Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken may want to stick with the run-game considering the struggles of his back-up quarterbacks.
With the same offensive playbook that the Baltimore Ravens mastermind Todd Monken has used to propel Lamar Jackson over the last few seasons, Ravens' reserve quarterback Devin Leary finds himself struggling to succeed. Perhaps quarterback Cooper Rush is, in fact, the sure option as the backup quarterback?
Meanwhile, running backs Keaton Mitchell and Rasheen Ali were kicking up dust versus the Indianapolis Colts in preseason week 1. The pattern remains: Monken’s strong desire to make the passing game the primary focus of the offense when stats show that the rushing attack is nearly unstoppable continues even in the preseason.
Analysis might say the offensive line struggled, but the Ravens ran 42 rushing plays that produced 177 of the team's 226 yards in the 24-16 preseason week 1 win. Monken has the No. 1 rushing offense in the NFL. While no offensive coordinator should be one-dimensional in their play-calling, ratios should sway towards running the football at an even higher clip.
Monken's starting quarterback, Lamar Jackson, is unlikely to play in the NFL preseason, and head coach John Harbaugh has already confirmed that he won't participate in the upcoming exhibition versus the Dallas Cowboys. So, Monken would be wise to get Rush as many reps as possible and assess different running plays that he will want to frequent in and out during the regular season.
Ultimately, if opponents clearly show they are unable to stop the ground attack, there is no reason to steer away from it, even in the preseason.
This article originally appeared on Ravens Wire: Cooper Rush needs reps but Todd Monken is better off using run-game
Category: Football
