The Baltimore Ravens fell 10-17 in disappointing fashion to their AFC North Rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Ravens played an excellent game defensively but couldn't muster enough offense to put together a win. Divisional losses are costly, and the Steelers now hold the same record as the Ravens. Should Lamar Jackson, John Harbaugh and the flock be concerned after this loss? Further, who is responsible for the loss? Here are the Ravens who take the most blame for the Week 5 loss.

 

1. The entire receiver room

This obviously isn't one player, but it might as have been. Ravens receivers dropped seven passes on Sunday, frequently at very inopportune times. Zay Flowers dropped a wide open pass for a deep gain and a first down on the first drive of the game, forcing Baltimore to punt. Later in the game, he fell down on a deep ball that may have turned into a touchdown, given Flowers' speed.

In the second quarter, Mark Andrews and Rashod Bateman dropped back-to-back passes in the end zone. That forced the Ravens to settle for a field goal from the Steelers' five yard line. Bateman and Nelson Agholor also dropped wide open deep balls that Lamar Jackson placed on the money. Agholor's should've gone for a touchdown.

Jackson and Andrews really weren't able to get their connection going, which needs to be a strong point of this offense. Andrews simply needs to be better than he was today. Finally, the Ravens' high-profile offseason addition, Odell Beckham Jr., has virtually been a non-factor this whole season.

 

2. Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson gets a little bit of slack for this loss because of how terrible the receivers were, but he wasn't great either. Jackson is a former unanimous MVP and rushed for 1,200 yards during that season. The Ravens inked him to a 5-year, $260 million contract to be that guy. He rushed for 45 yards today, which is fine, but he also took four sacks for 26 yards.

Jackson doesn't need to gain 1,200 yards on the ground again, but his best asset is his legs. He needs to be more willing to use them to unlock the offense. Even if he's not always taking off to run, he has to be more elusive in the pocket. The sack he took which led to a fumble was very avoidable. That drive was also the Ravens' last realistic chance to go win the game.

The drive before that one, Jackson threw an interception in the end zone which was just a poor decision followed by a bad throw. Beckham was completely covered in the end zone, and Jackson also didn't get him a chance to make a play on the ball.

We probably wouldn't be talking about any of this if his receivers had caught all those wide open passes. Jackson didn't play a bad game, but he also didn't do what his team needed to win it late in the fourth.

 

3. John Harbaugh

John Harbaugh and the rest of the coaching staff have a good amount to clean up. The Ravens had a punt blocked for a safety, which very well could have been a touchdown. They were 5-14 on third down and 0-2 on fourth. This is a talented team that just isn't executing well. If I told you the Ravens would have the ball at the Steelers' five yard line with four minutes left in the game, and the Steelers offense had only scored six points by then, you would think the Ravens were a lock to win.

Well, that's exactly what happened, and then the Ravens threw a pick, allowed a 41-yard touchdown, fumbled, allowed a field goal, and then turned it over on downs to end the game.

Also, why did Harbaugh get so aggressive with the game plan at times? At the end of the first half, the Ravens had a choice to kick a 40-yard field goal on 4th-and-2. The score was 10-3 with seconds remaining. Just take the points and make it a two-score game. A coach has to trust his defense which had only allowed three points in the entire first half. Furthermore, Harbaugh knows the Steelers are incompetent on offense. All the Ravens had to do was not beat themselves. But that's exactly what they did.