Ravens Secondary Holds Up Well In First Game Without Marlon Humphrey

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — After some early struggles, the Ravens secondary played well down the stretch against the Cleveland Browns.

However, the challenge gets bigger this week with the Green Bay Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who for 341 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions (141.1 rating) against the Bears last week.

“I thought the secondary played well," Harbaugh said. "I thought they played well. Credit to them, [and] credit to [pass game coordinator/secondary coach] Chris Hewitt and [defensive coordinator Don] ‘Wink’ [Martindale]. I thought they did a great job; it was solid. They played the coverages well. We had a little something here and there like always, every team … They run routes on you, and you talk through those things. But I thought they played well.”

The secondary is now down three starters— cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters and safety DeShon Elliott.

They had some struggles early with three pass interference penalties in the first half but the defensive backs found their footing in the second and helped keep the Browns scoreless.

Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield consistently picked on cornerback Chris Westry, who had trouble covering the Browns wide receivers but wound up being the second-highest grade on the Ravens defense from Pro Football Focus behind linebacker Josh Bynes.

Cornerback Anthony Averett managed his team-leading third interception and successfully defended several pass attempts.

Safety Chuck Clark had a couple of bone-jarring hits and managed the recover an onside kick in the final minute. However, the Ravens rally fell short 24-22.

“Man, that’s the ‘Raven Way,'" Westry said. "That’s literally the definition of the ‘Raven Way.’ We’re frustrated we didn’t come out with the result that we wanted, but the mindset that’s instilled in us will never go away. Even when I’m done playing ball, I’ll remember how the ‘Raven Way’ is for the rest of my life.”