The best news to come out of the aftermath of Zay Flowers ripping up the Colts for 150 yards and a touchdown on just six targets in the first half is that his hamstring is in good shape.
According to a source with knowledge of the situation, Flowers feels very good about the situation despite having to be removed from the game and watching the second half. However, he had a hamstring issue in the preseason and he is a vital player as the only in-form playmaker in the pass game and while this does not appear to be a multi-week injury, the risk of aggravation and with this being so early in the season, the Ravens will be watching it closely all week.
Barring further aggravation, Flowers might be good as soon as Week 2, but the fact he was already practicing limited will be factored in. And what Flowers was able to pack into just 11 routes run against the Colts will play on the minds of opposing defensive coordinators likely far longer than any issues with the hamstring hold him back, we hope. This was a command performance that featured all the hallmarks of the “explosion” that Flowers gushed about all offseason in promising a downfield thrust from rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle.
And boy did it happen, immediately and consistently.
All five of Flowers’s receptions were for at least 12 yards and two went for 49 or more including a 54-yard touchdown (albeit on a short wheel route) and Lamar Jackson threw for 324 yards on just 25 attempts in his first game in tis system, with Doyle leaning into three-receiver sets (11 personnel) unlike every before in the Jackson era (50% more than the previous norm before injuries beset Flowers and rookie receiver Ja’Kobi Lane (who will miss time with a wrist injury).
“That’s a credit to the players that we have,” rookie head coach Jesse Minter said of the offense. “We have a lot of great players, starting with our quarterback, obviously a lot of skill players, offensive line. I thought Declan, man, first NFL game, came out of the gates on fire and did a great job. So just a credit to them, and I think the confidence grows when you prepare well.”
A Man On The Move
It was clear that with the drafting of four pass catchers in the first five rounds, and with Doyle bringing a Sean Payton offense to Baltimore , it would mean a bigger emphasis on moving Flowers around and pre-snap machinations. Flowers will be in the slot more this year, we believe (6 of 11 routes Sunday), and put in motion more (just twice Sunday) and in the backfield more (once). The one time he lined up back there he caught the ball just past the line of scrimmage and scampered 54 yards for the score.
When Flowers ran a route in Week 1, here’s what transpired:
Jackson: 8/10, 180 yards, 1 TD.
Jackson also had a critical scramble for 16 yards, and Henry picked up a key 19 yard reception down to the 6, with the game at 14-6, with Flowers stacked behind Lane on the left slot, and Jackson under center, faking a sweep handoff to Flowers in play action before dumping it down to the running back. Expect plenty more of that.
Doyle began the game with Flowers usually in the slot to the left side, busting the Colts for 49 yards on a corner route to the middle of the field – where Flowers does his best work. And, no surprise that 6 of his 11 routes were crossers. Flower was split out wide a few times, moved over to the right slot, was stacked behind Lane in some 2/1 looks and also had a rep where he was isolated in the slot. And even when he departed, Jackson uncorked a deep ball to trusted journeyman Chris Moore.
“I have all the confidence in my guys who stepped in,” Jackson said. “Chris Moore, LaJohntay (Wester), those guys stepped in and just did a great job. We kept the offense rolling.”
And while that’s true, the Ravens were also dominating the game with a big lead and controlling the ball on the ground and the Colts were vulnerable to deep shots. Entering a game this beat up at receiver would be a different assignment altogether for Baltimore, and they have always seemed a pass catcher light to me, anyway.
More pressure will be on veteran tight end Mark Andrews to make plays downfield, and the team must be perusing the waiver wire and exploring other depth options with Moore not going back to the practice squad for any games in the next few weeks (he was a dervish on special teams as well. Watching Flowers’s film should have veterans looking for work lining up to fill in for the Ravens, even if only for a week or two.
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