John Harbaugh and the Ravens didn't travel across the country to play it safe. They played to win.
In the second quarter, they went for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 16, part of a 93-yard touchdown drive that gave them the lead for good.
The defense didn't make excuses playing without Roquan Smith. Instead, they matched his physicality.
Baltimore's 30-23 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on "Monday Night Football" pulled the Ravens (8-4) closer to the Pittsburgh Steelers (8-3) in the race for first place in the AFC North.
Here are my thoughts on a win that will make the Ravens' Thanksgiving week more enjoyable:
The run game cooking is a recipe for success.
Derrick Henry (24 carries, 140 yards) was the match that ignited the Ravens' offense. Justice Hill's 51-yard touchdown run was the bolt of lightning that stunned the Chargers late in the game.
The Ravens trailed 10-0 in the second quarter and looked lethargic on their first two drives. Then King Henry got rolling. He went for 19 yards and 14 yards on back-to-back plays, starting a seven-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 10-yard touchdown run by Lamar Jackson. Late in the third quarter, Henry busted loose for 27 yards on 4th-and-1, the key play in another scoring drive.
Then, in the fourth quarter after Henry's body blows to the Chargers, Hill threw the knockout punch with a touchdown run that put the Ravens in command.
The Ravens lead the NFL in rushing, and letting their run game cook is a recipe they should keep. They are 6-0 when Henry rushes for more than 100 yards. No opponent the Ravens face wants to deal with Henry hammering away at them for four quarters.
Jackson looked a little unsettled on Baltimore's first two possessions. He missed some open targets, and penalties again kept the Ravens out of rhythm. However, Henry changed the game's momentum, allowing Jackson to heat up and the offense to find its footing.
The NFL's top four rushers all play for teams that looked playoff bound – Saquon Barkley (Philadelphia), Henry, Josh Jacobs (Green Bay), and Jahmyr Gibbs (Detroit). That is not a coincidence. This season has reaffirmed how impactful an elite run game can be for a contending team. Henry is that dude for the Ravens, one of the best running backs who's ever played, and Hill is having his best season. The Ravens are difficult to beat when the run game eats.
Baltimore's defense is finding its mojo.
This was a huge win for Baltimore's defense, playing one of its best games without one of its best players.
Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr said the Ravens would need to fill the void left by Smith's absence "by committee," and a host of players answered the call. Malik Harrison, Trenton Simpson, Chris Board, and Kristian Welch all made their presence felt rotating at inside linebacker.
Harrison has always been a big hitter, and he made several punishing takedowns on his way to leading the Ravens with 12 tackles. He played inside linebacker, outside linebacker, and contributed on special teams in a career-best game.
"A lot of people doubted me coming into this game, so I'm happy that I was able to ball out," Harrison said.
It was impressive that the Ravens settled down defensively after the Chargers marched 70 yards in nine plays for a touchdown on their opening drive. That first possession looked easy, as the Chargers never even faced a third down.
However, the Ravens adjusted and took this game to Chargers, making quarterback Justin Herbert 0-3 in his career against Baltimore and holding him to just 218 passing yards.
Since Ar'Darius Washington entered the starting lineup at safety two games ago, with All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton playing in the middle of the field more often, the Ravens have stopped giving up easy touchdowns in the passing game, and Baltimore's pass rush has benefitted from having more time to get home, as Herbert sacked four times in this game. The Chargers offense didn't have a 20-yard play all night.
If the Ravens keep playing defense like this, they will keep winning.
Being big brother is good when the Harbaughs meet.
Much of the pre-game talk centered around the Harbaugh coaching brothers facing each other for the third time. John Harbaugh raised his career record to 3-0 against his brother Jim and kept the upper hand in their sibling rivalry.
The Ravens were the aggressors all night, which was never more evident when they went for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 16-yard line in the second quarter, just after the two-minute warning. They made it when Mark Andrews took a direct snap and with a push from Henry lunged forward to make the first down.
It was a daring move by Harbaugh that paid off.
"I thought we were going to punt the ball," Jackson said. "He wanted to go for it."
This might not be the last time they face each other, and their next meeting could even happen in this year's postseason. But in this game, the Ravens' coach didn't want the hoopla surrounding the Harbaugh family to distract the players from the main task at hand.
It didn't. The Ravens were the better team, and John left the field as the happier brother once again after they shook hands.
"I just told him, 'You're a great coach, and you have a great team, and I love you," John said.
Baltimore's offensive line deserved some love.
Henry benefitted from holes provided by Baltimore's offensive line, which clearly won the battle up front against the Chargers. Jackson was only sacked once and hit twice, and the offensive line got the best of the Chargers' physical front seven.
Pro Bowl linebacker Tyler Linderbaum said the Ravens can still play better up front but looked at this game as a positive step.
"We are going to keep working to improve, because we know this team has so many weapons," Linderbaum said. "Our skill positions and the quarterback are some of the best in the world. At the end of the day we just have to our job at a high level. In order for us to get to where we want to go, we've got to be playing at a high level."
Extra Points
- Rashod Bateman has a career-high five touchdown receptions. In his first three NFL seasons, he had four touchdown catches combined.
- Former Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins was ruled out with a knee injury and didn't play in the second half. The talented running back keeps having hard luck with injuries, but he was on the field after the game.
- Baltimore's 212 yards rushing was the most against a Jim Harbaugh coached team in the NFL.
- After a week of answering about another slump, Justin Tucker made his only field goal attempt, a 45-yarder in the third quarter. He kicked it straight.
- Baltimore held the Chargers to 5-for-14 on third downs and just 83 yards rushing.
