Why Baltimore Ravens third-year interior defensive lineman Justin Madubuike will break out in 2022
Justin Madubuike was selected 71st overall in the 2020 NFL draft by the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens’ prior two selections of linebacker Patrick Queen and running back J.K. Dobbins looked like they would quickly turn into standout performers. However, the players they picked up in the third round have made the bigger impact so far.
Those players are interior defensive lineman Justin Madubuike and All-Pro return specialist Devin Duvernay. After a solid two years in the NFL, Madubuike is set to breakout in 2022.
Here are five reasons why.
#1- Justin Madubuike has NFL experience to build on
While leading the NFL in punt return averages like Duvernay has is more tangible than the impact Madubuike has made, this is not true. Ask anybody in Baltimore and they will tell you Madubuike is an ascending young player for them. His game tape backs this up. Looking at his usage between the first two years of his career, his snap total on defense increased from 260 (in ten games) to 484 (in 15 games – 51% overall in those).
justin madubuike was pretty good against the run on sunday https://t.co/8hE7domINK
While he only doubled his sacks from one in 2020 to two last season, you can see already that he’s become more of a disruptor. His seven tackles for loss and five additional quarterback hits displayed this. He's had a solid two years and the Ravens had a difficult campaign for several reasons in 2021, so he shouldn't be judged too harshly on that. With the franchise far healthier in 2022, Madubuike will use what he's learned to push on to new heights.
#2- The Ravens will be a very different side in 2022
Taking a broader look at the Ravens defense in 2021, that unit had a lot of issues against the pass and subsequently stopping teams. They surrendered the most completions of 20+ yards in the entire NFL (74) and were tied for the most yards per pass attempt (7.2). This was despite the historically poor pace the New York Jets seemed to be on for a while.
That vulnerability to big plays through the air was in part because of the injuries on that side of the ball. That and the type of scheme they wanted to run under defensive coordinator Wink Martindale. They would regularly get shredded for playing blitz-zero, or when one of their young defensive backs got lost against switch-releases and when a back blew an assignment altogether.
The Ravens’ defensive line group is going to be really fun to watch. So much veteran and young talent such as
- Calais Campbell
- Michael Pierce
- Brent Urban
- Justin Madubuike
- Broderick Washington
- Travis Jones
Baltimore had by far the highest adjusted games lost last season, according to Football Outsiders (191.2 versus the Jets’ 158.5 for the second-highest). The Ravens were able to be competitive in pretty much all their games (other than getting swept by the Bengals), even when starting quarterback Lamar Jackson wasn’t available. Not being in many positive game-script situations wasn’t really conducive to their defensive line attacking upfield a whole lot.
Bengals beat the Ravens who were without:
- Lamar Jackson
- Tyler Huntley
- J.K. Dobbins
- Gus Edwards
- Justice Hill
- Patrick Ricard
- Devin Duvernay
- Ronnie Stanley
- Ben Powers
- Tyre Phillips
- Justin Madubuike
- Derek Wolfe
- Justin Houston
- Pernell McPhee
- L.J. Fort
The Ravens have a much healthier roster for the upcoming campaign and this will change the trajectory of Madubuike's career.
#3- He has a great skillset
Singling out Madubuike on tape, he brings pro-active and relentless hands to fight off blocks in the run game. He displays the lateral agility to flow down the line and work over the top of blocks, beating running backs headed towards the perimeter. Yet, he also brings the quickness to cross-face linemen on slants and this allows the rest of the defense to squeeze down and converge on the ball-carrier.
As they played Madubuike as more of a traditional even-front end, we were able to see his excellent pursuit off the backside. Not to mention when chasing wide zone runs. He displays plus awareness for screen passes that flow that way.
Justin Madubuike was double-teamed to start this play
Justin Madubuike tackled Derrick Henry to end this play https://t.co/duHa6BQBiK
On rushing downs, Madubuike showcases serious juice off the snap and can ride guards back into the quarterback’s lap. He effectively hits the wrists of pass-protectors and gets to the edges of their frame when he attacks half the man. You see him transition from long-arm to work around blockers with rapid hand-maneuvers. As people start leaning into him, he features the lateral agility to side-step blockers after his rush stalls momentarily.
Madubuike also showed the smarts to identify protection and used slides against the offense on a few occasions, by quasi back-dooring blockers.
#4- The Ravens will utilize his abilities to great effect
Mike Macdonald has returned to Baltimore as their new defensive play-caller, after excelling in that role for in his one year at Michigan. They also signed two excellent safeties in free agent Marcus Williams from the New Orleans Saints and the consensus top prospect in the draft with Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton.
Expect a lot more quarters principles to pair with some of the pressure looks we’re accustomed to seeing from them. Instead of true man-coverage, where there were too many busts and backups losing their matchups.
LETS GO!!!
JUSTIN MADUBUIKE!!!
The first of many. #RavensFlock https://t.co/PDIT0VwO9w
That means opposing quarterbacks will hold onto the ball longer, trying to decipher post-snap rotations. This will afford their defensive line more time to get home. It will be interesting to see which spin Macdonald may put on those blitz-packages. It may be more about using the down-lineman being schemed “open” rather than trying to create free runners from the back-seven.
Locking in a prediction of a Justin Madubuike breakout season https://t.co/0bcXYswxA9
When Madubuike’s rush wasn’t made useless by the ball coming out quickly, he saw a large amount of doubles. This was because he was the only player lined up between the tackles. His explosiveness and flexibility make him somebody who can become a more involved player in twists. That way he can bang into the next-gap man as the set-up guy or turn a tight corner on the wrap-around.
#5- The Ravens will develop his weaknesses
In terms of areas of improvement for Madubuike, his gap integrity in run defense should be a focus point, rather than just trying to defeat the blocker. There’s room to grow with countering the first step(s) of the offensive line. Too often he was caught on the wrong side of wide zone combos, where he now has to fight over the top.
Overall, there’s still room for improvement in developing a defined rush plan. When he slides straight onto guards and tries to work his moves, too often he gets caught in the middle of it. This allows them to square him up and force a secondary action. Madubuike isn't really a sack specialist, but he has the ability to consistently provide pressure. This is important for a defense that is making somewhat of a shift philosophically, while maintaining a lot of their basic principles.
This third-year player could be a key piece in doing so, thanks to the way he can impact both facets of the game. Not to mention the tremendous level of activity he provides overall. After missing all of 2021, Derek Wolfe decided retired. While Calais Campbell was brought back on a two-year, $12.5 million deal, they probably want to lower his snap share as he’s entering year 15.
With all the players Baltimore have back around Madubuike and on their offense, the Ravens have ambitions in 2022. They are looking to position themselves near the top of the AFC and go far in the postseason. So be ready to become more familiar with this young man, who affects a lot more plays than the box score may indicate.
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