Passing Game Disappears in Second Half

Ravens Receiving Report: Week 18

The 2021 Ravens must be approaching some kind of record for narrow losses in a season. Most losses in one-score game or something. Four of the losses in this five-game losing streak have been one-score games. I flip-flop between being frustrated at them for not closing the deal, or proud of them for keeping games close against very tough competition (Packers, Rams). Maybe John Harbaugh feels the same way. But it’s not really a “moral victory” league.

When the Ravens got in the situation where they needed Tyler Huntley to lead a comeback drive for a game-winning field goal with under a minute to play, there was a big problem. Huntley couldn’t generate any big plays in the second half of the game. In the first half Huntley completed 12 passes, and the median gain was 13.5 yards. Lots of success in the intermediate passing game.  There must have been some kind of halftime adjustment by LA, because after the break Huntley’s eight completions had a median gain of just 4.5 yards. On the completions! That 4.5 number would be OK if it were a rushing yards-per-carry stat; but it’s awful as a yards-per-completion stat.

The Football Outsiders guys said in their “Audibles” column that the Rams won this game with pass rush. Five sacks on the day, including two huge ones on the Ravens last two possessions. That dovetails with the biggest story of the Ravens season on offense: their weakness in pass protection.

Von Miller said some nice things about Patrick Mekari in the postgame, but the tape makes it seem like Miller just wants more chances to line up against Mekari. Miller got pressure on Huntley seven different times. But the Ravens interior O-line got dominated as well. Trystan Colon started at center over Bradley Bozeman, and he had his lunch money stolen. Ben Cleveland lined up primarily against Aaron Donald, and – well, he was a rookie against Aaron Donald. He’s not putting this game on his highlight reel.

Still, the Ravens win this game if they get a touchdown on that 4th-quarter possession where they worked the ball down to 1st-&-goal from the Rams 5 with 6:50 to play. Even though up 16-14, I think everyone watching this game knew that the Ravens needed a touchdown there to hold onto the lead and the win. On 2nd-&-goal from the 2 they lost two yards on a run; then delay of game; then sack (Donald & Leonard Floyd). Ballgame to my mind, even though the Ravens still had the lead with 4:30 to play.

Game stats:

The efficiency stat makes it clear that this was another monster performance from Mark Andrews. Even if you take out the 33-yd pickup in Q2 (the Ravens biggest gain of the day), Andrews would still have been over 11 yards/target.

Rashod Bateman‘s first game with 10 targets!  He actually was the most-targeted Raven on the day. It doesn’t stand out statistically as a great game, but I think it shows him continuing to emerge as a trusted target. Six of the seven completions were “successful” plays by the offense.

Brutal game for Marquise. And these stats don’t even take into account the fumble. He was questionable with an illness this week, so take that into account. I personally was a little encouraged by the 1st down he picked up in Q3, and the 11-yard gain he picked up in Q4. I thought he showed off some decisive cuts on those plays. Hopefully a signal of a return to form.

It’s piling on at this point, but here’s Marquise’s streak:

The bottom line, almost 500 yards in nine games, might seem OK. But when you factor in the number of plays that are sunk into getting those 500 yards, you can see that the Ravens would be just as well served handing it off to Gus Edwards on those plays.  His career rushing average is the same as what the Ravens have been picking up when targeting Marquise Brown lately.

Andrews now holds the Ravens record for receiving yards in a season. And he set the record in 16 games, so no asterisks here. He’s 6th in the league in receiving yards. Of the top 25 players by receiving yards, only six of them have a better yards-per-target than Andrews – guys like Ja’Marr Chase & Deebo Samuel & Tyler Lockett & Cooper Kupp. Andrews is almost 200 yards ahead of Travis Kelce for most receiving yards by a Tight End this season. It’s hard to state how excellent Andrews has been this season.

Somewhat hidden in the data, Bateman is the 3rd-most-targeted Raven, after Andrews & Marquise. I probably should have picked up on that a week or two ago. It underlines how much confident the coaches and quarterbacks have in him.

Next up: Steelers Week. Say goodbye to Big Ben.

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