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After Lamar Jackson was ruled out for the weekend, though, a 1-6 record seemed a likely destination. Facing a team that came into town sporting the only offense in the NFL to put up at least 21 points in each game this season, the Ravens were averaging 6.5 points per game in contests without Jackson. Newly anointed QB2 Tyler Huntley had other ideas in mind, and Sunday’s victory may have forced general manager Eric DeCosta to shift strategies for the trade deadline. According to Dianna Russini of The Athletic, the Ravens were already making calls concerning trades for a cornerback, even before their win changed their immediate outlook. Coming into the season, the new-look secondary was looking strong with Marlon Humphrey coming off a resurgent, first-team All-Pro season, first-rounder Nate Wiggins looking to take the next step, and newcome veterans Chidobe Awuzie and Jaire Alexander appearing to provide significant upgrades to the depth of the room. Awuzie and Wiggins have certainly played their parts early in the season, but Humphrey has had perhaps the worst half of a season of his career. Pro Football Focus grades Humphrey as the 110th-best cornerback in the NFL out of 113 players graded at the position. And, though Alexander has not appeared on the injury report since Week 2 nor been put on any injury list, he has been inactive from Week 3 on. Russini’s colleague at The Athletic, Jeff Zrebiec, helped identify pass rusher and offensive guard as two more areas of interest for the Ravens over the next week. Zrebiec saw the team’s Week 8 win, which put the ailing team just two games out of the division lead, as a strong indicator that Baltimore could look to make some acquisitions. If the team were to win again two days from now in Miami, Zrebiec would see that as a green light for DeCosta, who has a history of being aggressive this time of year, previously bringing in contributors like Roquan Smith and Marcus Peters. Zrebiec focuses the possibilities on athletes Baltimore can realistically acquire, quickly ruling out Maxx Crosby, Trey Hendrickson and other like expensive stars whose names have frequented trade rumors. He also steers away from possibilities who wouldn’t provide enough of an upgrade over their current situation, avoiding options like Azeez Ojulari, Arden Key, Evan Neal and Deonte Banks. Instead, he circles the names of players with tremendous upside who may have some limiting factor keeping their costs down.
