The Ravens' offensive line issues may prompt a recalibration in their run attack. What it cannot do, however, is curtail the intent to run the ball with great regularity.

For all of its lack of ability to create running lanes for future Hall of Fame running back Derrick Henry, now 32 at an age most RB careers stall, and inability to get push in short-yardage situations, the failure to protect quarterback Lamar Jackson, is a far greater concern. And at a time when no one besides receiver Zay Flowers is making plays downfield and with Jackson at risk of being under siege with Titans monster defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons coming to M&T Bank Stadium, it’s another week where rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle needs to be very careful about what he expects from his offense.

The Ravens ran the ball 38 times last week and should be aiming to do so this week, too. The fact that Henry mustered just 89 yards on 26 carries is something Doyle must be mindful of, and there are sore workarounds that seem obvious to us but there is also no substitute for controlling the clock and wearing down a defensive line with a powerful back like Henry, and seeking even more volume on the ground is a must, with Baltimore trying rookie guard Vega Ioane at center now, and seeking help off the street for a woeful interior offensive line.

“I think that when you have offensive line issues, especially at center, I think causes more problems on pass protection, but these guys can still run block,” longtime NFL general manager Marty Hurney told me on “The Daily Flock Show” this week. “And you've got a running back behind them that can control a game.

“So, I think going into this game, that's the key for them offensively is to really set the tempo, not getting in third and longs, and you know, we say it every week, but when you're playing with a new offensive lineman, I think it's very important you keep it simple.”

Bingo. Keep It Simple Stupid and keep the clock moving until or unless they get this line sorted (and with how it was constructed coming in, that might be impossible.

What they cannot do it abandon it if Henry is getting stuffed; getting creative in how they attack the perimeter, running even more behind right tackle Roger Rosengarten, and sticking with it sounds a lot better to me than dropping back 40 times and letting the lack of any familiarity between the guards and center derail the season as Simmons tosses Lamar Jackson all over the field.

Follow The Numbers To The Perimeter

While Henry was utterly stuffed except for one 29 yard jaunt (12 other carries for 13 yards in the second half), by a bad Dallas defense, Jackson, third-down back Justice Hill and Flowers did a great job with perimeter runs (often off right end). Those three combined for 12 rushes for 103 yards and had gains of 11, 17 , 20 and 21 yards off either right end or left end.

Avoiding the soft interior.

They averaged 6.90 yards/carry running right Sunday, and on the season the Ravens have 62 yards on nine plays off right tackle, 6.78/play, best in the NFL. They also average nearly six yards per play off right end, and has done it 22 times, most in the NFL. Keep that up.

For all the offseason work and emphasis put on the under-center offense, the Ravens shotgun runs (6.0 yards/carry) have been more explosive than under center (4.7). The speed and sprint plays might be better than the power with Henry right not from an efficiency standpoint. There should be enough volume, again, for all of it, and Doyle is going to have to be willing accept some scenarios with three straight runs for nine-to-ten yards.

This is a triage situation for the Ravens offensive line, the general manager doesn’t invest much in it to begin with, and the idea that Jackson can make it work no matter how suspect a cast around seems still at the core of the team-building philosophies, so it needs to be all hands on deck in the run game.

“The volume's got to be there,” Hurney explained. “And what we're forgetting is the 8 to 10 runs that you have for Lamar, right? And so if you're giving Derrick Henry the ball 20 to 25 times a game and Lamar's running another 10, and you’ve somebody else running four or five times, what's wrong with that?

“If you're the Baltimore Ravens, that's how you're built to win. I mean physicality, physical offense, physical defense, that is what has defined that organization. And I think they're getting back to it. I really do.”

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