Ravens 2020 Recap: Wide Receivers

Now that the Ravens season has concluded after a loss on Saturday night in Buffalo, it’s time to look back at the team’s positional groups. The Ravens receiver room was one of the team’s weakest positions this year. Baltimore finished last in the league in receptions, pass attempts, and passing yards. There is a severe lack of depth here, so let’s take a look at the wide receivers on this roster:

Marquise Brown

Hollywood entered the season with pretty high expectations of establishing himself as a true number one wide receiver for this team. That didn’t really happen. Brown did lead the team in touchdowns (8) and receiving yards (769), but was inconsistent with five games of two receptions or less. He did, however, step up in the playoffs. Hollywood had flashes of brilliance in his two playoff games with some excellent route running and even better playmaking ability. Hollywood’s success in the playoffs pointed to some possible reshaping of the offense to get him more involved. He can make plays. He just needs to get the ball in his hands first.

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Willie Snead IV

Snead is a free agent this offseason and whether or not the Ravens re-sign him will be one of the more interesting parts of the offseason in Baltimore. The veteran receiver has managed to produce decent numbers with both Joe Flacco and Lamar Jackson, who are completely opposite quarterbacks. Snead finished second among wide receivers in yards and second among receivers in catch percentage. He was a good veteran piece that was able to make the most out of the limited opportunities that were given to him this season.

Miles Boykin

Boykin’s good blocking has continued to be his most valuable asset to the team. Most of his touchdowns came from hiding in the secondary and his season as a whole was about as ordinary as it gets. He averaged just about one reception per game and finished fourth on the team in receiving yards, even though he had the second most snaps among receivers. Boykin just doesn’t seem to thrive in Greg Roman’s offense, which is unfortunate value for a second-year 3rd round pick.

Devin Duvernay

This year’s third-round draft pick was disappointing in his offensive efficiency but has established a firm spot as a returner. Duvernay was another piece that just didn’t work well in the Roman offense this year, lacking any kind of a connection with Lamar Jackson on the deep ball. He’s been a good return specialist, starting with only kickoffs and eventually taking over for fellow rookie James Proche as a punt returner as well. Duvernay is dynamic enough to still have a potential role for this offense, especially after being heavily involved in Baltimore’s special teams as a rookie.

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Dez Bryant

Dez was an awesome story this year. He caught two touchdowns passes, excited the locker room, and gave the team a spark at the end of the season. Bryant may have not been a great investment from an efficiency perspective, but he brought some juice to the team. Every play he made for this team was meaningful.

James Proche

The rookie is only here because he technically had a reception this season. Proche’s involvement only decreased as the season went on. He lost the punt returner job to Duvernay and was on the field for only 25 offensive snaps this year. The coaches in Baltimore are going to have to see a lot of improvement from the young receiver if he’s going to get playing time next year.