Lamar Jackson Played a 'Near Perfect Game' in Win Over Cowboys
Much of the talk coming out of the Ravens' 28-25 win over the Dallas Cowboys Sunday has been about Derrick Henry's dominant performance, but Lamar Jackson also played a huge role.
The two-time league MVP did so even though he attempted just 15 passes, the fewest he's thrown in a game since he became the Ravens' starting quarterback during the 2018 season (excluding two games he left early due to injury). Jackson threw 75 passes over the first two games this season.
"Even if it wasn't his gaudiest day, I thought this was a damn near perfect Lamar Jackson game," Fox Sports' David Helman said on the "NFL on Fox Podcast." "He gets the ground game going; he's got 87 yards of his own. He only threw three incompletions in this game. The third-and-6 throw to Zay Flowers to basically ice this thing and put them in control in the final two minutes was just a phenomenal throw. I thought this was a fantastic effort by Lamar Jackson."
Helman's colleague Ralph Vacchiano agreed.
"I think the beauty of Lamar Jackson is he's a quarterback that to have a great day doesn't necessarily need to throw for 350 yards," Vacchiano said. "He can generate the rushing attack. His presence helped open things up for Derrick Henry because you have to wonder which guy you're going to have to cover on the run that's going in two different directions.
"His passing stats make it look game-managerish, but that unfairly diminishes what he did overall. I do think it was close to a perfect game by him. … The Cowboys really had no answer for him."
Jackson finished with 182 yards passing and a 139.4 passer rating, threw for one touchdown and ran for another. He sealed the win with a 10-yard run on second-and-9 from the Ravens' 35-yard-line on the first play after the two-minute warning.
Thanks in large part to Jackson's dual-threat ability, the Ravens have the No. 1-ranked offense in total yards through three weeks. Baltimore's next opponent, the Buffalo Bills, rank atop the league in scoring.
"With Jackson and Henry finally powering the run game, the floor for the offense might be the highest in the league," The Ringer’s Steven Ruiz wrote.
Pundits React to Ravens Reportedly Bringing Back Yannick Ngakoue
The Ravens reportedly reuniting with veteran edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue was unexpected, in part because the 29-year-old's first stint with the team in 2020 resulted in three sacks in 11 games. However, pundits believe the move makes sense.
Here's a look at reactions to the signing:
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "The Ravens led the league in sacks last year, but they lost a big piece to that pass-rush puzzle when Jadeveon Clowney departed in free agency. They didn't replace Clowney with a veteran, leaving them heavily dependent on 33-year-old Kyle Van Noy and a host of young edge rushers taking a step forward. The early returns have been OK. Van Noy has four sacks over the past two games.
"Former first-round pick Odafe Oweh had 2 1/2 sacks in Week 2. David Ojabo, a 2022 second-round pick, is healthy again and showing signs of progress. However, the Ravens' pressure rate is down from last year under first-year Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr. The Ravens are also last in the league in pass defense. Ngakoue is a player who has shown that he can impact the quarterback."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "Acquired in a late-October 2020 trade with the Minnesota Vikings for a 2021 third-round pick and a 2022 fifth-round pick, Ngakoue had just three sacks in nine games. He played 30 defensive snaps in his final regular-season appearance and a combined 41 snaps in the Ravens' two playoff games, with then-coordinator Don 'Wink' Martindale choosing to play more reliable run defenders out wide.
"In Baltimore, Ngakoue will get a fresh start with Orr and Pass Rush Coach Chuck Smith. While the Ravens rank ninth in the NFL in sacks (10), they're 14th in sack rate (7.8%) and 29th in pressure rate (26.7%), which tends to be more predictive of sacks."
The Baltimore Sun’s Brian Wacker: "The move is mildly surprising with Baltimore having racked up the ninth-most sacks in the NFL with 10 through the first three weeks. But he also brings experience to a mostly young pass rush group with four of the Ravens' five outside linebackers age 25 or younger. Only Kyle Van Noy, 33, is older."
Baltimore Beatdown’s Joshua Reed: "This move definitely comes as a bit of a surprise given how his first stint with the team didn't go as well as expected and the investment of a third-round pick on rookie Adisa Isaac in this year's draft who was a full participant in practice last week but was a healthy scratch. But much like the cornerback position, a team can never have too many quality pass rushers especially when they've struggled to generate consistent pressure late in their first three games after being dominant for the first three quarters."
What's Going on With Ravens' Special Teams?
The Ravens have had one of the league's best special teams units for more than a decade, but they haven't come close to that standard so far this season.
Justin Tucker’s slow start is the most obvious issue, but it's not the only one.
"We've now seen this special teams unit play for three weeks, and there just haven't been many advantages gained in that area," The Baltimore Banner's Kyle Goon wrote. "Justin Tucker is 5-for-8 on field goals, and he missed a 46-yarder that just a few years ago would have been a chip shot for one of the best kickers in NFL history. Jordan Stout had a bounce-back game, but last week got dinged by Ravens Coach John Harbaugh for shanking a critical punt against Las Vegas. There hasn't been a breakout return on a kick or a punt.
"Umm, Ravens? What's going on? Are special teams still a signature of this franchise? You'd expect them to get back to business sometime soon, but three weeks in, it's unfortunately easy to identify where they've fallen short."
The Baltimore Banner's Giana Han noted that the Ravens' special teams also got off to a rough start last season but eventually got back on track.
