OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — A year ago, Baltimore added linebacker Roquan Smith at the trade deadline in a move that helped its defense become perhaps the best in the NFL.
There was no deal like that for the Ravens this season. Maybe they didn’t need one.
“We’re not going to do something out of desperation by any stretch. We have a really good roster,” coach John Harbaugh said Wednesday. “I love our guys. We have everything we need.”
Baltimore heads into this weekend’s matchup with Seattle with a three-game winning streak and a 1 1/2-game lead in the AFC North.
The Ravens also play their next three games at home, and their three remaining divisional matchups are all in Baltimore.
Like any team, the Ravens have some room for improvement, but standing pat at Tuesday’s deadline wasn’t any kind of shock.
“I just look at it like, if they saw something that they really needed out there, they would have really gotten it,” Smith said. “I feel I’m very confident in this team and position from top to bottom, and if we all play to the best of our abilities, the sky’s the limit for us.”
There was talk that Baltimore might be a possible destination for Tennessee running back Derrick Henry, but he remained with the Titans. The Ravens lost J.K. Dobbins to an Achilles tendon injury in the first game of the season, but they’re in their usual spot near the top of the league in rushing.
Quarterback Lamar Jackson’s running ability is a big reason for that, but running back Gus Edwards rushed for three touchdowns in last weekend’s win at Arizona.
Now the Ravens move forward with him and Justice Hill as the main options at running back.
Baltimore had just two touchdowns in nine red zone trips against Pittsburgh and Tennessee earlier in October, but the Ravens went 9 for 10 in their past two games against Detroit and Arizona. They’re now third in the league in red zone efficiency.
“We said it a couple of weeks ago when we had the bad game or two that you’d like to run it in, and being able to run it in down there is the best way to do it,” Harbaugh said.
“It’s just the most straightforward way to do it, it’s a smaller area to throw. Then off of that, you get play-action stuff and just straight drop back if they start packing it in there against the run.”
The pass rush was a concern coming into the season, which is almost hard to believe considering the team now leads the league with 31 sacks. Tackle Justin Madubuike has already set a career high with 6 1/2, but the pressure Baltimore puts on opposing quarterbacks has been a team effort. An NFL-high 13 Ravens have at least one sack.
Edge rushers David Ojabo and Odafe Oweh have been limited by injuries, so maybe Baltimore could have traded for more help in that role, but Jadeveon Clowney has 3 1/2 sacks and Kyle Van Noy has three after being signed in late September.
The trio of Madubuike, Patrick Queen and Kyle Hamilton — an interior lineman, an inside linebacker and a safety — has produced 13 sacks.
“In the offseason, I was going to make sure I did better than the year prior,” Madubuike said. “What I did different was just really tune in with pass rush moves and find ways to get better with conditioning. Those are the things I felt like last year I lacked, and I wanted to definitely get better (at that) this year.”
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