No Raven Was Asked To Do More On Offense Than TE Durham Smythe Week 1

The snap counts always tell a story in an NFL game.

And of all the things the Ravens did with player deployment, it’s how rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle handled the “Joker” role in his offense that truly caught my attention. This is a hybrid receiver/fullback/running back/tight end role that has seen guys varied from Jeremy Shockey to Darren Sproles handle it, and as Doyle’s mentor, Sean Payton, explained it to us this spring, it’s a critical player for him.

Payton himself said Ravens fifth-round pick Adam Randall looked like the prototypical youngster to be given a real shot to thrive in that role, but he is on short term Injured Reserve and can’t return until Week 5 at the earliest. This position seems even more imperative with the offensive line a work in progress in many ways (especially pass protection), and the Ravens rookie tight ends (Josh Cuevas and Matthew Hibner) more slot receivers than true tight ends.

Now, the Ravens losing two starting receivers for basically the second half of the game (Zay Flowers and Ja’Kobi Lane) probably plays a role here, too. But outside of two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson and the offensive line, only receiver Rashod Bateman (51) and tight end Mark Andrews (45) played more than Smythe’s 40 snaps.

Moving Target

It’s not just that Smythe was on the field that much (Baltimore had 64 total snaps), it’s what he did. He was The Joker.

Smythe, a blocking tight end by trade and a damn powerful one at that (think peak Nick Boyle), has experience with Doyle in Chicago. Sunday, he played 28 snaps more or less as a blocking tight end. He was also used in the backfield as more of a lead blocker four times. He was split out as a wide receiver for one snap and spent seven as a slot option.

He was the lead blocker on Lamar Jackson’s TD run to open the game and functioned in that role again in a goal-to-go situation when Henry scored from close distance (nearly a busted play, actually). There was one protection mishap with Smythe serving as the fullback and he also was offset Jackson in the pistol for one snap, helping block for a five-yard carry for Henry (21 of Henry’s 24 carries were under center, so this was an anomaly).

Smythe went in motion from the slot to help seal the edge for Henry on his 32-yard touchdown blast. He caught his one target for four yards as a tight end, lining up inline on the left and leaking across the defense in a goal-to-go look.

The Ravens ran the ball nearly 40 times and, again, lost two receivers, which may have had something to do with his elevated role. I also don’t expect it to be cut drastically or limited in its scope anytime soon. I also found it telling that the Ravens went with an extra offensive lineman on seven snaps – we predicted it would be a fair amount- and extra tackle Carson Vinson out-snapped Cuevas (7-5) and Cuevas and Hibner combined for just 26 reps, obviously far less than Smythe.

Extra Heavy

As for those seven “extra heavy” reps that Vinson and Smythe were on the field together for, here’s how they went:

1st and 10: Henry run +4

2nd and 16: Andrews catch +17

1st and 10: Henry run +12

1st and 10: Henry run + 2

2nd and 8: Andrews catch +13

2nd and 5: Justice Hill no gain

1st and 10: Henry run +9

Especially if the young tight ends are going to have to play more as slot WRs if Doyle wants to maintain 60% usage out of 11 personnel, all the more reason to anticipate these jumbo looks instead of traditional 12 or 13 usage. Less than half of Smythe’s snaps came with one of the other tight ends on the field.

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