The Ravens have a way of coming up small in Cleveland.
Weird things happen. They tend to undermine themselves. And now they have this Todd Monken thing to deal with, as Baltimore’s former offensive coordinator was pushed out as part of John Harbaugh’s staff only to land as the Browns head coach. Cleveland already has one upset divisional win, beating the Steelers on a Thursday night, and they will be focused for this game coming off a letdown at the Jets on Sunday.
This will be Ravens rookie head coach Jesse Minter’s first AFC North game, the Ravens are once against dealing with a cumbersome injury report (19 names listed on Wednesday really is something) and it’s no sure thing that Lamar Jackson starts at quarterback despite how some want to couch it.
Every game the Ravens have played this season has ended up pretty snug by the fourth quarter, even the two in which they opened up an 11-point lead, and there is reason to believe the Browns (3-2) can hang around and put some pressure on the Ravens (4-1). And maybe even pull off the upset.
Here are the primary reasons why:
Corner Cluster
The Browns have a diverse pass game right now with some guys who can get deep and guys who win with YAC and underneath stuff and a move tight end who creates real problems on third down and in the redzone and the Ravens are having big issues there. They are young and fast, and that will present problems even with a weak QB. The Ravens have mostly faced weak QBs.
Baltimore’s corners and free safeties haven’t really been able to cover anyone this season and Monken will not be afraid to chuck the ball all over the yard. And given Cleveland’s extreme issues running the ball, all the more reason to attack a secondary that has suffered. The film and the data is rough, Minter has been exposed in dime coverage and maybe a ramped up pass rush will be the difference but even suspect NFL QBs are not afraid to challenge the Ravens corners.
"They are explosive," free safety Malaki Starks said. "I think they do a lot within the offense, and they create explosive plays, so that is definitely something that we want to stay on top of."
The Monken Factor
Monken knows how to motivate a team and he has these young Browns eating out of his hand right now and he’d love nothing more than the beat the Ravens, who fired him and a front officed that made it pretty clear it believed the last coaching staff was holding back their roster. Oh, and the Ravens skill guys were calling Monken’s replacement, 30-year-old Declan Doyle, a “genius” all summer in what looked like shade at the former guy.
Monken will call this game in a let-it-all-hang-out manner and hold nothing back. Look out for some trick plays, maybe a fake punt. He knows most of this Ravens roster pretty well. How they play and how many of them think. Should be an advantage for him.
"I think their offense will definitely try to come at us, and I think their defense will too," Ravens corner Marlon Humphrey said. "Their defense is always really good, but their offense, with the versatility that [Browns head coach] Todd [Monken] calls games, we will have our hands full."
Overthink The OL
The Ravens are getting strong play from young guard-turned-center-turned-guard Vega Ioane. Like, astonishingly good stuff under the circumstances. But the GM made a panic move and overpaid for the Eagles center-turned-guard/injury-liability Cam Jurgens and they really want to jam him in the middle of the offensive line Sunday.
Except, well, he still doesn’t really know anyone yet and hasn’t ever practiced with the team and they traded for him while he was still in the concussion protocol (which is why other GMs were telling me Eric DeCosta looks incredibly desperate here). So, even if Jurgens practices close to full Thursday, that’s the last real work day of the week and everything is so new and different, do they really need to rush this?
And if they do, and if Jurgens isn’t nearly as ready to hold down center as Ioane was, and if a sixth-straight different offensive line combination creates havoc and the interior isn’t connected and the A Gap becomes a problem, against a game Cleveland defense, that’s a great way to blow a game.
"There's kind of some unfamiliarity, and it's kind of hard to get in the groove sometimes," right tackle Roger Rosengarten said of the constantly changing lineups. "But if we're all playing together and are all on the same page, good things will happen."
Factory Of Madness
They call Cleveland the Factory of Sadness and it’s truly remarkable just how little good has come to this franchise since the Browns emerged from relocation to Baltimore as an expansion team. It’s been incredibly bleak and the one-sided nature of this rivalry – the Ravens win two Super Bowls and Cleveland is still waiting for its first – makes it even tougher.
But over the last decade, a lot of weird stuff has happened to the Ravens in Cleveland. Guys getting hurt. Players dropping interceptions in rampant succession. Ugly, upset losses. It tends to be a struggle, and the crowd is always up for these games and throw in the Monken thing and the gutsy the young Browns have displayed and there is reason to believe this could be anything but a blowout.
"I am hoping that trend ends Sunday," Humphrey said, "but it is just a hard place to play. I think, like you said, it has just always been weird ... There have just been all types of things that have happened in Cleveland. I think one year, maybe when I was a rookie, we threw maybe two interceptions on the 5-yard line. Just crazy things happen, but the biggest thing is stay together."
The Browns are 4-4 in their last eight at home against the Ravens. This is the sixth time in the last nine meetings where Baltimore is a favorite of three points or more. The Browns get up for these games and only three of these eight games were decided by more than a touchdown.
Subscribe To "The Daily Flock" On YouTube For Elite Content And Convos:
Add us as a preferred source on Google