Jesse Minter’s ‘reset’ is underway. How different could the Ravens look Monday?

Join the huddle. Sign up here for Ravens updates in your inbox.

On Oct. 26, a day after his worst loss as Ravens coach, Jesse Minter arrived at his weekly Monday news conference with a change in perspective.

“We have a 10-game season,” Minter said, eager to move past a 35-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. “We’re in a good spot. We’re not in a great spot.”

On Monday, four days after a third straight blowout loss, Minter arrived at his presser with other changes in mind.

“When it comes to scheme, who we’re asking to do what, playing time, who do we have in the lineup — I mean, kind of everything” is up for review, he said. The Ravens’ 33-10 loss Thursday to the Jacksonville Jaguars, their fourth straight defeat, had prompted “a little bit of a reset to where we’re at with the guys.”

Minter and the Ravens (4-5) are a long way from a great spot. After losing star quarterback Lamar Jackson indefinitely to a thumb injury, they’re not in a good spot, either. Most end-of-season projections have their playoff odds no higher than 10%.

The Ravens’ road back to respectability will have to start Monday against the winless Los Angeles Chargers — and with a new-look starting lineup. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett, acquired in a trade from the Arizona Cardinals last week, will make his Ravens debut on “Monday Night Football.” Center Ryan Neuzil, another trade deadline acquisition, is also expected to be activated. So is kicker Riley Patterson, signed Wednesday in the wake of Jake Moody’s exit to Atlanta.

But other changes could be afoot. Here’s a look at Minter’s options with four starters under the spotlight in Baltimore.

LG John Simpson

Season snapshot: Simpson, limited by a groin injury since Week 2, hasn’t been the Ravens’ most penalty-prone lineman. He hasn’t been their worst starter, either. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley has drawn more flags, and Simpson has the lowest blown-block rate among the team’s four most active offensive linemen, according to Sports Info Solutions.

But the offseason signing has come under renewed fire after maybe his worst start of the season. Simpson had a season-low Pro Football Focus grade in pass protection against Jacksonville after struggling to pick up stunting linemen and second-level rushers and losing one-on-ones at the line of scrimmage.

What’s next: Even with Andrew Vorhees, last year’s starting left guard, traded Tuesday to the Atlanta Falcons, Simpson could have new competition. It just might take a while to materialize.

Neuzil, who arrived Tuesday in the trade for Vorhees, started at left guard in college. But he’s played primarily center in the NFL and is expected to back up starter Cam Jurgens, whom Minter on Wednesday called “the future of our offensive line.” Emery Jones, a healthy scratch the past two weeks, will also have to step up to shore up the Ravens’ guard depth.

“I do think he [Neuzil] will have some position flexibility as he gets here and as he gets going,” Minter said Wednesday. “Wherever that leads, I think we’ll see as we go.”

CB Marlon Humphrey

Season snapshot: A year after allowing the most yards in coverage in the NFL, according to PFF, Humphrey hasn’t fared much better under Minter. He’s been targeted 42 times this season, or about once every six snaps in coverage, and has given up 25 catches for 422 yards (sixth most in the league). Humphrey hasn’t forced a turnover since Week 1, and while he’s been called for just one penalty, he has four pass breakups total.

Minter on Monday preached the importance of limiting explosive plays, but Humphrey has been vulnerable downfield for a second straight season. Last year, he gave up seven completions on passes of at least 20 air yards, tied for the fourth most in the NFL, according to SIS. This year, he’s given up three such deep completions, tied for the 13th most. Nate Boerkircher’s 52-yard completion on Jacksonville’s opening drive Thursday was one of Humphrey’s most confounding reps. He let the blocking tight end slip behind him downfield on an otherwise well-covered play.

What’s next: Humphrey is fifth on the team in defensive snaps, but his playing time has been erratic. He’s played every defensive snap in two games, left another game early with a calf injury and got 56.1% and 78.6% of the Ravens’ defensive snaps over the past two weeks.

Even if Humphrey is “benched” Monday, he could still see regular action. With starting outside corner Nate Wiggins sidelined Thursday by an illness, Chidobe Awuzie started and played 71% of the defensive snaps, while reserve T.J. Tampa played 48% in his season debut. In Awuzie’s previous game, a blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills, he got just over half of the defensive snaps.

If the Ravens feel more comfortable with a three-man rotation at outside cornerback, they could also move Humphrey back inside, where he starred earlier in his career. Humphrey could line up as the team’s nickelback, giving star safety Kyle Hamilton more time at deep safety and a less taxing workload. He could also come on as the dimeback in the Ravens’ dime looks (six defensive backs), where Keyon Martin and rookie Chandler Rivers have struggled to lock down a starting job opposite Hamilton.

S Malaki Starks

Season snapshot: Starks, who struggled early in his rookie year before steadying down the stretch, is off to another rocky start. In coverage, he’s allowed 19 catches on 22 targets for 266 yards and four touchdowns, according to PFF. Starks is on track to blow past his Year 1 stats, when he allowed 381 yards for three touchdowns. The 2025 first-round pick has just one pass breakup and one takeaway, and his missed-tackle issues, a problem at times last year, have contributed to him allowing 176 yards after the catch. Only three safeties have given up more.

Starks hasn’t been guilty of many coverage busts, and his steady positioning as a deep-lying safety has discouraged deep shots against the Ravens’ secondary. (They’ve faced only 24 passes of 20-plus air yards, eighth fewest in the NFL, according to SIS.) But the Ravens need a more impactful presence over the middle. Quarterbacks have gashed their pass defense between the numbers, and Starks has missed eight tackles in run support, according to SIS.

What’s next: Starks’ starting job doesn’t appear to be in imminent danger. Fellow starter Jaylinn Hawkins returned to practice Wednesday for the first time since suffering a knee injury after the Ravens’ Week 6 loss to the Cleveland Browns, an indication that he could be nearing a return. Keondre Jackson and K’Von Wallace, both primarily special teams contributors, have earned snaps next to Starks in recent weeks, but neither has flashed. The Ravens could swap Starks out for Hamilton at deep safety, if necessary, but Hawkins has struggled there, too, and could need a ramp-up period.

KR/PR LaJohntay Wester

Season snapshot: Wester’s punt return production has fallen sharply since his rookie year, from 12.4 yards to 8.6 yards, which is below the league average (9.9). His fair-catch decisions have been questionable, as he’s turned down a few return opportunities with apparent room to run. Wester’s kick return average hasn’t changed (24.6 yards), but it’s below the league average as well. He also lost a fumble against the Jaguars.

Special teams coordinator Anthony Levine Sr. said last month that the Ravens have needed better blocking on their returns, but Wester’s make-you-miss talents haven’t popped this season.

What’s next: Running back Rasheen Ali has shared kick return duties with Wester and is averaging 26.4 yards per attempt, highlighted by a team-best 59-yarder. Practice squad wide receiver Chris Moore, who hasn’t played since Week 5, has averaged a team-high 28.6 yards on eight returns. Rookie running back Adam Randall, who has been designated to return from injured reserve, could also be an option. The fifth-round pick returned 13 kicks for 302 yards over his Clemson career, averaging 23.2 yards per return.

The Ravens’ punt return options are less clear. Rookie wide receiver Elijah Sarratt, a healthy scratch for much of this season, is the only player on the active roster with recent experience; he returned two punts for 8 yards in the preseason. But Sarratt last handled the job regularly in high school.