OWINGS MILLS — The Ravens’ offensive line has taken its share of criticism over the first three weeks of the season.
The coaches and players have seen improvement, and the unit had its best performance against the Cowboys, clearing the way for 274 yards rushing and protecting quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was not sacked.
“I was pleased. What made me stick with it was they were doing so well,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “Running the ball, pass protection – they were doing a really good job of blocking. They took care of their pass rushers, especially Micah [Parsons] – they did a great job there. So, I just felt like there was no reason to make a change there. I just felt like there was no reason to make a change there. We had the possibility of rotating some guys in, but [the starting offensive linemen] were playing too well to do that.”
The Ravens had the same starters as the previous two games — left tackle Ronnie Stanley, left guard Andrew Vorhees, center Tyler Linderbaum, right guard Daniel Faalele and right tackle Patrick Mekari. Harbaugh had said that he was considering some changes to the offensive line against Dallas, but he decided to stay with the same group.
Jackson was defensive of the offensive line after the game, especially with Faalele, who has taken the brunt of the criticism after the switch from tackle to guard.
“I see a lot of things – when [people are] tweeting and stuff – but that’s just social media,” Jackson said. “At the end of the day, [Faalele] is getting paid to do what he’s supposed to do, and he busted his behind each and every time. It’s not like he’s trying to mess up. All of us make mistakes out there on that field.
“But he came in clutch for us today, and I want the same people who were giving him that doubt to praise him and give him that credit for what he deserves.”
Ravens running back Derrick Henry had his best game, finishing with 151 yards on 25 carries with two touchdowns. He also praised the offensive line.
“We all see [the criticism of the offensive line] – you can’t miss much of anything nowadays – it’s going to be right in your face whether you want to see it or not,” Henry said. “At the end of the day, we all [have] to sit together. We all [have] to go out there and do a job, and we all [have] to change the narrative. Would we have wanted to have started off [the season] on the right foot [with] everything just going the way we wanted to? But that’s not how it started.
“You find out who you are in tough times, and I felt like we accepted the challenge, knowing what was being said and everything that was going on; but as long as we stick together and believe in one another, we’ll be right where we want to be.”
