty nine
miles per hour on that play, which is the fourth
fastest time of anybody in the NFL any ball carrier
in the NFL this season. He's right behind Xavier Worthy. Okay,
so Xavier Worthy runs the fastest forty ever at the
combine this year, Derrick Henry's is just behind him. This
(06:06):
year is one of the fastest times in the NFL,
and I just think that that.
Speaker 4 (06:11):
Speaks to his He hasn't lost a step at all.
That was evident.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
If you had any doubts, that is quite clear. And
then as you broke it down, I thought it was
really really well schemed play and then executed at a
super high level where you have a guy like Mark Andrews,
and we're going to talk about him over the course
of this this show. But Mark Andrews gets there to
the second level to come up with a key block
to spring Henry to come to basically hit open field,
(06:37):
and then it's off to the races.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Yeah I misspoke.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
A little bit earlier is Tyler Linderbaum, who was able
to climb to the second level and pick off one
of the Bills linebackers and just staying on Linderbaum. I
thought that he was really magnificent in this game. And
you know another example of his high level blocking was,
I mean he on Derrick Henry's long run that he
had nearly on that one too, down to the goal line.
(07:02):
Lenderbaum's blocking backside linebacker fifteen yards down the field and
then ends up planting him in the grass and flipping
over him. My favorite part was that then Lennarbaum just
like turns his Derrick Henry's still running down the sideline,
lender Bomb's like walking the other way. He's not even watching.
It was like the it was like a walk off shot,
you know, just like we're back on it, like yep,
(07:22):
I know what's happening now.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
He didn't score, but it was still pretty. It was
kind of cool.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
It was basically the Steph Curry. You shoot it and
then you just turn your.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Back to exactly the exactly swish exactly that that the center,
NFL center version.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
That's like as swaggy as an NFL center can get
right there exactly.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
That's as cool as you can look.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Yeah, so he had a linnar Bomb's been awesome this year,
and I think that I was a little bit concerned.
He didn't practice for a day last week and he
pops up on the injury report. He melt with some
injuries during training camp, and it's like, oh, I don't
want this kind of bang up because he is so
important and you saw it on that play. He really
saw it throughout the game. There's the communication aspect of
what he does. But then he has this athleticism to
(08:05):
get up into the second level against these linebackers and
deliver these blocks that can spring the big runs. It's
not just the three four, five yard carries. Linderbaum's ability
to hit a guy at the line of scrabers and
gets to that second level opens up these fifteen to
twenty eighty seven yard runs.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
And I think a really big key like to that also,
like we were saying, has been the blocking of the
tight ends and on the perimeter, especially the tight ends.
Mark Andrews and Isaya likely are getting after it as blockers.
And I know there's a lot of handwringing about what
they haven't done as receivers, but these past two weeks
have been They've been excellent perimeter blockers. Mark Andrews had
the highest run blocking grade on the team, higher than
(08:44):
Linderbaum than any of the offensive linemen.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
I mean, he.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
Was definitely getting after a Bill's defense that likes to
play with lighter defensive formations.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
They like to go heavy nickel. They're not a.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Big physical defense off times, especially once you get to
the second level. They had injury issues at linebacker, and
the Ravens kind of exposed that with their physicality.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
Yeah, I mean, the Ravens absolutely looked like a team
that could play with just this physical edge. And when
you talk about the success of the running game and
what has worked for the Ravens offense these last two weeks,
they've run for more than two hundred and seventy.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Yards in each of the last two weeks.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
Bill Belichick he knows a thing or two about football.
He was just on Pat McAfee show this week and
he was asked about the way that the Ravens are
clicking on offense, and Belichick pointed out, what you just
alluded to, Bill's typically play a little bit lighter. They've
been a team that plays a lot of nickel, a
lot of dimes. So the package their base defense is
a lighter package.
Speaker 4 (09:41):
Okay, so what do the Ravens do well?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
The Ravens zag, Well, everybody else is digging one and
drug in one direction. Ye, And well how do they
do that? Well, you have a three hundred pound full
back in pat Ricard. You have these tight ends in
Isaiah Likely and Mark Andrews who are playing pretty selfless
and downhill blockers, and so, as Belichick spelled out, if
you go too heavy, the Raves also.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
Have great speed.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
So as a defense, if you go to heavy, well,
they've got this great speed where they.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
Can day flowers on end rounds and jet sweeps and
all that stuff.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
And as a receiver, you've got a ton of Justice Hill.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
As they showed, Justice Hill abused Bill's linebacker for a touchdown, yep.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
And so yeah, they can definitely hit you with the speed.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Also, it's really you know, there's been a lot of
conversation around the NFL this year about passing yards being
down the too high safeties, you know.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Mel Kiper you know, said it should be banned, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
And and so the Ravens are kind of saying, all right,
you wanna drop go too high safety, play later, bunch
of dvs on the field, We're gonna bury you.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
And this isn't something super new for the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
It's just that they haven't had Derek Henry in the
backfield to do it right. They haven't had that punisher
back there where they can just and also their decisions
along the offensive line have shaded in this direction. Right,
we're gonna go with big old Daniel Foulet guard. Right
when they could have gone smaller, they said, give me
the big guy. We're gonna stick with him and keep
giving him a chance to grow and improve. Right, we're
(11:04):
gonna draft Roger Rosegard and we're gonna go big. We're
gonna go heavy. Pat Ricard's see the past few weeks
has seen a much higher snapshare. We're gonna deploy him.
And so the Ravens now have this ability. As you said,
if the rest of the league is zigging, they're zagging
right and saying, all right, we're gonna just punch you
in the mouth over and over and over again.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Yeah, it's just really hard to stop it. I mean,
there's something to be said for knowing that the Ravens
are gonna run the ball. You got this big package
on the field, you got Patrick a card, and you
got Derek Henry in the backfield, and the feeling is
like they're clearly giving it to Henry and to still
be able to run it is when the Ravens have
been able to do the last couple of weeks.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
And I think that Todd that's where Todd Munkin really
comes into this conversation, as we said.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
As I said, I thought he was in his bag, and.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
He's done a really good job with his mixing of
different runs, the sequencing of those runs, with using Lamar
as a runner, right misdirection motions in the backfield. Like
he's done a really good job of mixing, mixing up
the picture for defenses because to your point, if you
just run, run, run, like in a game script that
(12:12):
is usually this heavy in one direction. It's really kind
of hard to do, right, Like, the best offense is
a balanced offense, right, So to have success when it's
so run heavy, you've got to do a really nice
job of still keeping that defensive line guessing and keeping
them off balance. And I thought Todd Mounkin in this
game in particular end last week in Dallas, has done
(12:33):
a really good job of getting them looking one way,
popping out the other way. A lot of kind of
eye candy and a lot of not just it's not
all deception, but like actually taking it different ways too,
and having Lamar pop out the other way, having Lamar
keep it in the RPO game, like, just a lot
of really good, high level play calling on his part
(12:55):
to keep them guessing.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Now.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
You know, look, we a lot of times as fans
you look at the final number where you say, okay,
twenty passes, twenty runs, that's good. Yeah, I want fifty
to fifty. That's good balance. But there's a lot of
variety within those play calls, of course, And so the
Ravens have shaded very heavy on the run game the
last two weeks. Part of that has been game script
in the way the game has played out. When you're up,
(13:18):
when you're up big in the second half, you're going
to continue running the ball. But there also is variety
within that running game, and that's part of the raise,
the part of the reason the Ravens have been able
to sustain that success.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Now, the Ravens do need to continue and improve this
running game because they're having a lot of success outside
the tackles. On perimeter runs, they had thirteen carries for
a buck seventy three and a touchdown. Now, you know,
eighty seven of them came on really one run, right,
but they averaged thirteen point three yards per carry outside
the tackles. They averaged two point four yards per carry
(13:51):
between the tackles eleven carries twenty six yards.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
Right.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
So that's kind of the next step that they need
to take, right as they it's hard to sit here
and nitpick a running game. They're the top run team
in the NFL. They're on a historic base. I mean
through four games, they're they're on a better pace than
they were back in that record setting year when they
ran for the most yards in a single season in
NFL history.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
Yeah, they have eight hundred and eighty one yards the
first four games through the first four games of twenty nineteen,
when they set the NFL record for the most rushing
yards ever, they had eight hundred and twenty three yards exactly.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
So it's hard to sit here and nitpick a rushing
attack that's on a historic pace. But the good news is, like,
I think they have room to improve if they can
run better even between the tackles, like that is going
to add yet another dimension to this rushing attack.
Speaker 3 (14:40):
Well, let's talk about one of the tackles, and I
want to dive into the rookies. Who the top two
picks Nay Wiggins first round pick, second round pick Roger Rosegarden.
Let's start with Rosengarden because he steps in it right tackle.
The Ravens had an injury along the offensive line. Starting
left guard Andrew Vourhees is dealing with an ankle injury, so.
Speaker 4 (14:56):
He was out.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
So the Ravens could have gone a couple of different directions.
They opt to move starting right tackle Pat McCarey to
left guard. He completes the cycle of playing every position
along the offensive line, starting at every spot, so he
moves to the left guard position. Insert Roger Rosegarden at
right tackle. He'd been coming on strong, and he I
think really made a strong case to solidify himself in
(15:19):
the starting lineup with the way that he played.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Yeah, the Ravens now have that question in front of him.
I'm not sure that it's in cement, you know, but
he made his case, and so now it's kind of
all right.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
You know. The funny thing is, entering the season, we
were all.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Talking about like, uh, you know, who are going to
be the guards? You know, I don't know who's gonna
take these last starting spots.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
And it was a problem.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Now it's kind of a good problem to have, right,
You're like, who's going to play in these spots? Because
now you know you have Voorhees is going to be
coming back. But McCarry just played well. Rosegarden just played
well right tackle. Like now you have an abundance, right,
and so file Leila turned in his second straight, you know,
good game. And so I don't know which way they're
(16:05):
gonna go, but yeah, I think that they certainly could.
What they've done so far is ride the hot hand.
That's what they did in Dallas. Roger Rosegarten didn't get
any snaps in Dallas, right because Pat McCay was playing
well at right tackle, and file Leley was playing well
at right guard. Well, now the hot hand is Rose
Andngarten at right tackle and McCarry at left guard, and
(16:26):
so they could ride that now and see how you
know how long they can ride that?
Speaker 2 (16:30):
So I thought Roger rosen Garten.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
And he played every snap in this game, showed a
really good well roundedness to his game. He's he is
quick off the snap, he has great feet. You see
him matching von Miller's speed. I mean, here's von Miller.
He's going to be a Hall of Famer, right And
I granted, you know he's in the certainly the back nine.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Of his career.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
But to see a rookie making his first NFL start
and he's doing a good job mirroring von Miller, that's
a good right. I thought he matched the power of
Ed Oliver pretty well. Able to anchor a few times
and did he lose some, sure, but he held it
long enough to get the job done. He's really good
at turning defenders because he has those quick hips, quick feet,
(17:14):
and he can quickly get on defender's edge and turn
him inside or outside or whatever he needs to do.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
That's a real strong point of his.
Speaker 1 (17:21):
And then what I was maybe most impressed with was
the team where he had with Daniel Folele, picking up
the stunts, the twists, the communication between those two guys
for two young offensive linemen, I thought that was really
a positive thing.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
Yeah, and he opens the game when he had a
key block on that long run by Derrick Henry. Derrek
Henry ran right off as his left shoulder to find
that green grass, and that was a big play for
rose Garden.
Speaker 4 (17:45):
I think with him.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
I loved watching rose Garden run down the field after that,
chasing Derrick Henry. He was just like a gleeful kid
on the school yard. Yeah, just like, oh, he was
so happy.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
He was great.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
Well, so when you look at rose Garden, the skyndger
port of him coming into the NFL was here's somebody
who's he's not the biggest and he's going to continue
to put on weight and muscle over the course of
his NFL career, but.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
He's really athletic.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
He can go out there and he can hang with
some of these talented speed rushers. And I thought that
he did that. And even go back to the Raiders game,
he had some really good reps against Max Crosby, who
wrecked that game for the Ravens. But Rosengarten held up
pretty well against Max Crosby in that game.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
I mean really, since his first NFL snap, it's been
uphill from there, right correct.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
The first one was the Sax strip.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
Yeah, that was bad against Chris Jones and that was
in Kansas City. But he's steadily improved since that point.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Oh for sure.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
I think that likes he is able to hold up
pretty well against the speed rushers. The question becomes how
does he do against the power and that I think
will continue to be where he improves and has room
for growth over the course of this season, because of
course there's going to be some talented power rushers on
the horizon when you've got Miles Garrett and TJ in
(19:00):
your division.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 3 (19:01):
So if he ends up remaining at that spot, I'm
sure that these these talented pass rushers are going to
test that. They're going to test his ability to anchor
and try to bowl rush him. And that's gonna be
where he has to prove himself.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, and I think he will. Like I agree,
I saw his ability to anchor, and you know, there's
a lot of things that you can do. And the Ravens, did,
you know, at times give him some help. And so
you have pat Riccard out there you can help, you know,
against some of those big, powerful guys. So they're going
to help him. But he's only going to get better.
(19:35):
And so I think the future is really bright for
Roger Rosegarden. Speaking of rookies, Nate Wiggins, I thought had
a really strong game. He played all but I think
three snaps in this game got the start with Marlon
Humphrey playing a lot inside in the nickel position, and
I thought Nate Wiggins had a really great game. According
(19:56):
to Prayer Football Focus, he gave up one catch for
five yards on thirty five coverage snaps. Now you know,
next thing is he's got to hit the drugs machine. Okay, dropped,
dropped two of them, two gives. Yeah, So you know,
we'll we'll see if he's on that drugs machine and
practice this week. But but I think that for Nate,
(20:17):
like just seeing his ability to mirror receivers and and
I thought he did a better job playing some of
the press coverage that that gave him trouble in Dallas.
I thought Nate Wiggins had a very strong showing in
this game, and it really kind of proved I can
be that every snap guy. We knew that at some point,
you know, we predicted, Yeah, Nate Wiggins is too talented
(20:39):
to leave on the bench, and at some point this
guy is going to be playing most, if not all,
of the game, and he proved it.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
We might be in this situation now where Wigans and Rosegarden,
the team's top two picks, are just basically in the
starting lineup, or are in the starting lineup depending on
how the Ravens want to play on defense.
Speaker 1 (20:57):
Now, it's gonna be interesting because Arthur Mallett's coming back
at some point here from the knees expected to practice
this week. So where does that leave Marlon Humphrey, you
know who I think has also played pretty well. Yeah,
so the Ravens have an embarrassment of riches at cornerback. Well.
Speaker 3 (21:12):
The other part that certainly contributed to this is that
Jalen armor Davis, who had played a good amount through
the first three games, he was added to injured reserve
over the weekend, so he goes to IR. That creates
an opportunity where Nate steps in and plays a significant
number of steps. I was encouraged by him. I've loved
what I've seen from him. He's so sticky in coverage.
He has great athleticism. I think that some of the
(21:33):
things that have been issues for him early in this season,
I think that he learns quickly, and he showed that
in this game. I think that he gave up the
slants a little too easy against Dallas, and so that
was something that he I think was better at in
this game. He wasn't given up easy catches. So it
was an encouraging sign from him. And look, I much
(21:54):
prefer a cornerback with very sticky coverage who lets a
pick bounce off his hands than a quarterback who can't cover.
Speaker 4 (22:01):
So yeah, I want to see him come down with
those interceptions. I think he will.
Speaker 3 (22:07):
But the main thing, the most important thing is that
he's right there. He's great in coverage, and I think
the Ravens have the Ravens had they might have knocked
it out of the park, you know, with these first
two picks.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
Yeah, I agree, And sticking on the rookies real quick.
A deecea Isaac got made his debut and I thought
played really well. Made three tackles. You know, it was
kind of late in the fourth quarter there, when the
game was all decided, really, but I thought it's decent,
all right, showed me a little something, you know.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
It's also just good to.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Get reps like this is the guy he was sidelined
so much of the offseason in training camp.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
It's like, it's good to play.
Speaker 3 (22:41):
You need to play, and I think that that is
a perfect opportunity for a guy like that.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Yep, and played well.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
And TJ Tampa fourth round corner also got some snaps
late in that game. So another player where it's just
important to get some game reps.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
So as we're talking about the secondary, Wiggins playing great,
Marlon moving to the slot, this was by far the
best game the second Andry has played this season. They
were great in coverage throughout the night. Josh Allen, who
as we mentioned many times over the last week, was
coming into this game as maybe the favorite in the
MVP race, and he didn't have much room at all
(23:15):
to throw. The only play that he hit was this
miracle throw along the sidelines, the fifty two yarder, But
outside of that, it was an a plus day from
this raven secondary well right.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
I mean, here's the secondary that came into the game
ranked thirty second in the league, giving up two hundred
and ninety one point seven yards per game. And you
got Josh Allen coming into your house. You're like, this
is this is gonna be that good? Yeah, and you
know held him to one hundred and eighty passing yards.
So mission accomplished, completed sixteen to twenty nine. It was
(23:45):
Josh Allen's second lowest drop back success rate of his career.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Okay, and I.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
Didn't even think that Josh Allen played poorly, you know
what I mean, Like, but he still had according to
next Gen stats, like his second worst game in terms
of drop back success. Right, he wasn't turning the ball
over left and right, well except a key fumble that
really turned the game.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
But like that says something.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Yeah, right, I mean he came in leaving the league
in dropped back success rate at sixty one point nine percent,
So went from sixty one sixty two percent to twenty
three point five percent.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
That is a big change.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
And so I thought the Ravens secondary did it with
a nice, nice mix of coverages. And once again this
gives back to Zach Orr and him playing well or
calling a good game. I mean is I thought they
mixed their coverages really well. There's some creative looks. I mean,
you had one in which they were playing single high
safety and the single high safety totally swapped, you know.
(24:47):
I think it was Marcus Williams up high. He and
Kyle Holton, Kyle Heulnson was near the linebackers.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Those two guys just swapped. It was like, what is
happening here?
Speaker 4 (24:56):
You know?
Speaker 1 (24:56):
So really a lot of post snap movements and adjustments
that clouded picture for Josh Allen, and I think that's
why you saw him scrambling so much and just trying
to buy more time, Buy more time, buy more time,
go to the sideline and see if I can find something.
And then in those instances a good job except for
the one play that they hit of plastering staying on
(25:16):
on receivers. So I thought, you know, really the other
plays that he hit were those back shoulders that were
just great throws, great plays by Key and Coleman. Like
I cannot fault Brannon Stevens for those those plays being made.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
Yeah, I'm with you.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
It's like, Okay, Berdie Stevens gave up this catch along
the sidelines. He was right there and coverage.
Speaker 2 (25:35):
A couple of them. Yeah, yeah, couldn't played it much.
Speaker 4 (25:38):
How do you play that better? I guess knocked the
ball down, but you're right there. Oh, you're right.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
Shoulder throw is the hardest to defend. Really, the back
shoulder throw in the NFL is like, if you can.
Speaker 2 (25:46):
Do it, it's nice for it.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
Yeah, it's like it's it's a tough one to get done.
And so I'm not gonna fault them for that. I
thought the secondary. You know, the other point that that
John Harwell made is there playing a pretty good amount
of man coverage.
Speaker 2 (26:02):
They played it a third of.
Speaker 1 (26:03):
The time in this game, which is not super out
of character for them. They they played the basically the
same rate against Dallas and the same rate against the Chiefs.
But they're playing it better, right, And so that was
one of the things that we talked about early in
this year, is like they're not playing those underneath routes
(26:25):
very well. They were getting beat on that kind of stuff,
and I think they're playing it better now and it's
giving them the Ravens the confidence to call that man coverage.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
And you look at they played at a third of
the snatch.
Speaker 1 (26:34):
The Bills only played man coverage eighteen percent, so that
allows you to do some different things when you're able
to play man coverage and play it well. I thought
Zach Orr did a great job of mixing pressures, you know,
mixing coverages. I mean the Ravens played cover one, Cover
three at thirty percent, rates Cover six, twenty percent, Cover one,
eleven percent, Cover two, Cover zero.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
They got a blit a sackle on that cover zero call.
Like just really a lot of mixing and matching of
coverages and pressures.
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Well, it's basically this was a This was a perfect
example of the secondary and the pass rush working in tandem.
And Kyle van noy is where you start the conversation.
He leaves the AFC with six x right now. He
had a force fumble that changed the game. I won't
say it changed the game, it's it's stopped the momentum
that the Chiefs or that the Bills seemed to be
gaining at that moment. And so Van Neu finished with
(27:25):
four pressures on nineteen pass rushes on the night, So
twenty one percent of the time when he's going after
the quarterback, he's applying pressure, and that just speaks to
the way that he's playing.
Speaker 4 (27:35):
At this level.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Oway got a sack in this game. Travis Jones was
a monster in this game. The Ravens front had an
excellent night and that any cornerback, any safety will tell
you that makes their life much easier when you got
Josh Allen running for his life for half the time.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
One hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
Yeah, I mean the coverage was good and they flushed him.
The pass rush flushed him. I thought the Ravens defense
made a statement with their physicality again, you know, and
Travis Jones was I mean not only I went down
a wormhole last night on this at Travis Jones's size,
hitting Josh Allen at twelve point something miles per hour,
(28:16):
I was like asking chat GTP, like what's the force
on that? Like what what does that? What's the equivalent?
And so I tried to get people smarter than me
to answer this. I tried to get Ai to answer this. Basically,
it was like a minor car accident. Huh, yeah, there
are other people that was like it was getting hit
by a sledgehammer. I don't know, yeah, I know, I
(28:39):
really went down the wormhole and all I know is
a question.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
A train, a train leaves Baltimore.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
It was like that, the train left the defensive line
and the train hit Josh Allen equals a lot of
OUCHI yes, that's the final answer is ouch.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
And so.
Speaker 1 (28:58):
Yeah, I mean Roquan Smith with that hit on James
Cook early in the game, that just snapped him backwards.
I thought was that was one of those moments Kyle
Hamilton coming downhill and just obliterating a ball carrier early
in the game. They I think that was the first
drive for the Bills. They set the tone defensively with
their physicality.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (29:19):
Yeah, I think you brought the Roquan Smith hit. Brian Baldinger,
who does a great job with his film breakdowns, he
pointed out that Roquan Smith hit and it just was
Rokwan basically just kind of sidestep three blockers and then
delivered a big pop on James Cook.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Well, he gave him a new nickname, right, Yeah.
Speaker 4 (29:35):
Yeah, what was nick that? I'll let you look that up.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
Yeah, I'll look it up.
Speaker 3 (29:38):
But like Roquan it's not like he's come up with
too many splash plays. He had the interception in Kansas City.
But I think that like that kind of play speaks
to the tone, the physicality, the way that the Ravens
want to play defense. Just like when you think of
the Ravens defense and the mindset and who they are
and what you're going up against, that is exactly what
(29:59):
comes to mind. Kind of play from Roquan Smith. It's
not like it was this big time highlight. Not everybody
is calling attention to it, but that type of pot
makes you feel like, man, this is gonna be a
long night. We're going up against a really hard hitting,
physical defense.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
The ambassador of violence.
Speaker 4 (30:14):
Okay, there you go. That's that's in Baldi.
Speaker 2 (30:17):
It doesn't get better than that.
Speaker 4 (30:18):
That's a good one for Baldy.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
You know what else the film breakdown really revealed was
this great new Sax celebration that the Ravens have from
Kyle Fannoy with the hands up.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That like you knew me.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
This isn't a video edition of the pod, but just
go check us out on our social media channels at
Ravens on X and you'll you'll find that one.
Speaker 4 (30:38):
Well, we actually another little teaser here. We had Kyle
Vannoin Mike for this game.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Oh I cannot wait, so I cannot wait that.
Speaker 3 (30:45):
I think you know that's the we talked about the
podcast Bump the Wired Bomp.
Speaker 4 (30:49):
In this game, he's Mike Test has two sacks.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
Now he gets two sacks every game, So I guess
you can't necessarily attribute it to.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
He's three straight.
Speaker 1 (30:57):
It's only been done once before in Raybe history, justin
Houston back in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Remember that heater he was on.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
Oh yeah, he was on fire. So but anyway, Cayved
and nois Mike. That episode is going to be in
Ravens Wire that comes out Wednesday night. So I've seen
a sneak peak of it. You do not want to
miss it. It's it's excellent and he does not disappoint.
Speaker 4 (31:13):
So we're gonna take a quick break.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
When we come back, we'll dive into what this means
for the Ravens moving forward. You're listening to the Lags podcast.
We're coming to you from the Sea Geek Studio. We
want to mention our friends at Draft King Sportsbook. They
are an official sports betting partner of the Baltimore Ravens
Draft King Sportsbook. The Crown is yours. So as we're
talking about this game and what went right for the Ravens.
(31:35):
I think that the question now is how teams adjust.
So we talked about Buffalo playing this team with a
lighter box, a lot of nickel coming into the game.
So what do we think moving forward is the answer
is a solution. This is the Bill Belichick dilemma that
I also talked about. Do teams load up with size
then the Ravens take advantage of their speed, or do
(31:56):
they load up with the speed and the Ravens take
advantage with their size. What's your expectations? Our teams just
gonna bring safeties downhill and try to stop the Ravens
that way?
Speaker 4 (32:04):
What do we see from here?
Speaker 1 (32:06):
I don't think it's really as simple as that, because
the problem is you bring those safeties downhill and then
you get Derrick Henry on the edge, you're in trouble. So,
you know, I think it's more less about I think
it's more about personnel. Do they try to go a
little bit heavier, more base packages, more linebackers on the field,
(32:28):
less of that nickel stuff, and then if that's the case,
if they go heavier, then I think you see the
Ravens throw the ball a little bit more, get it
out save flowers out in space, some of those things.
You know, they've done a good job of the screen game.
That's been another thing that another tool that Todd Munkin
has used to keep defenses off balance. And so I
(32:49):
think it's a personnel shift that the Ravens are going
to see as opposed to necessarily just more loaded boxes. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (32:56):
I think that one of the things that is work
looking in the Ravens favor in this whole conversation is
that both of their tight ends, Mark Andrews and Isaiah
likely can be matchup problems. So if if especially with
the way they're blocking right now, like if it shifts
where they say, all right, we're gonna go big, We're
gonna we're gonna put bigger guys on the field rather
than having an extra dB, we're gonna put an extra
(33:17):
linebacker out there. Well, now you have a linebacker on
Mark Andrews or Isaiah, likely that should be a completion
every time. And that's how the way Ravens would look
at it, I'm guessing.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Well, and the Bengals, when we're talking about run defenses,
have not been particularly good against the run this year,
only one, two, three, four, five, six, teams have given
up more rushing yards per game than the Cincinnati Bengals.
So far through four weeks, Bengals have given up one
hundred and forty five and a half yards per game.
So I don't think this is the week where you say,
(33:47):
you know what, let's zag just keep on zigging, right,
just like I think that they could just continue to
attack the Bengals with this rushing attack. Now, the interesting
thing for the Ravens is eventually, yes, they're gonna have to,
I think, prove that they can make people pay through
the air more. You know, for the second straight week,
(34:09):
Lamar Jackson, according to the Next Gen Stats, did not
attempt a tight window throw. Now, that third down completion
of Nelson Agalore, I don't know how the heck that's
not considered a tight window throw. Yeah, but okay, next
Gen stats. Okay, so what they considered a tight window
throw is a pass with less than one yard of separation. Right,
(34:30):
So thirteen of his of Lamar's eighteen total passing attempts
came on targets with three or more yards of separation.
That's good scheme, that's good Lamar picking the right guy
to throw to, you know, Lamar handling things at leniscourage,
you know, all that doing that at a high level.
But eventually, you know, I think Lamar is going to
have to make teams pay with his arm. We've seen
(34:52):
him do that many many times. Yeah, just hasn't really.
I mean when they came back in Kansas City early year,
you know, week one, and they had to throw the
ball down the field. He made some big time throws
in that game, but they have not really won a
game with a huge passing day.
Speaker 2 (35:08):
Lamar Jackson doesn't care. He just wants to win, period.
Speaker 1 (35:11):
He also, by the way, does not care about your
parlays at all. So that's kind of the next evolution,
you know. I mean he's he's targeted open receivers on
a career high fifty eight percent of his targets this season.
That's good scheme. Again, that's good scheme. That's him throwing
it to the right guy. All that stuff. That's not
(35:32):
to hold it against him, but like, eventually it's gonna
kind of get a little bit opponents. I think, hopefully not,
but I think that they're eventually going to find a
way to load up with some of these more line,
more of these linebackers and make it harder to run,
protect those edges better, all that stuff to make it
(35:53):
harder for the Ravens run and the Ravens are gonna
have to beat him in the air.
Speaker 4 (35:55):
Yeah, and I think the Ravens are able to do that.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
I really point like the natural thought is, Okay, that
could mean big things for Ze Flowers and Rasaw Bateman
and the guys on the edge. There's truth to that,
But I go back to the tight ends. I just
think that the Ravens' ability. They're running a ton of
two tight end packages. Almost half the time. You have
two tight ends on the field, and they're blocking so
well against these current boxes that if you load up
(36:23):
again with a bigger linebacker, I just don't think that
there's linebackers in the league you can run with Isaiah
Likeli and Mark Andrews, and so if you go that route,
I just think that's going to be the matchup problem
that the Ravens have been waiting for. And now you
can find some of those big plays over the middle
of the field, and then you go back to square
one and you're trying to stop this running game, and
you can run play action off that. I think the
(36:43):
tight ends and I know there's been a lot. Mark
Andrews has gone without a catch the last two games.
That has never happened in his career. He's been so
productive throughout his career. So everyone, all the fantasy football
players out there are getting concerned and all this stuff.
And again Lamar doesn't care, because he's made that clear
on social media with some of his posts this week.
John Harball did talk earlier this week about he talked
(37:05):
on Monday about Mark Andrews and made it clear that
the Ravens believe big games are on the horizon for Mark,
and I agree with that.
Speaker 4 (37:11):
I'm not.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
I think the part of it is just the shift,
and it's how teams are playing them, and the Raves
are taking what the defense is giving them, and that's
what you want your offense to do. Now, when that
changes and adjusts, I think that Mark Andrews could have
a game somewhere here in the near future where he's
over one hundred yards and flirting with double digit catches
that absolutely could happen somewhat soon.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
That's definitely gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
I mean, I will say this, Mark Andrews's best games
in his career have.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
Often come against the Bengals and the Browns. Bengals next up.
I mean, how many great catches has he made in Cincinnati? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (37:50):
Load, and so whatever. Take that for what it is.
It's a matchup games. It's year to year. But I'm
just saying, like this guy when he goes against division opponents.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
I mean, obviously last year he was you know, he
had that catch right near the goal line last year
when he got hurt against the Bengals.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
That's correct. He he was gonna go off that game.
Speaker 4 (38:10):
Yeah, it's certainly that way.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
Yeah, and so.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
Yeah, kind of a trip down memory lane a little
bit for Mark Andrews in that way. Yeah, going against
Logan Wilson of the Bengals for the first time. So yeah,
I think absolutely Mark's gonna have some big games coming up.
That's why I traded for him in fantasy football. As
I told him. He was kind of psyched about that.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Now it hasn't paid off yet, but.
Speaker 3 (38:33):
He's he's basically one of the You're one of the
people that, like Lamar Sweeten about basically quit talking to
me about your fantasy football team.
Speaker 1 (38:40):
I do not bet, so I don't have anyanasies I
got no skin in the gate fantasy football is it
by one league? But uh, but yeah, I think that
Mark Andrews. Nothing has changed about Mark Andrews. You know,
I do think times have changed for Mark Andrews. He's
not the clear number one target by a margin like
(39:00):
he used to be three years ago or whatever. You know,
it's changed. Yeah, and you got Derek Henry. You have
this rushing attack, but like the Ravens aren't going to
be this run heavy the entire season.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
They're going to have to change.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
As we've said, Mark Andrews, he did get more snaps
against this past week against the Bills, he ran more routes.
He only ran six routes against the Cowboys. He ran
ten routes against the Bills. He should have had one catch.
He was wide open. He just dropped it.
Speaker 2 (39:27):
Yeah, so he should he shouldn't have been shut out.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Yeah, and yeah, to our earlier point, I think that
if teams do go with heavier personnel, more linebackers, that's more.
Speaker 2 (39:38):
You know, Mark.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
Andrews would rather have a big old linebacker covering and
probably than a big nickel. And so that's when those
guys I think are gonna eat what.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
A Mark Andrews sell us when he joined us on
the pod two weeks ago. He said, this offense is
a pick your poison offense and right now, Derek Cannery
used to poison for these defenses, and so that's what
the Ravens are leaning on. But if that shift, well,
then Mark Andrews is going to be there right around
the corner. And I think that to your point, if
you go back a couple of years, I think the
teams when they went to play the Ravens, they came
(40:09):
into it feeling like stop eighty nine first and foremost
from a passing game standpoint.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
And that's that too.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
And yeah, and if you do that, it's going to
be tough for the Ravens to move the football. Now,
the Ravens have other weapons, which is what you want.
You want to have a more versaal offense. So they've
gotten to this point and that's a good thing that
there's not as much on Andrew's shoulders.
Speaker 4 (40:30):
But don't forget that he still has that ability.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
Yep, I totally agree. We have some emails.
Speaker 3 (40:36):
Yeah, we have an email here I read one earlier,
but another email that I want to get to. As always,
you can email us at the lounge at Ravens dot
NFL dot net. This is from John who says, I
want to give a shout out to the Ravens head
coach for getting the team ready for primetime and delivering
a big victory early in the season. I'm confident like
our players that they're I'm confident that our players are
improving and the coaching and play calling will continue to
(40:57):
improve as the season goes on. Also, he wants to
get to the dog of the week. If Dereck Henry
isn't the dog of the week, he says, a close
second option.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
Okay, he was the dog last week, do we get I.
Speaker 4 (41:09):
Mean, he just put up on hundred ninety nine yards.
Speaker 3 (41:11):
But if you need a second dog, he says, Todd
munkin his play climb was he caught the Bill's flat
footed from the jump. So two emails this week, both
praising the coordinators. I mean, you can give it to
the dog up in the booth, but it's hard not.
Speaker 4 (41:28):
To give it.
Speaker 2 (41:28):
He was barking up there.
Speaker 3 (41:30):
It's hard not to give it to Derrick Henry when
he put up more than two hundred dolls purpose two touchdowns.
Speaker 4 (41:35):
But it's your you can give it toever you want.
Speaker 1 (41:39):
Todd does kind of need it after the Alabama Georgia
game right where the Dogs lost that game, so he
kind of needs it.
Speaker 2 (41:45):
He kind of needs a bulldog. But I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
It's Derrick Henry again, the back to back go of
the week.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
It's fitting, it's appropriate again. You can emails with the
Lounge at Ravens Net. We always love getting those emails.
Make sure you hit that subscribe button. Thank you so
much for listening, and we will be back with you
again later this week.
Welcome into the Lounge presented by DraftKings. I'm Ryan mink
here with Garrett Downing and we are going to take
the deep dive into the Ravens thirty five to ten
Whooman of the Buffalo Bills and Garrett. When you beat
a team that's as good as the Bills like that,
the film is going to look good. Okay, and confirmed
(00:25):
it looked good, and so we're going to go through this.
One thing I want to say at off the jump
is I thought that Todd Monkin and Zach Orr were
in their bag on Sunday night, like those guys called
great games. I thought Todd, you know, just followed up
that Dallas performance with the run game with another really
(00:46):
good game. And for zach Orr, I thought this was his,
you know, best game so far as the coordinator. Yeah,
and so you couple that with really high level execution.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
When those two things can meet, you can.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I think the Ravens have the talent to blow out anybody,
anybody in the league. And the Bills were, you know,
they are still I think one of the best teams
in the NFL, and the Ravens just smoked them well.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
After the game, John Harbaugh gave both zach Or and
Todd Monkin game boss in the postgame locker room, and
I think that was an indication of what you're talking about.
And we got an email here. We're going to get
to another email over the course of the show, and
you can always email us to the lounge at Ravens
at NFL dot net, and Kaidagner wrote, and he sets
you up here in talking about both Todd Monk and
(01:37):
zac Orr, and he said, aside from incredible, aside from
the incredible execution from the players, it really seemed like
Monkins calls kept the Bills guessing and that Oors calls
stifled what they.
Speaker 4 (01:49):
Were trying to do.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
It's pretty hard to beat a team on both sides,
and then Lamar doesn't have to be superman. So I
think that that's just speaks to what you're talking about here,
that both coordinators had excellent games and the Ravens were
able to have a lot of success as a results
of it. So appreciate to email from Kyle.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Yeah, absolutely, yeah, we're going to get into that, and
let let's start with the running game and Todd Mounkin
what he did, and obviously Derrick Henry pat Ricard in
this offensive line, everybody the tight ends.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
You have to start with the run game right to
because that was the story of the game. The start
of the game was the run.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Game, and then it continued from there exactly. So let's
start with the start, yeah, exactly. The first offensive play
from scrimmage for the Ravens, the Derrick Henry eighty seven
yard touchdown run and just breaking that play down. And
we heard some of this from Ravens players in the
locker room afterwards, that that was that was something that
(02:42):
was planned all week. That was the call for the
first play of the game, and it was to basically
take advantage of an aggressive Buffalo Bills defensive front. The
Bills liked to hit those gaps and try to get
in your backfield and disrupt you that way, right, they're
not lining up right over your offensive lineman taking those
blocks and then trying to move that lineman peeking out
(03:05):
over bow shoulders seeing which way the run's going, right,
when when they lined him right up over top of
your blockers, Okay, that's that's.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
A little different. They're trying to build that wall right
to stop the run game.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
The Bills don't play like that they want to get
in those gaps right between the guard and the center,
right right between the tackle guard and try to shoot
those gaps. Well, the Ravens and Todd Munkin used to
play that they haven't used this season, and it's a
it's a bit of a roll of the dice. It's risky,
and it's kind of a it's got a crack, it's
(03:34):
kind of a trap wham concept. And so what they
do is and what they did is they let Ed
Oliver basically just shoot that gap right between uh, Daniel
foul Lele and Roger Ersgarten. And as soon as he
came through there untouched, you could see Ed Oliver being like, what's.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Going on here?
Speaker 1 (03:56):
And he looks at the last second and here comes
Patrick Riccard who was lying up in the backfield, and
he just traps him inside right, So boom, he's already trapped.
And what that does is it allows now Roger Rosengarten
and Daniel fole Lele to climb up to the second level, right,
and so those two guys immediately have a free release
(04:17):
to take out the linebackers.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Right. So now you've created that hole.
Speaker 1 (04:22):
Derek Henry shoots that gap Dereck Henry or Mark Andrews
had a really nice block coat over the top on
the on the Bill's safety and Derek Henry did the
rest off the races.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
But you know, I think it's a credit to Derrick Henry.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Ay, he ran the right track on the play and
b he had the finishing speed to take that to
the house eighty seven yards. But also he wasn't touched. Yeah, right,
and so that speaks to the really high level blocking
that he got on that play too.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
Yeah, it is kind of funny that there was so
much talk about that play and the Rayvens saw good
about that play coming into the game, and Derek told
me after the game and he felt like there's going
to be an opportunity for a big play to open
things up with that, and.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
It worked out.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
I feel like to some degree, when it works perfection,
then all of a sudden, the story becomes a little
bit magnified where it's like we all knew this was
there was a chance for this one to break big,
and it's like, did anyone have the eighty seven yard
touchdown on there on the script here for how this
thing would play out? Probably not to that extreme, but
I do think that there's merit to this thought that
(05:24):
they felt like this is an opportunity the way that
the Bills play, as you just broke it down for
them to have success, and I thought it was really
There was all these questions that Derek Henry got during
the off season about running backs hitting thirty and longevity,
and this is a guy that has carried the ball
aton in his career. Nobody's gotten more carries than he
(05:45):
has over the course of his career, and so can
you sustain it? He hit twenty one point twenty nine
miles per hour on that play, which is the fourth
fastest time of anybody in the NFL any ball carrier
in the NFL this season. He's right behind Xavier Worthy. Okay,
so Xavier Worthy runs the fastest forty ever at the
combine this year, Derrick Henry's is just behind him. This
(06:06):
year is one of the fastest times in the NFL,
and I just think that that.
Speaker 4 (06:11):
Speaks to his He hasn't lost a step at all.
That was evident.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
If you had any doubts, that is quite clear. And
then as you broke it down, I thought it was
really really well schemed play and then executed at a
super high level where you have a guy like Mark Andrews,
and we're going to talk about him over the course
of this this show. But Mark Andrews gets there to
the second level to come up with a key block
to spring Henry to come to basically hit open field,
(06:37):
and then it's off to the races.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Yeah I misspoke.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
A little bit earlier is Tyler Linderbaum, who was able
to climb to the second level and pick off one
of the Bills linebackers and just staying on Linderbaum. I
thought that he was really magnificent in this game. And
you know another example of his high level blocking was,
I mean he on Derrick Henry's long run that he
had nearly on that one too, down to the goal line.
(07:02):
Lenderbaum's blocking backside linebacker fifteen yards down the field and
then ends up planting him in the grass and flipping
over him. My favorite part was that then Lennarbaum just
like turns his Derrick Henry's still running down the sideline,
lender Bomb's like walking the other way. He's not even watching.
It was like the it was like a walk off shot,
you know, just like we're back on it, like yep,
(07:22):
I know what's happening now.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
He didn't score, but it was still pretty. It was
kind of cool.
Speaker 3 (07:26):
It was basically the Steph Curry. You shoot it and
then you just turn your.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Back to exactly the exactly swish exactly that that the center,
NFL center version.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
That's like as swaggy as an NFL center can get
right there exactly.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
That's as cool as you can look.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
Yeah, so he had a linnar Bomb's been awesome this year,
and I think that I was a little bit concerned.
He didn't practice for a day last week and he
pops up on the injury report. He melt with some
injuries during training camp, and it's like, oh, I don't
want this kind of bang up because he is so
important and you saw it on that play. He really
saw it throughout the game. There's the communication aspect of
what he does. But then he has this athleticism to
(08:05):
get up into the second level against these linebackers and
deliver these blocks that can spring the big runs. It's
not just the three four, five yard carries. Linderbaum's ability
to hit a guy at the line of scrabers and
gets to that second level opens up these fifteen to
twenty eighty seven yard runs.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
And I think a really big key like to that also,
like we were saying, has been the blocking of the
tight ends and on the perimeter, especially the tight ends.
Mark Andrews and Isaya likely are getting after it as blockers.
And I know there's a lot of handwringing about what
they haven't done as receivers, but these past two weeks
have been They've been excellent perimeter blockers. Mark Andrews had
the highest run blocking grade on the team, higher than
(08:44):
Linderbaum than any of the offensive linemen.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
I mean, he.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
Was definitely getting after a Bill's defense that likes to
play with lighter defensive formations.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
They like to go heavy nickel. They're not a.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Big physical defense off times, especially once you get to
the second level. They had injury issues at linebacker, and
the Ravens kind of exposed that with their physicality.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
Yeah, I mean, the Ravens absolutely looked like a team
that could play with just this physical edge. And when
you talk about the success of the running game and
what has worked for the Ravens offense these last two weeks,
they've run for more than two hundred and seventy.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Yards in each of the last two weeks.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
Bill Belichick he knows a thing or two about football.
He was just on Pat McAfee show this week and
he was asked about the way that the Ravens are
clicking on offense, and Belichick pointed out, what you just
alluded to, Bill's typically play a little bit lighter. They've
been a team that plays a lot of nickel, a
lot of dimes. So the package their base defense is
a lighter package.
Speaker 4 (09:41):
Okay, so what do the Ravens do well?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
The Ravens zag, Well, everybody else is digging one and
drug in one direction. Ye, And well how do they
do that? Well, you have a three hundred pound full
back in pat Ricard. You have these tight ends in
Isaiah Likely and Mark Andrews who are playing pretty selfless
and downhill blockers, and so, as Belichick spelled out, if
you go too heavy, the Raves also.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
Have great speed.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
So as a defense, if you go to heavy, well,
they've got this great speed where they.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
Can day flowers on end rounds and jet sweeps and
all that stuff.
Speaker 2 (10:10):
And as a receiver, you've got a ton of Justice Hill.
Speaker 1 (10:13):
As they showed, Justice Hill abused Bill's linebacker for a touchdown, yep.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
And so yeah, they can definitely hit you with the speed.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Also, it's really you know, there's been a lot of
conversation around the NFL this year about passing yards being
down the too high safeties, you know.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Mel Kiper you know, said it should be banned, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
And and so the Ravens are kind of saying, all right,
you wanna drop go too high safety, play later, bunch
of dvs on the field, We're gonna bury you.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
And this isn't something super new for the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
It's just that they haven't had Derek Henry in the
backfield to do it right. They haven't had that punisher
back there where they can just and also their decisions
along the offensive line have shaded in this direction. Right,
we're gonna go with big old Daniel Foulet guard. Right
when they could have gone smaller, they said, give me
the big guy. We're gonna stick with him and keep
giving him a chance to grow and improve. Right, we're
(11:04):
gonna draft Roger Rosegard and we're gonna go big. We're
gonna go heavy. Pat Ricard's see the past few weeks
has seen a much higher snapshare. We're gonna deploy him.
And so the Ravens now have this ability. As you said,
if the rest of the league is zigging, they're zagging
right and saying, all right, we're gonna just punch you
in the mouth over and over and over again.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Yeah, it's just really hard to stop it. I mean,
there's something to be said for knowing that the Ravens
are gonna run the ball. You got this big package
on the field, you got Patrick a card, and you
got Derek Henry in the backfield, and the feeling is
like they're clearly giving it to Henry and to still
be able to run it is when the Ravens have
been able to do the last couple of weeks.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
And I think that Todd that's where Todd Munkin really
comes into this conversation, as we said.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
As I said, I thought he was in his bag, and.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
He's done a really good job with his mixing of
different runs, the sequencing of those runs, with using Lamar
as a runner, right misdirection motions in the backfield. Like
he's done a really good job of mixing, mixing up
the picture for defenses because to your point, if you
just run, run, run, like in a game script that
(12:12):
is usually this heavy in one direction. It's really kind
of hard to do, right, Like, the best offense is
a balanced offense, right, So to have success when it's
so run heavy, you've got to do a really nice
job of still keeping that defensive line guessing and keeping
them off balance. And I thought Todd Mounkin in this
game in particular end last week in Dallas, has done
(12:33):
a really good job of getting them looking one way,
popping out the other way. A lot of kind of
eye candy and a lot of not just it's not
all deception, but like actually taking it different ways too,
and having Lamar pop out the other way, having Lamar
keep it in the RPO game, like, just a lot
of really good, high level play calling on his part
(12:55):
to keep them guessing.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Now.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
You know, look, we a lot of times as fans
you look at the final number where you say, okay,
twenty passes, twenty runs, that's good. Yeah, I want fifty
to fifty. That's good balance. But there's a lot of
variety within those play calls, of course, And so the
Ravens have shaded very heavy on the run game the
last two weeks. Part of that has been game script
in the way the game has played out. When you're up,
(13:18):
when you're up big in the second half, you're going
to continue running the ball. But there also is variety
within that running game, and that's part of the raise,
the part of the reason the Ravens have been able
to sustain that success.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Now, the Ravens do need to continue and improve this
running game because they're having a lot of success outside
the tackles. On perimeter runs, they had thirteen carries for
a buck seventy three and a touchdown. Now, you know,
eighty seven of them came on really one run, right,
but they averaged thirteen point three yards per carry outside
the tackles. They averaged two point four yards per carry
(13:51):
between the tackles eleven carries twenty six yards.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
Right.
Speaker 1 (13:53):
So that's kind of the next step that they need
to take, right as they it's hard to sit here
and nitpick a running game. They're the top run team
in the NFL. They're on a historic base. I mean
through four games, they're they're on a better pace than
they were back in that record setting year when they
ran for the most yards in a single season in
NFL history.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
Yeah, they have eight hundred and eighty one yards the
first four games through the first four games of twenty nineteen,
when they set the NFL record for the most rushing
yards ever, they had eight hundred and twenty three yards exactly.
Speaker 1 (14:22):
So it's hard to sit here and nitpick a rushing
attack that's on a historic pace. But the good news is, like,
I think they have room to improve if they can
run better even between the tackles, like that is going
to add yet another dimension to this rushing attack.
Speaker 3 (14:40):
Well, let's talk about one of the tackles, and I
want to dive into the rookies. Who the top two
picks Nay Wiggins first round pick, second round pick Roger Rosegarden.
Let's start with Rosengarden because he steps in it right tackle.
The Ravens had an injury along the offensive line. Starting
left guard Andrew Vourhees is dealing with an ankle injury, so.
Speaker 4 (14:56):
He was out.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
So the Ravens could have gone a couple of different directions.
They opt to move starting right tackle Pat McCarey to
left guard. He completes the cycle of playing every position
along the offensive line, starting at every spot, so he
moves to the left guard position. Insert Roger Rosegarden at
right tackle. He'd been coming on strong, and he I
think really made a strong case to solidify himself in
(15:19):
the starting lineup with the way that he played.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Yeah, the Ravens now have that question in front of him.
I'm not sure that it's in cement, you know, but
he made his case, and so now it's kind of
all right.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
You know. The funny thing is, entering the season, we
were all.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
Talking about like, uh, you know, who are going to
be the guards? You know, I don't know who's gonna
take these last starting spots.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
And it was a problem.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Now it's kind of a good problem to have, right,
You're like, who's going to play in these spots? Because
now you know you have Voorhees is going to be
coming back. But McCarry just played well. Rosegarden just played
well right tackle. Like now you have an abundance, right,
and so file Leila turned in his second straight, you know,
good game. And so I don't know which way they're
(16:05):
gonna go, but yeah, I think that they certainly could.
What they've done so far is ride the hot hand.
That's what they did in Dallas. Roger Rosegarten didn't get
any snaps in Dallas, right because Pat McCay was playing
well at right tackle, and file Leley was playing well
at right guard. Well, now the hot hand is Rose
Andngarten at right tackle and McCarry at left guard, and
(16:26):
so they could ride that now and see how you
know how long they can ride that?
Speaker 2 (16:30):
So I thought Roger rosen Garten.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
And he played every snap in this game, showed a
really good well roundedness to his game. He's he is
quick off the snap, he has great feet. You see
him matching von Miller's speed. I mean, here's von Miller.
He's going to be a Hall of Famer, right And
I granted, you know he's in the certainly the back nine.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Of his career.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
But to see a rookie making his first NFL start
and he's doing a good job mirroring von Miller, that's
a good right. I thought he matched the power of
Ed Oliver pretty well. Able to anchor a few times
and did he lose some, sure, but he held it
long enough to get the job done. He's really good
at turning defenders because he has those quick hips, quick feet,
(17:14):
and he can quickly get on defender's edge and turn
him inside or outside or whatever he needs to do.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
That's a real strong point of his.
Speaker 1 (17:21):
And then what I was maybe most impressed with was
the team where he had with Daniel Folele, picking up
the stunts, the twists, the communication between those two guys
for two young offensive linemen, I thought that was really
a positive thing.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
Yeah, and he opens the game when he had a
key block on that long run by Derrick Henry. Derrek
Henry ran right off as his left shoulder to find
that green grass, and that was a big play for
rose Garden.
Speaker 4 (17:45):
I think with him.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
I loved watching rose Garden run down the field after that,
chasing Derrick Henry. He was just like a gleeful kid
on the school yard. Yeah, just like, oh, he was
so happy.
Speaker 2 (17:56):
He was great.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
Well, so when you look at rose Garden, the skyndger
port of him coming into the NFL was here's somebody
who's he's not the biggest and he's going to continue
to put on weight and muscle over the course of
his NFL career, but.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
He's really athletic.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
He can go out there and he can hang with
some of these talented speed rushers. And I thought that
he did that. And even go back to the Raiders game,
he had some really good reps against Max Crosby, who
wrecked that game for the Ravens. But Rosengarten held up
pretty well against Max Crosby in that game.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
I mean really, since his first NFL snap, it's been
uphill from there, right correct.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
The first one was the Sax strip.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
Yeah, that was bad against Chris Jones and that was
in Kansas City. But he's steadily improved since that point.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Oh for sure.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
I think that likes he is able to hold up
pretty well against the speed rushers. The question becomes how
does he do against the power and that I think
will continue to be where he improves and has room
for growth over the course of this season, because of
course there's going to be some talented power rushers on
the horizon when you've got Miles Garrett and TJ in
(19:00):
your division.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 3 (19:01):
So if he ends up remaining at that spot, I'm
sure that these these talented pass rushers are going to
test that. They're going to test his ability to anchor
and try to bowl rush him. And that's gonna be
where he has to prove himself.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely, and I think he will. Like I agree,
I saw his ability to anchor, and you know, there's
a lot of things that you can do. And the Ravens, did,
you know, at times give him some help. And so
you have pat Riccard out there you can help, you know,
against some of those big, powerful guys. So they're going
to help him. But he's only going to get better.
(19:35):
And so I think the future is really bright for
Roger Rosegarden. Speaking of rookies, Nate Wiggins, I thought had
a really strong game. He played all but I think
three snaps in this game got the start with Marlon
Humphrey playing a lot inside in the nickel position, and
I thought Nate Wiggins had a really great game. According
(19:56):
to Prayer Football Focus, he gave up one catch for
five yards on thirty five coverage snaps. Now you know,
next thing is he's got to hit the drugs machine. Okay, dropped,
dropped two of them, two gives. Yeah, So you know,
we'll we'll see if he's on that drugs machine and
practice this week. But but I think that for Nate,
(20:17):
like just seeing his ability to mirror receivers and and
I thought he did a better job playing some of
the press coverage that that gave him trouble in Dallas.
I thought Nate Wiggins had a very strong showing in
this game, and it really kind of proved I can
be that every snap guy. We knew that at some point,
you know, we predicted, Yeah, Nate Wiggins is too talented
(20:39):
to leave on the bench, and at some point this
guy is going to be playing most, if not all,
of the game, and he proved it.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
We might be in this situation now where Wigans and Rosegarden,
the team's top two picks, are just basically in the
starting lineup, or are in the starting lineup depending on
how the Ravens want to play on defense.
Speaker 1 (20:57):
Now, it's gonna be interesting because Arthur Mallett's coming back
at some point here from the knees expected to practice
this week. So where does that leave Marlon Humphrey, you
know who I think has also played pretty well. Yeah,
so the Ravens have an embarrassment of riches at cornerback. Well.
Speaker 3 (21:12):
The other part that certainly contributed to this is that
Jalen armor Davis, who had played a good amount through
the first three games, he was added to injured reserve
over the weekend, so he goes to IR. That creates
an opportunity where Nate steps in and plays a significant
number of steps. I was encouraged by him. I've loved
what I've seen from him. He's so sticky in coverage.
He has great athleticism. I think that some of the
(21:33):
things that have been issues for him early in this season,
I think that he learns quickly, and he showed that
in this game. I think that he gave up the
slants a little too easy against Dallas, and so that
was something that he I think was better at in
this game. He wasn't given up easy catches. So it
was an encouraging sign from him. And look, I much
(21:54):
prefer a cornerback with very sticky coverage who lets a
pick bounce off his hands than a quarterback who can't cover.
Speaker 4 (22:01):
So yeah, I want to see him come down with
those interceptions. I think he will.
Speaker 3 (22:07):
But the main thing, the most important thing is that
he's right there. He's great in coverage, and I think
the Ravens have the Ravens had they might have knocked
it out of the park, you know, with these first
two picks.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
Yeah, I agree, And sticking on the rookies real quick.
A deecea Isaac got made his debut and I thought
played really well. Made three tackles. You know, it was
kind of late in the fourth quarter there, when the
game was all decided, really, but I thought it's decent,
all right, showed me a little something, you know.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
It's also just good to.
Speaker 3 (22:36):
Get reps like this is the guy he was sidelined
so much of the offseason in training camp.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
It's like, it's good to play.
Speaker 3 (22:41):
You need to play, and I think that that is
a perfect opportunity for a guy like that.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Yep, and played well.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
And TJ Tampa fourth round corner also got some snaps
late in that game. So another player where it's just
important to get some game reps.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
So as we're talking about the secondary, Wiggins playing great,
Marlon moving to the slot, this was by far the
best game the second Andry has played this season. They
were great in coverage throughout the night. Josh Allen, who
as we mentioned many times over the last week, was
coming into this game as maybe the favorite in the
MVP race, and he didn't have much room at all
(23:15):
to throw. The only play that he hit was this
miracle throw along the sidelines, the fifty two yarder, But
outside of that, it was an a plus day from
this raven secondary well right.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
I mean, here's the secondary that came into the game
ranked thirty second in the league, giving up two hundred
and ninety one point seven yards per game. And you
got Josh Allen coming into your house. You're like, this
is this is gonna be that good? Yeah, and you
know held him to one hundred and eighty passing yards.
So mission accomplished, completed sixteen to twenty nine. It was
(23:45):
Josh Allen's second lowest drop back success rate of his career.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Okay, and I.
Speaker 1 (23:51):
Didn't even think that Josh Allen played poorly, you know
what I mean, Like, but he still had according to
next Gen stats, like his second worst game in terms
of drop back success. Right, he wasn't turning the ball
over left and right, well except a key fumble that
really turned the game.
Speaker 2 (24:07):
But like that says something.
Speaker 1 (24:09):
Yeah, right, I mean he came in leaving the league
in dropped back success rate at sixty one point nine percent,
So went from sixty one sixty two percent to twenty
three point five percent.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
That is a big change.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
And so I thought the Ravens secondary did it with
a nice, nice mix of coverages. And once again this
gives back to Zach Orr and him playing well or
calling a good game. I mean is I thought they
mixed their coverages really well. There's some creative looks. I mean,
you had one in which they were playing single high
safety and the single high safety totally swapped, you know.
(24:47):
I think it was Marcus Williams up high. He and
Kyle Holton, Kyle Heulnson was near the linebackers.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Those two guys just swapped. It was like, what is
happening here?
Speaker 4 (24:56):
You know?
Speaker 1 (24:56):
So really a lot of post snap movements and adjustments
that clouded picture for Josh Allen, and I think that's
why you saw him scrambling so much and just trying
to buy more time, Buy more time, buy more time,
go to the sideline and see if I can find something.
And then in those instances a good job except for
the one play that they hit of plastering staying on
(25:16):
on receivers. So I thought, you know, really the other
plays that he hit were those back shoulders that were
just great throws, great plays by Key and Coleman. Like
I cannot fault Brannon Stevens for those those plays being made.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
Yeah, I'm with you.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
It's like, Okay, Berdie Stevens gave up this catch along
the sidelines. He was right there and coverage.
Speaker 2 (25:35):
A couple of them. Yeah, yeah, couldn't played it much.
Speaker 4 (25:38):
How do you play that better? I guess knocked the
ball down, but you're right there. Oh, you're right.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
Shoulder throw is the hardest to defend. Really, the back
shoulder throw in the NFL is like, if you can.
Speaker 2 (25:46):
Do it, it's nice for it.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
Yeah, it's like it's it's a tough one to get done.
And so I'm not gonna fault them for that. I
thought the secondary. You know, the other point that that
John Harwell made is there playing a pretty good amount
of man coverage.
Speaker 2 (26:02):
They played it a third of.
Speaker 1 (26:03):
The time in this game, which is not super out
of character for them. They they played the basically the
same rate against Dallas and the same rate against the Chiefs.
But they're playing it better, right, And so that was
one of the things that we talked about early in
this year, is like they're not playing those underneath routes
(26:25):
very well. They were getting beat on that kind of stuff,
and I think they're playing it better now and it's
giving them the Ravens the confidence to call that man coverage.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
And you look at they played at a third of
the snatch.
Speaker 1 (26:34):
The Bills only played man coverage eighteen percent, so that
allows you to do some different things when you're able
to play man coverage and play it well. I thought
Zach Orr did a great job of mixing pressures, you know,
mixing coverages. I mean the Ravens played cover one, Cover
three at thirty percent, rates Cover six, twenty percent, Cover one,
eleven percent, Cover two, Cover zero.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
They got a blit a sackle on that cover zero call.
Like just really a lot of mixing and matching of
coverages and pressures.
Speaker 3 (27:03):
Well, it's basically this was a This was a perfect
example of the secondary and the pass rush working in tandem.
And Kyle van noy is where you start the conversation.
He leaves the AFC with six x right now. He
had a force fumble that changed the game. I won't
say it changed the game, it's it's stopped the momentum
that the Chiefs or that the Bills seemed to be
gaining at that moment. And so Van Neu finished with
(27:25):
four pressures on nineteen pass rushes on the night, So
twenty one percent of the time when he's going after
the quarterback, he's applying pressure, and that just speaks to
the way that he's playing.
Speaker 4 (27:35):
At this level.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Oway got a sack in this game. Travis Jones was
a monster in this game. The Ravens front had an
excellent night and that any cornerback, any safety will tell
you that makes their life much easier when you got
Josh Allen running for his life for half the time.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
One hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (27:53):
Yeah, I mean the coverage was good and they flushed him.
The pass rush flushed him. I thought the Ravens defense
made a statement with their physicality again, you know, and
Travis Jones was I mean not only I went down
a wormhole last night on this at Travis Jones's size,
hitting Josh Allen at twelve point something miles per hour,
(28:16):
I was like asking chat GTP, like what's the force
on that? Like what what does that? What's the equivalent?
And so I tried to get people smarter than me
to answer this. I tried to get Ai to answer this. Basically,
it was like a minor car accident. Huh, yeah, there
are other people that was like it was getting hit
by a sledgehammer. I don't know, yeah, I know, I
(28:39):
really went down the wormhole and all I know is
a question.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
A train, a train leaves Baltimore.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
It was like that, the train left the defensive line
and the train hit Josh Allen equals a lot of
OUCHI yes, that's the final answer is ouch.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
And so.
Speaker 1 (28:58):
Yeah, I mean Roquan Smith with that hit on James
Cook early in the game, that just snapped him backwards.
I thought was that was one of those moments Kyle
Hamilton coming downhill and just obliterating a ball carrier early
in the game. They I think that was the first
drive for the Bills. They set the tone defensively with
their physicality.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (29:19):
Yeah, I think you brought the Roquan Smith hit. Brian Baldinger,
who does a great job with his film breakdowns, he
pointed out that Roquan Smith hit and it just was
Rokwan basically just kind of sidestep three blockers and then
delivered a big pop on James Cook.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Well, he gave him a new nickname, right, Yeah.
Speaker 4 (29:35):
Yeah, what was nick that? I'll let you look that up.
Speaker 2 (29:37):
Yeah, I'll look it up.
Speaker 3 (29:38):
But like Roquan it's not like he's come up with
too many splash plays. He had the interception in Kansas City.
But I think that like that kind of play speaks
to the tone, the physicality, the way that the Ravens
want to play defense. Just like when you think of
the Ravens defense and the mindset and who they are
and what you're going up against, that is exactly what
(29:59):
comes to mind. Kind of play from Roquan Smith. It's
not like it was this big time highlight. Not everybody
is calling attention to it, but that type of pot
makes you feel like, man, this is gonna be a
long night. We're going up against a really hard hitting,
physical defense.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
The ambassador of violence.
Speaker 4 (30:14):
Okay, there you go. That's that's in Baldi.
Speaker 2 (30:17):
It doesn't get better than that.
Speaker 4 (30:18):
That's a good one for Baldy.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
You know what else the film breakdown really revealed was
this great new Sax celebration that the Ravens have from
Kyle Fannoy with the hands up.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
That like you knew me.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
This isn't a video edition of the pod, but just
go check us out on our social media channels at
Ravens on X and you'll you'll find that one.
Speaker 4 (30:38):
Well, we actually another little teaser here. We had Kyle
Vannoin Mike for this game.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Oh I cannot wait, so I cannot wait that.
Speaker 3 (30:45):
I think you know that's the we talked about the
podcast Bump the Wired Bomp.
Speaker 4 (30:49):
In this game, he's Mike Test has two sacks.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
Now he gets two sacks every game, So I guess
you can't necessarily attribute it to.
Speaker 2 (30:56):
He's three straight.
Speaker 1 (30:57):
It's only been done once before in Raybe history, justin
Houston back in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Remember that heater he was on.
Speaker 3 (31:03):
Oh yeah, he was on fire. So but anyway, Cayved
and nois Mike. That episode is going to be in
Ravens Wire that comes out Wednesday night. So I've seen
a sneak peak of it. You do not want to
miss it. It's it's excellent and he does not disappoint.
Speaker 4 (31:13):
So we're gonna take a quick break.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
When we come back, we'll dive into what this means
for the Ravens moving forward. You're listening to the Lags podcast.
We're coming to you from the Sea Geek Studio. We
want to mention our friends at Draft King Sportsbook. They
are an official sports betting partner of the Baltimore Ravens
Draft King Sportsbook. The Crown is yours. So as we're
talking about this game and what went right for the Ravens.
(31:35):
I think that the question now is how teams adjust.
So we talked about Buffalo playing this team with a
lighter box, a lot of nickel coming into the game.
So what do we think moving forward is the answer
is a solution. This is the Bill Belichick dilemma that
I also talked about. Do teams load up with size
then the Ravens take advantage of their speed, or do
(31:56):
they load up with the speed and the Ravens take
advantage with their size. What's your expectations? Our teams just
gonna bring safeties downhill and try to stop the Ravens
that way?
Speaker 4 (32:04):
What do we see from here?
Speaker 1 (32:06):
I don't think it's really as simple as that, because
the problem is you bring those safeties downhill and then
you get Derrick Henry on the edge, you're in trouble. So,
you know, I think it's more less about I think
it's more about personnel. Do they try to go a
little bit heavier, more base packages, more linebackers on the field,
(32:28):
less of that nickel stuff, and then if that's the case,
if they go heavier, then I think you see the
Ravens throw the ball a little bit more, get it
out save flowers out in space, some of those things.
You know, they've done a good job of the screen game.
That's been another thing that another tool that Todd Munkin
has used to keep defenses off balance. And so I
(32:49):
think it's a personnel shift that the Ravens are going
to see as opposed to necessarily just more loaded boxes. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (32:56):
I think that one of the things that is work
looking in the Ravens favor in this whole conversation is
that both of their tight ends, Mark Andrews and Isaiah
likely can be matchup problems. So if if especially with
the way they're blocking right now, like if it shifts
where they say, all right, we're gonna go big, We're
gonna we're gonna put bigger guys on the field rather
than having an extra dB, we're gonna put an extra
(33:17):
linebacker out there. Well, now you have a linebacker on
Mark Andrews or Isaiah, likely that should be a completion
every time. And that's how the way Ravens would look
at it, I'm guessing.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (33:26):
Well, and the Bengals, when we're talking about run defenses,
have not been particularly good against the run this year,
only one, two, three, four, five, six, teams have given
up more rushing yards per game than the Cincinnati Bengals.
So far through four weeks, Bengals have given up one
hundred and forty five and a half yards per game.
So I don't think this is the week where you say,
(33:47):
you know what, let's zag just keep on zigging, right,
just like I think that they could just continue to
attack the Bengals with this rushing attack. Now, the interesting
thing for the Ravens is eventually, yes, they're gonna have to,
I think, prove that they can make people pay through
the air more. You know, for the second straight week,
(34:09):
Lamar Jackson, according to the Next Gen Stats, did not
attempt a tight window throw. Now, that third down completion
of Nelson Agalore, I don't know how the heck that's
not considered a tight window throw. Yeah, but okay, next
Gen stats. Okay, so what they considered a tight window
throw is a pass with less than one yard of separation. Right,
(34:30):
So thirteen of his of Lamar's eighteen total passing attempts
came on targets with three or more yards of separation.
That's good scheme, that's good Lamar picking the right guy
to throw to, you know, Lamar handling things at leniscourage,
you know, all that doing that at a high level.
But eventually, you know, I think Lamar is going to
have to make teams pay with his arm. We've seen
(34:52):
him do that many many times. Yeah, just hasn't really.
I mean when they came back in Kansas City early year,
you know, week one, and they had to throw the
ball down the field. He made some big time throws
in that game, but they have not really won a
game with a huge passing day.
Speaker 2 (35:08):
Lamar Jackson doesn't care. He just wants to win, period.
Speaker 1 (35:11):
He also, by the way, does not care about your
parlays at all. So that's kind of the next evolution,
you know. I mean he's he's targeted open receivers on
a career high fifty eight percent of his targets this season.
That's good scheme. Again, that's good scheme. That's him throwing
it to the right guy. All that stuff. That's not
(35:32):
to hold it against him, but like, eventually it's gonna
kind of get a little bit opponents. I think, hopefully not,
but I think that they're eventually going to find a
way to load up with some of these more line,
more of these linebackers and make it harder to run,
protect those edges better, all that stuff to make it
(35:53):
harder for the Ravens run and the Ravens are gonna
have to beat him in the air.
Speaker 4 (35:55):
Yeah, and I think the Ravens are able to do that.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
I really point like the natural thought is, Okay, that
could mean big things for Ze Flowers and Rasaw Bateman
and the guys on the edge. There's truth to that,
But I go back to the tight ends. I just
think that the Ravens' ability. They're running a ton of
two tight end packages. Almost half the time. You have
two tight ends on the field, and they're blocking so
well against these current boxes that if you load up
(36:23):
again with a bigger linebacker, I just don't think that
there's linebackers in the league you can run with Isaiah
Likeli and Mark Andrews, and so if you go that route,
I just think that's going to be the matchup problem
that the Ravens have been waiting for. And now you
can find some of those big plays over the middle
of the field, and then you go back to square
one and you're trying to stop this running game, and
you can run play action off that. I think the
(36:43):
tight ends and I know there's been a lot. Mark
Andrews has gone without a catch the last two games.
That has never happened in his career. He's been so
productive throughout his career. So everyone, all the fantasy football
players out there are getting concerned and all this stuff.
And again Lamar doesn't care, because he's made that clear
on social media with some of his posts this week.
John Harball did talk earlier this week about he talked
(37:05):
on Monday about Mark Andrews and made it clear that
the Ravens believe big games are on the horizon for Mark,
and I agree with that.
Speaker 4 (37:11):
I'm not.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
I think the part of it is just the shift,
and it's how teams are playing them, and the Raves
are taking what the defense is giving them, and that's
what you want your offense to do. Now, when that
changes and adjusts, I think that Mark Andrews could have
a game somewhere here in the near future where he's
over one hundred yards and flirting with double digit catches
that absolutely could happen somewhat soon.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
That's definitely gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (37:37):
I mean, I will say this, Mark Andrews's best games
in his career have.
Speaker 2 (37:43):
Often come against the Bengals and the Browns. Bengals next up.
I mean, how many great catches has he made in Cincinnati? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (37:50):
Load, and so whatever. Take that for what it is.
It's a matchup games. It's year to year. But I'm
just saying, like this guy when he goes against division opponents.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
I mean, obviously last year he was you know, he
had that catch right near the goal line last year
when he got hurt against the Bengals.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
That's correct. He he was gonna go off that game.
Speaker 4 (38:10):
Yeah, it's certainly that way.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
Yeah, and so.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
Yeah, kind of a trip down memory lane a little
bit for Mark Andrews in that way. Yeah, going against
Logan Wilson of the Bengals for the first time. So yeah,
I think absolutely Mark's gonna have some big games coming up.
That's why I traded for him in fantasy football. As
I told him. He was kind of psyched about that.
Speaker 2 (38:31):
Now it hasn't paid off yet, but.
Speaker 3 (38:33):
He's he's basically one of the You're one of the
people that, like Lamar Sweeten about basically quit talking to
me about your fantasy football team.
Speaker 1 (38:40):
I do not bet, so I don't have anyanasies I
got no skin in the gate fantasy football is it
by one league? But uh, but yeah, I think that
Mark Andrews. Nothing has changed about Mark Andrews. You know,
I do think times have changed for Mark Andrews. He's
not the clear number one target by a margin like
(39:00):
he used to be three years ago or whatever. You know,
it's changed. Yeah, and you got Derek Henry. You have
this rushing attack, but like the Ravens aren't going to
be this run heavy the entire season.
Speaker 2 (39:11):
They're going to have to change.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
As we've said, Mark Andrews, he did get more snaps
against this past week against the Bills, he ran more routes.
He only ran six routes against the Cowboys. He ran
ten routes against the Bills. He should have had one catch.
He was wide open. He just dropped it.
Speaker 2 (39:27):
Yeah, so he should he shouldn't have been shut out.
Speaker 1 (39:29):
Yeah, and yeah, to our earlier point, I think that
if teams do go with heavier personnel, more linebackers, that's more.
Speaker 2 (39:38):
You know, Mark.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
Andrews would rather have a big old linebacker covering and
probably than a big nickel. And so that's when those
guys I think are gonna eat what.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
A Mark Andrews sell us when he joined us on
the pod two weeks ago. He said, this offense is
a pick your poison offense and right now, Derek Cannery
used to poison for these defenses, and so that's what
the Ravens are leaning on. But if that shift, well,
then Mark Andrews is going to be there right around
the corner. And I think that to your point, if
you go back a couple of years, I think the
teams when they went to play the Ravens, they came
(40:09):
into it feeling like stop eighty nine first and foremost
from a passing game standpoint.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
And that's that too.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
And yeah, and if you do that, it's going to
be tough for the Ravens to move the football. Now,
the Ravens have other weapons, which is what you want.
You want to have a more versaal offense. So they've
gotten to this point and that's a good thing that
there's not as much on Andrew's shoulders.
Speaker 4 (40:30):
But don't forget that he still has that ability.
Speaker 2 (40:34):
Yep, I totally agree. We have some emails.
Speaker 3 (40:36):
Yeah, we have an email here I read one earlier,
but another email that I want to get to. As always,
you can email us at the lounge at Ravens dot
NFL dot net. This is from John who says, I
want to give a shout out to the Ravens head
coach for getting the team ready for primetime and delivering
a big victory early in the season. I'm confident like
our players that they're I'm confident that our players are
improving and the coaching and play calling will continue to
(40:57):
improve as the season goes on. Also, he wants to
get to the dog of the week. If Dereck Henry
isn't the dog of the week, he says, a close
second option.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
Okay, he was the dog last week, do we get I.
Speaker 4 (41:09):
Mean, he just put up on hundred ninety nine yards.
Speaker 3 (41:11):
But if you need a second dog, he says, Todd
munkin his play climb was he caught the Bill's flat
footed from the jump. So two emails this week, both
praising the coordinators. I mean, you can give it to
the dog up in the booth, but it's hard not.
Speaker 4 (41:28):
To give it.
Speaker 2 (41:28):
He was barking up there.
Speaker 3 (41:30):
It's hard not to give it to Derrick Henry when
he put up more than two hundred dolls purpose two touchdowns.
Speaker 4 (41:35):
But it's your you can give it toever you want.
Speaker 1 (41:39):
Todd does kind of need it after the Alabama Georgia
game right where the Dogs lost that game, so he
kind of needs it.
Speaker 2 (41:45):
He kind of needs a bulldog. But I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
It's Derrick Henry again, the back to back go of
the week.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
It's fitting, it's appropriate again. You can emails with the
Lounge at Ravens Net. We always love getting those emails.
Make sure you hit that subscribe button. Thank you so
much for listening, and we will be back with you
again later this week.
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