The Ravens defense had a good day against the Broncos in a 41-10 win in Week Nine, but the overall body of work this season has not been anything to celebrate.
One of their rough days came against the Bengals in Week Five. They gave up 392 passing yards and five passing touchdowns to Joe Burrow before squeezing out a 41-38 win and they still rank last in the league in pass defense as they head into a Thursday night rematch with their AFC North rivals.
First-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr has been the target of a lot of criticism for the unit’s shortcomings, but cornerback Marlon Humphrey said on Monday that the blame should be placed on the players.
“For me as a player knowing what’s going on, I hate seeing coaches get under scrutiny when it’s the players’ fault,” Humphrey said, via the team’s website. “If I felt that this ain’t being coached this way right, this ain’t being this, this ain’t being this, it’s a little different. But it really sucks when the product we’re putting out there isn’t what we’re being coached, isn’t what we’re practicing, and that’s kind of what hurts me.”
The Ravens are 6-3 despite the issues that have plagued the defense and having the unit come together down the stretch would make them a difficult team for anyone to face come the postseason.
