Lamar Jackson Delivers Brilliance in Cincinnati
While the English language has run out of adjectives to describe Lamar Jackson's on-field brilliance, he hasn't run out of astonishing, sensational plays.
Against the Cincinnati Bengals, he repeatedly delivered them in an out-of-control AFC North overtime shootout win, 41-38.
The NFL world praised what many are calling the Game of the Year and Jackson's performance, including his most audacious play … yet.
Green Light Podcast’s Chris Long: "Lamar covered for their mistakes, for the most part. He just – bad snap in the red zone, Burrow's going down in that situation. Hard to argue with anybody that wants to call Lamar Jackson the most valuable player in the league today. Like, if we're doing the overreaction thing. If we're doing the boil the whole season down into one neat, encapsulated – I mean look at this game. Unbelievable. Unbelievable."
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "Jackson did all he could. Every time the Bengals scored in the second half, Jackson answered by leading a Ravens scoring drive. He did it with his legs (55 rushing yards). He did it with his arm (348 yards, four touchdowns) and with his will to win, rescuing the Ravens every time it appeared the Bengals were about to put the game away. Jackson was still angry that he nearly cost his team the game when he took his eyes off Tyler Linderbaum's snap in OT and fumbled the ball away, but he got another chance. As Henry said later, that was three-time MVP stuff for Jackson, who played brilliantly in giving the Ravens a chance and helped overcome a series of Ravens mistakes elsewhere."
NFL.com’s Kevin Patra: "Not since July 4th has Cincinnati seen such a fireworks display. Unfortunately for the locals, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens lit the last explosive. Derrick Henry rumbled for 51 yards following a Bengals missed field goal in overtime, and Justin Tucker chipped home the game-winner to cap a barnburner. Credit Jackson for spearheading a comeback down double digits multiple times in the fourth quarter."
CBS Sports’ John Breech: "The Ravens QB had one of the most impressive passing days of his entire career on Sunday with 348 yards and four touchdowns. Every time it looked like the Ravens might be out of it, Jackson would get them back in it. He kept the Bengals defense guessing by completing his 26 passes to nine different receivers. Seven of those were caught by Zay Flowers, who had a monstrous game with 111 yards. If Jackson continues to throw the ball like this, the Ravens are going to be nearly impossible to beat."
Baltimore Beatdown’s Joshua Reed: "In back-to-back weeks, Jackson has outshined and outperformed both Burrow and Josh Allen. In Week 1, he outplayed Patrick Mahomes and nearly led the Ravens to a comeback win from down double digits to the Kansas City Chiefs, but came up a literal toe short. No other quarterback in the league is playing at an elite level more consistently than Jackson."
Russell Street Report’s Darin McCann: "Jackson was magnificent. He was 26-for-42 for 348 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for another 56 yards. Those are amazing numbers, but they don't begin to tell the story. He converted big third down after big third down, did a terrific job re-discovering Mark Andrews, feeding Zay Flowers and finding guys like Tylan Wallace and Charlie Kolar when he needed them. The play to Isaiah Likely in the fourth quarter will run on highlight clips for perpetuity, and it should — but it shouldn't overshadow this gritty, brilliant performance. He looked like a two-time MVP."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "One of the first things Derrick Henry said after the game was that Lamar Jackson's the best player in the NFL. After all we saw today — the incredible highs and the very rare lows — who's going to tell him otherwise?"
The Baltimore Banner's Kyle Goon: "A long time from now, when Jackson is enshrined in Canton, they'll play the highlight of him stiff-arming Sam Hubbard to the ground, then throwing a touchdown to Isaiah Likely across his body. The two-time MVP reminded us who he is with a masterpiece in the second half, including three touchdown passes and a lot of game-extending wizardry that only he is capable of conjuring."
All Ravens Tight Ends Are Becoming a Matchup Problem
Over the past two games, most plays made by the Ravens' tight end trio of Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar were delivering blocks to free Henry for 350 yards and three touchdowns. But in the Bengals' concerted effort to slow down the Ravens' tailback, the tight end trio came alive in the pass game, and Pressbox’s Bo Smolka notes how they're challenging opposing defenses.
"The Ravens' tight ends continue to be a matchup problem for opposing defenses, and in multiple ways," Smolka wrote. "Not only do they make catches, but they have been exceptional perimeter blockers this season, often wiping out smaller defensive backs to spring long runs, and they have become major decoys."
Smolka noted their production wasn't the only thing impacting the Bengals' defense, but their presence, too.
"Asked this week about Andrews' low production this season, quarterback Lamar Jackson noted that when Andrews has been double-teamed, the field opens for others," Smolka wrote. "Indeed, in the first quarter, the Ravens faced third-and-five at their 21-yard line. Many, many times over the past five years, Jackson has looked for Andrews in that exact situation. That's probably why the Bengals double-teamed Andrews. Instead, Jackson lofted a pass just beyond Andrews and those two defenders, to a wide-open Zay Flowers for a 26-yard gain. In the third quarter, Likely went in motion to the left, and after receiving the snap, Jackson looked that way. Then he quickly looked right and found Kolar wide-open for a 55-yard catch-and-run."
'Ravens Were Right to Have Faith in Justin Tucker'
The first-ever "slump" for Justin Tucker became a hefty talking point over the first quarter of the season. The rarity perplexed pundits and fans as the most accurate kicker in NFL history was struggling from distance while seemingly every other kicker was crushing kicks.
But against the Bengals with fewer than two minutes to play and all the pressure on the kicking unit from 56 yards out, Tucker blasted the ball. Once it reached the apex – before splitting the uprights – three Ravens across the line signaled it was good. Tucker tied the game at 38.
Russell Street Report’s Darin McCann praised Tucker for answering the call.
"I want to start by saying, that in one small way, the Ravens won this one because Justin Tucker delivered a clutch 50-plus yard field goal while the opponent's kicker missed his own opportunity," McCann wrote. "Obviously, there was much more to this one than that, but let's give Tucker that today. It had to feel good for him to nail that kick."
Zrebiec pointed out the Ravens have a few worries, but Tucker's name should not be on the list.
"The murmurs started a few weeks back when Tucker missed a few kicks at a time when NFL kickers were making field goals at an unbelievable rate. What was wrong with the most accurate kicker in the history of the NFL? As it turns out, nothing," Zrebiec wrote. "… The 3-2 Ravens have some issues. They are too mistake prone. Their high-priced secondary is a concern. Tucker, however, isn't one of the team's issues."
Defense Made Clutch Plays, But More is Expected
Entering Sunday, the Ravens' secondary aimed to correct its pass defense ranking. They were near the bottom of the list in passing yards allowed, and the chance to go against the likes of Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins gave them a big opportunity. But the Bengals' pass game dominated as Burrow finished with 392 passing yards and five touchdowns, with the receiving duo accounting for 276 yards and four receiving touchdowns.
While the defense won't be happy with the majority of its performance, pundits did note it came up big when it mattered most. That will be something to build on in the weeks to come.
The Baltimore Sun’s C.J. Doon: "It feels like a lifetime ago now, but the Ravens were down 38-28 with 8:54 to go in the fourth quarter and looked done for. They couldn't get a stop all game, but Jackson kept them in it long enough for the defense to make two game-changing plays: a interception from Marlon Humphrey and a sack by Nnamdi Madubuike."
The Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker: "The Bengals dictated the flow until Marlon Humphrey stepped up with an interception and Nnamdi Madubuike with a sack on Cincinnati's last two drives of regulation. Those two massive plays sent the game to overtime."
The Baltimore Banner's Chris Korman: "After that, Baltimore's defense seemed to cave. The Bengals have good receivers, sure, but they also picked up on how disorganized the Ravens' secondary has been this year and exploited it. They created congestion at the line, often using three receivers to one side of the line, and trusted that Baltimore's corners and safeties would misdiagnose or fail to fight through. They were right, especially on third down. Marlon Humphrey came up with a pivotal interception, but everything before that was inexcusable."
Smolka: "Safeties Marcus Williams and Eddie Jackson got turned around. The tackling was inconsistent. Brandon Stephens offered little resistance on out routes, and maybe that a result of giving a cushion to prevent being burned deep. To his credit, Humphrey made one of the biggest plays of the day when he jammed Chase at the line and then intercepted a pass from Burrow intended for Chase late in the fourth quarter. Still, this is a group that impressed all summer with their depth and physicality. None of that showed up at Cincinnati. The Ravens are extremely fortunate that didn't cost them the game, but it's an area that needs to improve."
Baltimore Positive’s Luke Jones: "Defensive coordinator Zach Orr and the Ravens definitely have work to do to improve a pass defense that had seemingly righted itself in the blowout win over Buffalo last week. That Baltimore has had such difficulty stopping the pass with a defense that's nearly at full strength remains unnerving, but it's at least fair to note that few opponents have as much firepower as the Bengals with star receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, who combined to make 19 catches for 276 yards and four touchdowns on Sunday."
Quick Hits
Yesterday's Most Read: The Breakdown: Brown's Five Thoughts on Ravens' Thrilling Overtime Win in Cincinnati
- NFL Research: Derrick Henry became the third player age 30+ with 500-plus rushing yards and five-plus rushing TDs in the first five games of a season. He joined Curtis Martin and Priest Holmes (both in 2004).
