Cornerbacks have defense feeling more confident

Humphrey, Peters ‘playing out of their minds’ as Ravens hold Panthers to just 3 points

As the Ravens’ offense struggled on a cold and brisk Sunday afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium, star cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters provided the spark that lifted Baltimore to a 13-3 win over the Carolina Panthers.

With the Ravens leading 6-3 in the fourth quarter, Peters made a game-changing play, stripping the ball from Panthers wide receiver Shi Smith deep in Carolina territory. Even though the referees blew the play dead, negating a potential touchdown return by Humphrey, the fumble gave a struggling offense a prime chance to score. After a 29-yard run by Kenyan Drake and an offsides penalty against the Panthers, quarterback Lamar Jackson scored on a 1-yard run to give the Ravens a 13-3 lead with 7:20 to go.

Then it was Humphrey’s turn. The two-time Pro Bowl selection read quarterback Baker Mayfield’s pass perfectly, jumping in front of Smith for an interception at Carolina’s 41-yard line with 3:35 left. It marked the second of three turnovers in the fourth quarter for the Ravens’ defense, which has shown dramatic improvement of late.

The resurgence of Humphrey and Peters is a big reason why.

“It’s crazy [to have] two future Hall of Fame cornerbacks on one team, shutting down both sides of the field,” Jackson said after the game. “I feel like that gives our defense a boost at all phases. Those guys are playing out of their minds right now.”

Sunday was a prime example of what the Ravens can look like with Humphrey and Peters healthy and playing at a high level. Peters totaled five tackles, while Humphrey had two tackles, a quarterback hit, a fumble recovery and tied his career high with his third interception of the season. When Humphrey was the nearest defender, he didn’t allow a reception on two targets in 31 coverage snaps, according to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats.

With solid play from Peters and Humphrey mixed with consistent pressure by the defensive line, the Ravens sacked Mayfield four times and held him to a 54.6 passer rating. Panthers star wide receiver DJ Moore (Maryland) had just three catches for 24 yards.

“We obviously had a rough first half of

playing time fluctuated. Rookie Damarion “Pepe” Williams has featured prominently in the slot. So has Brandon Stephens. Starting cornerback Marlon Humphrey has bounced between the inside and outside to accommodate the Ravens’ lineups and matchups.

On Sunday, though, there were far fewer moving pieces — and far fewer problems. At inside linebacker, Queen and Smith, finally up to speed on the Ravens’ schemes, played every defensive snap. They helped limit the Panthers to 36 yards rushing (2.1 per carry) and helped juice the Ravens’ upgraded front (four sacks and seven quarterback hits) with their speed and pass-rushing ability.

In the secondary, when the Ravens needed a fifth defensive back, they at first called exclusively on rookie safety Kyle Hamilton. Until the first-round pick suffered an apparently minor knee injury in the third quarter, no other defensive back besides cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Humphrey and safeties Geno Stone and Chuck Clark played a single defensive snap.

Hamilton finished with four tackles, including one for loss, and a quarterback hit in just 21 snaps Sunday. His physicality and instincts helped shore up problem areas for the defense, blowing up blocks on wide receiver screens and making quick, smart reads as a run defender. Hamilton was also sticky in man-to-man coverage and sound when dropping into zone coverage.

“Defensively, I feel good about the steady progress,” coach John Harbaugh said Monday. “I feel like we had a vision. The players understood the vision. It’s built around the talent that we have, and what we had, and we haven’t really changed course; we’ve stayed on course, and we’ve just tried to improve. So, the guys have done that. It’s starting to show up in a real good way the last month or so, and we have to keep getting better. We have a long way to go.”

In an era where three-wide-receiver formations have become the default for most NFL offenses, the Ravens’ development of a reliable nickel defense (five defensive backs) could prove hugely consequential. The team will face three of the league’s most efficient “11” personnel attacks (one back, one tight end, three wide receivers) — the Cleveland Browns (Week 15), Atlanta Falcons (Week 16) and Cincinnati Bengals (Week 18) — over the second half of their season.

Get through them, and even bigger tests could await the Ravens in the playoffs. The Kansas City Chiefs, Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills, all possible AFC playoff opponents, lead the NFL in expected points added per play in 11 personnel, according to TruMedia. (EPA is a measure of efficiency that accounts for situational factors such as down, distance and field position.) Over the season’s first nine weeks, the Ravens’ defense ranked No. 27 against that package by the same metric. Over the past three weeks, however, only the New England Patriots have been better against 11 personnel.

The Ravens won’t have the luxury of facing quarterbacks like Andy Dalton and Baker Mayfield every week. But with more help set to arrive in the coming weeks — safety Marcus Williams and rookie outside linebacker David Ojabo, most notably — and the defense’s experience in Macdonald’s system still growing, the Ravens should be on solid ground.