Baltimore Ravens may struggle to reclaim AFC North in 2019

The Baltimore Ravens won the AFC North last year with a 10-6 record. It may be tough repeating the feat come autumn.

Baltimore has had one of the tougher offseason of any team in the game. The Ravens released wide receiver Michael Crabtree and safety Eric Weddle, all while watching inside linebacker C.J. Mosley, outside linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Terrell Suggs, and wide receiver John Brown all leave in free agency. General manager Eric DeCosta was able to add free safety Earl Thomas and running back Mark Ingram. However, it’s tough to see the last few months as a successful period for the team.

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With Joe Flacco having been traded to the Denver Broncos, Lamar Jackson is officially the man in Baltimore. Jackson was able to succeed in the standings last season, going 6-1 down the stretch once taking over for Flacco. However, Jackson was largely average statistically, never throwing for more than 204 yards. As well as that, he never completed more than 61 percent of his passes in any game.

However, the offense doesn’t appear to be a potent group. Right now, the Ravens are looking at a depth chart of Willie Snead and Chris Moore on the outside, with Nick Boyle and Hayden Hurst at tight end. There’s not a defensive coordinator in the league losing sleep over that lineup.

Additionally, Jackson and the Ravens are going to be entering 2019 without the same time of suffocating defense to help out. A season ago, Baltimore had the league’s top-ranked defense, led by a tremendous front seven. While the secondary remains strong with cornerbacks Brandon Carr, Jimmy Smith and Tavon Young, and safeties Tony Jefferson and Thomas, the unit has its issues.

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Furthermore, the Ravens are must contend with a better division. The Cleveland Browns have arguably been the most improved team of the offseason, adding defensive linemen Olivier Vernon and Sheldon Richardson along with superstar receiver Odell Beckham Jr and former rushing champion Kareem Hunt. At this juncture, it’s hard to see how the Ravens are at the same talent level of Cleveland, something Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh recently said at the owner’s meetings in Arizona.

With the NFL Draft on April 25-27, there’s still time for DeCosta to add playmakers, albeit in a class that is heavily skewed defensively. If that happens, the fine folks Charm City can rest a bit easier. If not, there’s ample reason to believe that Baltimore is going to struggle inits quest to repeat in the AFC North.