Raven Country

'Great to See' Ravens Explosive Offense vs. Commanders - John Harbaugh

The Baltimore Ravens have been lauded for having one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL, and against the Washington Commanders, coach John Harbaugh was pleased to see it in action.

Adam Schultz

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The Baltimore Ravens have been one of the most intriguing storylines of the preseason, as the wealth of attacking talent at Lamar Jackson's disposal is tantalizing.

Of course, coaches and players have only seen it in practice, and against the Washington Commanders in their second preseason game - a 29-28 loss - we saw flashes of what it could be about to become.

Head coach John Harbaugh couldn't hide his enthusiasm over what he saw at FedEx Field.

“It was great to see it," Harbaugh said. "I mean just to see that and the way [WR Zay Flowers] played and just, you know, the offense and just creating plays like that, you know. We did it in the run game as well, and then how about a guy like [TE Travis] Vokolek? You know, going out there and catching those passes and scoring a touchdown, [TE] Charlie [Kolar] stepping up and making the catches. Both quarterbacks played outstanding, [I’m] just really happy with all of that.”

While the loss to the Commanders ended the Ravens' 24-game winning streak in preseason games, Baltimore got far more out of the game.

Zay Flowers showed his explosive route running and blazing speed as he caught two passes for 37 yards and a touchdown. As Harbaugh mentioned, young tight ends Travis Vokolek (3 rec, 28 yards, 2 TDs) and Charlie Kolar (2 rec, 61 yards) both put forth their case to be included in the final 53-man roster.

With Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely No. 1 and No. 2 on the depth chart, Baltimore, Vokolek, and Kolar are locked in a battle for the TE3 position. 

The run game was also potent against Washington as Justice Hill (2 attempts for 25 yards), Keaton Mitchell (1 rush for 31 yards), quarterback Anthony Brown (4 rushes for 37 yards), and veteran Melvin Gordon (8 rushes for 34 yards) all played their role.

Of course, there was no Lamar Jackson, Andrews, J.K. Dobbins, Nelson Agholor, or Odell Beckham Jr. against Washington, but given how Harbaugh likes what he saw, we can only imagine what the offense could look like with those pieces all coming together.

It is only preseason, so we can't exactly anoint Todd Monkens Ravens' offense just yet, but after two preseason games, we have seen the potential, and that will excite Baltimore fans heading into Week 1 against the Houston Texans.

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