For the Baltimore Ravens, the preseason is officially behind them, and considering how they finished it, they’re probably happy to move on.
Baltimore ended the preseason with a bang, losing 30-7 to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. The 23-point loss is the biggest in the John Harbaugh era and a far cry from the Ravens’ preseason dominance over the past decade.
But enough about the bottom line, that will be much more important when the regular season starts in a few weeks. Right now, the focus is on trimming the roster down to 53 players before Tuesday’s looming deadline, and Saturday’s game certainly gave the Ravens plenty to think about.
With that in mind, here are a few players who stood out against Green Bay, both for better and for worse.
S Sanoussi Kane and S Beau Brade
Yes, it’s a two-for-one deal to start with. The two rookies – Kane, a seventh-round pick from Purdue, and Brade, an undrafted free agent from Maryland – are competing for what is likely the last safety spot on the 53-man roster. That decision will be extremely difficult, as both had strong performances on Saturday.
Brade led the Ravens with eight tackles for the second straight game, also making a tackle for loss and some big hits. Kane, meanwhile, added six tackles of his own and threw some big hits as well. After the game, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh praised both players, a good sign that at least one of them will make it.
“I think (Brade and Kane have) shown physicality, both on defense and on special teams,” Harbaugh said. “They’ve shown up here and there, actually pretty well today. (It’s an) overall assessment. Again, you have to see all the plays to get a feel for it, but they showed flashes of it a couple of times.”
Career: Joe Evans
Evans, another undrafted free agent, had an impressive game, totaling five tackles and two quarterback hits, both in the first quarter. The Iowa product, who recorded 16 sacks in his final two college seasons, still has no chance of making the draft, but his play could land him a role somewhere. It also helps that he’s impressed his teammates. Veteran Kyle Van Noy recently called him “Mr. Iowa.”
Quarterback Devin Leary
If there’s one thing to take away from this game, it’s how much Leary struggled. The sixth-round rookie out of Kentucky completed just six of 13 passes for 34 yards and had two interceptions. He also took a huge sack (which, to be fair, mostly happened on the offensive line) and fumbled over 20 yards back, setting up an easy touchdown for the Green Bay Packers defense. All in all, Leary finished the day with an atrocious passer rating of 13.5.
Leary was already on the fence before, as the Ravens usually only play with two quarterbacks and he couldn’t beat Josh Johnson. After this performance, however, there is reason to question whether he will stay on the practice squad rather than fellow rookie Emory Jones, who showed much more than Leary in each of the three preseason games last week.
CB Damarion “Pepe” Williams
Williams may just want to move on and throw away his film from this game. The 26-year-old cornerback was beaten on a number of plays Saturday, most notably an 18-yard touchdown from Packers receiver Bo Melton where he barely managed to block the ball. He also had trouble keeping the edge on a number of key running plays.
There’s no such thing as too much depth at cornerback, and the Ravens know that better than anyone. However, roster spots are limited, and Williams’ lackluster performance on Saturday may have put him on the wrong side of the bubble.
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