Grinding Out Fifth Straight Win Proves 'There Is Value in This Brand of Ravens Football'
Shortly after the Ravens beat the New York Jets, 23-10, on Sunday to extend their winning streak to five games and put them above .500 for the first time this season, the Chicago Bears held on to defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Six weeks ago, Baltimore was 1-5 and trailed Pittsburgh by 3.5 games in the AFC North. Now, both teams are 6-5, and the Ravens are technically in first place by virtue of having a better record in divisional games.
The Ravens have earned their flowers for clawing their way from the bottom of the division to the top, but excitement about their resurgence is somewhat tempered by another sluggish performance by the offense. Baltimore trailed the Jets, 7-3, at halftime and finished the game with 241 total yards.
Lamar Jackson was held under 200 passing yards for the third game in a row and without a touchdown pass for the second straight game. Jackson, who missed practice time the past two weeks with knee soreness and an ankle injury, had both ankles taped Sunday and gained just 11 yards on seven carries.
Overall, the Ravens averaged just 2.9 yards per carry and again had difficulty in the red zone, going 2-for-5.
Ravens offensive players were clear after Sunday's win that they need to find their mojo over the final six weeks of the season, especially with the schedule getting tougher. That said, given the week-to-week nature of the NFL, no team ever has to apologize for winning, regardless of the aesthetics.
"There is value in this brand of Ravens football," The Baltimore Banner’s Jonas Shaffer wrote. "Just look at the rest of the NFL. As would-be Super Bowl contenders fall and pretenders rise out of the muck every week, the Ravens continue to plow ahead. Are they winning pretty? No. Are they winning comfortably? Also no, not really.
"But the Ravens' recent run of form has, surprisingly, distinguished them from most of the NFL's so-called elite. Pop quiz: Since Week 8, when the Ravens ended a four-game losing streak with a win over the Chicago Bears, which team trails only the Los Angeles Rams, by wide consensus the NFL's best team, in point differential? Not the New England Patriots (plus-44), who've won an NFL-high nine straight games. Not the high-flying Seattle Seahawks, either (plus-50). The answer: You guessed it. The Ravens, at plus-64. Over that stretch, they have never won by fewer than seven points, and they've won three games by at least 13."
While the offense has sputtered, the defense – which has given up less than 20 points in six straight games – and special teams have picked up the slack. The Ravens are also winning the turnover battle and playing disciplined.
Cornerback Marlon Humphrey's forced fumble at the Ravens' 2-yard line with the Jets threatening to pull within three points with under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter was the biggest play of the game. The Ravens did not commit a turnover.
Punter Jordan Stout had a huge game, arguably the best in his four-year career. He tied Sam Koch for the longest punt in franchise history (74 yards) and had a 67-yarder that went out of bounds at the 5. Stout averaged 61.5 yards on four punts. Rookie kicker Tyler Loop converted all three of his field-goal attempts.
"They've outgained their opponent in just two of their five most recent wins. But their turnover margin during that stretch is plus-seven, tied with the Rams for the NFL's best," Shaffer wrote. "Their penalty margin is plus-129 yards. Their special teams advantage, even with a disappointing Week 12 showing in Cleveland, has been considerable.
"If the Ravens win their next three games (vs. the Cincinnati Bengals at home, Steelers at home, Bengals on the road), a third straight AFC North title may be merely a formality. According to The New York Times' playoff simulator, their odds of winning the division title would improve from about 88% to 98% with a 9-5 record. Dominant? Not yet. But the Ravens are just good enough to get there. And being just good enough has worked out pretty well as a blueprint so far."
Stout Having All-Pro-Worthy Season
Stout's performance was not an anomaly. The 2022 fourth-round pick has been outstanding all season, and The Baltimore Sun’s Sam Cohn said Stout is making a case for his first All-Pro nod.
"It's a rarity that punters hold court in the postgame locker room," Cohn wrote. "In some cases, his voice might help explain why the kicker did well. Or his perspective can provide color about a teammate's highlight. Punters are the one position in football whose job it is to give the other team the ball. In this ugly win over the lowly Jets, on a day when the offense wasn't quite clicking, plenty of attention was left for the punter."
Press Box’s Bo Smolka wrote: "Stout has been one of the Ravens' most consistent players this season, and this game should be Exhibit A for his Pro Bowl candidacy. Stout finished with four punts for an average of 61.5 yards, the sixth-highest total in an NFL game since 1960. He didn't allow the Jets' return unit, one of the better ones in the league, to be a factor.
"Stout ranks among the top three in the league this season in both overall punt average (51.4) and net punting average (46.2), and both would be Ravens single-season records if the season ended today."
Ravens Must Remain Focused Heading Down Homestretch
Even though the Ravens are now overwhelming favorites to win the AFC North, they know nothing is guaranteed.
"As the Ravens exited M&T Bank Stadium late Sunday afternoon, knowing they'd be back in a matter of days for a Thanksgiving night game against the Bengals, there was a sense that the regular season, now 2 1/2 months old, is just getting started," The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec wrote. "They also must understand how quickly their season can shift back to the edge of the abyss. Beat the Bengals and Steelers over the next two weeks, and then take care of Cincinnati on the road in Week 15, and the Ravens will be in firm control of the AFC North.
"Yet, if they lose two of those games, maybe even one — and that's plenty conceivable with the way the offense is playing at the moment — the Ravens will shift right back to desperation mode ahead of a rigorous final three-game stretch that has them hosting the AFC-best New England Patriots (10-2) and then finishing with road games against the Green Bay Packers (7-3-1) and Steelers."
Despite the Bengals' 3-8 record, they played the Patriots tough on Sunday, and quarterback Joe Burrow could return from his turf toe injury to face the Ravens Thursday night.
"Burrow is an elite competitor in the midst of an otherwise lost season, and it's a safe bet that he and the Bengals would like nothing more than to beat the Ravens on a nationally-televised stage and deal a blow to the Ravens' playoff hopes," Smolka wrote. "Fasten those seat belts. It's going to be quite the race down the homestretch. It really shouldn't be any other way."
