What the Ravens’ offense can (and cannot) do without Mark Andrews
There’s no replacing 
Andrews, but Jonas Shaffer’s film study shows offensive coordinator Todd Monken has options, most notably Isaiah Likely
The first time Isaiah Likely had to do his best Mark Andrews imitation, quarterback Lamar Jackson played as if he couldn’t tell the difference.
The Ravens hadn’t been planning to replace their Pro Bowl tight end. But, in a Week 8 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season, Andrews suffered a second-quarter shoulder injury. Likely, less than two months into his rookie season, stepped in and stepped up.
The fourth-round pick caught tightly contested passes over the middle. He separated in man-to-man coverage when Tampa Bay blitzed. He took advantage of aggressive run fits. He improvised in the end zone when Jackson had to work off schedule.
“What you’ve seen from him, I’ve been seeing it,” Jackson said of Likely after the 27-22 win, in which he finished 27-for-38 for 238 yards and two touchdowns. “I’ve been talking about it since camp, OTAs [organized team activities]. He showed up and showed out. … Hats off to him; I’m proud of him. I’m happy for him.”
Jackson and the Ravens have not often had to imagine a world without Andrews, who is believed to have suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Thursday’s win over the Cincinnati Bengals. But he missed enough time last year for Likely to at least offer proof of concept. His best games and biggest plays came when Andrews was unavailable: six catches for a team-high 77 yards against Tampa Bay; a 24-yard touchdown against the New Orleans Saints a week later; eight catches for 103 yards, both team highs, against the Bengals in last year’s regular-season finale.
There is no replacing Andrews, who leads Ravens receivers in yards per route run (1.92, according to Pro Football Focus), whose “street ball” connection with Jackson made him a red-zone weapon and safety blanket, whose versatility has made the Ravens’ balanced offense so difficult to defend. But coordinator Todd Monken has options, and he has Likely
“It’s definitely something we’re going to have to fill in,” coach John Harbaugh said after Thursday’s game, which Andrews left after a controversial first-quarter hip-drop tack by Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson. “It’s going to be kind of like — I don’t know, maybe it’s like sand or water. Everybody’s going to have to fill that hole in and just smooth it over, and that’s what they’ll do. Those tight ends are going to do great. Those guys work hard every day, very talented, but everybody else is going to have to step up as well.”
There is no substitute for experience, and no one on the Ravens’ roster knows Jackson better than his 2018 draftmate. Jackson has targeted Andrews 432 times over his career, according to TruMedia, 176 times more than the next most targeted, former Ravens wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown (256). Devin Duvernay has been targeted 101 times, fourth most; Rashod Bateman, only 91 times; Zay Flowers, just 72.
