The Baltimore Ravens went through a massive number of injuries during the 2021 season. However, in spite of that they managed to fight their way to an 8-3 record through the team’s first 11 weeks, which was the top mark in the AFC.
Baltimore exceeded expectations relative to how many injuries they suffered early on, but many attribute the beginning of the end to their Week 10 game against the Miami Dolphins, which ended in a 22-10 loss where the Ravens’ offense had no answers for an aggressive blitzing defense. Ahead of their Week 2 matchup with Miami, Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson was asked about why the Dolphins’ defense was so effective against them in 2021. Jackson talked about how the team never really went over defenses doing all-zero looks like Miami gave them, but felt confident that the team will have an answer in 2022.
“They just caught us off guard, really. We hadn’t really gone over defenses doing all-up zero against us – like, just all-up flat-out zero. But I feel like we’ll have an answer for it this year. We watched film – watched a lot of film on those guys – because we don’t want it to happen again.”
Jackson finished the contest against the Dolphins in 2021 completing 26-of-43 passes for 238 yards with one touchdown and one interception, adding nine carries for 39 yards on the ground. Miami could very well decide to be aggressive in their pressure schemes again with how much talent they have on the defensive side of the ball, but Jackson feels like the team is prepared for it this time around.
