Analyzing the Ravens’ playtime percentages in their Week 6 victory over the Commanders.
In Week 6, the Baltimore Ravens offense deployed heavy formations to bully the Washington Commanders into base personnel before opening up their downfield passing game to their wide receivers. The defense rotated pass rushers to stay fresh while containing Jayden Daniels while Zach Orr flipped between nickel and dime personnel.
Offense
Lamar Jackson and the Ravens’ starting offensive line went the distance on Sunday with an efficient 68 snaps and an average of 8.3 yards per play. No rotations or injuries disrupted the rhythm of Jackson or his protection unit, an excellent sign for Baltimore moving forward. Patrick Mekari started his third straight game at left guard and seems to hold onto the spot over a now-healthy Andrew Vorhees. Ben Cleveland also played one snap as a sixth offensive lineman.
Derrick Henry’s 43 snaps were a season-high, though not an outlier compared to the rest of the year in terms of percentage (63%). Justice Hill’s 38% snap share was his second-lowest of the season, mostly playing in obvious passing situations as the Ravens stuck with the run in the second half.
Zay Flowers continued to pace the Ravens’ receivers with 49 snaps, and Rashod Bateman was only two behind. Nelson Agholor’s 47% snap share was unchanged from Week 6 as Baltimore’s WR3. All three are capable of playing outside or in the slot, making them an excellent trio for Todd Monken to mix-and-match throughout a game. Tylan Wallace played only five snaps despite a solid pass-catching performance last week.
Isaiah Likely led Baltimore’s tight ends with 46 snaps (68%), but it was Patrick Ricard’s 35 snaps (51%) that forced the Commanders into base personnel. That allowed Mark Andrews to occupy more of a pass-catching role with 34 snaps (50%). Charlie Kolar maintained his presence in the tight end rotation as well, playing 22 snaps (32%).
Defense
Four Ravens defenders played all 59 snaps: Roquan Smith, Kyle Hamilton, Brandon Stephens, and Marcus Williams. All four have full-time jobs in Baltimore’s defense, and even despite some of Williams’ struggles in coverage, that should continue to be the case. Marlon Humphrey counts among that group, too, though he left the field for a pair of snaps during the game.
Zach Orr is still juggling his secondary rotations behind his four starters, bumping Nate Wiggins back up to a 73% snap share against the Commanders after dropping him to 31% in Cincinnati last week. Orr preferred to keep Humphrey in the slot in Week 6, keeping Wiggins outside and reducing Ar’Darius Washington to a 24% snap share after playing at least 31% in each of the last three weekks. Eddie Jackson continued to mix in the Ravens’ nickel and dime packages with a 42% snap share.
The Ravens relied heavily on Nnamdi Madubuike and Travis Jones on the interior of their defensive line, playing a combined 89 snaps. Madubuike’s 76% snap share was a seson-high, as was Jones’ 71%. That led to a season-low 17 snaps for Michael Pierce, despite the absence of Broderick Washington. Instead, his snaps went to Brent Urban with 15.
Trenton Simpson has settled into his role as an early-down and short-distance linebacker for the Ravens, playing 63%, 67%, and 63% of the team’s defensive snaps in the last three weeks. Orr has also found his edge rotation behind starters Odafe Oweh (38 snaps, 64%) and Kyle Van Noy (41 snaps, 69%). Tavius Robinson, Yannick Ngakoue, and David Ojabo all had a snap share between 20% and 25% as they set a firm edge and contained Daniels’ scrambling.