Baltimore Beatdown
Quarterback: D+
The Ravens were going to need a heroic effort from Cooper Rush in order to score enough points against an elite Texans’ defense. Unfortunately, Rush was far from that. The veteran had a nice set of throws on third down early in the first quarter but wound up throwing three interceptions with no touchdowns. He completed 14-of-20 passes in total for 179 yards. With the run game providing next-to-nothing in support, Rush stood little chance of finding consistent success in this game. His interceptions, while all came in the second half with the game out of reach, along with some other missed throws were disappointing.
Running Back: D
Baltimore’s struggles to run the ball effectively continued in Week 5 and reached a new low point. With no Lamar Jackson under center, Derrick Henry was regularly running into loaded boxes with no room to be found. Henry did return to the end zone with a touchdown in the second half, but it made no impact in the grand scheme of the game. He finished with 33 rushing yards on 15 attempts, with a longest carry of just seven yards. Keaton Mitchell rushed for only eight yards in his season debut, while Justice Hill took one rushing attempt for three yards. The latter two each had one lone reception for minimal yardage.
Wide Receiver: C-
Zay Flowers had his fourth 70+ yard receiving output of the season, leading the team with five receptions for 72 yards. He caught all five of his targets with a highlight 56-yard snag that was just short of a touchdown. Deandre Hopkins was the only other wide receiver to record a catch. His 29-yard jump-ball catch in the first quarter was one of the team’s only offensive highlights of the day. Rashod Bateman failed to bring in any of his three targets and no other wideout was targeted by Rush on the day. On Rush’s third interception in the fourth quarter, Bateman appeared to slow up on a vertical route and made little attempt to fight for the ball.
Tight End: D+
It was a minimal-impact day from the Ravens’ tight end group. Isaiah Likely caught his first pass of the season for 12 yards but that was his only target. Similarly, Charlie Kolar caught his lone target on a nice sideline third-down conversion on the Ravens’ opening drive. Mark Andrews had a costly mistake where he juggled a would-be catch into the arms of a Texans’ defender, resulting in an interception. The throw was low, but Andrews still had both hands on the ball and could have reeled it in. This collective did very little to help the offensive line create push in run blocking, either.
Offensive Line: C-
The Ravens had their best pass-protection performance of the season, at least in terms of sacks (one) and quarterback hits (two) allowed. It was surprising given the absence of Ronnie Stanley, who was replaced by Joseph Noteboom at left tackle, against a vaunted...
