Ravens Continue To Have Huge Problem With Penalties

Last week against Cleveland, Baltimore had to deal with three delay-of-game penalties; one could be excused, as NFL stadiums are massive and extremely loud, and it might have been hard to hear what play was being called, but three times is a consistent miscommunication that needs to be ironed out.

Those issues were not apparent this week; instead, the issues were more on the Ravens’ line being jumpy and committing four false start penalties. One particularly sloppy sequence came late in the second quarter. First, Roger Rosengarten committed a false start penalty that turned a third-and-1 into a third-and-6 situation. Huntley managed to scramble for seven yards on the next play, but John Simpson was flagged for offensive holding, putting Baltimore back another ten yards. Rashod Bateman eventually caught a pass and eluded a tackle for an 18-yard gain to move the chains, but it should never have been that difficult to convert in the first place.

Baltimore settled for a field goal and went back into the locker room with a 13-0 lead, although one has to wonder whether the Ravens could have finished the drive with a touchdown had those penalties not made things more difficult.

The second half was a disaster on all fronts, with Baltimore’s defense committing several holding and pass interference penalties. One of those came against Kyle Hamilton, as the star safety was flagged for defensive holding while covering Drew Sample, giving Cincinnati another five yards. However, considering how easily the Bengals were moving up and down the field, they hardly needed the additional yards.

Their next game will be against the Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen, one of the last players Baltimore wants to give free yardage to. The Ravens will need to remain more disciplined, avoiding unnecessary false starts and holding penalties on offense while limiting illegal contact with opposing receivers on defense.