Ravens' Offense Struggling to Find Consistent Identity

The Baltimore Ravens keep telling us they are a contender, but the offense keeps showing something different.

This team has the star power, the skill players, and the system that is supposed to unlock everything. Yet somehow the offense has slid from explosive to unpredictable in a matter of weeks. Lamar Jackson opened the year on fire with 16 touchdowns in his first six starts, controlling games as both a passer and a decision maker. Now, though, he has gone three weeks without a single touchdown pass and has thrown three interceptions.

For a player compared to a basketball titan like LeBron James by Kyle Hamilton, this is not an off night. This is a slump that has stretched nearly a month, and it feels bigger than simple variance.

Playcalling Creates More Problems Than Answers

What makes the situation confusing is how avoidable some of these struggles seem.

Baltimore entered the second quarter against Cincinnati with a 7-3 lead and a chance to settle into the game. Instead, the playcalling went away from what works. Lamar had 12 dropbacks in that quarter alone and the offense posted negative EPA per attempt. Not a single Derrick Henry rush was called during that stretch despite facing the No. 31 run defense in the league. Henry finished with only ten carries on the night while Keaton Mitchell got two. Lamar had 38 dropbacks in a game that did not demand that much weight on his shoulders. When a coordinator abandons the run that early, it becomes hard to argue the plan made sense.

Missed Opportunities Hide the Full Story

To be fair, the Ravens have had moments erased by tight officiating and bad luck. A long touchdown from Jackson to Zay Flowers was wiped out by a light offensive pass interference call. It was the kind of hand fighting that happens on nearly every deep shot in the league, but it was still a valid call. The ball was a rocket and the play could have shifted the entire tone of the night. There was also the fumble by Isaiah Likely in the end zone, another potential touchdown that slipped away. Those moments matter, but they cannot cover up the larger issue. The offense does not look synchronized, and Jackson does not look like he is moving comfortably.

The Bengals won 32-14 and did not need anything special to do it. Baltimore kept giving them extra chances by abandoning balance and forcing Lamar into predictable situations. Todd Monken is known for creativity, but it felt like a complete misread of the game. If the Ravens want to be taken seriously in January, their offense has to rediscover its identity. Right now, it feels like they are searching rather than building and the clock is moving faster every week.