3 problems the Commanders must address before Week 6 at the Ravens

Commanders must neutralize Kyle Van Noy

Kyle Van Noy has been around for a long time. He has played on five different teams. He is coming up on 150 career games. He has been a good player. He has never been a great player. Until he arrived with the Baltimore Ravens last year.

Before signing with the Ravens, Van Noy had played in 128 NFL games and had recorded 33.5 sacks. That works out to about one sack every four games. Not awful numbers, but not exactly world-beating by any stretch of the imagination.

In 19 games with the Ravens, he has 15 sacks. Somehow, at 33 years old, this middle-of-the-road journeyman has increased his career sack production fourfold. He trails Aidan Hutchinson of the Detroit Lions - a favorite for NFL Defensive Player of the Year - by a half-sack for the league lead.

That’s not all Van Noy is doing. He has been a disruptive force on defense all season. In addition to his sacks, he leads the league in tackles-for-loss with eight. The Washington Commanders’ own Bobby Wagner is in third place on that list with six.

His production through the first month of the 2024 season earned him AFC Defensive Player of the Month in September. Van Noy has proven to be the perfect playmaking complement to the steady base provided by Baltimore’s stalwart defensive line and fellow linebacker Roquan Smith.

If the Commanders don’t account for Van Noy, he will make big plays against them.

The Commanders have all these problems without even mentioning reigning NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson. That's the monumental task awaiting Washington this weekend.

Containing Jackson is always job No. 1 when facing the Ravens, but every fan knows that already. Besides, Washington’s defense may be better suited to dealing with a player of his caliber than they ever have been since they now must work against the second coming of him every day in practice.

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