The Ravens' first victory lifted a load off their shoulders.
Staving off a fourth-quarter comeback by the Dallas Cowboys, the Ravens held on for a 28-25 victory in AT&T Stadium. A clutch third-down completion from Lamar Jackson to Zay Flowers in the final minutes gave the Ravens a first down that helped them seal the win.
Here are my thoughts on Baltimore's first victory of the 2024 season:
This victory felt like a must-win.
No team has ever won the Super Bowl after starting 0-3, which tells you everything you need to know about how important this win was. It wasn't perfect, it got tense in the fourth quarter, but Baltimore escaped with a very important victory.
Jackson (12-of-15, 182 yards, 87 yards rushing, two total touchdowns) made key plays throughout the game and ran for the game-ending first down. The Ravens didn't protect a 28-6 lead as well as they would've liked, but they escaped Dallas with a victory that could turn their season in the right direction.
"It's a tough environment to play in, I'm just proud of the way our guys handled it," Head Coach John Harbaugh said. "To get the running game going the way we did, to get have 274 yards rushing, to have Lamar take over the game the way he did, that's our identity, that's our personality. We just have to keep building on that."
Derrick Henry has a happy homecoming.
Derrick Henry lives in Dallas during the offseason, and he was a living nightmare for the Cowboys.
In his best game with the Ravens, Henry rushed for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries and had a dominant performance that set the tone for Baltimore offensively. Henry brought all the smoke to the Cowboys, breaking tackles, dishing out stiff arms, and helping the Ravens dictate terms and keep Dallas' offense off the field.
This is what the Ravens imagined when they signed Henry – taking an early lead and using Henry to punish the opposition. He is a unique weapon, and the Ravens used him more effectively in this game than they did during the first two weeks.
"I hold myself to a high standard," Henry said. "To be able to have an impact to give us a chance to win by the way I played … being in Dallas, where I spend most of my offseason, it felt good today for sure."
Give the offensive line its props.
This was the best performance of the season for Baltimore's offensive line. It kept All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons (five tackles, no sacks) from wrecking the game. Jackson wasn't sacked, and Baltimore rushed for 274 yards, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.
The Ravens stuck with their starting offensive line of Ronnie Stanley (left tackle), Andrew Vorhees (left guard), Tyler Linderbaum (center), Daniel Faalele (right guard), and Patrick Mekari (right tackle) and they took a big step forward. The offensive line has taken plenty of heat, but in Week 3 it opened holes consistently for Jackson and Henry, and both gave the line praise after the game.
"We all have to change the narrative," Henry said. "You find out who you are in tough times. I feel like we accepted the challenge, knowing what was being said."
Defense takes a step forward.
New Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr won't forget his first victory as a defensive coordinator, coming in front of family and friends at AT&T Stadium.
Dallas' offense was stifled for three quarters, but the Cowboys' 19-point fourth quarter made this another nail-biting finish for Baltimore. However, there were good signs for the Ravens' defense. Cowboys star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (four catches, 67 yards) was held in check. Dallas' running game (51 yards) was virtually non-existent.
Rookie safety Nate Wiggins made his biggest play as a Raven, stripping the football away from Lamb in the red zone to end a Dallas drive.
It wasn't a perfect performance for Baltimore's defense, and the Ravens still had their biggest issues in the fourth quarter when the Cowboys made it very interesting. But while the Ravens' defense has work to do, getting the first victory was a step in the right direction.
Extra Points:
- The Ravens relied on their ground game, running it 45 times. "By any means, it's whatever it takes to win a football game," Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum said. "Today, it was just being efficient in the run game. There will be other weeks where we have to be able to drop back and throw the ball, but you certainly want to be able to run the ball efficiently, because that opens up a lot of other things."
- Penalties continued to be an issue for the Ravens, who had 13 for 105 yards. "We need to eliminate the penalties," Harbaugh said. "That's what we need to do. They're hurting us, and they're costly."
- Safety Kyle Hamilton had his best defensive game of the season with team-high 12 tackles, while inside linebacker Roquan Smith had 11.
- Kyle Van Noy had two sacks and now has four sacks in his last two games.
- The Ravens' special teams units are still looking to hit their stride. Justin Tucker missed his only field goal attempt from 46 yards, and the Cowboys recovered an offside kick during their fourth quarter rally.
