The Baltimore Ravens secured an important Week 11 win over the division rival Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football, but it came at a major cost. Despite gaining control of the division, the Ravens lost star tight end Mark Andrews for the season with an ankle injury. Will Lamar Jackson be able to carry Baltimore to the division crown without his top target? Can Isaiah Likely step up and replace some of Andrews' production? Will the Ravens lean into a change at running back to make the offense more explosive?
Let's take a look at all that and more as we tackle Baltimore's biggest concerns moving forward.
1. Replacing Mark Andrews
You could argue that outside of losing Lamar Jackson, Mark Andrews was the player the Ravens could least afford to see go down with a major injury. Andrews has been Jackson's most reliable target in the passing game, and the chemistry between the two has led to some big performances over the years. The Ravens now lack that trustworthy third-down target and seam buster up the middle of the field, and losing Andrews makes the Ravens much less explosive.
Replacing Mark Andrews will be second-year tight end Isaiah Likely, who has been a mixed bag in replacement of Andrews in the past.
It would be wholly unfair to Isaiah Likely to expect him to come even close to replicating the production of one of the league's very best tight ends, but Likely does have pass-catching talent and has proven to be a solid blocker as well. He'll have to earn the trust of Lamar Jackson heading into the stretch run, but Isaiah Likely has had huge preseason performances in the past and is one of the more talented backup tight ends in the league. The Ravens used a 4th round pick in 2022 on Likely for his potential in the pass game, and now it's time for him to step up with Andrews out.
2. Changing of the guard at running back?
Gus Edwards scored twice last night, and did what the Gus Bus tends to: grind out 5 yards per carry and pick up what's blocked for him. But with Andrews out and the Ravens needing some more explosiveness, you have to wonder if rookie running back Keaton Mitchell should start getting more of the workload. Mitchell received 9 touches to Edwards' 14 in the win, so this could become more of a timeshare on early downs than expected. Mitchell has proven to be explosive when he gets the ball in space, as he's averaging 10.3 yards per attempt on 20 carries this season.
Losing Andrews will send shockwaves throughout the entire offense, but injecting more pure speed and home run hitting ability will be necessary to keep defenses from loading up in the box and selling out on inside runs. Mitchell can make defenses pay in a way Edwards can't, and it will be interesting to see how Baltimore handles the running back workload heading into a Week 12 matchup with the Chargers and a bye right after.
3. Can the Ravens run defense hold up?
The easy portion of Baltimore's schedule is done with, and now the real tests begin.
In the last four games of the season, the Ravens will play the Jaguars and 49ers on the road, then finish the year with the Dolphins and Steelers at home. That last four-game stretch will decide a lot in terms of seeding and home-field advantages for the Ravens. Baltimore's pass defense has looked up for the task, but the run D will be challenged against Travis Etienne, Christian McCaffrey, and the explosive Dolphins ground game with De'Von Achane back healthy.
Will the Ravens run defense hold up towards the end of the season? The Browns and Bengals ran for a combined 314 yards on the ground over the last two weeks, and that will surely be a focus for the teams on the back end of the regular season schedule. The Ravens will have to be tougher against the run as the weather gets colder and teams try to grind out wins and keep Lamar Jackson off the field as much as possible.
Follow Us
Subscribe