Red Zone Has Become A Challenge for Ravens

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — With Lamar Jackson at quarterback, the Ravens have traditionally been one of the most effective teams inside the red zone.

This year, however, they have struggled.

The Ravens' red-zone offense is ranked 12th in the NFL with a 58.3 percent success rate.

However, that is much better than their Thursday night opponent, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are tied for 26th with their red-zone offense at 47.4 percent.

"Obviously, it gets tougher in the red zone; the field is smaller, the passing lanes are tighter, you’ve got to execute – we talk about it on both sides of the ball – things happen faster on offense, and they happen faster on defense," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "So, it’s just a matter of getting in there and getting the job done, whether it’s connecting on a pass or hitting a run.

"Everyone wants to run the ball in the red zone; that’s the best way to do it. Then you talk to our defense, we don’t want to allow that either. So, it comes down to execution at the end of the day in terms of scoring touchdowns."

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Jackson also has become frustrated with the red zone offense. The Ravens have been stopped several times inside the 5-yard line. They've had to settle for field goals by Justin Tucker, which has kept their opponents in the game.

Baltimore was ranked fourth in red-zone offense in 2019 when Jackson was named NFL MVP. Last year, the Ravens were ranked 14th.

"We want seven points each and every time we’re out there on that field," Jackson said. "It’s NFL football, so it might not happen how we want it to, but we’ve just got to keep going.”

Both Jackson and Harbaugh have seen progress with the red-zone offense. The Ravens were 2-for-4 inside the red zone last week against the Cleveland Browns.

Harbaugh is confident that it's just a matter of time before the offense gets clicking. The Ravens should be better with running back Gus Edwards back in the lineup and he scored both of the team's red-zone opportunities against Cleveland.

"We have playmakers. I really believe Lamar Jackson is one of the very best red zone quarterbacks in his career so far. He’s been able to extend plays, make plays, and find ways to make plays in different ways. So, we have that going for us; I’m confident we’ll get that going.”