OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The reminders aren’t pretty for the Ravens pass defense.
With four games to go in the regular season, Baltimore still ranks last in the NFL in passing yards allowed per game (264.9) and 31st in pass plays of 20 or more yards surrendered (50). Even after a three-game stretch of defensive growth going into last week’s bye, the Ravens still rank an underwhelming 23rd in scoring defense, 24th in third-down defense, and 18th in red-zone defense.
The man with the third-highest salary cap number on the team — free safety Marcus Williams — has logged two defensive snaps and a healthy scratch over the last three contests. But his benching — and the insertion of safety Ar’Darius Washington into the starting lineup — coincided with the marked defensive improvement shown against Pittsburgh, the Los Angeles Chargers, and Philadelphia.
Sunday’s tilt with the hapless New York Giants is unlikely to earn the Ravens many style points from a league-wide perspective, but it does provide an opportunity for a defense truly believing it’s turned the corner to take another step. And it could be psychological more than anything else for a unit still trying to mend a reputation that took a beating for much of the season.
“I feel like we kind of had a tendency to just try to soften up a little bit just to keep everything in front of us,” said All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton about the pre-bye improvement. “But I feel like now that we have that pretty well put together, I feel like we can get a little more aggressive now. It’s all 11 [guys], especially me included, coaches, everybody. Just [be] that much more aggressive and just go out and attack people.”
The Ravens certainly need to be aware of rookie receiver Malik Nabers, the LSU product who’s been as good as advertised as the Giants’ sixth overall pick in this year’s draft. Fifth-round rookie running back Tyrone Tracy has also been a bright spot for a last-place team with very few. But with injured starting quarterback Drew Lock not expected to play this week, the Giants are turning back to Tommy DeVito, whose 15 minutes of fame last year hasn’t translated into much substance on the field since then.
New York also sports one of the worst offensive lines in the league, making Sunday an opportune time for the defense to take the next step. What that entails is clear in the mind of defensive coordinator Zach Orr.
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“The No. 1 thing is getting takeaways. We’re not turning the ball over enough, and we’ve got to get the football — we have to,” Orr said last week. “That changes games, [and] that will help us out tremendously from a defensive standpoint and for our team. Takeaways, and then just even being more dominant in the red zone. Teams are going to get down there — it’s the National Football League — but let’s hold them to a maximum three points or a field goal attempt.”
The Ravens are tied for 23rd in the league with 11 takeaways after sharing the league lead with the Giants (31) last season and ranking eighth with 25 in 2022. Their seven interceptions — five by top cornerback Marlon Humphrey — are on pace to be their lowest season total since recording nine in the injury-ravaged 2021 campaign.
Forcing DeVito into some mistakes is a logical expectation for a defense wanting to prove it’s pre-bye improvement wasn’t a fluke. An improved ability to take the ball away would bode well for Baltimore’s championship aspirations.
“It’s about who gets hot at the right time,” said Hamilton, who’s still looking for his first interception of the season. “And I feel like in all professional sports [and] especially in football, it’s a grueling season. But if you have confidence going into the playoffs, going into that stretch, then I feel like anything can happen.”
Ravens healthy coming off bye week
Excluding suspended wide receiver Diontae Johnson, the Ravens were missing just one player from their active roster Wednesday as rookie safety Sanoussi Kane remains sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Both wide receiver Rashod Bateman (knee) and outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy (hamstring/neck) were full participants after being sidelined in the Week 13 loss to Philadelphia. It was also notable that defensive tackle Travis Jones wasn’t included after being a fixture on the injury report since hurting his ankle in Week 7.
8Meanwhile, the Giants listed a whopping 19 players on their injury report with six starters sitting out Wednesday’s workout.
Below is the full injury report:
BALTIMORE
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: S Sanoussi Kane (hamstring)
FULL PARTICIPATION: WR Rashod Bateman (knee), NT Michael Pierce (calf), CB T.J. Tampa (ankle), OLB Kyle Van Noy (hamstring/neck)
NEW YORK
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: QB Drew Lock (heel/left elbow), OT Evan Neal (hip/ankle), DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches (neck/shoulder), ILB Bobby Okereke (back), DB Dru Phillips (shoulder), G Jon Runyan (ankle)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION: CB Tae Banks (rib), S Dane Belton (knee), OT Jermaine Eluemunor (quad),
OT Josh Ezeudu (knee), CB Cor’Dale Flott (quad), WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton (shoulder), CB Art Green (quad), OT Chris Hubbard (knee), WR Malik Nabers (hip), NT Jordan Riley (knee), G Austin Schlottmann (fibula), C John Michael Schmitz (neck)
FULL PARTICIPATION: LB Dyontae Johnson (ankle)
