OWINGS MILLS — Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton is tired of talking about how the secondary needs to improve.
The struggles have been a main topic of discussion over the first five games of the season and have continued this week.
The Ravens have given up 1,401 yards passing and opposing quarterbacks have averaged 280.2 yards per game — both ranked 31st in the NFL behind the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Hamilton identified several areas where the team needs to improve.
“Most of our problems are nothing structural; it’s just fundamental stuff,” Hamilton said. “We have to tackle, we have to get off blocks, we have to communicate, and we’ve been saying this for five weeks now, so it’s time to start actually doing it – not coming up here and just saying it.”
The Ravens’ secondary faces another challenge this week against Washington Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, who is the first player in NFL history with more than 1,000 yards passing and 250 yards rushing in his first five career games.
Daniels has several talented wide receivers who can create matchup problems, including Terry McLaurin, who has 303 yards receiving with two touchdowns on 23 receptions. Tight end Zach Ertz will look to take advantage of the middle of the field — an area where the Ravens have struggled. Ertz is second on the team with 17 receptions for 160 yards.
The Ravens will need to play much better than last week against Cincinnati. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow threw for 392 yards with five touchdowns and an interception. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had 10 receptions for 193 yards with two touchdowns.
Hamilton said that poor performance has created another layer of urgency to play better.
“There is always a standard that we believe we need to meet and then exceed,” Hamilton said. “We always talk about [how the] season is a bunch of highs and lows, but you’re steadily progressing, and I feel like we’ve, at least in the secondary – just being as blunt as possible – we kind of plateaued in our getting better throughout the season. I feel like we’ve had good weeks, like Buffalo.
“We’ve had bad weeks, like last week, and I feel like it’s up to us to fix that and go into this week and try to right that wrong against a good offense.”