5 Things That Went Wrong For The Ravens In Week 5
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The Baltimore Ravens were favored to win over the Redskins this weekend, but injuries, penalties and an disappointing display from the offense led the Redskins to their first win in Baltimore since 1955.
Let's take a look at the five major issues facing the Ravens in Week 5:
Penalties and Refs
There were quite a few plays that the referees didn't call that would have favored the Ravens, but there were also plenty of penalties against at the Ravens. Illegal formation, defensive offside, illegal contact, and roughing the passer, just to name a few.
Every game the Ravens have played this season has been decided by six points or fewer.
Terrible Calls From Trestman
"We have a lot of opportunities, but we have to play better, we have to coach better. We have to be better than we were today, that's for sure," said coach Harbaugh.
Joe Flacco, seemingly frustrated with the performance also commented, "Definitely not fun to be out there today...We just didn't play well. We were running off the field too quickly. It was just a lot of bad play."
What it all boils down to is who is calling the plays. The pieces are there, the leadership is there, but the play calling is suffering and that comes down to Marc Trestman.
UPDATE: Ravens fired Marc Trestman on Monday morning after the 16-10 loss to the Redskins.
Joe Getting Too Much Pressure
Without Ronnie Stanley and Rick Wagner, Joe Flacco was left vulnerable and unprotected, and issue the team has been facing for quite a while.
Under pressure for much of the day, Flacco opted for short flips to tight ends Dennis Pitta and Crockett Gillmore over deep passes down the field due to lack of time. Flacco was sacked three times during the game.
Passive Aggressive
Multiple times during the game the Ravens had outstanding field position from turnovers and fumbles. They continually failed to capitalize on the opportunities.
Zachary Orr forced a fumble and the Ravens faced a fourth down at the 17 before a fake field goal by Tucker went awry.
C.J. Mosley picked off a pass at the 13 but let the ball slip out of his hands for what could have been a game-changing play.
Breshad Perriman also had his hands on a potential game-winning touchdown but landed out of bounds.
Injuries Are Still An Issue
Steve Smith Sr. left the game with an ankle injury, C.J. Mosley left the game with a hamstring injury and Rick Wagner was out with a thigh injury. Despite having a 4-0 record in the preseason, the Ravens are on par for the same injury-riddled, nonexplosive and fairly disappointing season they had last year. Something's gotta give.
The Ravens will stay in the NFC East against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium next Sunday.
