Ravens believe offensive line will be ‘really good this year’ despite early struggles

The team has faith their top blocking unit will round into shape and be a strength by the end of the season.

After replacing three starters with significant experience along their offensive line, the Baltimore Ravens fully expected growing pains and some ‘hiccups’ as their revamped blocking unit gelled at the onset of the 2024 regular season.

In Week 1 against a formidable Kansas City Chiefs defensive front, their suspicions came to fruition as the unit played well at times and poorly at others, leading to lapses in pass protection and quarterback Lamar Jackson being under duress for most of the night.

However, when they needed to stiffen up and play together the most with the game on the line, they paved the way for an 11-play, 77-yard drive that nearly secured a come-from-behind victory, showing their promising potential. While the offensive line’s up-and-down performance has many worried and questioning the sustainability of the offense and their viability of the as a contender, confidence within the organization and coaching staff couldn’t be higher.

“I’m not too worried about the offensive line, because I know how hard they work, and I know how talented they are,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “I watch all the other offensive lines in the National Football League, and I think if you applied some of the same standards to the other offensive lines out there, you’d be like, ‘Oh, boy, that’s a tough position to play against these guys.’ So, our offensive line is going to be really good this year. I believe that, and we’re working hard towards that. So, I’m not going to sit here and doubt those guys; I’m going to coach those guys, and those guys are going to get out there and play. I think by the end of the season, you’re going to feel really good about our offensive line.”

The right side of the line in particular was where many of the struggles and leaks came from in both the run and pass game as it marked the first regular season start at guard for converted tackle Daniel Faalele and the Ravens opted to go with a two-man rotation at right tackle.

Veteran utility lineman Patrick Mekari was officially declared the winner of the competition for the tackle spot opposite former All Pro blindside protector Ronnie Stanley when he not only opened the game as the starter but played 75% of the total offensive snaps with 60. However, the Ravens did get second-round rookie Roger Rosengarten his first taste of regular-season action with 20 snaps. While his very first snap couldn’t have ended any worse, he bounced back from it and was solid and the team is committed to getting him more chances to develop in a rotational role moving forward.

“He is a talented player. It would be smart to develop him as we go,” Harbaugh said. “You’ve got the veteran guy; Pat Mekari, I think, is about as solid of a player as you’re ever going to see – knows what he’s doing, trustworthy, been there before. That environment … Pat was [who] we thought was the best there, and I think going forward, but also, Roger is an up-and-coming player, and we want to make sure that we keep giving him opportunities to grow.”

The more experience the unit gets playing together, the stronger the coaching staff believes they will continue to improve after finding their footing in such a hostile and disadvantageous environment in Week 1.

“When that offensive line goes out there – again – in that stadium, with that crowd noise, against that defense and [in] that kind of a game, that’s it, man. It’s not going to get any tougher than that, so I appreciate that. Now, we’ve got another challenge coming in here this week, because we’ve got another great defensive line that we’ll be lining up against. So, let’s get locked in on that challenge, keep it simple, and we’ll be in good shape.”

Despite getting flagged three times for illegal formation penalties including twice on the opening drive of the game, left tackle Ronnie Stanley was still one of the top performers on the offensive linemen in Week 1. Not a single Chiefs’ lineman got flagged even once for the same infraction although it was clearly evident at times. With tracking data via the chips inside each player’s shoulder pads, the Ravens could tell where every tackle that took the field lined up on every play relative to their respective center’s hip.

“I’m not worried about it going forward,” Harbaugh said. “I thought Ronnie was in reasonable position there, most all the time. I do think that the adjustment that needs to be made, is that.. if it’s something that you didn’t expect, and it’s totally different what they’re calling in the game, you have to make the drastic adjustment right away, and then we’ll talk about it later. Ronnie actually thought he was doing that. When you watch the tape, I believe what he said bears out.”