Some of the marks prove to be grating

Before getting too far ahead, one last position-by-position look at the 2022 season

The Ravens met expectations during the 2022 season. They were expected to win between 10 and 11 games, get to playoffs and have to beat Kansas City, Buffalo or Cincinnati in some combination to make it to the Super Bowl. They didn’t, losing to the Bengals, 24-17, in the AFC wild-card round.

Now, the Ravens are searching for an offensive coordinator to replace Greg Roman, and they have a decision to make about star quarterback Lamar Jackson. Do they trade him, or do they try to work out some equitable contract extension?

Regardless of what happens with Jackson, look for the Ravens to select a quarterback early in April’s draft and to find reinforcements at cornerback and wide receiver. They’ll want to upgrade their passing game and get faster on the back end of the defense.

But before we look too far into the future, The Baltimore Sun presents its final report card for the 2022 Ravens.

Quarterbacks

Lamar Jackson started the season strong but the Ravens turned him into a game manager after two major turnovers late in their 24-20 loss to the New York Giants in Week 6. Jackson wasn’t

happy with his new role, but the Ravens rattled off four more wins before losing to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He injured his knee in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos the following week and did not return, missing the final six games. Backup Tyler Huntley played reasonably well, completing 67% of his passes for 658 yards and two touchdowns, but he will be long remembered for his goal-line fumble that Bengals defensive end Sam Hubbard returned 98 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the Ravens’ playoff loss to Cincinnati. Third-stringer Anthony Brown showed surprising arm strength in his one start late in the regular-season finale against the Bengals, but the Ravens never fully overcame the loss of Jackson, who completed 62.3% of his passes for 2,242 yards and 17 touchdowns. Jackson, though, needs to be reminded that quarterbacks earn their status of greatness in the playoffs, and you can’t win a Super Bowl if you’re not on the field. Grade: C

Running backs

Starter J.K. Dobbins finished with

520 yards on 92 carries and backup Gus Edwards had 433 yards on 87 attempts, but they seldom worked in tandem like they did two years ago. They were slowed by their recoveries from major knee injuries that forced each to miss the 2021 season, and both had lingering effects, especially Dobbins, who also tore his hamstring and then had a cleanup knee surgery midseason. No. 3 running back Kenyan Drake (109 carries for 482 yards) played well at times and his cutback ability presented problems for opposing teams who were used to the downhill running styles of Dobbins and Edwards. With a strong offseason, Dobbins and Edwards should be able to become a dominant duo in 2023, especially with a new offensive coordinator. Dobbins could become the runner who controls the pace early before Edwards closes the door in the fourth quarter with his punishing style. They couldn’t find that rhythm consistently in 2022, but the Ravens still had one of the top running games in the NFL. Grade: B