Ravens Are Rolling at the Perfect Time
For the third time in 11 days, the Ravens won in dominant fashion. However, this may have been their greatest performance, coming away with a 31-2 win over the Houston Texans.
The way in which the Ravens are winning – production in all three facets of the game – has pundits believing in the Ravens, or fearing for their opponents, with the playoffs approaching.
"The Christmas victory marked the fourth time in the past five games that Baltimore has held its opponent under 300 yards," NFL.com’s Bobby Kownack wrote. "If the Ravens can maintain this balance on both sides the ball, good luck to the rest of the AFC."
A pair of Russell Street Report contributors were marveled by the Ravens.
"If the Ravens are capable of playing defense like this against playoff teams … wow. I thought the Ravens would win the game. I had no clue they were even capable of a 31-2 kind of victory," Chris Schisler wrote.
"Baltimore is getting hot at the right time, and there's no team in the NFL that can stop them when they're playing like this," Nikhil Mehta wrote.
Though the conference won't run through Baltimore, as the Kansas City Chiefs locked up the top seed and a first-round playoff bye by beating the Steelers yesterday, the Ravens very well may be favored in their matchups come January.
The MVP Race Isn't Over
One year ago, Lamar Jackson delivered a dominant performance on Christmas against the San Francisco 49ers to put a cap on his MVP campaign.
He may have done so again after carving up the Texans, setting the all-time quarterback rushing record and flirting with Aaron Rodgers' single-season quarterback rating record of 2011.
After weeks of Bills quarterback Josh Allen being hailed as the presumptive MVP, some pundits are switching to Jackson.
The Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker: "Lamar Jackson showed off all the gifts in his deep bag as the Ravens played one of their best all-around games of the season to seize first place in the AFC North. … Jackson dipped into his magician's hat on that one, slipping out of a sack to dump the ball to Mark Andrews for a 67-yard catch-and-run, then buying an absurd amount of time for Isaiah Likely to pop open in the end zone. Jackson then started the second half faking a handoff to Henry and running away from the Houston defense to make it 24-2. That one felt straight out of 2019. Jackson might not care about winning a third MVP Award, but he's making his case."
The Athletic's Austin Green: "Jackson made a strong Christmas case for his third NFL MVP, completing 10 of 15 passes for 168 yards and 2 touchdowns while adding 87 rush yards on 4 carries, including a 48-yard touchdown run."
The Baltimore Sun’s C.J. Doon: "Lamar Jackson is officially the greatest rushing quarterback in NFL history, but we knew that already. In fact, calling him a rushing quarterback is a disservice to his overall body of work. That's only part of his game now, a trump card he can play whenever he needs to. At this rate, Jackson is aiming higher. Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre … that's the company he's going to keep if he wins a second straight and third overall NFL Most Valuable Player Award. And he probably won't stop there. Like LeBron James, he could have the best statistical resume of anyone in the sport when he's all said and done. And like James for the longest time, the only thing missing on his resume is a championship ring."
The Baltimore Sun’s Bennett Conlin: "Lamar Jackson made a serious case that he's more deserving than Buffalo's Josh Allen to win the MVP Award. Jackson looked like the best version of himself Wednesday, racing untouched for a 48-yard touchdown run and dissecting Houston's defense with pinpoint passing efficiency."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "Lamar Jackson is the favorite for NFL Most Valuable Player honors. He has to be. He might not be for long — supposed front-runner Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills play this weekend — but what this Ravens offense has managed is incredible and worthy of individual plaudits. According to FTN, the Ravens entered Week 17 with one of the greatest offenses ever through a season's first 15 games. Then they kicked the Texans and their elite defense up and down the field. Voter fatigue is a real thing. I get it. But it's hard to come away from watching this game thinking Jackson's MVP candidacy hasn't been supercharged."
Next Gen Stats: "Lamar Jackson recorded his third-longest average time to throw of his career in Week 17 against the Texans (3.67 seconds). He also recorded a season-high 13.5 scramble yards per dropback, his most in a game since Week 17, 2020."
NFL.com’s Bobby Kownack: "The quarterback hit massive passes, such as a 67-yarder to Mark Andrews, the tight end's longest since his rookie year, and riddled the Texans on the ground for 87 rushing yards -- just one more than needed to become the NFL's all-time leader in the category among QBs, passing Mike Vick. Jackson and Henry were unstoppable, combining to break Houston's spirit before much of the second half had elapsed."
ESPN's Eye-popping Stat: "Eye-popping stat: Jackson reached a maximum speed of 21.25 miles per hour on that 48-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. According to Next Gen Stats, that's the highest top speed of Jackson's seven-year career. It is the second-fastest max speed by a quarterback this season, ranking only behind Arizona's Kyler Murray (21.27 mph)."
Defense Continues Its Stellar Improvement
In three games against the Texans over the past two seasons, the Ravens' defense has held them to zero offensive touchdowns. On Wednesday, they had their greatest performance yet, holding them to zero offensive points and denying them any and all scoring opportunities.
Kownack: "The [Texans'] unit was shut out, and, short of a failed goal-line possession in the second quarter, never looked particularly threatening while the game was still close. Stroud, especially, struggled in the absence of Tank Dell. He missed high and wide on seemingly throw after throw, and Baltimore wisely prevented Nico Collins (three catches for 59 yards) from doing any game-breaking damage. The offense has and continues to be a powerhouse, but Baltimore's defense, which was cause for concern earlier this season, seems to finally be arriving. The Ravens smothered the Texans, holding Joe Mixon to just 26 yards rushing and C.J. Stroud to a 59.2 passer rating."
The Baltimore Banner's Paul Mancano: "If Zach Orr didn't earn fans' trust after the defense's performances against the Giants and Steelers, that's understandable. But the first-year coordinator should have it now. The first 10 weeks of the season were rougher than anyone could've imagined for Orr. But, over the last six games, the Ravens' defense has been a perfectly complementary unit to the team's outstanding offense. Looking ahead to the postseason, the only offense that should scare Baltimore is Buffalo's, and we saw how that went in Week 4. We already knew the Ravens had the ability to score with anyone in the NFL. Now we know they have the defense to stop anyone, too."
Baltimore Beatdown's Zach Canter: "The true star of [Wednesday] was the defense who quietly pitched a shutout as the only points allowed was the safety. The defense made multiple fourth down stops including a goal line stop with a massive Ar'Darius Washington hit. Kyle Hamilton had a pick and the defense had five sacks from five different players – including Kyle Van Noy extending his double digit season and Odafe Oweh who's now one away from his own. The defense is coming together and looks better every single week since that first Pittsburgh game."
