Raven Country

Opponents Fully Focused on Shutting Dows Ravens Tight End Mark Andrews

Ravens tight end Mark Andrews facing tight coverage.

Todd Karpovich

In this story:

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens tight end Mark Andrews has never seen tighter coverage over his NFL career.

Opponents are determined to contain Andrews and make the Ravens quarterback find other options downfield.

“They’re paying a lot of attention to him," offensive coordinator Greg Roman said. "There are times where he’s just purely getting doubled – there’s a lot of ways to build a double [team] – but he’s getting doubled a lot, a lot more than he ever has in a lot of variety of different ways. It’s that simple. There are times where you can design some things to beat a double team, and there are times where the ball has to go elsewhere."

Andrews leads the team with 92 targets, well ahead of DeMarcus Robinson, who is second with 56. Andrews also leads the team with 58 catches for 671 yards with five touchdowns. 

He also missed the Week 9 game against the New Orleans Saints with a shoulder injury. Andrews is by far the Ravens' go-to pass catcher.

But Andrews has faced those double teams over the past several games.

Here's a breakdown:

Week 11 vs. Carolina: 8 targets, 6 receptions, 63 yards, 0 touchdowns

Week 12 vs. Jacksonville:  7 targets, 4 receptions, 50 yards, 0 touchdowns

Week 13 vs. Broncos: 7 targets, 4 receptions, 53 yards, 0 touchdowns

Week 14 vs. Steelers: 6 targets, 2 receptions, 17 yards, 0 touchdowns

Roman said that Andrews is still impacting the game in many ways.

"Now you’re playing with fire trying to throw it into the defensive coverage, but Mark’s [Andrews] having a great year. I thought he played incredibly this past week – in terms of playing football – not stats sheets and all that," Roman said. "He blocked really well; he had a lot on his plate in that regard. We have all the faith in the world [in him]. Mark’s one of the best tight ends in the game.”

Published
Todd Karpovich
TODD KARPOVICH

Twitter: @toddkarpovich Email: todd.karpovich@gmail.com Skype: todd.karpovich Todd Karpovich has been a contributor for ESPN, Forbes, the Associated Press, Lindy's, and The Baltimore Sun, among other media outlets nationwide. He is the co-author of “If These Walls Could Talk: Stories from the Baltimore Ravens Sideline, Locker Room, and Press Box,” “Skipper Supreme: Buck Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles,” and the author of “Manchester United (Europe's Best Soccer Clubs).” Karpovich, a Baltimore native, is a graduate of Calvert Hall College high school, Randolph-Macon College in Virginia, and has a Masters of Science from Towson University. 

Home/News