Baltimore Is Unanimous Pick to Beat Las Vegas in Home Opener
After a heartbreaking season-opening loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last week, will the Ravens bounce back against the Las Vegas Raiders at home on Sunday?
The answer from pundits is a resounding yes. All 53 we sampled are predicting a win for the Ravens (0-1) over the Raiders (0–1).
Here's what pundits are saying about the game:
The Ravens will win convincingly.
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio: "If anything we've come to know about the Baltimore Ravens and John Harbaugh over the past 16 years has any relevance, they will not lose this game, and they will win it convincingly. This will be the way they get the bad taste out their mouths for the opportunity that was missed last Thursday night. I feel bad for the Raiders. They're walking into a tough, tough spot."
USA Today’s Jordan Mendoza: "Even though it resulted in a loss, Baltimore showed it still can compete with Kansas City and contend to dethrone the defending champions come playoff time. This team will take its frustrations out on an offense that is in big trouble and will hope to be lucky enough to get in the end zone. It should be a cakewalk for the Ravens while the frustrations for [Raiders wide receiver] Davante Adams continue to grow."
The 33rd Team’s Marcus Mosher: "The Las Vegas Raiders had a strong defensive performance in Week 1, but they got next to nothing from the offense in Week 1. That will be a major issue going forward, but the hope is that Gardner Minshew can settle down in the offense and create some plays like he did last season when he went into Baltimore and beat the Ravens early in the year. Don't expect the same result this time around. The Baltimore Ravens should look good after having 10 days to prepare for this contest. Of all the games this week, this is the one that has a chance to be a blowout if the Raiders can't score early."
The Ravens will win, but it will be tougher than expected.
Los Angeles Times’ Sam Farmer: "Raiders are not a good team right now, but their defense isn't terrible. Baltimore is rested after a near comeback at Kansas City. Baltimore wins at home but it's a closer game than many think."
The Baltimore Sun’s C.J. Doon: "It's hard to envision the Ravens losing this one and falling to 0-2 when Lamar Jackson is healthy, but there's a good chance there are some tense moments in the second half."
Intangibles point to a Ravens victory.
The Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker: "The Ravens never lost two games in a row last season and will be motivated to put their agonizing opening defeat behind them. They'll have a rest advantage over an opponent crossing two time zones to play them at 1 p.m. Harbaugh's teams have traditionally won at a high rate when playing with such advantages, and Jackson, with a 58-20 career regular season record, will be the best player on the field."
Look for RB Derrick Henry to have a big game.
Sports Illustrated’s Evan Massey: "In his debut performance with Baltimore, Henry carried the football 13 times for 46 yards and a touchdown. It wasn't a bad game, but he's going to make his presence felt this week in a big way. When everything is said and done, Henry will rush for at least 125 yards and two touchdowns. He'll show exactly why the Ravens made signing him such a priority. Henry is poised for his first monster performance with his new team."
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley: "Henry should have an opportunity to get on track against a Raiders defense that allowed 176 rushing yards to the Chargers last week and ranked 21st against the run last season. Henry, who was limited to 46 yards rushing in his Ravens debut, has been held under 50 yards rushing in consecutive games only three times since 2019."
TE Mark Andrews will have a bounce-back game after being held to two catches in Week 1.
ESPN’s Seth Walder: "Ravens tight end Mark Andrews will bounce back with a five-reception, 60-plus-yard game. In the opener against the Chiefs, no player lined up opposite Andrews more than All-Pro corner Trent McDuffie — it won't be such a hard assignment for the tight end on Sunday."
Pundits Encourage Patience, Not Panic, Regarding Offensive Line
The Ravens' offensive line remains a work in progress, but Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame said patience, not panic, is warranted.
"It wasn't pretty last Thursday night in the season opener. Lamar Jackson was often scrambling to extend downs, resulting in 122 rushing yards for the reigning MVP, while Derrick Henry only found 46 yards on 13 carries," Verderame wrote. "However, Baltimore's newfangled front might not face a tougher challenge all year. The Ravens trotted out three new starters along the line with a combined 37 starts for their careers. And their first challenge included the league's best defensive tackle in Chris Jones, along with the league's loudest stadium and a four-time Super Bowl champion in Steve Spagnuolo dialing up his scheme.
"This week, the Ravens will be at home, albeit against a tough Raiders front, including Christian Wilkins and Maxx Crosby. Still, considering the confines and the less-aggressive style of Las Vegas Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham, look for Baltimore's front wall to settle in a bit better."
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec expressed a similar opinion.
"The Ravens weren't discouraged at all about the play of their offensive line in the opener," Zrebiec wrote. "Chris Jones gave them fits, but he does that to everyone. There were some penalties, but nobody is losing sleep about borderline illegal formation calls. The team going into raucous Arrowhead Stadium against a good and creative defense with three new starters up front had the potential to be disastrous — and it wasn't that. The offensive line had some issues, but it didn't stop the Ravens from winning that game. Still, it remains the team's biggest concern."
Justin Tucker Discusses Recent Stretch of Missed Field Goals From 50-Plus Yards
Justin Tucker's failed 53-yard field-goal attempt in Week 1 was the seven-time Pro Bowl kicker's fifth miss from 50 yards or more in six attempts over the past two seasons. Tucker, however, is more focused on what's next rather than dwelling on what's already happened.
"Every next kick is the one that I'm most focused on," Tucker told The Baltimore Sun’s Walker this week. "The time for reflection is after the season. While you're in it, you plow ahead. … I am aware that I've left a few out there recently. But concerning myself with that more so than just focusing on the next kick is not going to help anybody around here.
"The very honest answer is yes, of course I think about it. But I can't let it affect me. I can't let it affect us. Our body of work from a long period of time shows that we've made a lot of kicks from all over the field."
Not dwelling on the missed kicks doesn't mean Tucker isn't determined to make any needed corrections.
"There are certainly things that I can clean up," he said. "That's why I work the way that I do out at practice. That's why we work the way we do. Having an awareness of what happened on the last kick so we can work to make it a point to fix on the next one, that's always been how we operate. That's always been our standard."
Special Teams Coordinator Chris Horton has no concerns about Tucker.
"When you look at those misses, they're different," Horton said. "Some of them were [from] 67 [yards]; some were at the end of the games and things like that. So, again, I don't think there's anything to be concerned about. He's in a good spot. He's still a heck of a kicker."
