There were nine occasions Sunday on third down or fourth down where the Ravens defense failed to get off the field.
Of the many issues that contributed to yet another epic collapse for this team – now under new management across the coaching staff – this was chief among them. And after finally throwing real money at edge rusher and with all of the familiarity on the defensive side and Jesse minter an established play caller and the abundance of the resources on that side of the ball, this simply was not good enough.
The Saints have an interesting pass attack and they have an emerging quarterback in Tyler Shough, but let’s be real. Baltimore had a quick 14-3 lead and Shough lost his left tackle midway through the game and the Saints had no pretense of running the ball and the Ravens were 10-point favorites. Oh, and of the 15 third downs New Orleans faced eight required five yards or more for a first down and the Saints converted on third-and-13, twice, and a third-and-8 and third-and-7, which in the aggregate helped them hold the ball for over 12 minutes in the fourth quarter and sustain a 16-play touchdown drive.
In all, New Orleans converted 9 of 16 opportunities on third down, or fourth down.
This is as good a spot to clean up as any before facing an explosive Cowboys passing attack in Brazil this Sunday on a bad field that will present distinct challenges. Last week it was obvious the ball was going to receiver Chris Olave in every clutch spot and the Ravens could do little about it. Dallas presents a very different stress.
The Cowboys boast two of the top three most productive receivers catching balls that travel 20 yards or more in the air since 2020 – CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens – and a legit move tight end who can torque a defense all over the field. And they got after Minter’s defense with the Chargers last season. And the Ravens new tandem of safeties have had their hands full already with far less robust challenges.
“There are obviously some plays that you want back,” hybrid defender Kyle Hamilton said, “and I think probably third down. That is the most disheartening, I would say. I think we pretty much dominated on first and second down for most of the game and got into what we wanted to on third down, but it just goes back to fundamentals, tackling, communicating, and those things show up every single week.
“So, you can’t let off the gas in one area and expect it to just kind of flip a switch during a game. So, that is something that coaches have harped on since the game ended and that we will emphasize throughout the week in practice, but I would say third down, getting off the field, is huge just mentally, physically.
“You extend drives, and they are rotating people in and out, so they have fresh bodies, but you have to earn the right to rush the passer on third down, which I think we did, but we just did not execute.”
Dallas won’t be nearly as methodical as Baltimore’s first two opponents and are much more quick strike than trying to string nine plays together. They also might be more willing to give it a go on fourth down.
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