The Baltimore Ravens were coming off a divisional loss in a game where the offense didn’t have a good showing against rival Pittsburgh. So, all eyes in Baltimore were plastered on if they could bounce back on the road in a big spot. The Cleveland Browns beating the Steelers on Friday kept the Steelers from extending their lead in the division and kept it at a 1 ½ games lead ahead of the Ravens with 6 games remaining 4 of which for the Steelers are against AFC North opponents. I wasn’t a “must-win” game, but it was a “gotta have it” game if they wanted to establish dominance over the AFC and catch the Steelers for the division.
And the Ravens answered the bell. Not without some pitfalls or a slow start. But the Ravens have toughness and a fightback after taking punches that certain front-run teams do not have. As much has been spoken about John Harbaugh, good or bad, you cannot accuse his team of folding or handing it in this year. They started slow on both sides of the ball and fell 10 points behind after the first two drives of the ball game. But then they settled in and got going with their run game and elite offensive ability and outscored the Chargers 30-13 the rest of the way.
Led by the run game, The Baltimore Ravens offense gathered a rhythm this week that they could never gain against the Steelers. Derrick Henry ran the ball 13 times and only gained 65 yards against the Steelers. Much was made about how many carries Todd Monken called for Henry in a game that was one score throughout. Derrick Henry against the Chargers ran the ball 24 times. He got 140 yards which equates to just under 6 yards a carry. This is the first game this year that Derrick Henry didn’t get a touchdown. But Justice Hill ran in one and had 55 yards and Lamar ran in another score. There wasn’t a high yard amount for Lamar, but efficiency was high as Lamar went 16 for 22 (72 percent) and threw for two touchdowns. It was an almost 400-yard offensive night averaging 6.55 yards per play. The Chargers was one of the best teams in the league at getting teams off the field on 3rd downs. The Ravens converted 8 out of 15 3rd downs and converted all 3 4th down attempts.
The defense has been much maligned this season and rightfully so. They were ranked in the bottom 3 in multiple categories on defense. The Chargers have been playing well on the run game and the numbers and volume of the passing game have been down this season from previous seasons, but their efficiency has been higher. The Ravens generated a good pass rush against a good offensive line. The Ravens had 4 sacks on the night by 4 different players. The linebacking corps was dealt a tough blow against a top rushing team by not having one of the leaders of the defense and top dog linebacker Roquan Smith. Malik Harrison and Kristen Welch had a tough start to the evening. JK Dobbins was winning early downs early in the first half. He had 40 yards on 6 carries averaging 6.7 yards per carry. But as the night went on, I felt Malik Harrison and linebacker Chris Board played well. Harrison, along with rookie Nate Wiggins, lead the team in tackles in the game. Board showed something in the passing game to me. He looks like he can be the nickel linebacker when they go to pass sets. He gets good depth on his drops and has a good feel for turning and locating the ball. The passing game has not given up deep over-the-top throws since switching Kyle Hamilton from box safety to playing over the top. Tredavious White has noticeably been an upgrade when the Ravens put him in. He can play outside or in the slot and is a plug-and-play piece traded for at the deadline.
The penalties for the Ravens have been their Achille’s heel. Often negating big plays and halting good drives when it came to offense. And extending drives and giving the other team chances to score. Tonight was no different in the numbers as they are averaging a league high 8.4 penalties a game. They had 9 accepted penalties for 109 yards. One killed a huge reception by Nelson Agholor which would have given the Ravens a first down. The accepted penalty made it a 2nd and 20+ and eventually the Ravens punted on the drive. Defensively on the last drive, the Ravens were called for multiple penalties that eventually walked the Chargers into a score. These penalties were able to be overcome tonight and didn’t cause the same fate they did against the Steelers but will need to be cleaned up before the end of the season or they can potentially end the season a lot earlier than the Ravens would like it to happen.
All in all it was a big spot for the Ravens to have to step up and they did. It was a successful 4th prime time game as they are 4-1 in primetime spots this year only losing on opening night to the defending two-time Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Lamar Jackson has yet to throw an interception and has thrown 25 touchdowns on Monday Night in his career. The Ravens may not do it pretty, but they do it gritty and that is a salute to their city and the personality of their head coach, John Harbaugh.
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