The last time the Super Bowl was played in New Orleans, the Ravens won.
Maybe that's good karma for Baltimore. Twelve years after their victory against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans, the Ravens are hoping for a return trip for Super Bowl LIX.
Two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson is still very much in his prime at age 27. But with each year that passes, his sense of urgency to win a Super Bowl increases.
"You've got to do it while you're young, because when you're older, there's going to be younger cats, younger than you coming in and they're going to be hungry too because they want to win the Super Bowl as well," Jackson said on "The Lounge" podcast. "That's why I'm on the guys more now."
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652: Lamar Jackson Talks Super Bowl Urgency, GOAT Goals, Weight Loss, His Leadership Change & More
Two-time MVP Lamar Jackson joins Ryan Mink and Garrett Downing to also talk about what's changed in Year 2 of Todd Monken's offense, the real reason why he lost weight, his connection with the Zays, his pursuit of an all-time rushing record, and much more.
Here are five things that need to happen for the Ravens to win Super Bowl LIX:
The offense needs to take the next step.
The addition of Derrick Henry to Baltimore's backfield was one of the NFL's biggest offseason moves. He's rushed for more than 1,000 yards five times, and now he and Jackson are in the same backfield. Henry's power, coupled with Jackson's passing and dual-threat ability, could be special.
"Somebody has to tackle 250 pounds of Derrick Henry, so forget about the scheme of going out there and, okay, let's add two safeties to play linebacker so that we have the speed on the field to stop Lamar Jackson," NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth said. "These 220-pound safeties have to go try and tackle Derrick Henry, and he gets the ball time after time, so you take them off the field. Then there goes Zay Flowers and [Isaiah] Likely and Lamar running the ball. There's a lot to stop on this offense."
Jackson set career highs for completion percentage (67.2) and passing yards (3,678) last season, and the Ravens expect their passing offense to be more diverse in Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken's second season. There should be more multiple tight end looks featuring Mark Andrews and Likely, and more smash-mouth running formations featuring Henry with Pro Bowl fullback Pat Ricard as a lead blocker.
In Jackson's four career playoff losses, the Ravens scored 12 points, three points, 17 points, and 10 points. The goal is for Henry's presence to help Jackson and vice versa, and for the Ravens to be more difficult to defend via the ground or through the air.
We've seen Jackson win two MVP awards. We've seen Henry win two rushing titles. Together, they hope to win a Super Bowl.
The new offensive line needs to gel.
The Ravens will have three new starters on the offensive line, a major rebuild for a team that went 13-4 last year.
"I understand why the concern – I get the questions, and we're all going to find out real soon, and it will be an ongoing [process]," Head Coach John Harbaugh said.
Andrew Vorhees (left guard), Daniel Faalele (right guard), and Roger Rosengarten (right tackle) got the most reps during preseason, but Harbaugh said he would not announce the starting lineup prior to Week 1.
Regardless of who starts, Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum, who missed much of training camp (neck), and left tackle Ronnie Stanley will be expected to lead this group. Linderbaum and Stanley didn't play during the preseason, so the new offensive line will debut Week 1 against the Chiefs. Stanley knows the new offensive line's cohesiveness will be critical to the team's success.
"We have a lot of new faces, a lot of new guys that are going to be part of this team and part of this offense," Stanley said. "I just want to make sure we get our chemistry off on the right start."
Young players must continue to emerge.
Kyle Hamilton, Justin Madubuike, and Brandon Stephens had career years in 2023, helping the Ravens finish with the NFL's best record.
This season, the Ravens have other young players capable of having their best seasons such as Odafe Oweh, Rashod Bateman, David Ojabo, Travis Jones, Trenton Simpson, Tavius Robinson, and first-round pick Nate Wiggins.
Imagine a handful of those players staying healthy and making a significant. That's a formula that could help put Baltimore over the top.
The key to playing their best football in the playoffs must be found.
The Ravens have won 66 games over the past five seasons but have not reached the Super Bowl during that time. Three of their last five playoffs losses have come at home. They've had the talent but haven't played their best at the most crucial time of the season.
It's an elusive goal, the art of peaking for playoffs. But the Ravens must continue to chase it.
Will the Ravens have the right formula to get back to New Orleans? The Ravens have won two Super Bowls in their history, and strongly believe they have a team capable of doing it again.
"There are a lot of factors that really go into a team winning the Super Bowl, and in the end – and I know this because I'm at the Senior Bowl every single year – there's only one team that ends up being happy, and there's a lot that goes into that," General Manager Eric DeCosta said. "So, my goal is to build a team that has talent at every position, that is flexible enough to withstand injuries, that we have depth to get us through a long season and to make the playoffs and to be sort of ascending at that point."