Mink: Yes, the Ravens have what it takes to win it all. Not only do I think they're the best team in the league, but so do the analytics. The Ravens finished the 2024 regular season with the highest Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA) by a wide margin – the seventh-highest mark in DVOA history. Baltimore has DVOA's second-best odds to win the Super Bowl, only trailing the Philadelphia Eagles.
But DVOA rankings don't win games. Last year's Ravens had history's fifth-highest DVOA and fell in the AFC Championship. The best team doesn't always win, but it certainly doesn't hurt your chances.
The Ravens have the league's best player in Lamar Jackson, the league's best offense, and the league's best defense since Week 11. They have a Super Bowl-winning coach, an offensive coordinator who's cooking, and a first-year defensive coordinator who has turned his unit around.
But you still must go out and win the games against great opponents. The Ravens will have to win on the road in Buffalo, where the Bills haven't lost this season. Then, most likely, they'd have to go to Kansas City to slay the two-time defending champion Chiefs in their place. That's not an easy feat.
The Ravens are strong enough to do that, and they embrace the challenge. But we'll see. The road to New Orleans will be an exciting one.
Brown: I understand why you're eager to know if Zay Flowers will play. But I think we're all going to have to wait until at least Friday, or perhaps Saturday or Sunday to find out.
Head Coach John Harbaugh said Monday that Flowers was working hard to get back and "we'll see toward the end of the week." He also said Flowers could play without practicing this week if he felt healthy enough.
We know Flowers wants to play badly, and the Ravens would love to have their leading receiver in the lineup. However, I think Baltimore has shown its offensive versatility all season. The latest example was when they put up 28 points against the Steelers and rushed for 299 yards without Flowers in the lineup. In Week 4 when the Ravens beat the Bills, 35-10, Flowers had just one catch for 10 yards, but Baltimore rode Derrick Henry, who had 199 yards rushing on 24 carries.
If Flowers plays and feels close to 100%, it will be a huge plus for Baltimore. However, Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken called a great game against the Steelers last weekend and is prepared to adjust if forced to do it again.
Mink: On the first 30-yard touchdown to Van Jefferson, it looked like there was some kind of mistake/miscommunication made between Kyle Hamilton and Brandon Stephens.
On the second touchdown, Russell Wilson threw a perfect sideline moon ball to George Pickens, who squeezed between Nate Wiggins and Ar'Darius Washington to make a fingertips catch and pirouette. The coverage could've been better, but sometimes you have to tip your cap to a great throw and catch.
Do I have any concern? Yes. Much concern? No, because they're the outlier when you look at the Ravens' recent games. They've done an excellent job cutting down on big plays and I don't think they'll backslide in that regard.
Stephens was highly targeted again by the Steelers. He gave up six receptions for 86 yards on six targets, per Pro Football Focus. On Monday, Harbaugh said that also presents an opportunity because, "now we have an idea where you're going to kind of target. We can roll our coverage that way. We can put the strength of our coverage over there, too, so it's kind of a two-way street that way."
The Ravens could play Tre'Davious White more against his former Bills team, but White also gave up a 37-yard catch to the Steelers' Mike Williams when he got over the top with a rub route.
Regardless of who's out there, the key will be keeping Josh Allen from hitting big plays. His 54 passes of 20+ yards are tied for sixth most (two behind Jackson) in the NFL. Allen threw 24-yard and 55-yard touchdowns against the Broncos in the Bills' Wild-Card win.
Allen hit several big plays against the Ravens in their Week 4 matchup, including an insane 52-yarder to Khalil Shakir that he heaved as he was going out of bounds, and a couple back shoulder throws to Keon Coleman. You've always got to be wary of Allen's ability to extend plays. The Ravens are well versed in defending that given their QB is also one of the best to do it.
Brown: I'm not sure if the patches will be permanent; that's up to the coaches and players. I would expect that they'll at least be on for the rest of this year's playoffs. Either way, I thought they were a nice touch, and the selected captains seemed genuinely moved to receive them.
Lamar Jackson, Mark Andrews, Derrick Henry, Roquan Smith, Marlon Humphrey, and Chris Board were voted on by the team to wear the patches against Pittsburgh, and all have been great leaders. But the Ravens have a host of leaders who could be recognized. That's a major reason why they didn't spiral downward after they started 0-2, or when their defense struggled badly during the first two months of the season.
They regrouped, stuck together, and won the AFC North. Now they've reached the divisional round, one of eight teams that still have a chance to win the Super Bowl. We'll find out shortly if this team will hoist the Lombardi Trophy. But the 2024 Ravens have already displayed the leadership that championship teams are made of.
