Let's look at the ratbirds
QB – Lamar needs no introduction. He runs for nearly 90 yards a game and there isn't much you can do on defense to stop him from running around a bit. As far as being a passer he has improved since last year. However don't buy into his stat line for passing. He had that amazing 2 week stretch of the Dolphins and Cards to start the year where he went 7 TDs 0 Ints. Since then not so good. Even if you just take out that one amazing dolphin game he is 6 passing TDs 5 Ints in the other 6 games. While he has improved as a passer he isn't great. Also while he averages about 90 yards a week running it isn't consistent. And that number is more important than you think. In games he has run for 6, 46, 66, 70, 116, 120 and 146 yards. The 6 yards was the Miami game which you can throw out the window. The other 3 games he was held to 70 or below were Cle, KC and Pitt. Loss, Loss and OT win. See a pattern there?
RB – They have a committee but it doesn't seem to matter who they run with. They all produce. Ingram, Edwards and sometimes Hill. They all pick up nice chunks. Mostly the first 2 with Ingram a bit more of a pass catching threat than the others. We'll get to that next. Overall they tend to run very well but their biggest running threat and producer by far is Jackson. Most yards on the team by over 100.
WRs/Pass catchers – Their #1 threat is Mark Andrews and he is a problem. Some Tight Ends are Tight Ends in name only. Not Andrews. He plays like he has 40 pounds on you on the field. He leads them in everything. Targets, Yards, Receptions. Brown is their clear cut #2 Option. He missed a few games but gets about as many YPG as Andrews. Brown is more of a home run hitter and a feast or famine player. He's expected to return for this game. Their #3 option is Snead who while capable isn't amazing. Boyle and Hurst are next in line at TE. While they haven't thrown a lot of passes to RBs this year they have the guys to do it. Over all they can throw any formation or personnel grouping they want at you and you need to respect it. That being said if you slow down Andrews and Brown who are the clear 1 and 2 no matter how much they mix it up it won't matter.
TEs – I won't spend much time here as I went over this group in the above post some. What I will say is they like to use their TEs a lot. It isn't at all unusual to see them have 2 out there. The Pats need to be ready for that.
OL – Their OL starters from left to right are Ronnie Stanley, Bradley Bozeman, Matt Skura, Marshall Yanda and Orlando Brown. They have been healthy pretty much all year. At tackle Stanley is one of the best young tackles in the NFL. While Brown is a 2nd year player still trying to figure it out. Not horrible but not good. At guard Yanda needs no introduction. Still among the best at his position. Bozeman is a 2nd year player and really struggling . As for Skura he isn't good either. Below average for his spot. So overall they have 2 very good lineman, 2 so-so ones and a bad one. They're better in run blocking than pass protection as many have stated.
DL – The Ravens run a 3-4 D with Wormley, Michel Pierce and Brandon Williams listed as the starters. Those 3 play most of the snaps for the DL but they tend to go lite and take them off the field often. All of them are good players but it could be argued Brandon Williams is looking a little off this year. Some of these big body guys hit 30 and it takes a little bit out of them. Their backups play a little bit but none are worth mentioning really. Interesting note. Patrick Ricard who plays snaps for them here is a 2 way player. Also a FB.
LB/EDGE - Matthew Judon and Jaylon Ferguson handle the Edge duties mostly. Judon has been a mainstay while Ferguson the rookie has been brought along and is now the clear cut #2. Not that he has been good, but they are trying hard to work him in. As for Judon he is close to an every down player and has been okay for them as a starter. PFF has him down this year but much of that is due to him having to cover for the struggling youngster, and he just isn't good enough to do it. A 2nd tier Edge guy forced into a 1st tier role and not being up to snuff. As for their other players at edge, McPhee was their starter with the plan to let Ferguson ease in (before he went on IR). Losing him hurts them badly here. This elevates Tyus Bowser to the #3 spot. Frankly he's better than Ferg but not a great player either. At this point I think they stick with Ferg and ride it out for better or worse, which is good for us for this week.
LB – Chris Board and Patrick Onwuasor are listed as starters. Onwuasor's injury is worth monitoring. When healthy Onw doesn't leave the field, but he isn't very good tbh. Board's role has quickly shrunk to nothing. It's unclear who the #2 inside LB is. Could be L.J. Fort or Josh Bynes. My guess is Bynes. Since being signed on Oct 2 he has really played well and has a history of playing well in this league. Both of them are playing at a solid level right now though. Frankly Onwu coming back may be a good thing for the Patriots.
CB – Marlon Humphrey and new addition Marcus Peters are the outside CBs. Peters was recently traded as many of you will remember. His first game here went well. Humphrey is a very solid #1 CB. Peters of course is a risk taker who can make game changing plays either way. Their #3 guy is Brandon Carr. He use to be okay in his role, but at 33 he is starting to look a little old out there. Having one of his worst years according to PFF. You won't see them put many other CBs on the field unless they absolutely have to.
S - At safety Earl Thomas and Chuck Clark handler nearly all the duties. Thomas is still good but no longer what he was. Clark is grading well this year but I don't really buy it. I still think he is a weak link and can be attacked. While it possible other guys may be seen back here I think it will pretty much be these 2. It is worth noting Tony Jefferson was the clear starter next to Thomas until going on IR
Overall. As others have noted this offense has struggled to find consistency sense week 1. As explosive as individual players may be it doesn't sustain well for long drives. Take away defensive scores and garbage time points and you really start to see a big issue here. While listed as one of the best offenses in the NFL that Miami game in week 1 when they put up 59 needs to be taken with a grain of salt. In reality they are more like a team that scores around 20 PPG than 30. The Pats D has some tough things to watch out for but they can be contained.
On defense they are solid but not great. They have a good DL but the pressure and sacks really come from the edge. The DL is more about stopping the run and they do that well. As for their edge pressure losing McPhee hurts them here. Ferg has been nearly invisible but they seem committed to him now. As for Onwa he is still unknown but we will see how that goes. Getting Bynes helped them in the middle making the heart of the D harder to attack. At CB Peters may be worth challenging and Carr is a guy they want to target. Pick on their back up safety too. He is better than most back ups but still a back up. This ravens D is solid but has a few holes and even though they made things hard for Wilson I question their pass rush talent now without McPhee. Running yards may be hard to come by.
