The Baltimore Ravens are viewed as one of the best teams in the NFL, and one of the primary threats to the Kansas City Chiefs. But they have one major vulnerability — their pass defense.
Look no further than their most recent game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football. Joe Burrow completed 30 of his 39 attempts for 392 yards, five touchdowns, and one interception. The Ravens allowed 34 total points. Their scoring defense is eighth in the NFL with 25.3 points allowed per game. Their passing defense is dead last with 294.9 yards allowed per game.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are hosting the Ravens this week, and there are some players who have switched sides in the rivalry over the last couple years. S DeShon Elliott had some stops in between but was on the Ravens from 2019-2021. He joined Ravens CB Marlon Humphrey on his Punch Line Podcast this week and ended up taking some pretty hilarious shots at the Ravens’ secondary.
“Defensively, I don’t know what y’all got going on over there. It has nothing to do with me, but the stat sheet says that y’all are number one in run defense,” Elliott said. “But it says y’all are 32nd in pass defense.”
As Humphrey struggled to find words to respond, Elliott had a hilarious look on his face.
“Yeah. Honestly, yeah,” Humphrey said repeatedly. “That has been quite rough I would say.”
I timestamped this amusing exchange below for your enjoyment.
It is a departure from their dominance in the secondary over the last few seasons. Last year, the Ravens had the sixth-best passing defense with just 191.9 yards per game allowed.
They lost some pieces during the offseason. S Geno Stone, CB Ronald Darby, CB Rock Ya-Sin, and CB Daryl Worley all departed in free agency. They brought in S Eddie Jackson and drafted CB Nate Wiggins in the first round to help replace some of the losses.
They also still have S Marcus Williams, S Kyle Hamilton, and CB Marlon Humphrey in the mix, so they definitely still have talent in the group. They just haven’t quite jelled as a unit this season. Perhaps that can be attributed to the Ravens losing their defensive coordinator, Mike Macdonald, to the Seattle Seahawks and their defensive backs coach, Dennard Wilson, to the Tennessee Titans.
Unfortunately for the Ravens, Kyle Hamilton suffered an injury in the Bengals game last Thursday. He isn’t ruled out for the week yet, but he failed to practice on Tuesday.
With the way Russell Wilson is pushing the ball down the field, this could be a big edge for the Steelers on Sunday.
