The Baltimore Ravens had control of their home opener against the New Orleans Saints. But as soon as the game tightened, things started to favor the Saints. Baltimore led 17-9 late in the third quarter but failed to score again.
The Saints scored 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to win 24-17. It was a painful blown lead for a Ravens team that has struggled to close out games in recent seasons. For first-year head coach Jesse Minter, the problem was not simply one bad play.
He believes Baltimore's players started pressing when the pressure increased. "I'm focused on creating a mentality that we play our style in those big moments," Minter said Monday. "I felt like guys started pressing a little bit and you're searching for that big play in those key moments." The Ravens did not suddenly forget how to play football.
Instead, they appeared to become more desperate as the Saints gained momentum. In those situations, trying to create a game-changing play can sometimes take players away from what they do best. "In reality, your identity as a player needs to show up in those crunch time situations," he said.
"You don't have to go be somebody else." That should be one of Baltimore's biggest takeaways from this loss. The Ravens still had opportunities to close the game. Minter said the team failed to capitalize on several chances and pointed to mistakes across all three phases.
The encouraging part is that Minter is not looking for someone to blame. He called this the team's "first real adversity as a group together." "We will own it together, and we will try to get better," Minter said. Baltimore will have a quick chance to respond when it faces the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3.
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