The Ravens are asking a lot of three new starters, and they are asking it immediately.
Against the Colts in the opener, Baltimore will line up with guards John Simpson and rookie Vega Ioane, plus center Jovaughn Gwyn making his first NFL start after winning the job over veteran Ethan Pocic. That interior trio is supposed to help stabilize an offense that is being rebuilt around Lamar Jackson — and the first chance to see whether it can do that comes before the season has even settled in.
That is the tension at the center of Baltimore’s reset: the Ravens are presenting a new offense designed to make Jackson even more dangerous, but the plan starts with a personnel question on the inside. If the guards and center can hold up, the rest of the design has a chance to breathe. If they cannot, the opener could quickly turn into a reminder of how fragile the whole thing can be.
Jackson’s 2025 season was derailed by a persistent hamstring issue, and the Ravens are trying to avoid another year in which their quarterback spends too much time dealing with pressure and too little time operating the offense on schedule. Last season, Jackson’s sack rate per dropback jumped from 4.63% in 2024 to 10.65% in 2025. He was sacked 36 times despite missing four games, a number that underscored how often Baltimore’s protection let plays get away from him.
That is why the interior overhaul matters so much. Baltimore added Simpson and Ioane to create a competent guard duo, and the rookie arrives with real expectations after being one of the most coveted guard prospects in recent memory. Simpson brings experience — he has 72 career starts — while Ioane is stepping into a lineup that needs him to look ready fast. Gwyn’s first start only adds to the uncertainty and the urgency.
The Ravens are not pretending this is a small adjustment. They need major strides from the offensive line, and they need them in a game that will immediately show whether the new pieces can function together. The Colts are the first opponent, but they are also the first stress test for a line that has three new starters and a quarterback whose ceiling is tied to how cleanly the pocket holds up around him.
The quarterback has also spent most of his career operating from the pistol or shotgun, which gives the Ravens a familiar starting point even as they layer in new ideas. Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle wants the offense to be more accurate, with a target completion percentage around 70%, up from Jackson’s career-high 67.2% in 2023. That is an ambitious number, but it is also a practical one: better protection makes it easier to improve efficiency, and better efficiency is exactly what Baltimore is chasing.
Doyle has already made clear that the conversation with Jackson has started. “In my first conversation with Lamar, we talked about it,” he said.
Jackson, meanwhile, is not hiding the size of the challenge. “From what I see, [there are] a lot of moving parts,” he said.
That is the right description for a team that is trying to install a new offense while also sorting out a new interior line. Baltimore believes the pieces can fit. Jackson has said he believes the Ravens can reach the Super Bowl. Some pundits are bullish enough to pick Baltimore to win it all, while others are less convinced.
The opener against Indianapolis will not settle that debate, but it will answer a more immediate one: can the Ravens’ revamped interior line give Jackson enough stability to start the season on his feet instead of under pressure? If Simpson, Ioane and Gwyn can do that, Baltimore’s new offense has a chance to look like the version the Ravens have been talking about. If not, the first game will expose how much of this reset still depends on the inside.