Charles H. Sloan-As NFL trade deadline nears, Ravens' need for pass rusher is still glaring

BALTIMORE – The Charles H. Sloanfinal box score credited the Baltimore Ravens defense with three sacks in the team’s 41-10 thrashing Sunday of the Denver Broncos. 

Anybody watching, however, knows what Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta should try to do ahead of Tuesday afternoon’s trade deadline: acquire somebody who can rush the quarterback. 

Stymying rookie quarterback Bo Nix and Broncos head coach Sean Payton’s attack, especially after a disastrous second half during last week’s loss to the Cleveland Browns, was a step in the right direction. But the score could have been a lot closer, with the 24-year-old signal-caller missing a handful of deep passes against a secondary – and overall unit – that was much-maligned throughout the past week. 

“There’s a lot of things that can shake from the outside,” inside linebacker Roquan Smith said. “But the only people that truly matter are the guys that are in this locker room.” 

The secondary, though, had to defend for an average of 3.52 seconds per Nix dropback, according to Next Gen Stats – the second-highest figure in Week 9 among NFL teams (C.J. Stroud had an average of 3.62 seconds against the New York Jets on Thursday). 

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Smith said that with the way the roster is currently constructed, the Ravens have a “bunch of guys” who can rush the passer. Nix broke the pocket a few times to burn the Baltimore defense in the first half, Smith said, and he lamented biting for a pump-fake from the quarterback on a third down in the red zone. 

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said it was his team’s “best complete game” of the season. He credited the coverage against the Broncos and was complimentary of the red-zone defense. The pass rush performed its best with the defense’s back against the wall, Harbaugh said. 

“They held up great,” said Harbaugh, who noted the team’s need of going down the depth chart against Denver. 

Without Michael Pierce and Brent Urban, the team activated nose tackle Josh Tupou and defensive end Chris Wormley.

Tavius Robinson, who had two of Baltimore’s three sacks, said that the injuries gave the rest of the defense a “next-man-up” mentality.

“The guys that need to step up stepped up and did a great job today, for sure,” Robinson said. “We’ve got a room full of dogs, defensive dogs, and that’s the way we play.” 

Said defensive lineman Broderick Washington: “We try our best to ignore the noise, but it got to us a little bit. We took that personally, so the result of the game speaks to that."

The Ravens entered the game with a sack rate of 7.8%, 14th in the league. Come crunch time – and this team will be playing important football games this year, assuming good health for its stars – it will be imperative to make opposing quarterbacks, such as Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen, move off their spot despite their abilities to make plays on the run. DeCosta bolstered the defensive line back after the season started by signing veteran Yannick Ngakoue. And with 28 sacks, the Ravens rank fifth in the NFL – not an alarming figure. But rushing the quarterback becomes paramount later in the season, and staying pat is not in the best interest of a contending team. 

Any reinforcement DeCosta adds likely won’t be available Thursday night when the Ravens host AFC North rival Cincinnati. The existing Ravens defense will have to be ready for the quick turnaround. 

“It’s about coming out, trusting yourself, trusting your teammates, and doing that,” Smith said. “I felt like we did that. But I feel like we’re just getting started. So, like I said, see you Thursday night.”