When the Ravens players took off last week to enjoy their bye week, Offensive Coordinator Gary Kubiak used the peace and quiet to hunker down in his office and look at tape.
The most pressing item on his list was to closely examine the play of Joe Flacco, and try to determine what caused some lulls in the quarterback's play in the weeks leading up to the bye.
Kubiak's biggest takeaway – for Flacco and the offense as a whole – is to keep things simple.
"I think the biggest thing for me is to make sure that maybe we're not doing too much," Kubiak said. "We're fixing to play six very tough games, and going into a very tough environment this week. You don't need indecision keeping you from being successful."
Since he arrived in Baltimore this offseason, Kubiak has hammered the importance of having a simplified approach where everybody knows what they're doing. With six weeks left to play, Kubiak is re-emphasizing that philosophy.
"We're trying to settle down and go forward," Kubiak said.
The Ravens offense has been improved overall during Kubiak's first year with the Ravens, and Flacco is having a career season. He's on pace for career highs in yardage, touchdowns and quarterback rating.
The big reason for the increase in Flacco's numbers this year is the fact that he started the season on a tear, throwing 12 touchdowns compared to three interceptions through the first six weeks. The production dipped in the last month, as Flacco threw five touchdowns and five interceptions in the four games leading up to the bye.
Kubiak and Head Coach John Harbaugh have both preached the importance of the Ravens cleaning up those interceptions.
Beyond the turnovers, a key for the unit is to stick to what works. After the self-assessment, Kubiak plans to make some tweaks to feature what the Ravens have done best, and his focus is to ensure that everyone knows exactly what to do.
"I was looking at the big picture," Kubiak said. "I was looking at everybody. But I was specifically trying to make sure that as we head into these last six weeks that if there are some things we aren't doing well, maybe we shouldn't be doing them, or get away from them.
"You're really just trying to self-scout yourself and take a look at your group to make sure that they understand your vision for the next six weeks."
