Ronnie Stanley isn’t sure how it happened. He might have gotten hit in the stomach. But, for a long stretch in the middle of Sunday’s game, he couldn’t stop throwing up.
Lamar Jackson’s eye-popping, stiff-arming touchdown completion to Isaiah Likely? Stanley wasn’t on the field. He was busy tossing his cookies.
“I thought it was crazy,” Stanley said. “I’m over here puking my brains out the whole time, so I’m in shock for the whole end of the second half.”
Honestly, I think a lot of viewers can relate. The twists and turns of the 41-38 overtime Ravens win over the Cincinnati Bengals thrust our stomachs in all kinds of directions. That nail-biter had more jolts than a car battery and took more twists than a screw. I myself spent about 15 minutes after Justin Tucker’s final kick collecting my melted face off the floor.
Aside from the crazy turns in the win probability meter — a “wheeeeeee!” game as baseball statistician Sarah Langs would put it — the Ravens found themselves with the best kind of victory: one that has a ton of lessons about who they are and what they need to do to take advantage of an AFC race that feels wide open.
1. The Ravens can adopt whatever offensive identity they need.
As someone who added gas to the “identity” conversation — which frankly was valid given how rough the first two games were — it seems this latest Ravens victory gives credence to what John Harbaugh has said all along: Baltimore’s offense can be what it needs to be, when it needs to be.
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A week ago, some talking heads suggested Buffalo’s Josh Allen was a superior quarterback to Jackson even though his team got whipped by 25 points. Jackson’s insane 348-yard, four-touchdown day against the Bengals was a great counterpoint, a reminder that he is often the superhero driving the offense when the Ravens need one. He was nearly impossible to tackle and made pinpoint throws like the one that Charlie Kolar caught in stride. The Ravens stayed alive in the game because Jackson dragged them along.
The Ravens have now had four different leading receivers in five games, including one game when the leader was a running back. It may be an indictment of sorts that no one receiver has been a go-to guy every week, but Jackson has made it work by spreading the ball around. This week it was Zay Flowers (7 catches, 111 yards), but next week it could be anyone. Jackson is the binding element of the passing game — he’s just that good when Baltimore needs him to be.
The beauty of the offense in this game, however, was that the Ravens went back to the run. Derrick Henry’s last touch before overtime was with more than 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. In their overtime possessions, the Ravens got going with Henry again and were rewarded with the 51-yard rumble that set up the field goal. It was understandable why the Ravens got away from running as they worked from behind, but it was reassuring that they stuck with it late when the Bengals were tuckered out on defense.
The identity factor that I believe serves the Ravens is not to lose sight of their roster strengths (which lean toward running the ball) simply for the sake of passing it. And they found a lot of success in overtime honoring that philosophy.
“We knew we could move the ball whenever we wanted to or however we wanted to,” Flowers said. “Whether it was running or passing, we knew we could move the ball, so we just knew we had to keep scoring. Every time they go score, we had to score.”
2. Fixing snaps is a priority.
I’m not sure what’s going on with Jackson and Tyler Linderbaum, but their exchanges, particularly in the late stages of this game, left a lot to be desired.
The biggest highlight of the day — Jackson’s dazzling stiff-arms of Sam Hubbard and a cross-body pass to Isaiah Likely — started with a bobbled snap. On their final drive of regulation, the Ravens had to burn a timeout because they couldn’t get a snap off in time (despite Jackson clapping his hands). Something similar happened in overtime, as Jackson impatiently clapped his hands but then seemed surprised when the ball came his way, leading to the turnover that almost cost Baltimore the game.
Linderbaum and Jackson both alluded to having issues getting protections set before the play clock ran out. For as brilliant as he was, Jackson said the fumble was his own fault, which made him “furious.”
“I was just trying to hurry up and get the snap from Tyler, and as I’m looking to see if it’s a delay [of game], I took my eyes off for a split second, and …” he said, clapping his fist. “It was a fumble, but we got the win.”
It’s not as if these guys are new to each other. This is Year 3. Cincinnati is a particularly hostile environment, but if the Bengals didn’t mishandle their own snap on a game-winning field goal attempt, the Ravens’ miscues would have sent them home with a critical division loss.
Linderbaum said understanding the play clock is on him, but he also alluded to offensive coordinator Todd Monken preaching to “gain extra time, get in the huddle, get the play in, get up to the huddle and make the calls.” That sounds as though Jackson has a hand in driving that tempo as well.
3. There is too much talent for the pass defense to be this bad.
Looking at the plays from the final four minutes of regulation on is to see the Ravens’ defense in its element. Marlon Humphrey snatching a key interception. Nnamdi Madubuike blowing up his blocker for a sack. Nate Wiggins staying step for step in coverage with Tee Higgins and breaking up a pass.
If this is the Ravens’ defensive ceiling, why did it struggle to reach it until the end?
Bottom line: Joe Burrow had 392 yards and five touchdowns. Some of his massive performance was built on spectacular catches and evasive maneuvers by receivers who are really good. But big passing days are becoming common against Baltimore’s secondary — Burrow is the fourth opposing QB to have at least 275 yards passing on the Ravens, who continue to be one of the NFL’s most porous units in pass coverage.
“I don’t think it was anything really special at the end of the day,” Roquan Smith said. “[Burrow] was just putting it up and giving his guys a chance, and they were winning their one-on-one matchups. There was definitely a call or so that maybe he got us in, but that’s part of it.”
I’m not sure that’s everything, though. There were plays such as a touchdown when Tee Higgins got inside without being covered as the Ravens brought an aggressive blitz. A trips screen to Ja’Marr Chase allowed him to slice 70 yards through the secondary on a one-play scoring drive. Burrow is good, but there are scheme and communication issues coordinator Zach Orr can look at this week and see if he can mix things up to addle incoming rookie sensation Jayden Daniels on Sunday.
It’s reassuring that the Ravens revived at the end, but the pattern emerging suggests they’re underachieving with the number of high-caliber players on the defense. The upside is there, but Baltimore needs to reach it more often.
4. It rarely happens here, but special teams are a real problem.
As great as it felt for Justin Tucker to nail a 56-yarder in tough conditions, forcing overtime, Baltimore has seen this before. Tucker is one of the most accurate, most reliable kickers in NFL history, and the Ravens should expect him to be that.
But it’s less reassuring that the beleaguered special teams, which entered the week ranked No. 21 in DVOA, keep finding new ways to let the Ravens down. Tucker has been shaky for most of this year. In Week 2, Jordan Stout shanked a punt. In Week 3, the hands team gave up an onside kick, allowing the Dallas Cowboys to put on a comeback scare.
This week, it was a second-quarter punt return that backup returner Tylan Wallace let go. The Bengals spotted it at the 2-yard-line, then notched a safety one play later. The offensive play call in that situation wasn’t great, leaving Henry exposed, but special teams allowed the unit to get pinned back.
Acknowledging that Deonte Harty was a late scratch for this game, Wallace is no newbie. The Ravens have to be better prepared. Special teams coordinator Chris Horton has seemingly spent the season trying to put out fires, and it has to be exhausting that, just as Tucker gets going, a new flaw appears.
A key part of the Ravens’ success under Harbaugh is that special teams were incredibly reliable and rarely put them in a bad spot. That hallmark is looking rough this year.
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