The Ravens have spent years leaning on the ground game as the engine of their offense, and even with more emphasis on throwing the ball this season, Derrick Henry still sits at the center of what they do. That made last Sunday’s showing against the Cleveland Browns stand out for all the wrong reasons. Baltimore managed only 87 rushing yards, Henry finished with 58, and his costly fumble helped swing a 13-10 loss.
Now Week 7 brings a chance to wipe that away. Against the division-rival Cincinnati Bengals, the Ravens have a clear path to getting their rushing attack back where it belongs. Two things point in that direction: starting center Cam Jurgens is primed to play his first game with the team, and Cincinnati’s run defense has been in rough shape.
If Lamar Jackson is back or not, Baltimore has to make its mark on the ground. The formula is straightforward enough: the Ravens need points to keep pace with the Bengals, and Henry is their best bet to produce them.
Last week, it wasn’t just on Henry. Baltimore’s offensive line made life harder than it needed to be, especially with guards John Simpson and Emery Jones Jr. struggling to open lanes. Without better blocking, Henry had little room to get to the kind of explosive runs that usually define his game.
The Ravens still have to work through Simpson’s issues, but getting Vega Ioane back at his natural position at guard and moving on from Jones should help. Jurgens, meanwhile, brings a strength that fits this assignment perfectly: run blocking. That alone gives Baltimore a better shot at controlling the line of scrimmage.
The matchup also helps. Cincinnati has allowed the fifth-most rushing yards per game, and while Dexter Lawrence is a star, the rest of that unit does not offer much. The Bengals just gave up 88 yards and a touchdown to Ollie Gordon, and earlier in the year they allowed 127 yards to Jaylen Warren.
Gordon and Warren are both quality backs, with Warren especially in that group, but Henry is a different problem entirely. His mix of size, power and speed gives him a chance to overwhelm a defense like this one. Even after a quiet afternoon against Cleveland, he remains an elite back and is still putting together a strong season.
Jackson’s status adds another layer. If he plays, Baltimore’s offense could look downright dangerous. If he doesn’t, then Henry’s role becomes even more important.
Either way, the Ravens are set up to get their run game moving again on Sunday. There’s no real excuse for another sluggish outing.
In Other News...
Lamar Jacksons Week 7 Status Has Ravens Fans Watching One Thing
Lamar Jackson has been back on the practice field in a limited role all week, which is enough to keep the Ravens Week 7 plans fluid heading into a divisional matchup with the Bengals. Head coach Jesse Minter said Jackson could still play, and the team is sorting through the final details as it weighs the quarterbacks status against the clock.
The rest of the injury picture is less encouraging, with edge rusher Tavius Robinson out for the season because of a pectoral injury and safety Jaylinn Hawkins also sidelined for Sunday. If Jackson cannot go, backup Snoop Huntley is preparing to step in, and Baltimore will be waiting on the last word before it knows whether the offense can stay in its usual shape. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Green Faces A Brutal Week 7 Test Against Cincinnati
Mike Greens Week 6 was a rough one, and the timing is not ideal for a Baltimore pass rusher trying to reset against Cincinnati in Week 7. The matchup brings a different kind of test, too, because the Bengals have leaned on Amarius Mims to hold up on the edge, and the rookie has already flashed the kind of pass protection that can make life miserable for an opposing rush plan. For Green, this is less about one bad outing and more about whether he can survive a high-level blocker and get back to the kind of impact Baltimore expects.
Mims has been one of the tougher tackles to dent early this season, which puts extra pressure on Green to win with timing, leverage and finish rather than simply trying to outmuscle him. The Ravens will need Green to find a way to create disruption anyway, whether that means varying his approach or getting help from the rest of the front. If he can turn this into a cleaner, more tactical matchup, it could go a long way toward changing the tone of his start to the season. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Cornerback Problem Is Starting To Demand A Real Fix
Baltimore has leaned on dime defensive back looks more than any other AFC team, but the setup has not solved the issues on the back end. The secondary has still underperformed, and the cornerback play in particular has become hard to ignore. Head coach Jesse Minter has acknowledged the work being done to improve the defense, while Kyle Hamilton and others have already made it clear the standard has to rise.
The next step feels less like a tweak and more like a real personnel conversation, because the current rotation has not given the Ravens enough stability. There are only so many times a team can keep asking the same group to clean up the same problems before playing time starts shifting and the depth chart starts changing. For now, Baltimore is still sorting through options, but the corner situation has reached the point where holding course is no longer a comfortable answer. [Read more 🡒]