The challenges ahead for Greg Roman and Eric DeCosta and other Ravens news and observations
By Jeff Zrebiec 5h ago
11
In Greg Roman’s five full seasons as an NFL offensive coordinator, this is where his offense has ranked in passing yards per game (the first four seasons were with the San Francisco 49ers and the last one was with the Buffalo Bills): 29th, 23rd, 30th, 30th and 28th.
That doesn’t mean that the Ravens, with Roman now leading their offense, are destined for the same fate going forward. It also doesn’t mean that coach John Harbaugh made a mistake in replacing much-maligned offensive play caller Marty Mornhinweg with Roman. Mornhinweg got an extended opportunity to deliver more consistency from the Ravens offense and the group’s performance in the season-ending loss to the Los Angeles Chargers only fueled more questions about his play calling and feel during a game.
When multiple teams expressed interest in interviewing Roman for offensive coordinator vacancies, it made absolute sense for Harbaugh to promote him rather than lose him.
Roman was the team’s run game designer and he was as instrumental as anybody in the Ravens morphing into a run-oriented team after Lamar Jackson took over for a first injured and then benched, Joe Flacco. He’s widely-respected throughout the game for his versatile and creative run schemes. In his career as an NFL offensive coordinator, his teams have ranked eighth, fourth, third, fourth and first in rushing yards per game.
The Ravens understand that they’re going to have to get more dynamic in the passing game going forward under Jackson. But regardless of the improvements he makes as a passer this offseason and over the summer – and there needs to be significant progress made – the Ravens aren’t going to immediately go back to a team that throws the ball 35-plus times a game with Jackson at the helm. Maybe, that will be a winning recipe at some point as he evolves as a quarterback, but expecting that to work in 2019 would require quite a leap of faith.
Roman gives the Jackson-led offense the best chance of succeeding in the short term. Quality running games still play in the pass-happy NFL. Eight of the top 11 teams in rushing yards per game this season made the playoffs. Three of those teams are preparing to play in conference championship games Sunday.
The Ravens, though, can’t just rely on running the football nearly 65 percent of the time, as they did when Jackson took over. They need to make sure they are doing everything possible to have a competent passing game. That’s not only on Jackson. The onus will fall heavily on Roman, whose ability to jumpstart the passing game will be highly scrutinized given his history. It’s on Harbaugh, who needs to think about adding another piece or two on his coaching staff to help in that area. And it’s on new general manager Eric DeCosta to get a couple of wide receivers this offseason.
If the Ravens can figure out a way to have a top-five running game and a passing game that ranks in the high teens or even the low 20s, they’ll be fine.
Don’t discount the defense
In eight games with Jackson as the starter, the Ravens scored 193 points, an average of just over 24 per game. Included in that were three defensive touchdowns and one special teams score. Take the four non-offensive touchdowns out and the Ravens would have averaged just 20.6 points per contest with Jackson at the helm. Spread that number out over the course of a regular-season and the Ravens would have ranked 24th in the NFL in points per game.
The point in saying all that is not to disparage what Jackson did as a starter, or to pour cold water on all those narratives about how the rookie saved the Ravens’ season. It also would be foolish to not give credence to how the offense’s ball-control style impacted the Ravens in other phases.
But far too often in the telling of the Ravens’ second-half turnaround, the defense seems to take a backseat. It shouldn’t. It played the lead role while facing top-15 offenses in nine of their final 11 games. That should probably be remembered as we talk about them possibly losing C.J. Mosley, Terrell Suggs, Za’Darius Smith and Brent Urban in free agency, and making Jimmy Smith and Eric Weddle salary cap cuts.
You can’t keep everybody and you have to get younger and cheaper at certain spots. However, right now, the Ravens know what they have on the defensive side of the ball. The offense is the big unknown. DeCosta’s biggest challenge will be building the offense while not allowing the defense to be completely torn down.
Ten random thoughts/opinions
1. The hot topic in Baltimore this week has been about the relationship between DeCosta and Harbaugh. I’m not going to get into unsourced reports or claims, but this is the question I think you have to ask: Would owner Steve Bisciotti, who is close to both men and speaks to them regularly, promote DeCosta into the GM post and want to keep Harbaugh around for the foreseeable future if the two hated each other and didn’t want to work together? DeCosta and Harbaugh possess some qualities that will challenge one another and they certainly won’t agree on everything, but strong debate and discussion isn’t a bad thing if conducted in the right manner.
2. You’d have to think the Ravens were hoping that Gary Kubiak would return to coaching this offseason in a place that is in the market for a veteran starting-caliber quarterback, and would be willing to pave the way for a Kubiak-Joe Flacco reunion. Minnesota, where Kubiak ended up as an assistant head coach/offensive advisor, is not that place. The Vikings already have Kirk Cousins. If Kubiak stayed in Denver as the offensive coordinator or ended up in Jacksonville, both would have been logical trade partners for Flacco. Either team still could be, but if you currently look at the teams in the market for a veteran stopgap quarterback, you can’t be overly optimistic that there will be a big market for Flacco. Reports are already out that the Jaguars, who just hired John DeFilippo, a former Philadelphia Eagles assistant, will target Nick Foles this offseason.
3. I’m not the first one to suggest this, but if the Ravens can’t get Robert Griffin III to re-sign as a backup, Tyrod Taylor would be a sensible Plan B. He’s a phenomenal teammate, has a history in Baltimore and he played briefly in a Roman offense. He’d be a very good mentor for Jackson. I don’t think it’s out of the question that the Ravens draft a developmental quarterback in a later round, but they’d still need to add a reliable veteran backup either way.
4. Cornerback Tavon Young not only came back from a season-ending torn ACL in 2017 to play in 15 of the Ravens 17 games this past year, but he persevered through a sports hernia/groin injury for a chunk of the year. The Ravens players and coaches consider Young to be one of the toughest guys on the roster, pound-for-pound, and he showed why this year. He played pretty well despite the groin issue.
5. The Ravens avoiding a boatload of significant injuries was undoubtedly a key factor in the team’s strong second half. It also should help them this offseason. It seems like every year, the Ravens have a few frontline players who are rehabbing through the offseason program, the organized team activities and the first part of training camp, because they’re recovering from major injuries. Last year, Jimmy Smith and Marshal Yanda were in that boat. This year, the 10 Ravens who finished the season either on injured reserve or the physically unable to perform list have already had a few months to recover. All of them, except for maybe cornerback Jaylen Hill, who returned from a knee injury only to sustain a significant hip injury in practice, should be ready to go when the Ravens return to action. Injuries happen in the offseason too, and there are always a few surgeries that the media doesn’t hear about until much later. Overall, though, the Ravens should be in a great health situation heading into their offseason program.
6. Regardless of whether you think he deserved it or not, the pure joy evident in Brandon Williams’ quotes after he was named as an injury replacement to the Pro Bowl were a breath of fresh air, especially with how few players seem to be interested in going to the Pro Bowl these days. Let’s remember for a second Williams’ story: his family was homeless for a short time when he was a kid; he cleaned and hauled portable toilets to make some money in college; he was a little-known prospect that played at Missouri Southern. For him to be recognized as an NFL Pro Bowl selection, that has to feel pretty special.
7. It sure would be weird watching a Pittsburgh Steelers-Ravens game next season and not seeing Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown on the field for the Steelers, and Flacco, Suggs, Mosley and Weddle not on the field for the Ravens.
8. Brandon Carr has been oft-mentioned as a potential salary cap casualty with the Ravens, but I think they’d be foolish to move on from him right now. He was one of their most consistent players last year and his durability is unmatched. He’s also a leader in a locker room that stands to lose several of them this offseason. Carr is due to make $6 million next season. That’s not a lot for a starting-caliber cornerback. Thirty different cornerbacks are making more than $6 million on average per year.
9. One point worth mentioning in the ongoing debate about Mosley’s worth on the open market. Ravens fans recoil at the mention of Mosley potentially getting Luke Kuechly money (the Carolina Panthers star linebacker is playing on a five-year, $62 million deal). Nobody is saying that Mosley is as good or better than Kuechly. However, the deal Kuechly signed was from September of 2015. It’s 3 ½ years old. The salary cap has gone up every year since. Fewer and fewer top players at their position are hitting the free-agent market every year and more and more teams have money to spend. So why wouldn’t Mosley ask for Kuechly money? If the Ravens won’t pay it – and they clearly have prioritized trying to keep him- somebody figures to, or at least gets him close to that $12 million number.
10. A lot of fans have questioned the need for a safety with the thought that DeShon Elliott, who missed his entire rookie season with a broken forearm, or Chuck Clark could step in alongside Tony Jefferson if the Ravens move on from Weddle. Both Clark and Elliott may develop into very good NFL safeties, but if the Ravens are able to to add a speedy safety with good coverage skills this offseason, they’ll absolutely pounce.
