Ravens Soundly Defeat Broncos, Trade Deadline Still on Pundits' Minds
After a dominant 41-10 win over the Denver Broncos, two grand takeaways were made by the media. First, Lamar Jackson was perfect for the fourth time (we'll get to that), and second, the trade deadline is coming quick with an opportunity to improve.
While the Ravens' defense held Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix and their offense to 10 points, The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec says the clock is ticking for Baltimore to make one or two moves.
"Now, the ball is in general manager Eric DeCosta's court," Zrebiec wrote. "The trade deadline is at 4 p.m. Tuesday, and even with a solid performance Sunday, the Ravens still looked like a team that could use a defensive addition or two, particularly to better match up with the AFC heavyweights and high-quality offenses."
NFL.com’s Kevin Patra feels the Ravens need to add a pass rusher after they struggled to consistently pressure Nix.
"The question ahead of Tuesday's deadline is whether the Ravens will add to the defense. The front struggled to affect the quarterback once again, with Bo Nix having enough time for a few cups of tea on each dropback," Patra wrote. "Baltimore got pressure on just eight passes but did have four sacks. The secondary also got beat a few times. Better passes from the rookie quarterback and the numbers allowed by the secondary would have looked worse than the box score. The Ravens shut out Sean Payton's club in the second half, but it wasn't a perfect performance from Zach Orr's D. There is room to improve in Baltimore."
Pundits are pairing the Ravens with multiple pass rushers, but there are a lot of moving parts. According to reports, Jadeveon Clowney is unlikely to be moved, Za'Darius Smith is reportedly hours from becoming a Detroit Lion, and acquiring Azeez Ojulari will take more than a low-end pick.
After Sunday's game, the Ravens' offense is the best in the NFL and is being heralded as Super Bowl worthy. Defensively, there's growth and possible additions to be made.
"The Ravens still have eight regular-season games remaining, but after performances like Sunday, it's easy to imagine the possibilities," Zrebiec wrote.
Lamar Jackson Delivers Perfection
There was concern for how the Ravens' offense would perform given Jackson's absences in practice the first two days of the week and being listed on the injury report with back and knee injuries. Facing the Broncos was going to be a tough test – until it wasn't – as Jackson notched his fourth perfect passer rating game. Here's what pundits had to say after his awe-inspiring performance.
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley: "Practice makes perfect - except if you're Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. Despite practicing just once this past week, Jackson was sharp as he has ever been, recording a perfect 158.3 passer rating in Sunday's 41-10 rout of the Denver Broncos. This marked Jackson's fourth career game with a perfect passer rating, which is tied with Ben Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning for the most in NFL history, according to ESPN Research."
Patra: "Lamar Jackson took a bad sack on Baltimore's first possession, which knocked the Ravens out of field goal range. It was the only mistake of the afternoon for an offense that dominated a good Broncos defense. Baltimore scored on its next seven possessions, including four straight touchdowns between the second and third quarters. Jackson gashed Denver with deep digs to Zay Flowers that picked up chuck gains. In the second half, offensive coordinator Todd Monken dialed up a trove of screens to keep the blitz-happy Broncos at bay. This wasn't some limp defense the Ravens ripped apart either -- Denver entered the week allowing -0.14 EPA per play, tops in the league."
CBS Sports’ John Breech: "Is it too early to give Lamar Jackson the MVP award? We all know what the Ravens QB can do with his legs, but this year, he's turned into one of the best passers in the league. Jackson was nearly perfect against the Broncos, completing 84.2% of his passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns. Jackson has now thrown for at least 275 yards in five straight games, which is a franchise record."
The Baltimore Sun’s C.J. Doon: "What's left to say about Jackson? He's never looked more comfortable, and teams are helpless to stop him. The Broncos tried to keep him in the pocket, and all he did was throw for 280 yards and three touchdowns while finishing with a perfect passer rating for the fourth time in his NFL career. He has all the answers to the tests now, and when you combine that with his impressive touch and ability to extend plays both inside and outside the pocket, there's not much even a good defense like Denver's can do. We didn't even see a catch from newly acquired wideout Diontae Johnson, and the Ravens still put up more than 40 points. That's scary."
The Washington Post's Mark Maske: "Lamar Jackson looked like a contender to be the NFL's MVP for a third time, not a quarterback plagued by injuries coming off a week in which he sat out two practices. The Baltimore Ravens were right back to resembling one of the league's top teams. The Denver Broncos appeared not quite ready to compete with the true AFC heavyweights."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "The most impressive aspect of Jackson's perfect-passer-rating day — the fourth of his career, tying Ben Roethlisberger for the most in NFL history — was that he didn't need to dominate as a rusher. Jackson had just three carries for 4 yards, a good bit of load management from offensive coordinator Todd Monken as Jackson eased his way back from minor back and knee injuries. With Jackson in command, the Ravens have everything they need to dominate on offense. If this defensive performance is more than a flash in the pan, watch out."
PFF’s Ben Cooper: "Lamar Jackson giving way to his backup is a fairly good indicator that he put forth an elite performance beforehand. Such was the case against the Broncos, as Jackson earned a 95.2 PFF overall grade before Josh Johnson took over midway through the fourth quarter. Jackson made two big-time throws and no turnover-worthy plays, and two of his three incompletions were drops. If the game grade holds, it would be his highest since Week 10 of his 2019 MVP season."
Ravens Named Second-Best Team in the AFC
After Sunday's games, The Athletic's Mike Jones, Ted Nguyen, and Michael Silver discussed which team in the AFC is the second-best in the conference behind the Kansas City Chiefs. Unanimously, the three named the Ravens over the Buffalo Bills (7-2), Los Angeles Chargers (5-3), and Cincinnati Bengals (4-5).
"Easily the Ravens," Nguyen wrote. "They made one of the best defenses in the league look like child's play. Again, Lamar Jackson looked calm, cool, collected in picking apart the defense. Zay Flowers looks healthy again and he was phenomenal after the catch. The secondary is still spotty — they gave up several big plays in the passing game but they tightened up in the red zone, allowing only one touchdown in four trips."
Like Nguyen, Jones cites the Ravens' defense needing to improve, but the offense is overpowering.
"It's Baltimore," Jones wrote. "The Ravens have the more well-rounded offense, led by Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry, who should both receive MVP consideration and can each single-handedly take over games. They have some work to do on defense to achieve the level of consistency that they're capable of, but they definitely deliver some game-changing plays on that side of the ball as well."
Silver shared the same notion but expressed confidence in the defense to get better down the stretch.
"Not to be boring, but the Ravens are the obvious call. Lamar Jackson is a game-changer, and the addition of Henry — the best running back of his generation — has taken the offense to another level. (Shout out to all the NFL teams who decided not to pursue Henry when he was a free agent.) Defensively, I think Baltimore will improve down the stretch. Right now, I believe in the Ravens more than I believe in the Bills."
Pundits Ponder Defensive Performance
The Ravens' defense delivered a get-right game, holding the Broncos to 10 points and a second-half shutout. Pundits gave them a lot of credit for their performance, with a few nitpicks.
"Over the course of three possessions, Denver lost 2 total yards, going three and out twice as the Ravens grew their lead," The Baltimore Banner's Kyle Goon wrote. "Tavius Robinson helped give the pass rush some juice, including a big 9-yard sack. Trenton Simpson added a fourth-quarter sack and was one of the leading tacklers. Nix helped them out with errant throws, especially to the end zone."
Russell Street Report’s Tanner George noted most of the Broncos' production was in the first quarter and then again when the game was all but over.
"Defensively, Baltimore gave up some easy yards in the first half and in garbage time but was able to stop Sean Payton's offense when it mattered most," George wrote. "Zach Orr showed significant improvement over last week, especially in the third quarter, to shut out the Broncos in the second half. Ar'Darius Washington finally got his hands around a pick and Marcus Williams exhibited growth… That unit certainly isn't all the way [back] yet, but it's getting closer."
Goon's uncertain if the Ravens defense will reach an elite tier but notes they may not need to with the way the offense is performing.
"It feels that there isn't much hope for Baltimore to become an elite defense, but if the offense continues to hum, it might not need to reach that level to get the Ravens to the Super Bowl."
The red zone defense, which held the Broncos to one touchdown on four trips, was Pressbox’s Bo Smolka's biggest defensive takeaway.
"The Broncos had four possessions inside the Ravens' 10-yard line and came away with just 10 points," Smolka wrote. "They were held to a field goal despite having first-and-goal at the 1-yard line, and on the Broncos' final two possessions, they turned the ball over on downs despite having second-and-goal from the 1 on one series and second-and-goal from the 3 on the other."
