The first quarter of the NFL season is complete, for all but the Carolina Panthers and the Washington Redskins. After four games, the Baltimore Ravens find themselves at 3-1, tied for the AFC North lead with the Cincinnati Bengals. It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that the Ravens are 3-1, as they have been favored to win in three of their games. They did get upset by Cincinnati, and upset the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday night. Let’s take a look at some of the bright spots in Baltimore.
Baltimore Ravens First Quarter Report: A Look at the Bright Spots
John Brown
John Brown is the main name that has come to the forefront of any Ravens conversation this year. Affectionately known as “Smoke” to his teammates, Brown and Joe Flacco already have great chemistry together. Look for this to only get better, as Flacco is only 15 of 30 on throws to Brown. This hasn’t stopped him from ranking 14th in receiving yards, with three touchdowns already.
Most of Brown’s yards have come from deep passes. He is sitting third in all of football, averaging 22.5 yards per catch. Brown could become a threat that hasn’t been seen in a while for the Ravens, as he is averaging under two yards after the catch. As they get more comfortable with each other, Brown could establish himself as a legitimate number one threat. If you tune in to see one of the receiving bright spots in Baltimore, look for Brown. He will be the guy beating his defender downfield.
Marlon Humphrey and Brandon Carr
With Jimmy Smith suspended for the first four games, pass defense was an area of concern when the season started. Marlon Humphrey and Brandon Carr have put that to rest during those four games. According to Football Outsiders, the Ravens have been excelling at pass defense. They are fifth overall and have held top receivers in check. Against number ones, they are seventh overall, and even better against numbers twos, coming in at fourth overall.
Both Carr and Humphrey have held up admirably, and are definitely bright spots in Baltimore. Humphrey only allows catches on 38.5 percent of balls thrown his way, third in all of football. He has yet to be burnt yet this year as well. When the receiver does catch it, its never for many yards, at 3.8 per target and 9.8 per catch, second and 12th respectively. Carr is doing great as well. He has held opponents to a 50.0 percent catch rate, and quarterbacks to a 64.4 passer rating.
Justin Tucker
It really can’t be talked about enough how good Justin Tucker is. He is 9-10 this year, with his only miss coming on a block in the game against the Denver Broncos. Tucker continues to be money from deep, 3-3 on kicks over 50 yards or more. He also became a part of history, having his sixth multiple 50-yard field goal game earlier this season. With the trio of Tucker, Sam Koch, and Morgan Cox continuing to shine and gel, Tucker won’t be slowing down anytime soon.
Joe Flacco
Flacco has looked great this year, except for the first quarter in the Bengals game. The main problem with Flacco in 2017 was his unwillingness to throw the ball deep. Now that he has real receivers who care, he looks more like the Flacco we are used to. Last year, Flacco was near the bottom of every passing stat. Low completion percentage, low yards per attempt, low air yards, and low in ALEX.
ALEX is an important stat for quarterbacks. It stands for Air Less Expected Yards on Third Downs. The higher the number, the more yards you are throwing past the sticks on third down. If you have a negative number, this means you are constantly leaving your receiver short of the sticks on third down. This is something Flacco struggled with last year, with a number of 0.5. So far in 2018, Flacco is fourth in all of football at 3.7. A big factor in the Ravens offensive success has been Flacco, and his willingness to once again put distance on his throws.
The Last Word – Bright Spots in Baltimore
Things are looking up in Baltimore right now, and moods are rarely ever higher after a convincing win in Pittsburgh. The team is looking good in nearly all aspects of the game. A big part of that is the guys in this article. As the season goes on, continue to watch these bright spots in Baltimore.
