Ravens’ Double Digit Struggles

The Ravens, who have had very impressive first halves so far this season,  seem to be struggling with finishing games. During week 2 when they faced the Miami Dolphins, the Ravens had a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter. The score was 35-14. But then, a disaster occurred for Baltimore. Suddenly, the Dolphins were scoring extremely fast, while the Ravens seemed to lose their firepower. In the end, the Ravens lost not only their lead, they lost the game, 38 to 42. 

The next blown lead by the Ravens came during week 4 against the Buffalo Bills. Going into the second half, the Ravens had a 10-point lead of 20-10. But yet again, the offense struggled and the Bills just clicked all of the sudden and the Ravens ended up losing again, 23-20. 

The most recent double digit loss came against the New York Giants. In the 4th quarter, the Ravens had another 10-point lead,  20-10, but once again in the end they lost 24-10. 

Why do the Ravens keep struggling? One reason could be they relax after getting the lead and lay off the gas pedal too much, giving the other team a chance to come back. Another reason could be the opposing teams adjust better in the second half and come up with better strategies. And then, of course, the Ravens too often try to get a new set of downs or a touchdown when already on 4th down. 

In each of these games, had the Ravens’ kept their lead, they would be undefeated. To stop this pattern, the play calling needs to improve and John Harbaugh, Ravens head coach, needs to take the points sometimes rather than having the team go for it on 4th down.