It was not the defense’s fault.
The Baltimore Ravens battled manfully against the Philadelphia Eagles but in the end, the Eagles were too strong across three phases.
The Eagles flipped the score with 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
We need to talk about Tucker…
The Ravens left seven points on the field with missed kicks in a five-point game.
Baltimore’s offensive did come up short on the edge of the redzone on several drives, forcing them to go for longer field goals. But you have to trust that your kicker can make 40 or 50+ yard field goals.
There does not appear to be an injury to Justin Tucker. There certainly has not been on the injury report.
Tucker’s struggles could be related to bulking up for the new kickoff rules. If so, returns are rare enough that you would have thought that they would have reverted to his previous body type.
Beyond those options, the only other option is the yips.
We can all understand it in that position, but it is lethal for a kicker. Cutting Tucker is out of the question, given his relatively young age and previous performance.
However, with a playoff spot virtually assured, a phantom trip to IR to focus on technique and mentality could be an option.
Statistically strong but no delivery
Other concerns also affect the Ravens. They are the most penalised team in the league by event and by yards.
Despite this, they only gave up four penalties for 20 yards against Philadelphia, only one of which resulted in a first down.
They allowed only 112 passing yards. Even the 140 rushing yards allowed was fewer than the 166 the Ravens gained.
The Ravens had 5.2 yards per play compared to the Eagles’ 4.7, and Baltimore had more first downs—21 to 16.
But they were just 6-for-16 on third down – for context, the Eagles were only 4-for-12 – though the Ravens did also fail once on fourth down.
Ultimately, the Ravens put up a lot of statistics, but they were inefficient.
The challenge going forward
This, indiscipline, defensive fragility – especially allowing big plays – and leaving points on the table on special teams, is a recipe for disaster against the big hitters in January.
How they resolve this over the next six weeks is one of the NFL’s major storylines entering the final stretch.
