“The No Fly Zone” is a nickname often bestowed upon elite secondaries who play top-notch pass defense. The Baltimore Ravens have definitely not been that this season, as they currently rank 31st (second from the bottom) in passing yards allowed per game.
The Baltimore secondary has been whatever the opposite of a no-fly zone is, so I guess we could call it “Deregulated Commercial Airspace.”
They were laissez-faire with opposing pass catchers again on Sunday, as Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 30-39 passes for 392 yards, five touchdowns, and one interception.
That brought the Ravens to pass yards per game allowed up to 280.2, with only the Jacksonville Jaguars worse, at 287.8.
The numbers are rather skewed because the Ravens’ run defense is tops in the league, and hence, most teams pass against them because that is all they can effectively do.
Baltimore allows 60.4 yards per game rushing, with the Minnesota Vikings a distant second at 67.2.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh admits his team could do a much better job defending the pass.
“[Burrow] had pressure in his face numerous times, the pocket was getting pushed, guys were coming at him, he stood in there and made some really great throws, like on-the-money throws off his back foot,” Harbaugh said.
“We had tight coverage where they made the catches.
“That’s football. But I also believe that we compounded the yardage because we didn’t play things as well as we need to play them. Probably five or six plays in the passing game from a coverage standpoint that we’re just way better than that.
“We’re way better than to play some of those things the way we played them. To win our conference, to win our division, to win a game against the teams we’re going to play … we’ve got to be on point every single play with what we’re doing.”
It’s a lot better to try to fix these problems while you have a winning record and are leading your division.
If Harbaugh and his defensive staff can somehow figure this out, then this has the potential to be a special season in Charm City.