Baltimore Ravens: 5 Burning questions for the 2020 season

The Baltimore Ravens look to be even better in 2020 after dominating last year.

The Baltimore Ravens had an incredible regular season in 2019. The team finished the season with a 14-2 record which was good for first in the NFL. Lamar Jackson had a breakout year as the NFL MVP and accounted for 43 touchdowns. The offense ranked first overall in points per game and second in yards.

The defense struggled to start the season but rounded into its own by the end of the season. Marcus Peters led a resurgence of the pass defense after he was brought in via trade and Earl Thomas played at a Pro Bowl level after being signed in free agency.

Despite all of the accolades and success, the Ravens still crumbled in the playoffs with their second straight home playoff loss. Although Jackson has only lost five times thus far as a starter, two of those have been playoff losses when the team was favored to win.

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This leaves the Ravens as an AFC frontrunner with plenty of questions, including five burning ones that we’ll look at today.

5. Will defenses find new answers to the Baltimore Ravens offense?

Last season Lamar Jackson and the Ravens offense caused opposing defenses fits. They led the league in rushing but their downfield passing attack was also lethal. With a season of tape for defensive coordinators to dissect, can teams solve the Ravens offense or can they continue to stay a step ahead?

On paper, the team is loaded with young talent which provides depth at multiple positions. With the continued development of Jackson, Mark Andrews and Marquise Brown, the team is in a good position to make adjustments. The offense is young, but if they can continue to develop and get contributions from their rookie draft class, they can continue to move pieces around and be the most explosive offense in the league.

4. Can Lamar Jackson take the next step?

It is crazy to wonder if the league MVP can take another step forward, but Jackson has only one full season as the team’s starter under his belt. Jackson is already 19-3 as a starter but there is still room for him to grow.

As teams continue to draft and sign more athletic defensive players to keep up with Jackson, his mental growth will be even more important. He has already displayed the willingness to work to improve and he is leading workouts with teammates during this unique offseason.

3. Can they fill Marshal Yanda’s shoes?

Veteran guard Marshal Yanda retired at the end of last year after playing 13 seasons with the franchise. Yanda, who made eight Pro Bowls in his career, was a mainstay for the team and epitomized their running identity last season. He was still playing at the top of his game and filling his void both on the field and in the locker room will not be easy.

The team did sign D.J. Fluker to play in his spot and perhaps Ronnie Stanley can step into the leadership void for the offensive line. If there is a dropoff in either area, it could be a bad sign for the offense.

2. Is the team a true Super Bowl contender?

The Ravens looked virtually unstoppable at points last season and they had the 14-2 record to prove it. For all of the success they have had with Jackson as a starter, they had disappointing home playoff losses in back-to-back seasons.

If the team is going to fulfill their Super Bowl wishes, Jackson will need to improve his current turnover rate in the playoffs (seven in two games) and the defense will have to play better than it did in the loss to the Tennesse Titans last season.

1. Will the new pieces help fix the run defense?

The team’s defense struggled against the run in 2019. The team ranked 21st in yards per attempt and gave up 217 yards in the playoff loss to Tennessee. The defense, overall, played well but struggled up the middle.

To improve the defense the Ravens brought in two new defensive linemen. Calais Campbell was brought in via trade and Derek Wolfe was signed in free agency. Campbell and Wolfe are strong against both the run and the pass and should make a difference in the run defense at the line of scrimmage.

The team also drafted linebackers Patrick Queen and Malik Harrison in hopes they can lock down the middle linebacker position of the defense for the foreseeable future. If either one of them can live up to the team’s expectations the Ravens could be much better against the run next season.