Ravens Midseason Superlatives Revealed
The Baltimore Sun’s Jonas Shaffer made his choices for Ravens midseason superlatives.
Here’s a look at a few of them (MVP obviously was a no-brainer, so I won’t waste your time with that one):
Most improved: Marquise “Hollywood” Brown
“Maybe the wide receiver hasn’t improved so much as he’s remained healthy, but the difference between Year 2 and Year 3 has been immense. With 719 receiving yards over nine games, Brown would be on pace for 1,278 yards over a 16-game season, the most in Ravens history. He needs just 50 receiving yards Sunday to match his career-high total, set last year. Despite the occasional drop, Brown has zoomed past offseason questions about whether he could ever be a top-dog wide receiver on a respectable passing attack.”
“The Ravens’ second first-round pick gets the nod here over their first first-round pick, wide receiver Rashod Bateman, just based on longevity. The outside linebacker from Penn State leads all NFL rookies in quarterback pressures (29), according to Pro Football Focus, and has four sacks in nine games overall. Oweh’s takeaway talents stand out on a defense that has mostly lacked them, and he’s impressed with his ability to set the edge as a run defender.”
Most pleasant surprise: Patrick Mekari
“The former undrafted free agent seemed destined to be the Ravens’ next James Hurst, a jack-of-all-trades lineman whom the offense could reliably plug in anywhere up front. Athletically, he seemed best suited for the interior. But when Ronnie Stanley (ankle) was shut down after Week 1, leaving right tackle Alejandro Villanueva to return to his more natural left side, the Ravens needed a new bookend. In stepped Mekari, who’d last started at tackle in college. Until suffering an ankle injury in the Ravens’ Week 7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, Mekari was among the Ravens’ most consistent players, steady in both pass and run blocking.”
