Coach John Harbaugh said Monday that he will “consider everything” as the Ravens try to fix their beleaguered pass defense, but he shot down one potential move in the secondary.
Brandon Stephens, who has struggled mightily in coverage this season, will remain at cornerback, Harbaugh said. Stephens started his career in Baltimore as a safety and practiced there as recently as the team’s 2023 training camp.
But even with the Ravens’ trade last week for Tre’Davious White, whom Harbaugh expects to compete for snaps at outside cornerback, Stephens will remain out wide. He has allowed 555 yards when targeted in coverage this season, the third-most of any player, according to Pro Football Focus. He gave up five catches on seven targets for 41 yards in the Ravens’ 35-34 win Thursday over the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Ravens, who are allowing an NFL-worst 294.9 passing yards per game, have lacked consistency in their back line, too. Four of the 20 safeties who’ve given up the most yards in coverage this season play regularly for coordinator Zach Orr’s defense: Kyle Hamilton (283 yards), Ar’Darius Washington (252), Eddie Jackson (250) and Marcus Williams (250).
“Everything’s on the table always,” Harbaugh said of making personnel changes. “So I don’t think that’s any news story. It’s definitely not headline-worthy. Because that’s what you do. That’s what I spent the weekend doing, and that’s what our coaches spent the weekend doing, and that’s what our players spent the weekend doing. So we’ll look at every aspect of it and pursue the best path that we can think of and that we see going forward with a great sense of urgency, like I said.”
The Ravens, who will face the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, are coming off perhaps their worst defensive performance of the season. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow finished with 428 yards and four touchdowns Thursday despite missing No. 2 wide receiver Tee Higgins and standout left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. Star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had 11 catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns, including two long catch-and-run scores on throws between the numbers.
“It comes down to us,” Harbaugh said Monday. “We’ve got to play our coverages better in those situations. Deep part of the field, especially the deep middle and the intermediate middle of the field, are the areas that have been a problem for us. Just very inconsistent back there, in that sense, and we’re going to be attacking that. That’s probably the one major thing, if I was going to put a priority thing on it, obviously, probably everybody would agree with that. That’s the No. 1 target that we’ve got to get better at.”
Note: Hamilton, who left Thursday’s game with a sprained ankle, will be reevaluated Wednesday, Harbaugh said. The All-Pro’s injury is not believed to be serious, and he underwent treatment over the weekend.
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