Ravens Ride the Wester Winds

Ravens 24, Colts 16

There’s no game plan. No strategic ploys to manipulate an opponent’s weaknesses. It’s all about getting in the work, to put performances on film, to grow and build the roster from the bottom up. The game’s outcome really doesn’t matter. The preseason is merely another building block to get teams ready for September and the regular season.

With that in mind, here are my takeaways from tonight’s Ravens game against the Indianapolis Colts in the style of The Good, Bad, Ugly & The Paige Spiranac.

The Good

Keaton Mitchell is back. His vision, jump cuts and burst are all there and he’s a big play just waiting to happen. Keaton posted 68 yards on 9 carries including a 22-yard scamper for a score to put the Ravens up 7-3…Backfield mate Rasheen Ali overcame an early drop during a well-designed screen and a missed block in pass protection, toting the rock 9 times for 37 yards and a score…Recently acquired D’Ernest Johnson grinded out 57 yards on 18 tough carries to help the struggling offense manage field position and keep the chains and clock moving late in the game.

An untouched David Ojabo looked explosive off the edge to take down Anthony Richardson for a sack…Mike Green had a couple of pressures and showed bend around the corner. That combined with his ability to explode up into the pads of opposing offensive linemen to gain leverage will pay dividends in 2025…Jalyn Armour-Davis showed great technique and was outstanding in coverage…The battle for reserve safety is heating up. Give Beau Brade the edge tonight over Sanoussi Kane…Jay Higgins had an INT and the game clinching PD on 4th-and-5 with under 2 minutes to go…The return game was great v. the Colts. More on that in a moment.

The Bad

The Ravens offense had just 226 total yards to the Colts 366…Jordan Stout’s inconsistency will remain a thing until it isn’t. He’ll boom one then hit a dud and he’s just no Sam Koch when it comes to pinning teams inside the 10 when the opportunity presents itself. He needs a better gap wedge…The Colts averaged 27 yards per kick return and 12.3 yards per punt return. Coverage units need to improve…The secondary struggled to cover tight ends which was a byproduct of poor drops from the ILBs and late reaction from the safeties. The corners gave up far too much ground at times, allowing easy pitch and catch opportunities for the Colts…Tyler Loop, looped a 46-yard FGA left but did bounce back to drill a 52-yarder.

The Ugly

Devin Leary was 3 of 12 for 43 yards and an interception. That’s a passer rating of 7.29…Cooper Rush wasn’t much better. His was an abbreviated outing, going 2 of 4 for 16 yards and a pick. Relatively speaking, that’s a whopping passer rating of 20.83…We keep being fed the story of Daniel Faalele’s strong offseason and conditioning. I’ve yet to see it translate to better play at training camp and certainly not in this game. If there’s a weak link in the offense, it is unquestionably him. Why he’s the defacto starter is a mystery. It’s time for Ben Cleveland to get some practice time at right guard…False starts have been a problem throughout camp. Tonight was no different. Clean. It. Up…Tough break for rookie CB Bilhal Kone. I’m not sure that he was anything more than a practice squad player in 2025 but now his quest to be part of the 53 in 2026 is in doubt.

This man is going to get Lamar Jackson killed. Get Land Whale off the starting lineup pic.twitter.com/TWVLP0S4P6

— RavensFlock20 (@Bateman_Szn7) August 7, 2025

BREAKING: Ravens rookie CB Bilhal Kone tore his MCL and MCL tonight vs. Colts, per @Schultz_Report.

A devastating injury for the rookie.

Please pray for this young man. pic.twitter.com/mgaf9lvRIN

— Ravens Nation ð™‡ð™„ð™‘𙀠(@LIVERavenNation) August 8, 2025

The Paige Spiranac Award

The Ravens used the 2025 NFL Draft to try and get better in the return game and if tonight was any indication, mission accomplished. LaJohntay Wester had an electric punt return for an 87 yard score but the play that impressed just as much was his first return for 17 yards. Wester came up in traffic to field a low 39-yard line drive at the Ravens 27 and returned it to the 44-yard line. That kind of punt was a nightmare for the Ravens in 2024 when punts weren’t fielded, hit the ground and cost the Ravens 15-20 yards of field position.

RAVENS ROOKIE LAJOHNTAY WESTER WITH A PUNT RETURN TD

INDvsBAL on @NFLNetwork
Watch live out-of-market preseason games on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/gGBq7QNm90

— NFL (@NFL) August 7, 2025

Wester also added 2 catches for 41 yards. On the first catch he worked back towards the quarterback to shield the defender, prevent the PD and make an 11-yard grab for a first down. During his second catch, Wester adjusted well to the ball in flight and heel-dragged the sideline to complete the catch. Those 41 yards represent 69.5% of the team’s passing “attack” in this preseason game. A great start for the rookie out of Colorado

.@Ravens rookie LaJohntay Wester is showing out

INDvsBAL on @NFLNetwork
Watch live out-of-market preseason games on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/PmXRGkxFUm

— NFL (@NFL) August 8, 2025

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