The Ravens’ switch from Joe Flacco to Lamar Jackson at quarterback has resulted in a lot of winning, but it hasn’t resulted in much pass catching work for wide receivers John Brown, Michael Crabtree and Willie Snead.
All three have seen a sharp drop in targets and catches since the rookie took the reins of an offense that’s focused on running the ball, but there hasn’t been any sign of discontent from the trio. They’ve taken on the role of blocking for Jackson and other runners with gusto that Jackson called “pretty amazing” when he spoke to reporters on Wednesday.
“Those guys have been blocking their tails off,” Jackson said. “Sometimes they’re not getting the ball as much as they should. Sometimes they won’t get a catch for the game, and I’ll be madder than they would. I’ll go, ‘I’m trying to get you the ball.’ They’re like, ‘You good, you good,’ and I’m like, ‘No, I’m not good. When you guys score, then we’re good.’ But it’s pretty cool to have guys like that on the team.”
Brown had a simple answer when asked about being satisfied with his new role. Brown said “we’re winning” and that reiterated that it’s nothing for Jackson to worry about.
“We’re not worrying about that as long as we’re winning,” Brown said. “That’s just the type of player he is, but at the end of the day it’s just that we won. We’ll get our opportunities when our opportunities come.”
The wait for those opportunities may extend beyond this season because the Ravens aren’t likely to mess with something that’s worked well enough to take them from 4-5 to a division title over the final seven weeks of the season.