Tom Brady Praises Ravens in First Broadcast of the Team
For the first time in his rookie broadcasting year, Tom Brady called the Ravens as they faced the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. In the booth, Brady gushed about the Ravens' stars and performance as they notched their first win of the season, 28-25. Among his favorite players was two-time MVP Lamar Jackson.
"He's like superhuman," Brady said. "I call him 'The Eraser.' He just erases things that come up when you see bad football. That [broken play] would be a negative play for almost every other quarterback, and he turns it into another rushing first down. It's awesome."
Brady also highlighted an area where Jackson can elevate his game by answering to opposing defense's stacking the line of scrimmage and selling out on the blitz.
"Some of the things that have challenged the Ravens in critical situations, for example, is when the defense sends a lot of pressure," Brady said. "Kansas City did that last year in the AFC Championship game. They did it early in the season this year. They said, 'OK, Lamar, when you see this max blitz — and you're the MVP of the league, and you're phenomenal, but these are areas where we need you to improve a little bit.' Now you're going to have more command at the line of scrimmage to make some protection checks and then cut the blitz. And that's where I really see his evolution going to the next level."
Along with Jackson, Brady gave high praise to running back Derrick Henry, who he gave his "LFG Player of the Game" to after rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries.
Brady noted just how much talent the Ravens have on offense and how it stretched the Cowboys' defense with assignments.
"It's so hard to be aggressive on defense when you don't know what you're defending," Brady said. "Are you defending the run or are you defending the pass? Are you defending the scramble, are you defending Henry, Jackson, [Justice] Hill has made plays. [Isaiah] Likely, [Zay] Flowers, they're throwing some slip screens out there. There's a lot of weapons."
And if there wasn't enough praise from Brady about the offense, he gave the defense its flowers in how it challenged the Cowboys' pass-catchers.
"There's nothing more you love as a quarterback than easy soft zone throws. Keeps you in rhythm all day," Brady said. "The defenses that challenge you every single pass play, you don't love playing against those every single weekend."
King Henry Makes History in Breakout Game
Last week's Late for Work shared how Henry was "on the cusp of getting going." It's safe to say he's going now after hammering the Cowboys' defense with impunity, and the NFL world took notice.
NFL.com’s Kevin Patra: "The Ravens ran over Dallas' defense early, with Henry and Jackson finding lanes and gashing the Cowboys up the gut. Henry galloped 25 times for 151 yards (6.0 YPC) with two touchdowns. Combine that with Jackson's 14 carries for 87 rushing yards and a score, and the Ravens performed like we presumed they would on the ground entering this season. Baltimore bullied its way for 274 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 45 carries. Getting up big allowed John Harbaugh's team to grind down a questionable run defense with Henry. The King showed that while he might not be the engine of the Ravens' offense every week, he still can maul opponents when needed.
NFL Research: "Derrick Henry had his 12th career game with 150-plus rushing yards and two-plus rushing touchdowns, tied for second-most in NFL history tied with LaDainian Tomlinson and one behind Jim Brown. Henry is the first 30-plus year old with such a game since the Vikings' Adrian Peterson in Week 12, 2015."
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "Henry, who lives in Dallas in the offseason, had interest in signing with the Cowboys in the offseason. The Cowboys, though, weren't all that interested. Henry showed the Cowboys what they were missing, rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries and adding a catch for 23 yards."
The Baltimore Banner's Giana Han: "The Ravens also allowed Henry to do what he does best: tire defenses out. They didn't abandon the run or move away from Henry. Instead, they went back to him over and over. One drive in the third quarter resulted in a punt, but it also served to kill six minutes. Henry rushed four times, Jackson ran twice and Hill twice during the drive. In total, Henry rushed 14 times in the second half."
Hamilton Hammers Cowboys with Career-High 12 Tackles
In the first two games of the season, safety Kyle Hamilton played a solid role outside of one admitted coverage lapse in Week 1. But after a dominant first team All-Pro 2023 season, expectations were high for him to create a greater impact. Against the Cowboys, many saw him back to his roaming, playmaking self.
What may have been the cause? Pressbox’s Bo Smolka wrote that it's due to how Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr deployed Hamilton near the line of scrimmage in Week 3.
"The Ravens use Hamilton in multiple ways, but it seemed that defensive coordinator Zach Orr was more committed to using Hamilton near the line of scrimmage at Dallas than he had been in the first two games this season," Smolka wrote. "Hamilton finished with a team-high 12 tackles, the highest total of his career. He was all over the field, playing as a safety, as a dime linebacker, and as a slot corner, but it was Hamilton's physicality near the line of scrimmage that set the tone early for the Ravens' defense."
Brady also noted Hamilton's abilities at the line of scrimmage are a rarity.
"Another guy I've loved studying film this week of is Kyle Hamilton. I played against him [when he was a] rookie," Brady said. "How he's emerged in this defense … when they get him down near the line of scrimmage, he's got that elite burst. He's such a presence down there. Yeah, he's listed as a safety, but get him close to the line of scrimmage and he makes plays. That's very rare to find."
Pundits Praise Three Quarters of Dominance, Remain Concerned Over Final Quarter
Questions and concerns over the Ravens' identity were dispelled when the Ravens rattled off two touchdowns on their first two drives and four touchdowns on their first seven. For three quarters of play, they out-muscled, out-gained, and out-scored the Cowboys.
But in a tough fourth quarter, a 22-point lead turned to just three. Pundits saw both sides of the team and praised who they were for the first 45 minutes, and expressed worry over what happened in the final 15.
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley: "The Ravens avoided the second 0-3 start in team history, but they didn't inspire confidence in how they finished. For the first three quarters, Baltimore looked like a Super Bowl contender with Lamar Jackson running in for a touchdown untouched and Derrick Henry stiff-arming tacklers. In the fourth quarter, it was the same problems for the Ravens, from porous pass defense to undisciplined penalties. Baltimore can truly prove it has revived its season next Sunday night, when it hosts the Bills."
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer: "But what we saw Sunday was that the Ravens can still be the Ravens. For the first half, at least, Baltimore held Dallas out of the end zone. For the game, the Ravens ran for 274 yards—Derrick Henry wound up with 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, and Lamar Jackson had 87 yards and a score on 14 carries. And to finish this one off, and stem the tide of a Dallas rally? The Ravens showed, again, they could lean on their MVP. … And it was in a lot of ways—mostly in that it showed that, even with all these new parts (Henry being another one), the identity of the team hasn't shifted much."
The Baltimore Sun’s Bennett Conlin: "That was easy. Well, until the end. Another bizarre fourth-quarter lapse diminished the fact that Baltimore mostly bullied Dallas. The Ravens handled business for three quarters like a top NFL team should against a porous defense. … The Ravens needed this result with the Steelers starting a perfect 3-0 to lead the division, but the fourth-quarter woes are a significant ongoing concern. Why — and how — was this game in doubt in the final moments?"
Baltimore Beatdown’s Joshua Reed: "After being in firm control of this game for the first three quarters, the Ravens nearly let another victory and double-digit lead slip through their fingers but Lamar Jackson wouldn't let them. Despite massive late gaffes by the defense and special teams that let the Cowboys back in the game, he ensured that the last person to touch the ball was him by making a clutch throw on third down late and picking up the first down to ice game with his legs. The Ravens still have a lot to work on and address to ensure they can keep and continue building on big leads but they showed the formula of how to get up on and shut down opposing teams."
The Baltimore Sun’s Tim Schwartz: "You could hear the Ravens' collective sigh of relief from 1,300 miles away as they picked up win No. 1 of the season. It's safe to say that the Ravens are going to be OK and win plenty of games this fall, as long as they learn that this should be their recipe for success (outside of that fourth quarter, of course)."
Quick Hits
Yesterday's Most Read: The Breakdown: Brown's Five Thoughts on the Ravens' Win Over the Cowboys
- NFL.com’s Judy Battista credited the Ravens' O-line after its big performance: "Baltimore Ravens offensive line: The biggest concern entering the season, and in this game, finally settled in, powering a 274-yard rushing attack that saved the Ravens' season. The most important run of the year was the last when, having almost entirely blown a 28-6 lead, the Ravens needed a first down to run out the clock. They faked the jet sweep and Lamar Jackson ran virtually untouched through a huge hole in the middle of the line, securing the win."
