The Ravens don’t need to get cute against Tennessee. They need to play fast, play physical and make the Titans feel the game from the opening snap.
That starts on the ground. Baltimore would love to watch five-time Pro Bowl running back Derrick Henry hammer away between the tackles against his former All Pro teammate, but with rookie Olaivavega Ioane making his first career start at center, the smarter path is to lean on wide zone and off-tackle runs. That approach fits the Ravens’ offense under new offensive line coach and run game coordinator Dwayn Leford, and it gives Baltimore a better chance to move Tennessee’s front laterally instead of letting the Titans attack interior gaps.
If the run game gets rolling, the rest of the offense opens up. That’s the point - make the defense flow, then use play-action to punish it.
Defensively, the Ravens should have a clear plan for Cam Ward. With four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Trey Hendrickson out, Jesse Minter can get creative with pressure packages and make the second-year quarterback work for every clean look.
Ward is making just his 21st career start, and the numbers tell the story of a passer who has real trouble when the pocket gets messy. According to Next Gen Stats, he is completing only 32% of his passes under pressure, compared with 74.6% when he’s kept clean.
His passer rating also falls from 93 to 54.6.
That kind of drop invites Baltimore to keep him guessing. Simulated pressure and changing pre-snap pictures could produce free rushers, hurried decisions and bad throws. Expect All Pro safety Kyle Hamilton and other defensive backs to creep toward the line of scrimmage early and often, with chances to disrupt plays before they get started.
The bigger picture is simple: the Ravens want this to be the day they finally end a four-game home losing streak and send their fans home happy for the first time since Week 12 of last season. They’re heavy double-digit favorites, and this matchup against a Tennessee team heading in a different direction under new leadership should give them the chance to put one away early.
To do that, Baltimore has to dominate the little things. Fly to the ball.
Finish tackles. Block through the whistle.
Fight for extra yards without giving the ball away. Tennessee is not built to dig out of a double-digit hole, and the Ravens are overdue for a game in which they control everything from start to finish and never give the Titans a reason to believe a comeback is coming.
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Cowboys Coach Just Handed Ravens Fans A Fresh Reason To Smile
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For Baltimore, the admission only reinforces how close the finish was to swinging the other way before the Ravens got enough time to set up the game-winning field goal. It also adds a little more texture to a win that already felt like a clutch finish, with one sideline owning up to a decision that helped the other side leave with the result it wanted. [Read more 🡒]
Lamar Jackson's Status Suddenly Became Baltimore's Biggest Week 4 Concern
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Jackson remained involved from the sideline and had put on his earpiece by mid-afternoon, a sign he was still plugged into the game even as his availability hung over the rest of the afternoon. For Baltimore, the immediate focus shifted from the scoreboard to the quarterbacks ankle, with Week 4 suddenly carrying a much different kind of tension. [Read more 🡒]
Lamar Jackson Injury Just Put Baltimore's Biggest Concern Back In Focus
Lamar Jacksons exit late in the first half put a familiar worry right back at the center of Baltimores night. After taking a sack and leaving with an ankle injury, Jackson was officially listed as questionable to return, but he did not appear to be preparing to re-enter as the game moved on. For a Ravens team built around Jacksons ability to change everything, any injury involving the quarterback immediately changes the feel of the sideline and the larger picture.
Baltimore was already dealing with more than one hit to its depth chart, too, as cornerback Marlon Humphrey and tight end Durham Smythe both went down during the game. Injuries are part of the grind in any season, but when they start landing on cornerstone players, the margin for error gets thin fast. The bigger question now is how the Ravens absorb the latest scare if Jacksons ankle keeps him from being ready on the next snap, or the one after that. [Read more 🡒]