The Baltimore Ravens suffered a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of the Miami Dolphins during Week 2, losing 42-38. The team collapsed late, seeing a 21-point fourth quarter lead evaporate before their eyes while not being able to defend the Miami offense or score many points of their own down the stretch.
There are plenty of areas where blame can be placed in a terrible implosion like what Baltimore went through on Sunday. Everyone in the organization shoulders some of the responsibility, from the players to the coaches to the front office and more.
Below we look at five takeaways from the Ravens’ Week 2 loss to the Dolphins.
QB Lamar Jackson is already in MVP form
For how bad of a collapse the Ravens had, Jackson put on a show against the Dolphins, completing 21-of-29 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns while also adding nine carries for 119 yards and a score on the ground. He looks confident while throwing the football and has been incredible through two games, and is an early contender for the MVP award based off of his play.
Baltimore needs to figure out their run game fast
Outside of Jackson, the Ravens’ ground game rushed 16 times for just 36 yards in Week 2 against Miami. Running back Kenyan Drake finished with six carries for eight yards, while fellow running back Mike Davis had just five carries for four yards. Baltimore has to figure out their running game fast, especially because they can’t be one-dimensional on offense.
Baltimore's young WRs are for real
When the Ravens decided to trade away wide receiver Marquise Brown, many wondered how the other wideouts on the roster would be able to fill in. The answer through two weeks has been a good one, with Bateman having four catches for 108 yards and a score in Week 2 while Devin Duvernay had two catches for 42 yards, including a 103-yard kick return touchdown. The group has answered the call so far, and hopefully they can continue moving forward.
Defensive miscommunications, blown leads must stop
Dating back to last season, the Baltimore defense struggled with miscommunications and blown leads. It was more of the same in Week 2 against Miami, where the defense wasn’t able to hold their large lead or keep Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle in front of them due to mishaps. The Ravens have to be better in those situations, as they were big reasons why they fell to the Dolphins.
Ravens need to add to their roster
Baltimore has dealt with numerous injuries so far during the 2022 season, including many at outside linebacker and cornerback. The team has just two healthy outside linebackers on their roster, and were down to just three healthy cornerbacks in Marcus Peters, Jalyn Armour-Davis and Daryl Worley. They need to add players at least at outside linebacker, while other depth pieces wouldn’t hurt either.
