Rashod Bateman established himself as one of the NFL's top scoring threats at wide receiver in 2024 with a career-high nine touchdown receptions, tying for ninth most in the league.
With Zay Flowers (knee) unable to practice for the second straight week, Bateman figures to play a prominent role in Baltimore's game plan for Sunday's divisional playoff game against the Bills. Bateman opened the scoring for Baltimore during Wild Card Weekend with a 15-yard touchdown reception and credits his prowess in the red zone to several factors.
"I would say Coach [Todd] Monken calling good plays, Lamar [Jackson]'s been able to find me, and I've been able to get open," Bateman said. "I've got to be consistent with that and hopefully continue to score touchdowns."
Bateman has taken advantage of Jackson's ability to extend plays by continuing to move and find open spots in the secondary. Head Coach John Harbaugh said Bateman's precision route running has also made him a consistent red zone threat.
"It's a tight area, things happen fast in the red zone, and a good route runner is a big deal," Harbaugh said. "People assume just it's size, 50-50 and go-get-a-ball-type thing, but that value of route running in the red zone really goes up."
Bateman doesn't think the predicted cold temperatures on Sunday will slow down Baltimore's passing attack.
"It's cold everywhere, it won't affect anything," Bateman said. "We're highly confident. We've put in the work to put ourselves in this position. We're locked in and focused."
Tre'Davious White Isn't Overthinking Matchup With His Former Team
Cornerback Tre'Davious White spent his first seven seasons in Buffalo before joining the Rams this past offseason. He made a name for himself with the Bills, earning two Pro Bowls, but this week he will try to end their season as a member of the Ravens.
White, who came to Baltimore at the trade deadline, isn't focusing on the storyline, though. He's just thinking about getting the win.
"Just a regular game, man. Ultimately, we want to win the Super Bowl, so Buffalo is the next team in the way," White said. "We just got to go in, play good team football and do everything that we're supposed to do and we'll come out on top."
White knows the Buffalo defense well, and Ravens offensive players have asked him about it, but a lot can change in a year. Regardless, he knows having some institutional knowledge won't swing things Sunday.
"None of that is really going to matter," said White, who hasn't talked to his former teammates this week. "It's going to be whatever team executes and plays total team defense for 60 minutes in the game, so that's what we've been preparing to do."
Isaiah Likely Talks About Taking Stiff-Arm From Derrick Henry's Playbook
The Ravens' bench went wild against the Steelers when Isaiah Likely took a page from Derrick Henry's playbook and slammed cornerback Cameron Sutton to the ground with a nasty stiff arm.
Likely said he hasn't engaged in deep conversations with Henry about using the stiff arm more often. However, after watching Henry all season, Likely has seen the advantages.
"Just watching him do it, seemingly so effortlessly, it can make you want to do it," Likely said. "Especially when he catches a guy who's off balance. It seems like 'tap', they go down, they're out of the way."
Henry didn't want to take credit for making the stiff arm more in vogue with his teammates.
"I'm not the stiff-arm coordinator," Henry said. "You've seen the video, you've seen the film, it's a hell of a stiff-arm. It was a hell of a play by him."
Harbaugh Likes Mindset of Team Heading to Buffalo
There has been much discussion about the potential weather challenges awaiting the Ravens, and how much they could impact the game.
But after a strong week of practice, including their first outdoors practice of the week Friday, Harbaugh likes how the team has remained focused on what will matter most Sunday – playing well enough to win.
"We're excited about every part of the game," Harbaugh said. "We're excited about the environment. We're excited about the opportunity to play in a game like this against an opponent like this. We're excited about the conditions. We're excited about the temperature. We're excited about everything.
"But we need to be focused and locked in on the thing that really matters, which is the game, our execution and the way we play. That's what we're definitely supremely focused on."
