With the Ravens losing their third straight game and fourth of their last five in a 19-14 loss at Pittsburgh on Wednesday, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. Most attention was on the offensive absences, but the Ravens allowing 4.7 yards per play and one touchdown in four goal-to-go situations was quite a feat with three of their top four defensive linemen and two of their best edge defenders unavailable. Wink Martindale’s unit rebounded nicely from Week 11.
2. A few observers had noted how Marlon Humphrey hadn’t played his best football since returning from his bout with COVID-19 in early November, but the All-Pro cornerback forced two fumbles and broke up two passes in the end zone. His ability to make plays on the ball is special.
3. Though you hope Marquise Brown’s catch and run for a 70-yard touchdown sparks him for the stretch run, that play accounting for a third of Baltimore’s total offense said it all. You’re not going to have much of a chance to win with four plays of 10 or more yards.
4. The lack of meaningful preparation and the missing members of his supporting cast created a very difficult situation, but the Ravens had to be expecting more from Robert Griffin III as a passer. To put it mildly, he didn’t look like a 30-year-old quarterback making his 42nd career start.
5. Yes, the officials could have held the clock, but wasting seven seconds before burning your final timeout after the first-and-goal run and then calling an inside run knowing defensive players are going to get up as slowly as possible shouldn’t warrant much sympathy. Not enough urgency, and awful clock management.
6. That said, Luke Willson has to make that touchdown catch when he’s your No. 2 tight end even when Mark Andrews is playing. It also reminded how the Ravens traded Hayden Hurst without adding a meaningful replacement, which felt unwise long before Nick Boyle’s season-ending knee injury.
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7. Tyus Bowser doesn’t set the edge consistently enough to be a full-time player, but he turned in a strong performance with three quarterback hits and his end-zone interception in the first quarter. The unwise attempt to imitate Ed Reed aside, he’s having a solid season in a contract year.
8. Undrafted rookie center Trystan Colon-Castillo handled himself well in his first start, showing why the Ravens promoted him a couple months back to fend off some outside interest. What an experience Wednesday had to be for the rookies who made their NFL debuts after not having any preseason action.
9. You hope Jimmy Smith doesn’t miss much time with a groin strain, but that was the kind of injury you worried about with players having so little practice time with the outbreak. For what it’s worth, seven Ravens who played Wednesday were listed as non-participants on Thursday’s estimated injury report.
10. Speaking of preparation, Pittsburgh also looked like a team who had barely practiced with Mike Tomlin not wanting to overwork his players in the midst of three postponements. It’s almost like normal routines matter to the product. Anything to prevent that football apocalypse created by a “Week 18” though, right?
11. I chuckle at sentiments about the Steelers being “the worst 11-0 team ever” while the Ravens fight for their playoff lives at 6-5, but Tomlin was right to describe his team’s performance as “junior varsity.” I can’t imagine Pittsburgh is keen on seeing a healthier Baltimore in the playoffs either.
12. Hearing John Harbaugh discuss the process of players returning from the COVID-19 list as “medical decisions” should remind us to pump the brakes on just assuming every player is good to go immediately after the 10-day isolation period. That feels particularly notable with the ongoing handwringing over Lamar Jackson’s return.
