ExtremeRavens

The Ravens smashed the Bills on Sunday Night Football. The Bengals finally picked up their first win of the season against the Panthers. Who will have the advantage when these AFC North rivals meet Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati? Ravens passing game vs. Bengals pass defense The Ravens continued their low-volume, high-efficiency passing against the Bills, with Lamar Jackson completing 13 of 18 for 156 yards and two scores. He has attempted just 33 passes over the last two weeks, the lowest two-game total of his NFL career. That means every significant pass catcher on the team, from Zay Flowers to Mark Andrews to Isaiah Likely, is seeing the ball less than expected. The one exception against Buffalo was running back Justice Hill, who caught all six passes thrown his way. Those included a 19-yard touchdown grab and a twisting 17-yard catch-and run that extended a vital touchdown drive in the third quarter. Hill has become an essential complement to Derrick Henry and a favorite target for Jackson when he needs to beat pressure with quick throws. Fewer passes have meant less burden on an offensive line that struggled against elite pass rushers in the Ravens’ opening pair of losses. Rookie right tackle Roger Rosengarten performed well in his first career start against the Bills as Patrick Mekari shifted to left guard to fill in for injured Andrew Vorhees. Might this alignment stay in place even if Vorhees is ready to face the Bengals? Rosengarten projects to start at tackle for years to come, so there’s good reason for the Ravens to keep feeding him opportunities. The Ravens will face a Cincinnati defense that has struggled to generate pressure, ranking 31st in the league in sacks and pressures per dropback. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson (three sacks, six quarterback hits) remains the team’s top pass rusher but hasn’t gotten much help from defensive end Sam Hubbard or defensive tackle B.J. Hill. The Bengals have allowed 6.1 yards per attempt and rank 26th in DVOA, down from 19th in 2023. They lost starting cornerback Chidobe Awuzie after last season and Pro Bowl safety Jessie Bates III the year before that. Their replacements, including former Ravens safety Geno Stone, haven’t been as good. Jackson diced up the Bengals in a pair of Ravens wins last year, completing 67.7% of his passes for four touchdowns and no interceptions. EDGE: Ravens Bengals passing game vs. Ravens pass defense Despite Cincinnati’s 0-3 start, quarterback Joe Burrow’s statistical lines have been vintage over the last two weeks. His No. 2 target, Tee Higgins, is back after missing the first two games, and Ja’Marr Chase (19 catches on 24 targets, 300 yards, three touchdowns) remains one of the league’s elite wide receivers. Burrow took eight sacks over the first three games, and the Ravens will surely try to attack rookie right tackle Amarius Mims, who’s filling in for injured veteran Trent Brown. Former Raven Orlando Brown Jr. has done a solid job protecting Burrow’s blind side. The Ravens have done an excellent job keeping Burrow off-balance and reluctant to look downfield since he torched them in a pair of 2021 blowouts. Former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald did it with disguised coverage schemes and well-timed pressure. Successor Zach Orr’s plan against Burrow will be one of Sunday’s key stories. Orr flooded the field with extra defensive backs against the Cowboys and Bills and showed a deft touch for varying his pressures, using cornerback Marlon Humphrey, for example, as an effective blitzer against Josh Allen. Allen made a few great throws against the Ravens but finished 16-of-29 for 180 yards and no scores. He faced steady harassment from edge rushers Odafe Oweh and Kyle Van Noy and defensive tackle Travis Jones, all of whom are off to outstanding starts. Safety Kyle Hamilton’s versatility around the line of scrimmage could also be a major factor against Cincinnati. After struggling to hold leads in their previous two games, the Ravens put Buffalo away with a pair of back-breaking sacks from Van Noy and Oweh in the third quarter. EDGE: Even Ravens running game vs. Bengals run defense The Ravens destroyed their last two opponents on the ground, outrushing the Cowboys and Bills by a combined 545 yards to 132. They’re averaging 6.4 yards per attempt, easily the best in the league. Jackson remains the orchestrator and a devastating threat (77 yards per game, 7.5 yards per attempt), but this is the first time he has worked with a running back who scares defenses as much as he does. Henry went 87 yards on his first carry against Buffalo and finished the night with 199 rushing yards. He’s on pace to exceed 2,000 for the season while averaging a career-high six yards per attempt. A young offensive line that struggled to open holes in the first two weeks asserted its size and power against the Cowboys and Bills. Center Tyler Linderbaum is playing at an All-Pro level. Fullback Patrick Ricard and tight ends Likely and Andrews have done the grunt work to give Henry his favored outside running lanes. The Ravens will look for another dominant performance against a defense that ranked 28th in DVOA against the run in 2023 and ranks 22nd so far this season. The Bengals have allowed 145.5 yards per game and 4.4 yards per carry against ground attacks that do not measure up to Baltimore’s. They have a pair of good linebackers in Logan Wilson and Germaine Pratt but badly miss D.J. Reader, who was their dominant interior run defender for years. The Ravens lead the NFL in rushing yards through the first four weeks of the season. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) EDGE: Ravens Bengals running game vs. Ravens run defense The Bengals ran for just 144 yards over their first two games, but porous run defenses from Washington and Carolina helped them pick up the pace over the last two. They said goodbye to longtime running back Joe Mixon in the offseason, replacing him with Zack Moss, who’s averaging 46.8 yards per game and 3.9 per carry. Moss has carried more than backup Chase Brown, but Brown has been more efficient, averaging 6.3 yards per carry. Burrow is no threat on designed runs but can scramble well enough in a pinch. The Ravens always played well against Mixon and have smothered opposing ground games this year, holding them to 58 yards per game and three yards per carry, both league-best totals. They didn’t miss nose tackle Michael Pierce (shoulder) against Buffalo, in part because the 6-foot-4, 338-pound Jones is emerging as a star. Hamilton has done his best work this year against the run. All-Pro linebacker Roquan Smith is off to a slow start by his standard but still leads the team in tackles. EDGE: Ravens Ravens special teams vs. Bengals special teams Justin Tucker didn’t attempt a field goal against the Bills after missing one wide-left in each of the Ravens’ first three games. Fans will watch anxiously the next time the greatest kicker in NFL lines up, especially if it’s from 50 yards or more. Punter Jordan Stout has performed much better (57.1% inside the opponent’s 20-yard line for the season) since he shanked a key kick in the Ravens’ collapse against the Raiders. Deonte Harty is averaging a solid 11.6 yards on punt returns. Cincinnati kicker Evan McPherson has made nine of 10 field goal attempts, including all three from 50 yards or beyond. The Bengals rank 26th in special teams DVOA because they’ve gotten little from their return game and have struggled in kickoff coverage. EDGE: Ravens Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Staff picks for Week 5 of 2024 NFL season: Cowboys vs. Steelers, Bills vs. Texans and more Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Lamar Jackson responds to social media criticism: ‘Trying to win games … not to help people’s parlay’ Baltimore Ravens | Ravens have perfect practice attendance, Bengals battling key injuries ahead of divisional clash Baltimore Ravens | Can (and should) the Ravens trade for Davante Adams? Here’s what to know. Baltimore Ravens | Ravens film study: How Derrick Henry leads NFL in rushing with Pat Ricard’s help Ravens intangibles vs. Bengals intangibles The Ravens-Bengals rivalry has swung wildly in recent seasons. Cincinnati won a pair of blowouts in 2021 and ended the Ravens’ season (with Jackson out) in 2022. Baltimore bounced back to win both meetings (with Burrow getting hurt in the second) last year. Cincinnati started 0-3, so coach Zac Taylor and his top stars will treat this as a must-win game. The Ravens are riding high coming off their season-best performance against Buffalo and could make their 0-2 start a distant memory with a win in Cincinnati. “We don’t want to listen to the good stuff,” coach John Harbaugh said after the Bills win, signaling that he wanted the Ravens looking ahead instead of enjoying what they’d done. They won’t overlook the Bengals given the feisty history between these teams and the built-in importance of any AFC North game. They have played well in Cincinnati the last two seasons, making life uncomfortable for Burrow. EDGE: Ravens Prediction As long as the Bengals have Burrow throwing to Chase and Higgins, they’ll be a threat. They’re better than their 0-3 start, especially on offense. The Ravens don’t want to spot Cincinnati a lead and have the game turn into a throwing contest. The good news for the Ravens is they have the right playmakers to punish a Cincinnati defense that has lost a lot of talent over the last few years. Led by Jackson and Henry, they’ll try to follow the same script that worked against the Cowboys and Bills. The Bengals won’t be the team to stop them. Ravens 30, Bengals 24 Have a news tip? Contact Childs Walker at daviwalker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6893 and x.com/ChildsWalker. View the full article

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson does not care about your parlay or his stats. But “every day,” he told The Baltimore Sun, he gets direct messages on social media from those who have a vested interest in his numbers. This week, the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player apparently had enough. “We human, too,” he said Wednesday in Owings Mills. “We’re trying to win games. … not to help people’s parlay. “I don’t believe we go into games worried about stats, either. We worried about the ‘W’ column. … We don’t dwell on parlays, but I see a lot of people like to make comments in our comments section and in our [direct messages], but then when we address them in the DM they want to make it public. It is what it is. We trying to win.” Jackson added the prevalence of messages he receives over his stats and fans’ bets that are linked to them has “become a thing” since betting became more prominent in the NFL. In recent years, the league has embraced gambling through partnerships with companies such as DraftKings and FanDuel, among others. The quarterback’s response came two days after he sounded off on X and three days after the Ravens’ 35-10 blowout of the Buffalo Bills in which he attempted just 18 passes and threw for just 156 yards. “This is a “TEAM” sport I’m not out here satisfied when I threw for 300yds but took a L,” he wrote on X. “If I throw for 50 yds and we WIN, that’s wtf matters. Yall stop commenting on our socials about the yds yall fan duel or parlays ain’t hit.” Two weeks ago, Jackson threw the ball just 15 times for 182 yards in Baltimore’s 28-25 win over the Dallas Cowboys. Last season, Jackson attempted fewer than 21 passes in a game only once (Week 4 against the Browns in Cleveland, who the Ravens beat 28-3) and averaged 28.56 pass attempts per game on his way to career highs in passing yards and completion percentage. This season, he’s averaging 27 passes per game, a number that would be even lower if not for his 41 attempts in the season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs, who never trailed after the second quarter and twice led by 10 in the second half. Since taking over as the full-time starter in 2019, Jackson has averaged fewer than 27 passes per game only twice: his 2019 MVP season and in 2020. Other oddities stand out as well. Most notable is the lack of receiving production from tight end and security blanket Mark Andrews, who has just six catches for 65 yards so far. That includes being shut out each of the past two games. “Sometimes you might not get the ball,” Jackson said. “We got all these great guys on our offense that’s helping us win games, including Mark. Mark is playing a huge role right now for us doing what he’s doing; blocking, running routes, running guys out. … He’s just being a team player right now.” It’s hard to argue with the success, particularly amid a turnaround from an 0-2 start to wins in each of the past two games, including against the previously unbeaten Bills. Through the first four weeks of the season, the Ravens have the No. 1 offense in defense-adjusted value over average and are averaging 7 yards per play. Baltimore also ranks fifth in scoring (26.5 points per game) and first in yards per game (429.5). Jackson has passed for 858 yards and five touchdowns with one interception and rushed for 308 yards and two more scores. Only eight players have a higher expected points added per play than Jackson’s mark of plus-0.17. Meanwhile, Derrick Henry leads the NFL in rushing and is fourth in the league in average yards before contact (3.84). “We’re just playing chess not checkers out there on that field,” Jackson said of the Ravens’ versatility. “That’s basically what is with our offense. … It’s hard to defend us.” Still, there’s no stopping the comments, and Jackson is hardly the only target of them. “I can definitely say [fans] go over the line with them,” wide receiver Rashod Bateman told The Sun. “Out of all the people on this team, I can promise you I have [gotten them]. I’ve dealt with all the negativity from the fans, Baltimore, fans across the world.” Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens have perfect practice attendance, Bengals battling key injuries ahead of divisional clash Baltimore Ravens | Can (and should) the Ravens trade for Davante Adams? Here’s what to know. Baltimore Ravens | Ravens film study: How Derrick Henry leads NFL in rushing with Pat Ricard’s help Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Commanders in Week 6 isn’t getting flexed to ‘Sunday Night Football.’ Here’s why. Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: The Ravens are getting their swagger back | COMMENTARY He added that the criticism can be difficult, and so can finding the balance between having an impact and dealing with not getting the ball. Bateman, who has just nine catches for 144 yards and a touchdown, said it’s a “slippery slope as a receiver, especially when you’re open.” “It’s tough,” he told The Sun. “But you have to do what’s best for the team. “We know as a receiver we’re not getting everything that we want right now. Hopefully those opportunities change.” What’s unlikely to change, however, at least for the moment, are the flood of messages. “We seen what it was the first two games,” Jackson said. “It was like ‘What are the Ravens doing? The Ravens are the worst team in the NFL.’ We were seeing all type of crap. We just win these games and it’s like ‘We’re the team to beat.’ No we just play football. “It don’t really matter, we just go out there with a winning mentality.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

All 52 Ravens were present on the practice field Wednesday afternoon for the first time this season ahead of Sunday’s divisional matchup in Cincinnati. “We understand how valuable that is. How rare that is,” coach John Harbaugh said. “I just think the guys are working really hard too. Guys work super hard, they practice hard. They work hard in the weight room. The weight staff and training staff has all done a great job.” Both left guard Andrew Vorhees and nose tackle Michael Pierce returned after missing last week’s commanding win over the Bills. Vorhees didn’t practice last week because of an ankle injury, while Pierce was out with a shoulder injury. Pierce returned to full participation Wednesday, while Vorhees was limited. Their potential returns to the lineup would give the Ravens a boost in the trenches Sunday. In Vorhees’ absence, the Ravens reshuffled their offensive line Sunday night. Veteran Patrick Mekari moved from right tackle to left guard, while rookie second-round draft pick Roger Rosengarten stepped in at right tackle, making his first career start. The reconfigured offensive line performed well as the Ravens rushed for 271 yards in a 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills. Linebacker Chris Board (ankle) and defensive end Brent Urban (neck) were both limited participants in practice. Cornerback Arthur Maulet (knee/hamstring) returned as a limited participant, opening his 21-day window to return to the active roster after spending the first four weeks on injured reserve. The 31-year-old Maulet would be a welcome addition to the secondary that struggled in the season’s first three games but is coming off its best performance of the season. The veteran defensive back appeared in 13 games last season with 37 total tackles, two sacks, two fumble recoveries and an interception. “He’s a great leader,” Harbaugh said. “Arthur is one of those guys, you feel his energy even when he’s not playing. On the sideline, he was into it. He was flying around. He knew all the calls, was coaching guys up. He was looking forward to coming back. It’s a little bit of a process. You’ve been down for four or five weeks. He’s going to have to ramp his way back in. We’ll see day to day here how he does with that, but it’s great to have him out here.” Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Can (and should) the Ravens trade for Davante Adams? Here’s what to know. Baltimore Ravens | Ravens film study: How Derrick Henry leads NFL in rushing with Pat Ricard’s help Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Commanders in Week 6 isn’t getting flexed to ‘Sunday Night Football.’ Here’s why. Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: The Ravens are getting their swagger back | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 4: Ravens show how quickly things can change For the Bengals (1-3), quarterback Joe Burrow (right wrist), tight end Tanner Hudson (knee), defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr. (thumb) and guard Cordell Volson (ankle) were also full participants. However, the Bengals’ defense remains banged up at all three levels. Three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Trey Hendrickson (neck/back), defensive tackle B.J Hill (hamstring) and linebacker Germaine Pratt (ankle) were all limited. Meanwhile, cornerback Mike Hilton (knee) and defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins (hamstring) didn’t practice. The Bengals opened the practice window for a pair of defensive linemen on injured reserve with knee injuries in defensive end Myles Murphy, a 2023 first-round pick, and defensive tackle McKinnley Jackson. View the full article

Davante Adams has asked the Las Vegas Raiders to trade him, and on paper adding the explosive three-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowl wide receiver to a Ravens roster that already includes Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry might sound like a dream scenario that general manager Eric DeCosta should pursue. According to BetCalifornia.com, Baltimore has the fourth-best odds at +1000, or a 9.1% chance, to acquire him. Only the New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys and New Orleans Saints have better odds. In reality, however, it’s unlikely Adams, who torched Baltimore in Week 2 with nine catches for 110 yards and a touchdown, will end up a Raven. Here’s why: Salary cap and capital The biggest hurdle that would prevent the Ravens from landing Adams is financial. Baltimore is already tight on salary cap space, with just $4.3 million in room, per Over The Cap. Adams, meanwhile, would immediately count $13.5 million against the cap, a number that will decline with each passing week down to $8.6 million at the Oct. 31 trade deadline. That means the Raiders would likely have to eat some of his remaining salary and the Ravens would need to extend his deal, which currently includes $36 million and $37 million due in 2025 and 2026, respectively. That’s a lot for a player who will turn 32 in December. The Ravens already have a ton of money tied up in a handful of players, including Jackson, cornerback Marlon Humphrey, safety Marcus Williams, tight end Mark Andrews and inside linebacker Roquan Smith. Several of their players will be free agents in 2025, too, including tackles Ronnie Stanley and Patrick Mekari, fullback Patrick Ricard and cornerback Brandon Stephens. Stephens is one player they’ve already said they’d like to keep. The Raiders, meanwhile, have reportedly told teams they would consider offers that include a second-round pick and additional compensation. Baltimore has a second-round draft pick next year, but it is one of only seven selections (not including compensatory picks) they currently have, and they have long been reticent to unload draft capital. They also don’t have much in the way of players they could or would want to move to clear enough cap space as part of the deal that wouldn’t hurt their chances of reaching the Super Bowl. Awkward fit Simply put, Adams is a player who demands the ball. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens film study: How Derrick Henry leads NFL in rushing with Pat Ricard’s help Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Commanders in Week 6 isn’t getting flexed to ‘Sunday Night Football.’ Here’s why. Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: The Ravens are getting their swagger back | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 4: Ravens show how quickly things can change Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh still isn’t worried about Mark Andrews | NOTES Over the past six seasons before this one, he’s had at least 149 targets every year but one. He’s also caught at least 100 passes in all but one season during that span. Last season, Zay Flowers led Baltimore in catches (77) and receiving yards (858) on 108 targets. Now in his second year, he’s on pace to eclipse that target share. The Ravens already have enough hands to feed between Flowers, Andrews, Isaiah Likely and Rashod Bateman, so adding Adams to the mix would only make that more difficult. And now that they’ve started to lean into their running game with Jackson only throwing the ball 18 and 15 times the past two weeks, adding a receiver who publicly calls for targets would be problematic. Baltimore could trade Bateman, who signed a cap-friendly two-year extension this past offseason, but DeCosta and coach John Harbaugh have been bullish on seeing him succeed here. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

Four games into his Ravens career, Derrick Henry is leading the NFL in rushing yards, averaging a career-high 6 yards per carry. He also has the young season’s longest run at 87 yards. Much of that damage has come over the past two weeks, with 151 yards against the Dallas Cowboys followed by 199 against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium. Both were victories and both demonstrated that the second year of Todd Monken’s offense is becoming less about spreading things out and more about taking a step back to perhaps take a giant leap forward. After sputtering to an 0-2 start, Baltimore seems to have found its identity in a familiar way. “We didn’t start the way we wanted to, but like I told those guys, this is why I came here, because of the culture,” Henry said. “Our back is against the wall, 0-2, we just kept believing.” For good reason. Henry, 30, tore through Buffalo for 199 yards. Nine of those runs went for at least 5 yards, including three that covered 25 or more with all of them leading to touchdowns. But Henry was hardly alone in his success, as fullback Pat Ricard and a much-criticized and makeshift offensive line paved the way. He did the rest. Here’s a look at how on his three biggest runs of the night: Distance: 87 yards Down: First-and-10, Baltimore 13-yard line When: 11:02, first quarter Result: Touchdown It was the first snap of the night for the Ravens’ offense, and it had a feeling all week what was going to happen. From the pistol formation, Baltimore ran a “crunch” concept, which uses a combo of a guard trap block and a “wham” block to create an opening for the back, and executed it perfectly. With Ricard and tight end Mark Andrews in a snug split to the right of rookie tackle Roger Rosengarten, center Tyler Linderbaum blocked linebacker Dorian Williams, while Rosengarten went inside-out on defensive end Greg Rousseau and right guard Daniel Faalele down-blocked to the inside on tackle DaQuan Jones. But the biggest block came from Ricard, who came across the formation to block defensive tackle Ed Oliver. With Henry pressing the edge as he took the ball, that allowed Andrews to get a few yards downfield to block safety Taylor Rapp and kept cornerback Rasul Douglas in contain to the outside. From there, Henry did the rest. Distance: 38 yards Down: Second-and-7, Buffalo 40-yard line When: 13:39, fourth quarter Result: First down With Likely and Andrews lined up left of Stanley, Agholor the lone receiver split right to the short side of the field and Ricard in a classic fullback position in the I-formation, this was another example of the Ravens’ power game. And even with the Bills having seven defenders in the box, they still didn’t have an answer. As Jackson took the snap from under center, he turned to his right and tossed the ball back to the left to Henry. Out in front of the back, Stanley shuffled left to pick up linebacker Nick Morrow, Andrews locked up defensive end Dawuane Smoot and Likely got downfield to block cornerback and Baltimore native Christian Benford. That left Ricard leading the way through the massive hole, and he promptly took out charging linebacker Baylon Spector with Henry planting and turning inside before juking back to the outside of Ricard, who also swallowed up Hamlin. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Commanders in Week 6 isn’t getting flexed to ‘Sunday Night Football.’ Here’s why. Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: The Ravens are getting their swagger back | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 4: Ravens show how quickly things can change Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh still isn’t worried about Mark Andrews | NOTES Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Meanwhile, Linderbaum was already 12 yards downfield burying his defender before safety Cole Bishop came from the far side of the field to force Henry to briefly cut back inside before he was dragged down by Douglas from behind. Four plays later, Henry plunged into the end zone off right tackle and fumbled the ball right before the goal line. Fittingly, Ricard recovered it in the end zone for the final blow. A week earlier, Cowboys outside linebacker Micah Parsons said that if defenses followed Ricard, that’s where the ball is often going. That was the case again Sunday against the Bills. “It shows that I’m like at the point of attack,” Ricard said. “So, I have to make sure that I am moving them. Because if they think the ball is going where I’m going — which is not the case every time but sometimes — I have to make sure that I’m running full speed, hitting the guy, moving him so the back has the lane. “It’s pretty cool that I’m getting noticed like that.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. Week 5 Ravens at Bengals Sunday, 1 p.m. TV: CBS Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM Line: Ravens by 2 1/2 View the full article

A highly anticipated showdown between the Ravens and Commanders is staying put. The Beltway neighbors are scheduled to play at 1 p.m. on Oct. 13 at M&T Bank Stadium, and it will remain that way with the game not being moved to “Sunday Night Football.” NBC was interested in flexing the game to its prime-time window at 8:20 p.m., but CBS protected the contest, two sources with direct knowledge of the situation told The Baltimore Sun. Under NFL flex rules, up to two games between Weeks 5 and 10 can be moved from Sunday afternoon to Sunday night with 12 days’ notice required. Networks can also protect one game per week. Tuesday is the deadline to announce any changes to the Week 6 Sunday night game, which currently has the New York Giants (1-3) hosting the Cincinnati Bengals (1-3). The Ravens-Commanders game also can’t be moved to the 4:25 p.m. time slot on CBS because FOX has the exclusive doubleheader that week with the Dallas Cowboys hosting the Detroit Lions in the later window. A desire to showcase the Ravens (2-2) and NFC East-leading Commanders (3-1) and their respective star quarterbacks, two-time NFL Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson and No. 2 overall draft pick Jayden Daniels, in prime time had obvious and tantalizing appeal, however. Baltimore is starting to find its rhythm as perhaps one of the best teams in the league with two straight wins, including a 35-10 demolition of the previously undefeated Buffalo Bills on Sunday night. Washington, meanwhile, has won three in a row thanks in large part to the electrifying play of the rookie Daniels, who has passed for 897 yards and three touchdowns, rushed for 218 yards and four scores and has the highest completion percentage (.821) through his first four games of any quarterback in NFL history. The Ravens-Commanders game is also the marquee contest on CBS’ slate that week. The other Week 6 games at 1 p.m. for the network are the Houston Texans at New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts at the Tennessee Titans. The two 4:05 p.m. games are the Pittsburgh Steelers at the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers at the Denver Broncos. Moving the game to Sunday night also would have meant a sixth prime-time game for the Ravens this season. Already, Baltimore has played the Chiefs in Kansas City and hosted the Bills in prime-time over the first four weeks and still has night games against the Buccaneers in Tampa (Oct. 21), at home against the Bengals (Nov. 7) and at the Chargers (Nov. 25). The Ravens will also play on the road on Christmas Day for a second straight year, this time against the Texans. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: The Ravens are getting their swagger back | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 4: Ravens show how quickly things can change Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh still isn’t worried about Mark Andrews | NOTES Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills Despite the proximity between Baltimore and Washington, the meeting between the teams is a rarity. Though they play annually in the preseason, the Ravens and Commanders have met just seven times since 1997 during the regular season and haven’t played since 2020. In that most recent game, Jackson ran for a 50-yard touchdown and threw for two scores to lead the Ravens to an easy 31-17 win at then-FedEx Field in Landover. But in the most recent meeting in Baltimore, Washington beat the Ravens, 16-10, in 2016 behind a stingy defense and an 85-yard punt return for a touchdown by Jamison Crowder. Overall, the Ravens have won four of the seven meetings. Baltimore’s next game is at Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon. Washington hosts the Cleveland Browns. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

Those dark clouds hovering over Baltimore two weeks ago now have some light shining through them. Baltimore went into panic mode after the Ravens opened this season with two straight losses to Kansas City and Las Vegas. But after two straight wins, including a 35-10 victory over the previously unbeaten Buffalo Bills on Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium, a sense of calm has taken over. The Ravens (2-2) are a .500 team in a league where a team’s future can be changed overnight or in one play. Gone are the days when a team could physically dominate like the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers or the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s. There are no super teams anymore. Two teams remain undefeated — Minnesota and Kansas City — but how long can the Vikings remain unbeaten with Sam Darnold as the starting quarterback? Even the league’s Superman, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, will struggle to win an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl title without speedy receivers Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and Rashee Rice, who are out for the foreseeable future because of injuries. That’s why coach John Harbaugh and the Ravens want to remain on an even keel despite all the smooching from both the local and national media after pummeling the Bills. The Ravens have been through this before as recently as last season when they had the league’s best record before losing to the Chiefs, 17-10, in the AFC championship game in Baltimore. “We know what’s possible, we know what we’re capable of, but we have a long way to go, and we have a lot of work to do,” Harbaugh said. “And we’re just four games in, and we have 13 more regular-season games to play. And where the season goes, it’s going to be defined by what we do in the next 13 games plus.” Harbaugh knows how to apply the brakes. It appears the Ravens have found an offensive identity by riding running back Derrick Henry, who ran for 151 and 199 yards the past two weeks against Dallas and Buffalo, respectively. Henry might go for more than 200 yards against a poor Bengals defense on Sunday in Cincinnati, but it’s not strictly about the Ravens being so run-oriented. Balance is the key for Baltimore. It’s something both Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Todd Monken have spoken about several times the past two years. Quarterback Lamar Jackson has been nearly perfect in the past two games as a game manager with Henry as the primary playmaker, which has set up the play-action passing game and run-pass options. Ravens outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, right, strip-sacks Bills quarterback Josh Allen in the third quarter Sunday night. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) But this will change in the postseason. Opposing defenses will crowd the line of scrimmage to take away Henry and force Jackson to beat them downfield with his arm. Can Jackson lead the Ravens to a title that way? He hasn’t in the previous six years, but that could change. Maybe by the postseason both guards, Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele, will have developed as pass blockers and give Jackson more time to throw. He’ll need it. “Yes, we’ve got some momentum going,” Henry said. “There’s still things that we can get better at that we’re going to focus on and get better at, but it’s a long season. We got off to a great start last week, then didn’t finish the way we wanted to. We’re still progressing, still working and still looking to get better.” Defensively, the Ravens eased some concerns against the Bills. They jumped out to a 21-3 halftime lead, but once Baltimore went three-and-out on its first offensive series of the third quarter, it seemed another late collapse was possible. But Buffalo never mounted a serious threat after its first possession of the second half. The Ravens dominated the Bills and their small ball passing game as Buffalo finished with only 155 passing yards and 236 yards of total offense. The Bengals will be more of a challenge for the Ravens with quarterback Joe Burrow, receivers Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase and tight end Mike Gesicki. But the win over Buffalo should give some much-needed confidence to the Ravens’ defense, which had to go through some growing pains after replacing three top assistant coaches from a year ago. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Commanders in Week 6 isn’t getting flexed to ‘Sunday Night Football.’ Here’s why. Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 4: Ravens show how quickly things can change Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh still isn’t worried about Mark Andrews | NOTES Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills “We’re still in the building phase, still trying to get better every single week,” running back Justice Hill said. “It’s still early in the season and we’ve got a lot of great opponents coming up. We’re just going to keep stacking up good practices and good games.” The swag is starting to build, and that’s a big part of the psyche here in Baltimore. So far, the AFC North has been disappointing and not lived up to its reputation of being the NFL’s toughest division. Pittsburgh (3-1) will eventually become a .500 team again and both Cleveland and Cincinnati have been embarrassments to the state of Ohio. That’s good for fans here, because local folks live with a chip on their shoulders from an inferiority complex being next to major cities like Washington and Philadelphia. But after Sunday night in the beatdown of Buffalo, fans found something to get excited about again. Like the team itself, the confidence is back. The sun is starting to shine again. Finally. Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-227-2943 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article

Each week of the NFL season, The Baltimore Sun will recap the best and worst from around the league. Here are our winners and losers from Week 4: Winner: Ravens Never underestimate how quickly things can change in the NFL. After starting 0-2 with a dumbfounding home loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, the Ravens looked lost. Penalties kept piling up, the offense couldn’t find its identity and the defense suffered from glaring lapses in communication. Even a bounce-back win over the Dallas Cowboys didn’t feel good after Baltimore gave up 19 straight points in the fourth quarter and nearly coughed up a huge lead. So what happened when the league’s hottest team came to M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday night? The Ravens dominated, of course. After all the agita about Derrick Henry’s role in the offense through the first few games, the four-time Pro Bowl selection exploded for 199 rushing yards in a 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills, highlighted by an 87-yard touchdown run — the longest in Ravens history — on the team’s first play from scrimmage. Through four weeks, pending Monday night’s doubleheader, Henry leads the league in rushing yards (480) and is tied for first in rushing touchdowns (five). During their slow start, it was fair to wonder whether the Ravens belonged in the NFL’s elite tier. This was a team that lost several key players and coaches from last year’s 13-4 group and was starting to feel the effects of quarterback Lamar Jackson’s big contract extension. The roster simply wasn’t as good as it had been in years past, and maybe the rest of the league was catching up to them. A noticeable step back by kicker Justin Tucker, tight end Mark Andrews and linebacker Roquan Smith from their heights as some of the best players at their respective positions didn’t inspire much confidence, either. Now, that all seems silly. When the Ravens are clicking, with Henry and Jackson gashing the defense on the ground and through the air and the defense harassing the front-runner for NFL Most Valuable Player into one of his worst performances in years, they look like a Super Bowl contender. Consider this: Before Sunday night, the Bills hadn’t lost by more than six points in a regular-season game since 2021, the longest such streak in NFL history. Safety Kyle Hamilton said the Ravens didn’t win the Super Bowl on Sunday, but they certainly took a big step toward doing so. Loser: New York Jets The Jets allowed negative passing yards at halftime and still lost. Let that sink in. In a sloppy, rain-soaked game, New York’s offense was simply dreadful. Breece Hall, the running back many picked near the top of their fantasy football drafts, had 4 yards on 10 carries. Garrett Wilson, blanketed for most of the day by Broncos star cornerback Patrick Surtain II, had five catches for 41 yards. Aaron Rodgers averaged just 5.4 yards on 42 passing attempts and was sacked five times. Give credit to Denver’s defense, which is shaping up to be one of the league’s best. Coordinator Vance Joseph is blitzing at one of the league’s highest rates and getting home, as Denver ranks second in the league in sacks (16) behind only the Minnesota Vikings. The front seven, led by breakout star Zach Allen at defensive end, has been disruptive. But the Jets can’t lose to a team with an offense as anemic as Denver’s, no matter the circumstances. Rookie quarterback Bo Nix didn’t have a completion longer than 2 yards until his first pass of the second half, and the Broncos went 3-for-14 on third down while averaging just 3.3 yards per play. Somehow, the Jets were just as bad, getting three field goals from Greg Zuerlein until he missed a potential game-winning kick from 50 yards with 47 seconds left. New York committed 13 penalties for 90 yards, and that was with nine days to prepare. It looked like the Zach Wilson-led Jets, which is probably the worst thing you could say about a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels, left, leaps into the end zone for a touchdown Sunday against the Cardinals. (Rick Scuter/AP) Winner: Washington Commanders Jayden Daniels has arrived. In his return to Arizona, the former Sun Devils star picked apart the Cardinals’ defense, completing 26 of 30 passes for 233 yards with a touchdown and an interception while rushing for 47 yards and a score in a dominant 42-14 win. The rookie has been one of the league’s most efficient quarterbacks, and he’s only four games into his pro career. In fact, Daniels’ 82.1% completion rate is the highest mark in any four-game span in any player’s career since 1950. And this might be the best stat of the season so far: Through four games, Daniels has led the Commanders on more scoring drives (23) than he’s thrown incompletions (19). Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury deserves plenty of credit for tailoring his scheme to Daniels’ skill set. After his failure as a head coach in Arizona, Kingsbury took time away from the game and came back rejuvenated, much to the delight of his players and fellow coaches. Washington seems to finally have some belief not only because of its franchise quarterback, but the infrastructure around him. It’s early, but it’s not crazy to think that the Commanders (3-1) could contend for the NFC East title and make the playoffs. Loser: Jacksonville Jaguars It’s getting harder and harder to believe that the Jaguars can turn this season around. Coming off a 47-10 blowout loss to the Bills that dropped them to 0-3, Jacksonville put together perhaps its best performance of the season. It forced the Texans to punt on five straight possessions in the second half and led 20-17 with 3:51 to go. Surely this was the moment. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh still isn’t worried about Mark Andrews | NOTES Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston on Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Then the Jags gained just 1 yard and burned 57 seconds off the clock before punting the ball away. Houston answered with a nine-play, 69-yard drive, taking the lead for good on a 1-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud to Dare Ogunbowale with 18 seconds left. Jacksonville had a chance to extend the lead in the fourth quarter after a 58-yard run by Tank Bigsby to the Houston 4-yard line, but two runs by Bigsby, an incomplete pass by Trevor Lawrence and a run for no gain by Lawrence turned the ball over on downs. Coach Doug Pederson brushed off questions about his job status after the game, but it feels inevitable that there will be a change of leadership soon. Pederson was brought in to get the most out of quarterback Trevor Lawrence, but the 2021 No. 1 overall pick has regressed and is missing throws he should make given his talent level. The 1992 San Diego Chargers are the only team to come back from an 0-4 start to make the playoffs, so the season is effectively over. Now it’s about figuring out which players and coaches deserve to stay on the next iteration of the team. View the full article

For all of Ravens tight end Mark Andrews’ accomplishments, he did something Sunday night that he has never done before. Baltimore’s blowout of the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium marked the first time in his six-plus year career that he has gone two straight games without a catch. It’s also the first time he’s failed to catch a pass in two games in any season. Not that coach John Harbaugh is worried about the three-time Pro Bowl selection and 2021 All-Pro who was targeted just once for the second straight game — a pass he dropped. “Mark Andrews is definitely going to have big games here catching the ball,” he said Monday in Owings Mills. “Isaiah [Likely] is going to have big games catching the ball. All those guys are.” When — or if — remains the question. Through four games, Andrews is fifth on the team in receptions (six) and targets (nine); sixth in yards (65); and has yet to score a touchdown. He has also been targeted just once each of the past two weeks, including early in the second quarter Sunday when, with the Ravens leading 14-3, quarterback Lamar Jackson found him wide-open on a short out only to watch as the ball bricked off his security blanket’s hands. The dearth of targets and catches is curious if not concerning, or at least unusual. Only once since his rookie has Andrews not had at least a share of the lead in catches on the team and that was last season when he missed six games because of an ankle injury. He still finished second on the team with 45 receptions. This year, different reasons explain the drought. In the season opener, Andrews was often double-teamed by the Kansas City Chiefs. A week later at home against the Las Vegas Raiders, he had four catches for 51 yards but Jackson also overthrew him when he was wide-open deep down the field. In Week 3 against the Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore leaned on its running game and Jackson attempted only 15 passes. Sunday was much of the same with Baltimore throwing it 18 times. Andrews has also been on the field less than in the past. So far, he’s played just 56% of the Ravens’ offensive snaps. That’s down 14% from last season and his lowest mark since 2019 when he played just 44% of snaps. His absence hasn’t seemed to slow Baltimore, though. The Ravens lead the NFL in yards per game (429.5) and are sixth in red zone scoring (71.43%). For his part, Andrews doesn’t appear to be bothered and he has delivered some significant blocks to help spring the Ravens’ ground attack. “My time will come,” he said last week. Harbaugh believes it will, too. “I could probably try to talk to Mark to make sure everything’s OK,” he said. “But he would just look at me like, ‘What are you talking to me about? Everything’s fine, everything’s good.’ “Mark is a star. The fact that we’re doing well on offense and as a team and that part hasn’t been expressing itself in the last two weeks gets me kind of excited because that’s another weapon that we have that’s gonna happen.” Patrick Mekari, left, started at left guard Sunday night for the first time in his career. (Julio Cortez/AP) Offensive line changes Before Sunday, versatile Ravens offensive lineman Patrick Mekari had started at every position up front except left guard. After stepping in for injured Andrew Vorhees (ankle), he can check that off, too. Why did Harbaugh opt for Mekari over Ben Cleveland or someone else? “That move made a lot of sense,” he said. “Not that the other guys couldn’t have played in there. “Ben, for instance, has been practicing very well. When Ben gets his chance he’s going to play very well. Patrick is such an experienced guy. He’s played all the positions. … That’s his, kind of, superpower. That’s his trait, that he can do so many different things so well.” Harbaugh also said that Rosengarten, Baltimore’s second-round draft pick out of Washington earlier this year, has been coming on lately, even though he didn’t play a snap in Week 3 against the Cowboys. So he felt comfortable giving him his first start at right tackle with Mekari having moved inside. “He’s a guy who we have a lot of expectations for,” Harbaugh said of Rosengarten. “He didn’t do anything in that game to dampen that down at all. “I think you take it as it comes every single week and try to put the best group out there you can.” Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston on Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s report card: Position-by-position grades for Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | COMMENTARY Arthur Maulet set to return The Ravens’ secondary got some good news with Harbaugh saying Monday that he expects cornerback Arthur Maulet to be back at practice Wednesday. Maulet, 31, underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in early August and had been on injured reserve/designated to return since late that month. Once he practices, Baltimore will have a three-week window to put him back on the active roster. Last season, Maulet had 37 tackles, two sacks, an interception and two forced fumbles in 14 games. The Ravens re-signed him in the offseason. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 443-666-1776 or @brianwacker1 on X. View the full article

In three weeks, no team had quite figured out how to slow down such a tantalizing offense. The Arizona Cardinals allowed 34 points. The Miami Dolphins weren’t much better, holding the Buffalo Bills to 31. And the Jacksonville Jaguars got lacerated for 47 points — tied for the most scored in an NFL game this season. In Baltimore’s defense, the Bills met their match. “You do your work for moments like this; this is something that we will remember,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said after a 35-10 prime-time home win Sunday night. “And I hope all the fans will remember. I hope they look back on it and say, ‘I was there that night.’” In the middle portion of the late-night drubbing that got the Ravens back to an even 2-2 record, their offense had been reeling. Jackson fumbled before going into halftime, then they came out of the break stalling on back-to-back three-and-outs with the lone Bills touchdown tucked neatly in between. The last three-and-out handed Buffalo the ball back with a chance to do what the previous two Ravens opponents managed: stage a stress-inducing comeback. “I can’t lie, we came out after half, offense went three-and-out and they scored that touchdown,” safety Kyle Hamilton said, “and everybody’s like, ‘All right, we don’t need to do this again.’” The Bills lined up for a bit of trickery on second-and-7 near midfield. Josh Allen, who arrived in Baltimore as the early favorite to win the NFL Most Valuable Player Award, was spread out wide left with receiver Curtis Samuel behind center in the Wildcat formation. Kyle Van Noy got his hands on Samuel as he flipped the ball to his quarterback. Allen cut to his left, planted his right foot and cocked the ball back. Van Noy swiped down, strip-sacking Allen with two hands. Then 338-pound Travis Jones leveled the quarterback. Hamilton scooped up the ball, adding a fumble recovery to his team-best seven tackles. After the play was blown dead, much of the defense streaked up the field to celebrate. Sunday was Van Noy’s third consecutive game with two sacks, giving him six total on the season. It’s the second time in four games he recorded a trio of quarterback hits. He credited the early-season production to being “on the street last year and finally [getting] an opportunity” when the Ravens signed him before Week 4 of last season. The 33-year-old veteran of the pass-rushing group was crucial to what fellow linebacker Odafe Oweh aptly called a “very, very, very good win against a good team.” “Kyle had a fabulous game,” Harbaugh said. He called the turnover a “spark” for the offense. Running back Derrick Henry said it was a perfect example of complementary football. “The defense knew we needed a play,” he said. Ravens outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, right, strips the ball from Bills quarterback Josh Allen for a fumble in the third quarter of Sunday's game at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Josh Allen's fumble gave the Ravens a much-needed momentum boost early in the second half. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton recovers a fumble in front of Buffalo Bills wide receiver Curtis Samuel during NFL football in Baltimore. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Ravens’ Kyle Hamilton, right, runs with the ball after recovering a fumble by Bills quarterback Josh Allen, on ground, after he was sacked in the third quarter. The Ravens defeated the Bills 35-10 at M&T Bank Stadium.(Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Ravens’ Kyle Hamilton celebrates a fumble recovery in the game against the Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Show Caption1 of 5Ravens outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, right, strips the ball from Bills quarterback Josh Allen for a fumble in the third quarter of Sunday's game at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Expand The Ravens scored six plays later — a well-timed jolt to put them up 28-10 late in the third quarter. Jackson capped the scoring drive prancing 9 yards to his right and sneaking into the end zone. He leaped and flung the football high in the air, three drives worth of frustration behind him in what felt like the score that diminished feelings of deja vu. “We scored every possession until I fumbled, and that kind of stopped our momentum,” Jackson said. “Then, they ended up getting the ball and scoring. I was ticked off about that, because like I said, in the NFL, a lot of games are momentum-type of games, and we go out there, and we scored three times, and then that fumble happened. It slows us down, but our defense was playing lights-out.” The defensive showing went beyond the one game-tilting turnover. Odafe Oweh sacked Allen on third down and set up a futile field goal try. He reached 3 1/2 sacks in four games and got his hands on Allen twice. Cornerbacks Nate Wiggins and Brandon Stephens each nearly came up with an interception. The defensive backs were sharp, even if those two “dropped some money today,” Hamilton said with a laugh. And Harbaugh shouted out Jones afterward for “playing at a dominant level.” Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston on Ravens 35-10 win over Bills | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s report card: Position-by-position grades for Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | Ravens run over Bills, 35-10, behind Derrick Henry and stifling defense in prime time Buffalo’s only touchdown required a bit of Allen mastery. He scrambled far to his right — 32.7 yards, according to Next Gen Stats, and within a yard of the sideline, to be precise — then flung the ball down the field to Khalil Shakir for a 52-yard gain that set up a rushing score. The Bills finished with 236 total yards, and much of it required the miraculous. Beyond the scope of this season, what the Ravens did on Sunday night was uncommon work. Since Allen became the Bills’ full-time starter in 2019, they’ve only lost by more than 25 points twice (both were 26-point losses). And this prime-time trouncing was the first time in the past three regular seasons that Buffalo dropped a game by more than six points. This is a Ravens defense grappling to rediscover the magic of last year, when they became the first team to lead the NFL in sacks, takeaways and points allowed in the same season. Such a stalwart performance against the hottest team in football to get back to .500 was — even if players won’t overtly admit it — a statement that they can get back to similar production. “I think [the win] says a lot,” Hamilton said, “but at the same time, we didn’t win a Super Bowl today.” View the full article

The Ravens finally played a complete game, smashing the previously undefeated Buffalo Bills, 35-10, on “Sunday Night Football.” Here are five things we learned from the game: At their best, the Ravens might be the NFL’s best Here, finally, was the team that smashed the San Francisco 49ers on Christmas night, that embarrassed the high-octane Miami Dolphins a week later. The details weren’t identical, of course. That blur of muscle and motion wearing No. 22 wasn’t in the team photo last season. But on Sunday night in Baltimore, facing the best team in the AFC to date, the Ravens reasserted that, at their best, they’re as dominant as anyone. They played a nearly perfect game on offense, getting the look they wanted from Buffalo’s defense on their very first play and sending Derrick Henry galloping into the night, 87 yards for a touchdown. The Ravens seized the upper hand and never relinquished it. Henry’s 199 yards and the team’s five touchdown drives, equal parts deft and punishing, will dominate the headlines. But a defense that had gained an unwanted reputation for squandering double-digit leads played just as well, flummoxing Buffalo’s great quarterback, Josh Allen, into one of his least productive games in recent memory. There are many ways to tell this tale of all-points excellence. The Ravens averaged 7.9 yards per play to Buffalo’s 4.1 (2 yards below the Bills’ season average coming in). They held a 22-12 advantage in first downs, a 271-81 advantage in rushing yards. They hit Allen eight times. Lamar Jackson absorbed just three shots in return. Jackson didn’t have to perform his wizard act to pull this one out. Instead, he operated the controls on a ruthlessly efficient machine, completing 13 of 18 passes and averaging 9 yards per carry as offensive coordinator Todd Monken kept the Bills on a string with every play-action, boot and draw imaginable. Yes, Henry and Jackson headlined, but there was room for a best-supporting turn from running back Justice Hill. And we can’t forget an offensive line that held up its end after taking so much (deserved) heat the first two weeks of the season. Worries over an 0-2 start and a pair of heart-attack fourth quarters gave way to visions of how good the Ravens might become if all their parts work in unison. “You work for moments like this,” coach John Harbaugh said afterward. “This is something we will remember.” At the same time, he and his players wanted no part of feeling too good. “It says a lot,” safety Kyle Hamilton said. “But at the same time, we didn’t win the Super Bowl today.” They did not. A dangerous trip to face the Bengals, a team fighting to scrape out of an even deeper hole, awaits. A loss in their AFC North opener would throw the Ravens right back into scarier straits at 2-3. They did, however, reintroduce us to the very real possibility that they could win the Super Bowl. The Ravens were that good. Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton celebrates a fumble recovery Sunday night against the Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) The Ravens have found something on defense by getting more defensive backs on the field This trend began in Dallas, with linebacker Trenton Simpson rarely playing on obvious passing downs. For two years, we got used to Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen staying on the field for almost every defensive snap. After two weeks watching opponents ravage the middle of his defense, however, first-year coordinator Zach Orr decided he needed more defensive backs. “It’s a combination of what they do and what we want to do on defense and getting different guys out there on the field like ‘AD’ [Ar’Darius Washington and] Eddie Jackson,” Orr explained after the win over the Cowboys. “These guys are really good football players. It would be kind of criminal to keep those guys on the sidelines the whole time, but it was a mixture of both.” Even more than Dallas’ Dak Prescott, Allen loves to spread the ball to every eligible receiver on the field, so it made sense for dime packages — six defensive backs with safety Eddie Jackson usually stepping in for Simpson — to remain integral to the Ravens’ game plan. Allen had completed 75% of his passes and averaged 8.8 yards per attempt over Buffalo’s 3-0 start. Against Orr’s deadly dime looks, he completed 55.2% and averaged 6.2. “I think it’s good to be able to switch up like that,” Hamilton said. “That dime package feels like it’s really good for us right now.” They did brilliant work frustrating Allen on third down, depriving him of targets and giving pass rushers Kyle Van Noy, Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo time to get home. The Bills converted on just one of eight third downs in the first half and failed to sustain drives because of it. This dynamic flipped on Buffalo’s first drive of the second half when the Ravens chased Allen from the pocket but watched him unleash an absurd throw just as he was about to go out of bounds — 52 yards to Khalil Shakir, who’d finally slipped behind the Baltimore secondary. It was a play only a few quarterbacks in NFL history could have made, and it highlighted the limits of a good plan. Would it signal the start of another defensive meltdown? Not this time. Allen made a few more tremendous throws into tight windows, but the Ravens never made it easy on him. Orr showed a deft feel for when to blitz his defensive backs, forcing Buffalo’s franchise superstar to scurry toward the sideline, looking for targets that usually did not pop open. Finally, the Bills tapped out, removing Allen with more than seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. “Make no mistake, that’s a great team we just played,” he said when it was over. Running back Derrick Henry, left, breaks free for an 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first offensive play Sunday night against the Bills. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Derrick Henry made Baltimore his town in prime time The Bills left entirely too large a gap in the left side of their defensive front, and the running back heralded as “King” knew what to do with this royal gift. Actually, that’s not the whole picture. Every man on the Ravens — from Jackson to the linemen to fullback Patrick Ricard — saw the beautiful possibility in front of them. “We knew their defensive line was a penetrating front,” Ricard said of the look that led to Henry’s opening 87-yard touchdown. “And if we got the right look, we were gonna run it.” Henry burst into open ground, eventually hitting 21.29 mph, fourth fastest by a ball carrier this year, per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats. That’s pretty great for anyone, supernatural for a 30-year-old man with more than 2,000 NFL carries under his belt and 247 pounds of muscle packed on his frame. But that’s what the Ravens bet on when they signed Henry in the offseason. “Kind of a unicorn, to be honest, with his combination of speed, power, durability,” general manager Eric DeCosta said at Henry’s introductory news conference back in March. “He’s won wherever he’s been, and those kinds of guys are rare. We’ve had some here in Baltimore. They are just different from everybody else, and I think Derrick is a good example of that.” Remove his 87-yard bolt to glory and Henry still ran for 112 yards on 23 carries as the centerpiece of a ground attack that’s averaging 220 yards per game and 6.4 yards per carry. In a league that has reacquainted itself with loving the run, Jackson and Henry remain out ahead of the pack. Over the past two games, we have glimpsed their terrifying potential. Henry is problematic enough for a defense when he’s just ramming into hopelessly outmuscled safeties and linebackers. The joy of watching him, though, is knowing that on a few carries a game, the edge is going to give way and he’s going to launch down the sideline, looking to flatten any man who strays into his path. He’s a very good power back but a great big-play back. The Ravens have not had anyone nearly like him since apex Jamal Lewis. You pair him with the most dangerous running quarterback of all time, and it’s just silly. “We’re far away from where we want to be,” said Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum, left, blocking for Lamar Jackson. “But we’re on the right track.” (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) The Ravens again picked the right combination on their offensive line With left guard Andrew Vorhees sidelined by an ankle injury, the Ravens turned to the line they trusted most — Patrick Mekari filling in for Vorhees, rookie Roger Rosengarten taking Mekari’s usual right tackle spot — against a Buffalo front that came in tied for fifth in the league in sacks. For the second straight week, they pushed the right buttons, with their line clearing the way for 146 rushing yards on 14 attempts in the first half and keeping Jackson untouched in the pocket as they built a 21-3 lead. It was a tribute to Monken’s game plan, which put Jackson in advantageous positions with play-action and quick throws to Henry and Hill. On some dropbacks, however, he had as long as he could ever want to probe downfield, and that’s a tribute to a blocking unit that was in critics’ crosshairs after the Ravens’ opening losses to the Chiefs and Raiders. Great as Henry was, he averaged 5.5 yards before contact, per Pro Football Focus, a measure of the terrific lanes he was provided. “I just think they took a lot of heat during the season,” Henry said of his blockers. “They didn’t complain [and] went back to work and kept improving. I told them, ‘I go as they go.’ [We’re] all tied in together. When they’re getting criticized, then I’m with them. I’m just proud of them, and they’ve been playing [their] butts off.” The Bills felt it. “They had our numbers tonight,” Buffalo linebacker Baylon Spector said. “They came out and out-physicalled us and dominated on the line of scrimmage.” Mekari has saved the Ravens many a time over the past six seasons with his rare ability to handle left tackle one week, center the next. For all his precious versatility, one thing he hadn’t done much was play left guard. But Harbaugh and his staff just trust the guy. “Mekari going from right tackle to guard like that and playing the way he did, these are the things that make a difference,” Harbaugh said. Rosengarten did his part in his first NFL start, but what about left tackle Ronnie Stanley, who’s finally healthy enough to deliver week-to-week excellence sans fanfare? The unit wasn’t perfect against Buffalo. Mekari and Rosengarten were whistled for holds, Stanley for a false start. “We’re far away from where we want to be,” center Tyler Linderbaum said. “But we’re on the right track.” Ravens running back Justice Hill caught all six passes thrown his way for a team-high 78 yards on Sunday night against the Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Six hard years in, Justice Hill is an essential part of the Ravens’ offense Hill made one of the biggest plays of the game when he caught a pass in the flat on third-and-7 with the Ravens driving late in the third quarter. He could have been tackled short of a first down. Instead, he spun away from a Buffalo defender and sprinted 17 yards. Jackson faked to him and ran the other way for a 9-yard score on the next play. Hill’s fierce effort was the difference between a 40-yard field goal attempt by Justin Tucker and a touchdown that pushed the Ravens’ lead to 28-10. “That goes unnoticed, but that was a spectacular third down, for him to make a guy miss and get up the field,” Jackson said. Less than two weeks ago, the Ravens signed Hill to a third contract with the team, an eventuality that would have sounded impossible back when he tore his Achilles tendon in 2020, coming off an unremarkable rookie season. Those who’ve known Hill as one of the kindest, hardest-working souls in the organization could not help but smile. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ defense played ‘lights-out’ in prime-time blowout against the Bills Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston on Ravens 35-10 win over Bills | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s report card: Position-by-position grades for Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | Ravens run over Bills, 35-10, behind Derrick Henry and stifling defense in prime time “I’m a Raven,” he said after the ink was dry. “I’ve been here six years, and there’s no place I would rather be.” At this point, Hill’s story has transcended admirable perseverance. He’s a hugely important part of the Ravens’ offense, the pass-catching, draw-taking, tackle-shaking complement to Henry’s speed and power. He’s a better player in Year 6 than he was in any of the previous five. Against the Bills, he caught all six passes thrown his way for a team-high 78 yards. He looked like a wide receiver pulling in Jackson’s lovely 19-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. He also ripped off gains on a pair of draws designed to take advantage of Buffalo’s over-eager front. “I’m just really glad we got him re-signed before he broke out in the last two games,” Harbaugh said. Week 5 Ravens at Bengals Sunday, 1 p.m. TV: CBS Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM Line: Ravens by 2 1/2 View the full article

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Here’s how the Ravens (2-2) graded out at every position after beating the Buffalo Bills, 35-10, in Week 4 on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium. Quarterback Except for a fumble on a rush late in the second quarter, Lamar Jackson played a near-perfect game. He showed nice touch on some throws over the middle and caused the Bills problems with runs off the edge. Jackson even forced issues by just threatening to run on run-pass options off the perimeter. He completed 13 of 18 passes for 156 yards and rushed six times for 54 yards, including a 9-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. Grade: A Secondary For the most part, the Ravens shut down Buffalo’s short passing game. The Bills made some plays, but they weren’t able to get into any sort of offensive rhythm. Even when Allen got out of the pocket, cornerbacks Brandon Stephens, Marlon Humphrey and rookie Nate Wiggins stayed glued to receivers. Strong safety Kyle Hamilton was a force early and played a complete game. He had struggled in the fourth quarter the previous two games but led the Ravens in tackles with seven. Wiggins, though, has to learn how to catch. He dropped two interceptions Sunday night. Grade: B+ Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Ravens run over Bills, 35-10, behind Derrick Henry and stifling defense in prime time Baltimore Ravens | Instant analysis from Ravens’ 35-10 win over Buffalo Bills in Week 4 Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills, September 29, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills live updates: Postgame reaction and analysis from Baltimore’s 35-10 win Special teams Well, at least there will be no complaints about Justin Tucker missing a field goal because he didn’t attempt any Sunday night. Jordan Stout had four punts with a long of 54 and dropped three inside the 20-yard line. Deonte Harty averaged 11.3 yards on three punt returns, which is a plus for a team that has struggled in that area the previous couple of weeks. The new kickoff rule hasn’t had much effect on games. There were nine kickoffs Sunday night; none of them were returned. The Ravens held Buffalo punt returner Brandon Codrington to 6 yards on three punt returns. Grade: B+ Coaching Offensive coordinator Todd Monken kept Buffalo off balance most of the night. He used a lot of misdirection plays to keep the Bills’ hard-charging defense off base. The screens and passes in the flats were well-designed, as were the passes in the middle of the field. Defensively, the Ravens had to show that they could hold a lead in the fourth quarter and they proved they could. It was by far the defense’s most complete effort of the season. Coach John Harbaugh, though, did call a timeout right after an injury timeout, which resulted in a penalty and a Buffalo first down. Those types of decisions can hurt a team in the future. Grade: A- View the full article

In the darkness, the Ravens found the light — or at least their identity. A week after Baltimore ran over and through the Dallas Cowboys for its first win of the young season, it validated that victory with another punishing ground attack and Derrick Henry setting the tone on the Ravens’ first offensive play of an eventual 35-10 demolition against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium. With the Ravens decked out in all black for the prime-time affair, Henry shot through a gaping hole on the right side of the line and never stopped until he reached the end zone 87 yards and 12 seconds later. It was the longest run in franchise history and the longest first play from scrimmage for a team since Terrelle Pryor had a 93-yard run for the then-Oakland Raiders in 2013. Just how fast was the Ravens’ biggest offseason free agent acquisition? Henry reached 21.29 mph on the run, tied for the fourth-fastest speed by any ball carrier this season and his eighth-fastest mark since 2018, according to Next Gen Stats. To put that in context, the 30-year-old has reached 20-plus mph 27 times since 2018, trailing only Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Henry finished with 199 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries and caught another score, while quarterback Lamar Jackson completed 13 of 18 passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 54 yards and another score on six carries as Baltimore bullied the previously unbeaten Bills. With the win, Baltimore (2-2) moved into second place in the AFC North, one game behind the Pittsburgh Steelers, who lost earlier in the day to Joe Flacco and the Indianapolis Colts. It also made a statement. Equally as impressive as the Ravens’ offense, which racked up 427 total yards and scored on each of its first three possessions of the night, was its previously much-maligned defense. The Bills came into Week 4 leading the NFL in points per game (37.3) with quarterback Josh Allen also tops in the league in passer rating and ESPN’s quarterback rating along with 634 yards passing, seven touchdowns and no interceptions. Baltimore had managed to torment him in the past and did so once again. Allen was held to just 42 yards on 9 of 16 passing in the first half, and Buffalo had just 90 total yards by the break. He finished 16-for-29 for 180 yards with no touchdowns, was sacked three times and had a fumble. The Ravens, of course, had no such trouble moving the ball. After Henry’s opening touchdown, Baltimore marched 70 yards in nine plays on its next series with Jackson capping the drive by finding Henry on a 5-yard touchdown pass. Then it went 81 yards in 10 plays, highlighted by a 26-yard dart to tight end Isaiah Likely, a 12-yard completion to wide receiver Nelson Agholor through a tight window over the middle on third-and-11 and a short drop off to Justice Hill, who sped 15 yards to convert a third-and-14. Two plays later, Jackson lofted a perfectly thrown pass to Hill in the back right corner of the end zone for a 19-yard score. The Ravens led at halftime, 21-3. Still, there were moments of trepidation, if only for a moment or two. Ravens running back Justice Hill, left, scores a touchdown on a 19-yard reception from Lamar Jackson in the second quarter. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) After running through the Bills’ defense, Baltimore came out throwing to open the second half and paid for it. Linebacker Dorian Williams raced through to pressure Jackson, who was flagged for intentional grounding, and two more incompletions later the Ravens were punting for the first time. Buffalo didn’t waste any time taking advantage. On third-and-5 from their own 45, Allen scrambled and eventually the Ravens’ defense broke down, with Khalil Shakir slipping behind the secondary and Allen hitting the wide-open receiver for a 52-yard gain. One play later, running back Ty Johnson, who hails from Cumberland and played at Maryland, trotted around the left side and into the end zone to cut the deficit to 21-10. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s report card: Position-by-position grades for Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | Instant analysis from Ravens’ 35-10 win over Buffalo Bills in Week 4 Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills, September 29, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills live updates: Postgame reaction and analysis from Baltimore’s 35-10 win But there would be no Ravens collapse this time, and that was as close as the Bills would get. With Buffalo facing second-and-7 from the Ravens’ 44, Kyle Van Noy stripped Allen on the Bills’ next possession, Kyle Hamilton recovered the ball and the offense went to work on the ground again. Henry ripped off a 25-yard run around the left end, Hill caught a short pass on third-and-7 for a 17-yard gain and Jackson raced around the right side for a 9-yard touchdown. Then the Ravens put the game out of reach with Odafe Oweh sacking Allen on third-and-14 and kicker Tyler Bass pulling his 48-yard field goal attempt left. The only thing that stopped Henry from scoring a third time was a fumble as he plunged ahead from the Bills’ 2-yard line early in the fourth quarter. But fullback Pat Ricard recovered the ball in the end zone for one final touchdown. This article will be updated. Week 5 Ravens at Bengals Sunday, 1 p.m. TV: CBS Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson celebrates after scoring on a 9-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) View the full article

Here’s what The Baltimore Sun sports staff had to say immediately after the Ravens’ 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills in Sunday night’s Week 4 game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. Brian Wacker, reporter: John Harbaugh said last week that the Ravens found their identity in running all over the Dallas Cowboys for their first win of the season. Sunday night, they leaned into it. Derrick Henry might not get the ball 30 times a game, but against teams that are prone to getting gashed on the ground, it made all the sense in the world to tap the bruising, speedy back again. Doing so allowed quarterback Lamar Jackson to be efficient in the passing game, and a big lead allowed the defense, which played a ton of dime against Josh Allen, to lock in on the quarterback. Childs Walker, reporter: Finally, the Ravens dropped the hammer all the way on a top opponent, mixing brilliantly balanced offense with tenacious coverage on defense. Derrick Henry put his stamp on Ravens history in style, taking his first carry a team-record 87 yards. His opening touchdown kicked off a near-perfect first half of offense in which the Ravens kept the Bills off-balance with play-action and motion. Lamar Jackson was sharp, completing 11 of 13 passes before halftime and floating a beautiful 19-yard touchdown strike to put the Ravens up 21-3. Jackson’s fumble that cut short another potential scoring drive was the only blemish. On defense, the Ravens did a brilliant job getting Josh Allen off the field, holding Buffalo to 1 of 8 on third down in the first half. Their dime packages in passing situations worked beautifully, leaving Allen with few targets as he scurried away from pressure. The Ravens seemed in danger of losing momentum after Allen completed a remarkable 52-yard throw on the run to set up a touchdown that cut the lead to 21-10. But the Ravens kept chasing him, stripping Allen to set up a touchdown drive late in the third quarter. Hill’s twisting, spinning 17-yard gain on third down was the key play on that march, and he played a spectacular game of his own in Henry’s substantial shadow. Mike Preston, columnist: For the second straight week, the Ravens physically dominated an opponent with a strong running game, and that’s a major plus for a team in search of an offensive identity. Does this mean the offensive line has become a strength? No, not yet, but at least the group has improved. That opens up the play-action passing game, as well as the run-pass option plays off the corner. Defensively, the Ravens didn’t collapse like they had in the previous two weeks. Against the Las Vegas Raiders, the Ravens allowed two field goals and a touchdown in a 12-minute span during the fourth quarter, and last week they allowed three touchdowns during a six-minute stretch in the final period against Dallas. Despite major concerns because of two straight losses to open the season, the Ravens still have a good shot at winning the AFC North. The Pittsburgh Steelers will eventually falter and both Cleveland and Cincinnati will continue to lose. Original thoughts about this team have not changed. There are no super teams in the AFC, and the championship still goes through Kansas City and the Chiefs. But few teams can match the Ravens physically. Sam Cohn, reporter: With about 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter and the Ravens holding a commanding 25-point lead, the M&T Bank Stadium speakers started blaring, “every little thing, is gonna be all right.” That’s a pretty good indication of the how fan base was feeling. No lead seems entirely safe with the 2024 Ravens, but their performance in prime-time against one of the best teams in football was a statement. Derrick Henry was masterful, highlighted by his record-setting 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage. Fellow running back Justice Hill continues to prove he’s a more-than-serviceable backup, Lamar Jackson got MVP chants and the defense played a clean game. The lone Bills touchdown came after an improbable throw from Josh Allen in which he scrambled for 32.7 yards before flinging the ball downfield for a 52-yard pickup. In other words, they got one the hard way. Above all, it was exactly the type of win Baltimore needed in crawling back to .500. C.J. Doon, editor: Tom Brady called Lamar Jackson “The Eraser” for the star quarterback’s ability to overcome a negative play with his unique talent. Tonight, that nickname should apply to outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy and running back Justice Hill after their key plays helped erase what was shaping up to be another second-half collapse. With Buffalo threatening to turn what was once a 21-3 deficit into a one-score game, Van Noy forced a fumble by Josh Allen that Baltimore recovered and turned into a touchdown six plays later. But that score probably doesn’t happen if Hill doesn’t shake out of a tackle on a short pass on third-and-7 and turn it into a 17-yard gain. If he falls behind the sticks, maybe Justin Tucker kicks a field goal to make it 24-10, or coach John Harbaugh elects to go for it deep in Buffalo territory and the Ravens are stopped. Neither outcome is the end of the world, given the score at the time. But momentum is a tricky thing to measure, and those two plays felt like a big swing back in Baltimore’s favor. This win is a bit of a Rorschach test for your feelings about the Ravens. Look at the box score and the YouTube highlights, and you’re going to think Baltimore is a juggernaut and a sure-fire Super Bowl contender — and you might not be wrong. Derrick Henry looked incredible, the offensive line was magnificent with rookie Roger Rosengarten at right tackle and Jackson was efficient and explosive again. First-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr stifled counterpart Joe Brady, who was the talk of the league for what his “everybody eats” offense did through three weeks. But until the Ravens went ahead 28-10 late in the third quarter, the game still felt in the balance. Maybe that’s just because Allen was on the opposing sideline, or maybe it’s the scattered penalties and mistakes. Even Henry’s goal-line plunge early in the fourth quarter to seal the victory resulted in a fumble that fullback Patrick Ricard fortunately recovered for a touchdown. Why did Jackson find the need to flip head over heels on a run and lose the ball with a 21-3 lead? Will tight end Mark Andrews ever make another catch? And, oh yeah, does Harbaugh know how timeouts work? Maybe it’s too harsh, but this team is still hard to trust with a big lead after all those fourth-quarter collapses over the past few years. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens’ Derrick Henry on the offensive line | VIDEO Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s report card: Position-by-position grades for Ravens’ 35-10 win over Bills | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | Ravens run over Bills, 35-10, behind Derrick Henry and stifling defense in prime time Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills, September 29, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills live updates: Postgame reaction and analysis from Baltimore’s 35-10 win Tim Schwartz, editor: That looked like the Ravens team we saw dominate good teams down the stretch last season. We really weren’t sure how Derrick Henry would fit in this scheme when they signed him in the offseason and with the offensive line in flux, and it really wasn’t clear after a lackluster season opener, but, man, that guy fits like a glove in the backfield with Lamar Jackson. What is a defense to do? Jackson is too explosive around the edges, and you can’t load the box with the playmakers the Ravens have at tight end and out wide. Teams will have to pick their poison. Then there’s Baltimore’s defense, which is the first this season to hold Buffalo under 30 points. Kyle Hamilton was all over the field. Marlon Humphrey is back to his Pro Bowl level. Kyle Van Noy won’t stop sacking quarterbacks at age 33. This team is dangerous. Bennett Conlin, editor: These are the Ravens I expected to see this season. After a strange opening three weeks that featured late-game meltdowns against Las Vegas and Dallas, Baltimore finally looked more like last year’s juggernaut. The Ravens dismantled a good Buffalo team, jumping out to a hot start and not letting up. John Harbaugh’s team maintaining a double-digit lead might be the most noteworthy aspect of a game filled with plenty of positive notes. Running back Derrick Henry topped 200 total yards and found the end zone twice, and his backfield mate Justice Hill led the Ravens with 78 receiving yards. How’s that for a 1-2 punch? Defensively, the Ravens strung together their most complete performance of the season, stifling an offense averaging an NFL-best 37.3 points per game entering Sunday. The Ravens’ defensive front terrorized Buffalo’s offensive line, while the linebackers and secondary delivered punishing hits fitting of Baltimore’s identity. The Ravens played well from start to finish, not allowing Josh Allen and Buffalo to mount a serious comeback. Sunday night’s version of the Ravens can win a Super Bowl. View the full article

Ravens’ Derrick Henry, left, and Lamar Jackson celebrate Henry’s touchdown against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Running back Derrick Henry, left, breaks free for an 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first offensive play against the Bills on Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Running back Derrick Henry, left, breaks free for an 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first offensive play against the Bills on Sunday night at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) Ravens’ Lamar Jackson warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Karl Merton Ferron/staff) From left, WNBA star Angel Reese, is with her brother Julian Reese before Sunday night’s game between the Ravens and Buffalo Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/staff) WNBA star Angel Reese poses for a photo before Sunday night’s game between the Ravens and Buffalo Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/staff) Ravens’ Jordan Stout, left, and Justin Tucker warm up before Sunday night’s game between the Ravens and Buffalo Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/staff) From left, WNBA star Angel Reese, Olympic track stars Masai Russell and Quincy Wilson and Wizards rookie Bub Carrington pose for a photo before Sunday night’s game between the Ravens and Buffalo Bills. (Karl Merton Ferron/staff) Ravens’ Lamar Jackson warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Ravens’ Lamar Jackson warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Ravens quarterback Josh Johnson warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Ravens’ Isaiah Likely warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Ravens’ Mark Andrews warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Ravens’ Zay Flowers warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/staff) Fans tailgate at the eastern side parking lot for NFL football between the Baltimore Ravens and the Buffalo Bills in Baltimore. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Fans tailgate at the eastern side parking lot for NFL football between the Baltimore Ravens and the Buffalo Bills in Baltimore. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Fans cheer for a network crew filming b-roll for NFL Sunday Night Football between the Baltimore Ravens and the Buffalo Bills in Baltimore. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) View the full article

The Ravens (1-2) and Buffalo Bills (3-0) meet on “Sunday Night Football” as M&T Bank Stadium hosts its first prime-time game of the season. Lamar Jackson and the Ravens are coming off a 28-25 bounce-back win over the Dallas Cowboys, while Buffalo, led by NFL Most Valuable Player front-runner Josh Allen, is fresh off a 47-10 rout of the Jacksonville Jaguars on “Monday Night Football.” Follow along here for live coverage. View the full article

INDIANAPOLIS — When the Indianapolis Colts needed Joe Flacco to relieve the injured Anthony Richardson, the 17-year veteran kept it simple. The 39-year-old Flacco threw two touchdown passes, and the Colts got the stop they needed in the final minute to preserve a 27-24 victory over the previously unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. “You just see the guy and hit him. That’s all you do,” Flacco said after going 16 of 26 for 168 yards. “Some guys like to think about every little thing and that’s how they play best. But I think my personality lends itself to this kind of situation. Just don’t overthink it.” The one-time Super Bowl Most Valuable Player and a longtime Steelers nemesis during his 11 seasons with Baltimore proved he could still play at a high level last season when he helped the Cleveland Browns reach the playoffs. Indy signed Flacco as a free agent to back up the injury-prone Richardson. Richardson left twice in a span of four plays, initially taking a big hit on his right hip and later after a hard hit to the head, both on designed runs. He went straight to the locker room the second time and was ruled out by the time he returned to the sideline. Coach Shane Steichen had no immediate update on Richardson or running back Jonathan Taylor, who hurt an ankle in the final minutes. Flacco continued to build on the momentum from Richardson’s fast start and the Colts (2-2) won their second straight overall and second in a row against the Steelers (3-1), who fought back from a 17-0 first-half deficit. Flacco connected with Michael Pittman Jr. six times for 113 yards. He hit Josh Downs for a 2-yard TD pass and Drew Ogletree on a 15-yard TD strike to keep Indy ahead. Taylor ran 21 times for 88 yards and scored on Indy’s first series. “He’s been out there, a veteran presence,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said of Flacco. “Obviously, he’s played a lot of football, went in there and operated pretty darn good.” The Steelers’ top-ranked defense allowed a season high in points as Pittsburgh’s six-game regular-season winning streak ended. Justin Fields played well again, running for two second-half scores and finding Pat Freiermuth for an 8-yard TD pass on third-and-goal to get within 27-24 with 3:40 to play. But Pittsburgh couldn’t recover from a botched snap that resulted in a 12-yard loss on its final possession. Fields was 22 of 34 for 312 yards and ran 10 times for 55 yards but was sacked four times and lost a fumble — one of two Pittsburgh turnovers. George Pickens finished with seven receptions for 113 yards and also lost a fumble near the goal line. Fields took the blame for the snap that ruined the final drive. “After I kick my leg up, I have to be ready for the ball. It’s on me,” he said. Richardson started fast, completing a 32-yard pass on the first play. Taylor’s TD run made it 7-0 with 12:01 left in the first quarter. But for the fourth time in his eight career starts, Richardson failed to finish a game. Flacco threw a 4-yard TD pass to Josh Downs on his fourth play and then helped set up a 33-yard field goal to give the Colts a 17-3 halftime lead. When the Colts needed Flacco to make plays late, he mostly succeeded. After Fields scored on a 5-yard run late in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 17-10, Flacco found Ogletree. After Fields again scored, this time on a 2-yard run, to get the Steelers within 24-17 with 11:23 left, Flacco led the Colts on a 10-play, 54-yard drive that took nearly 5 1/2 minutes and resulted in a 33-yard field goal for 27-17 cushion. Fields answered with TD pass to Freiermuth and when Flacco couldn’t get the first down he needed to close it out, Indy’s defense got a stop. “You’re never going to get the [practice] reps,” Flacco said. “You’re just going through the emotional roller coaster on the sideline, and as the backup quarterback you always try to stay ready and stay clam.” Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills, September 29, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills live updates: AFC contenders meet on ‘Sunday Night Football’ Baltimore Ravens | Meet Tini Younger, a social media chef and Ravens fan with over 9 million followers Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills betting guide: Week 4 odds, picks and predictions Baltimore Ravens | Ravens LG Andrew Vorhees doubtful to play vs. Bills, creating hole on offensive line Injury report Steelers: RG James Daniels, RB Cordarrelle Patterson and LB Nick Herbig all suffered ankle injuries. Patterson was carted to the locker room. Colts: Played without three starters — CB Kenny Moore II (hip), DE Kwity Paye (quadriceps) and C Ryan Kely (neck). Star power Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, a two-time Super Bowl champion who attended high school in northwestern Ohio, watched his ex-rival Flacco at Lucas Oil Stadium. Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark also attended. Up next Steelers: Host Dallas next Sunday night. Colts: At Jacksonville next Sunday. View the full article

As far as Tineke Younger is concerned, she was born a Ravens fan. Her love of football was nurtured by an uncle who lived next door. And the everlasting memory of her childhood fandom was a Super Bowl 47 party, which ended with an 11-year-old Younger watching her uncle gallop through their Maryland neighborhood banging pots and pans. It would be years before she’d get to M&T Bank Stadium for her first game — a luxury afforded by her nascent cooking career. In the past three years, the 23-year-old social media chef from Frederick, known to her online fans as Tini, has amassed over 9 million followers between Instagram and TikTok. They often see her outfitted in one of a half-dozen Ravens jersey options in her closet, including a black No. 52 for her favorite player, former Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. Her cooking videos are personable and mouth-watering lessons in two minutes or less. One video this summer flexed a deeply unrelatable skill — she dreamed of banana bread french toast with bananas foster, woke up and beautifully brought it to life. Younger had her first clear indication of social media success last fall. A sponsorship with Old Bay seasoning flew her from her home in Georgia to Baltimore — or as she pronounces it in the recap video, “Baldamore” — for Ravens vs. Bengals. That night, former All-Pro receiver Steve Smith Sr. recognized her and asked for a picture. Younger got to try on the Super Bowl 47 ring. She toured the sideline. And met a few Ravens employees. “When I started cooking on social media,” Younger said, “I was broke. Me and my fiance were both full-time college students, working full time and we were selling our furniture to pay rent. … It’s insane to think just two years ago I was in that position. Everything changed so quickly.” You wouldn’t know it judging by her ease in the kitchen today, but Younger did not always aspire to be a chef. By the time she was a teenager, she knew just a few simple recipes: “I could make cookies and spaghetti, and that was about it,” she said. As a freshman and sophomore at Walkersville High School, Younger struggled to find her path. She says she had a 1.5 GPA and multiple disciplinary referrals when she decided to shadow students at the Career Technology Center, a trade school run by Frederick County Public Schools. Her family’s running joke is, growing up, they always had a hunch she’d be on TV. “We used to tease her because ever since she was little, she’s like, I’m gonna be famous,” her mom, Vicki Younger, said. “And we’re like, yeah, you’re gonna be famous. You’re gonna be on TV, but you’re gonna be on ‘Cops.’” She was first drawn to the trade school’s cosmetology program — “I just wanted to learn how to do my nails” — but soured on that plan when she realized she would also have to learn how to style hair. As Younger was leaving her day of shadowing, she picked up on the smell of food wafting down the hall from the culinary classes. “I found out if you shadow for the culinary school, you get to miss two hours of regular school and then you get to eat,” she recalled. “I was like, ‘Oh, I’m doing that.’” Tini Younger, a Frederick native and 23-year-old chef popular on social media, is an avid Ravens fan. Younger wears a Super Bowl 47 ring she got to try on. (Courtesy of Vicki Younger) Younger quickly found herself drawn to the fast-paced world of hospitality and entered the CTC’s culinary program the next year, as a junior. Her GPA rose to a 3.5 and she found herself getting into less trouble, too. “It just changed everything,” she said. After graduation, she enrolled in the culinary school at Frederick Community College and worked in restaurants as a line cook. She started to post cooking videos on social media, too, under the handles @tiniyounger on Instagram and @tinekeyounger on TikTok. Younger’s online presence is laid-back and conversational. Her most popular videos feature easy-to-make comfort food, like a mac-and-cheese tutorial that has amassed more than 116 million views since she posted it to TikTok in November. An appearance on the second season of “Next Level Chef,” a Fox TV cooking competition featuring celebrity-chef judges Gordon Ramsay, Nyesha Arrington and Richard Blais, launched her to a whole new level of success. When Younger was approached about the show in the summer of 2022, she had already accepted a gig with Disney World’s culinary program. At first, she thought the casting email was a scam. When she realized it was legitimate, she struggled with the decision to quit her Disney job. “I ended up taking that little risk,” she said, “and it worked in my favor.” Within two weeks of learning she had been selected as a contestant for the show, she was on the way to start filming. Younger made it to the final eight out of a group of 18 original contestants before she was eliminated. Though she was the youngest chef there, she says she didn’t feel intimidated by the competition. “I knew I wasn’t going to win because I had just graduated culinary school,” she said. “I went to just learn. We were all learning from each other, because we were all at different stages in our career.” She acknowledges that Ramsay’s star power did make her a little nervous. She still can’t fully remember the first time she met him, when he came to offer a pep talk while she was chopping onions. The heartfelt moment was captured on video and shared widely on social media. The moment was “insane,” she said. “I still can’t, like, really process it.” The surge of online followers she gained from appearing on the show allowed her to make recipe development and content creation her full-time job. This summer, she also published her first cookbook, “Cooking For My Boyfriend,” a 50-recipe collection featuring some of her viral hits, like the mac and cheese, as well as some personal and family favorites. Younger poses with her fiance Antoine Wright Jr. during a Ravens game at M&T Bank Stadium. (Courtesy of Vicki Younger) The boyfriend is now her fiance. Younger and Antoine Wright Jr. announced their engagement in November and recently bought a home in Georgia. Sunday night’s AFC showdown between the Ravens and Bills is something of a house-divided game for Younger. Wright was born in Buffalo and raised a Bills fan before moving to Maryland, where they met. Inter-house rivalries aside, it’s likely the NFL’s most highly anticipated Week 4 matchup. On Wednesday, Ravens coach John Harbaugh said the Bills are “probably the best team in the National Football League right now.” Baltimore, meanwhile, is still finding its footing despite ending last season ending one game shy of the Super Bowl. “They’re stressing me out,” Younger said of the one-win Ravens through three games. She’s adamant they have the skill but thinks, on the field, they don’t seem to be clicking yet. Younger suggested more team bonding. Perhaps a round of trust falls, she quipped. “They need some team bonding and then we’ll be good.” Tini’s recipes Maryland Crab Dip 8 ounces cream cheese (soften) 4 tbsp mayo 1/2 cup sour cream 1 tbsp whole grain mustard 1/4-1/2 cup Old Bay Hot Sauce (more if you want it spicier) Old Bay Seasoning (measure with your heart) Salt, pepper, onion powder and paprika to taste. Roasted garlic seasoning or 1 bulb of roasted garlic 8 ounces hickory smoked cheddar cheese (hand shredded) 8 ounces Gruyere cheese (hand shredded) Juice of 1 lemon 8 ounces lump crab (or more depending on how crabby you like your dip) Video directions: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTFkHypMC/ Buffalo Chicken Dip 2 chicken breasts (butterfly cut) Seasonings for chicken: seasoning salt, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, dry ranch seasoning (if using blue cheese for the dip leave this part out) 8 ounces smoked Gouda (hand shredded) 8 ounces cheddar cheese (hand shredded) 8 ounces cream cheese (soften) 1 packet of ranch seasoning or 1/4 cup blue cheese 1 bulb of roasted garlic Chopped chives Video directions: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8Rm8XoV/ View the full article

With the reigning and two-time NFL Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson at quarterback, the Ravens play few games absent a national spotlight. That’s especially true in the early stages of the 2024 season. Baltimore (1-2) opened the season Thursday night, earning a prime-time slot for a game against the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. In Week 3, Baltimore faced the Cowboys in “America’s Game of the Week” on Fox. This Sunday, the Ravens take center stage again when Jackson’s Ravens host Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills for “Sunday Night Football” on NBC. “Probably, right now, the top football team in the National Football League,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said of the Bills. “That’s what everybody says, and you sure see it on tape.” The Ravens are 1-1 in their two highly anticipated games this fall, winning 28-25 as a small betting favorite against the Cowboys and losing 27-20 as a small underdog against the Chiefs. Sunday’s game against Buffalo could be the toughest test yet. Buffalo is not only 3-0, but the Bills also own the NFL’s best point differential at plus-64. Despite Buffalo’s hot start, oddsmakers give Jackson and Baltimore a small edge over the undefeated visitors. Baltimore sits as a 2 1/2-point favorite across most sportsbooks legally available in Maryland, including DraftKings and FanDuel. If the line closes with Baltimore favored, it’ll be the third time this season the Ravens are betting favorites. It’s the second time Buffalo is an underdog, as the Bills beat Miami, 31-10, earlier this season also as a 2 1/2-point underdog. The total for the game sits at 46 1/2 points across most betting platforms. Baltimore’s first three games of the season have all had at least 47 combined points scored, and all three of its totals have gone over in 2024. The Ravens are a -130 moneyline favorite on BetMGM and DraftKings, meaning bettors need to wager $130 on the Ravens to win for a $100 profit. Ravens vs. Bills best bet Harbaugh has spent much of the past two weeks answering questions about his team’s sluggish finishes. Why is the team collapsing late in games? In Week 2, Baltimore coughed up a double-digit lead to the mediocre Raiders. The loss sent Baltimore to 0-2, although it bounced back with a win over Dallas. Still, that game wasn’t without late-game shenanigans. The Ravens’ dominant defense stopped covering receivers, and the offense went cold. A 28-6 lead turned to a 28-25 win. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens LG Andrew Vorhees doubtful to play vs. Bills, creating hole on offensive line Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens are a fantasy football manager’s worst nightmare Baltimore Ravens | Where’s Mark Andrews? Ravens TE discusses his diminished (so far) role Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens lead the NFL in one category nobody wants Baltimore Ravens | Ravens practice, September 26, 2024 | PHOTOS With Baltimore’s fourth-quarter performance an ongoing mystery, take the Ravens to cover -1 1/2 points in the first half. The wager holds +105 odds on FanDuel, and it means backing a historically great first-half quarterback. Jackson is 52-32-1 against the first-half spread in his NFL, according to the Action Network. Among 260 quarterbacks over the past 20 years, Jackson has the best first-half ATS record of any of them. “He’s really changed the way that guys play the game,” Allen, who finished fifth in MVP voting in 2023, said earlier this week. The Bills and Ravens are among the AFC’s best teams, and Sunday’s battle should be competitive. Buffalo is a little overrated after wins over the Cardinals, Dolphins and Jaguars, while Baltimore is still underrated because of its collapse against Las Vegas. Jackson is 6-1 in his career on “Sunday Night Football,” and the Ravens should start fast against the Bills. As for the finish, it’s hard to say just how Baltimore will close a game these days. Best bet: Ravens -1 1/2 in the first half (+105 odds on FanDuel) View the full article

The Ravens are largely healthy entering their Week 4 “Sunday Night Football” showdown against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium, with one notable exception. Starting left guard Andrew Vorhees, who has a left ankle injury, did not practice for a third straight day Friday in Owings Mills. He was also seen with a heavy wrap around the ankle when he made a brief appearance on the field in street clothes, meaning he will likely be ruled out when the injury report is released later Friday afternoon. Without Vorhees, Baltimore has a few options, including moving versatile right tackle Patrick Mekari to the inside and starting rookie second-round draft pick Roger Rosengarten at right tackle. Mekari has just 10 career snaps at left guard, however, and has been a dealing with a neck injury this week, though he did practice for a second straight day Friday after not practicing Wednesday. Rosengarten did not play in Baltimore’s win over the Dallas Cowboys last week, but he did rotate in each of the first two weeks. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Fantasy football managers should beware of this Ravens offense Baltimore Ravens | Where’s Mark Andrews? Ravens TE discusses his diminished (so far) role Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens lead the NFL in one category nobody wants Baltimore Ravens | Ravens practice, September 26, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens get 2 starting offensive linemen back at Thursday’s practice Other possibilities include Ben Cleveland, though he hasn’t take a snap at left guard since 2021, and veteran Josh Jones, who has 63 career snaps there. Whatever route the Ravens (1-2) go, it will be a challenge. The Bills have a potent defensive front that includes defensive tackles Ed Oliver and DaQuan Jones as well as edge rushers Greg Rousseau and Vonn Miller. Buffalo (3-0) has allowed just 4.2 yards per play this season, the second-best mark in the NFL, and is also second in yards per pass allowed (4.4). The Bills’ 11 sacks are fifth-most in the league. The only other player missing for Baltimore on Friday was cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis (hamstring). This article will be updated. View the full article

The Ravens are a fantasy football manager’s worst nightmare. In Week 1, Isaiah Likely erupted for 26.1 points in point-per-reception leagues before tumbling to 4.6 and 1.4 in Weeks 2 and 3. Mark Andrews see-sawed with 3.4, 9.1 and 0.0. Derrick Henry climbed from 10.6 points to 16.6 to a show-stopping 30.4. Zay Flowers debuted at 11.1, followed by 22.1 then 5.3. It’s hard to pin down such production the way the Ravens’ offense is blueprinted, shape-shifting from week to week. The kind that, at its best, is hard to stop in the NFL. But with one sentence, coach John Harbaugh crushed the aspirations of fantasy managers excited about having drafted a skill position player from Baltimore. “Guys will play different amounts [in] different games with our different guys that we have,” he said matter-of-factly. Cue the world’s tiniest violin. Baltimore’s most confounding position? Its tight ends, Andrews and Likely. Andrews has been quarterback Lamar Jackson’s most reliable target for the better part of half a decade. He’s rostered in 98.4% of ESPN fantasy leagues. In most 12-person PPR leagues, he was selected before the end of the fourth round. Then he was a nonfactor in two of the Ravens’ first three games. His fantasy goose egg in Dallas led to one fan’s snarky post on X: “I’m in a fantasy football league [with] my co-workers and one of the guys asked the team ‘anyone want left tackle Mark Andrews? I’ll pay someone five dollars and give them Mark Andrews.'” ESPN fantasy football analyst Field Yates said of Andrews’ usage in the Ravens passing game: “I have nothing to add other than it royally sucks.” Meanwhile, when Likely eclipsed 100 yards on double-digit targets in Week 1, the projected 27th-ranked tight end jumped from being rostered in less than 10% of ESPN leagues to over 75%. Surely those who snagged him from the waiver wire were giddy about starting Likely henceforth. That is, until he combined for three catches over the next two games. Harbaugh joked with reporters earlier this week over the subject of playing time. “Didn’t I bring this up a week or two ago?” he said. “It’ll go one way, and then someone wouldn’t play, then that question will be, ‘Why didn’t that guy play?’ That’s probably going to be something that’ll be every week.” No, Ravens coach John Harbaugh does not care about your fantasy football team. (Kim Hairston/Staff) For an NFL team trying to win games, leaning in different directions against different opponents is a luxury when it works. Not so much for a fantasy manager trying to set their lineup on Sunday morning, guessing who might produce. Baltimore’s 28-25 win over Dallas was another mind-bender for Ravens pass-catchers in PPR leagues. Wide receivers Flowers and Rashod Bateman tied for a team-high three receptions and combined for fewer than 50 yards. That’s because the Ravens rode their ground game for a collective 274 yards, nearly 100 more than either of their first two games. Much of that came behind Henry and Jackson. “You’re going to use your different weapons week to week. If you look at the Chiefs, it definitely starts with Patrick [Mahomes],” Harbaugh said earlier this month, after returning from Kansas City. “They’re probably more established with that right now with their guys that they have, but [Isiah] Pacheco gets the ball. Where was [Travis] Kelce? He didn’t get the ball as many times this game, so it’s just going to be game by game like that in any good offense.” Henry left fantasy managers a bit weary after Week 1, too. But his carries climbed week over week and his yardage multiplied. That stiff-arm in Dallas sparked a sense of vindication in Ravens fans that the aging running back is, in fact, still fending off father time. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens lead the NFL in one category nobody wants Baltimore Ravens | Ravens practice, September 26, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens get 2 starting offensive linemen back at Thursday’s practice Baltimore Ravens | Ravens rookie Nate Wiggins provides details on recent car accident involving Lamborghini Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s Ravens mailbag: Answering questions about blown leads and more | COMMENTARY In response to a question about the 30-year-old Henry’s 2024 workload, Harbaugh said the strength of talent elsewhere “kind of spread the workload out naturally.” In other words, he’s still capable of jaw-dropping performances. But from a fantasy perspective, it might take more advanced study to predict when those might happen. Jackson is the outlier. His pair of 25-point outings sandwiching 16.38 against Las Vegas are a good indication of his steady production. Like Harbaugh said of Mahomes, Baltimore’s offense starts with its reigning NFL Most Valuable Player. Beyond that, when setting your fantasy lineup, start a Raven at your own risk. “There’ll always be somebody that didn’t get the ball thrown to them or didn’t get many touches or wasn’t on the field as much,” Harbaugh said. “It’s probably going to be a part of the game plan each week — and a lot of it is how the game goes, too.” View the full article

Type “Mark Andrews fantasy football” into your browser and feel the apocalyptic vibes. ESPN: “Look away Mark Andrews fantasy managers.” RotoBaller: “Mark Andrews role faces uncertainty.” Reddit: “It’s time to give up on Mark Andrews in fantasy football.” These represent a smattering of the proclamations that spilled forth after Andrews, the Ravens’ three-time Pro Bowl tight end, played just 21 snaps and caught not a single pass in the Ravens’ 28-25 win over the Dallas Cowboys last Sunday. Andrews just smiled Thursday when informed of this flood of skepticism. “All that’s good and stuff, but they don’t know what’s going on inside this building,” he said. “They’re not watching me every play. They’re not seeing the work I’m putting in. All good things come with time. I love being here with this team. Those things will come.” For the record, he said he’s not dealing with any lingering injury: “I feel great. I think if you turn on the film, you see that I’m moving, doing a lot of things better than I ever have. It’s different. We’ve got a different team. But I still feel incredibly good and fast and strong. I’m the same player I’ve always been. It’s just that balls haven’t come my way.” Never mind that the Ravens threw just 15 times as they leaned on their ground game to pound a flimsy Dallas front. Never mind that Andrews blocked brilliantly (90.2 Pro Football Focus grade) to aid that effort. Never mind that he lost the stretch run of his 2023 season to a hip-drop tackle that wrecked his ankle or that he was involved in a terrifying car accident a little more than a month ago. Fans looked at a few simple digits — eight targets, six catches, 65 yards, no touchdowns over three games to start this season — and decided the 29-year-old tight end is no longer option No. 1 for quarterback Lamar Jackson. From a cold remove, it’s not a wild take. Excluding games in which he was injured, Andrews was never targeted fewer than a dozen times over a three-game span from 2019 through 2023. In fact, the joke was always that no other receiver could thrive in Baltimore, because Jackson would always turn back to his No. 89 safety blanket in a pinch. It’s not clear that’s the case anymore given the ascents of fellow tight end Isaiah Likely and 2023 first-round draft pick Zay Flowers. But the Ravens will tell you it’s beyond premature to assume Andrews won’t deliver vintage receiving games this season. Coach John Harbaugh has said star players’ usage will go up and down as game plans change considerably from one week to the next. When asked about Andrews playing just 1/3 of the team’s offensive snaps (he was typically above 70% and often above 80% in recent seasons) against Dallas, Harbaugh pointed back to that idea. “There’ll always be somebody that didn’t get the ball thrown to them or didn’t get many touches or wasn’t on the field as much; it’s probably going to be a part of the game plan each week, and a lot of it is how the game goes, too,” he said. “But Mark did what he was asked to do in the game — it just turned out that way. It wasn’t like he wasn’t on the pass routes — he could’ve been thrown the ball; it just didn’t come his way. The blocks came his way. He was out there blocking those guys, and he did a great job.” Mark Andrews only has six catches through three games, but his run blocking benefited the Ravens’ offense against Dallas. (Kevin Richardson/Staff) Offensive coordinator Todd Monken didn’t realize Andrews played so little against Dallas. “We were in a little bit more 22 personnel, so when Charlie [Kolar] is in or Pat [Ricard] is in, that’s only one of the other tight ends,” Monken explained. “In the other games, we were in a lot of two-minute, a lot of no-huddle, a lot more throws. All that’s part of it. We think a lot of Mark. We anticipate Mark having opportunities. He just didn’t.” Cris Collinsworth was the top target for the Cincinnati Bengals through much of the 1980s, so he knows what it’s like to be in Andrews’ shoes. Collinsworth, who will help call the Ravens’ Sunday Night Football matchup with the Buffalo Bills for NBC, suspects Andrews is still recovering from an injury, despite his statements to the contrary. “Getting injured is tough, and it creates opportunities for others,” he said. “Isaiah Likely has played very well. But, Mark Andrews is still Mark Andrews, and when he is healthy, those snap counts will go up. He has been a top-four tight end in the NFL for too long to just lose snaps, unless he just isn’t healthy yet, which is likely.” Andrews isn’t the only elite tight end facing questions about dwindling targets. The Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce (considerably more famous and five years older than his Baltimore counterpart) has caught just eight passes for 69 yards through three weeks. “I’m not getting caught up in getting the targets and all that,” Kelce said this week on his podcast with his brother, Jason. “I just want to have a successful offense.” Andrews heard Kelce’s comments and echoes them. “I really don’t,” he said when asked if he thinks about his lack of targets. “For me, it’s always been about the team. [Kelce] was spot on with that; it is about execution. Needless to say, I’m a competitive person as well. I look to help this team win games, and if I can do that any way possible, whether it’s blocking or catching the ball, I’m going to do it. I said last week, I’m just hitting my stride.” He didn’t require an explanation from Monken or anybody else regarding his unusually small workload against the Cowboys. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | The Ravens lead the NFL in one category nobody wants Baltimore Ravens | Ravens practice, September 26, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens get 2 starting offensive linemen back at Thursday’s practice Baltimore Ravens | Ravens rookie Nate Wiggins provides details on recent car accident involving Lamborghini Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s Ravens mailbag: Answering questions about blown leads and more | COMMENTARY “No. If you look at the game plan we had, we went with big personnel for the majority of the game,” Andrews said. “Other than that, I was on the field. But we were moving so well. We attacked the defense with something we thought was going to work. ‘Monk’ stuck with that, and it’s all good with me.” Andrews came to the Ravens as one member of a close-knit tight end room in which he inevitably competed for snaps and targets with his buddies, Hayden Hurst and Nick Boyle. That gave him a lens on how to fight for what’s yours without “being greedy,” as he puts it. He believes that spirit still sets the team apart from many around the league. “There’s not a greediness to us. There’s not a greediness to anyone on this offense,” he said. “That’s rare. We want other people to succeed and at the same time, you’re competitive. I obviously want to help this team win, but [it’s about] just knowing that your time will come.” A Ravens.com reporter then noted that he had traded for Andrews in his fantasy league. “Let’s go,” Andrews said. View the full article

The Ravens were clinging to a 3-point lead against the Dallas Cowboys with 2:44 remaining in the fourth quarter Sunday and another yellow flag was laying on the turf at AT&T Stadium, this one for holding on linebacker Chris Board during Baltimore’s kick return. As quarterback Lamar Jackson walked onto the field, he could be heard on the television broadcast yelling, “Stop cheating us, bro!” This week in Owings Mills, the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player expounded on his emotions in the moment, saying he wasn’t “mad” and that “the refs are going to do their job.” “They only have two eyes – they can’t see everything,” he said. “There’s probably holding [and] all types of things happening every play. I was like, ‘Man, stop cheating us,’ but I wasn’t talking to them, I’m just talking out in the world. I’m playing football, [and] I’m trying to win. That’s all.” If only the Ravens’ penalty problems could be explained away so swiftly. Baltimore’s 31 penalties for 278 yards are the most in the NFL through the first three weeks of the season, with two more flags than the team with the second-most, the Cleveland Browns, and 40 more yards than the second-place Miami Dolphins for the dubious distinction. Against the Cowboys, the Ravens had 13 penalties for 105 yards — enough to almost cost them the game, with Dallas scoring 19 fourth-quarter points to nearly erase a 22-point deficit. With 11 for 109 the week before against the Las Vegas Raiders, they, too, played a significant part in an ugly, mistake-filled 26-23 loss. By comparison, Baltimore’s seven penalties for 64 yards against the Chiefs in Week 1 might seem like small potatoes, but there were costly consequences in Kansas City, too. Playing the season opener against the two-time defending Super Bowl champs on the road at night after sitting almost all of a team’s starters in the preseason would perhaps fly as one plausible explanation. A few questionable calls the first few weeks perhaps could be another. But there is a worrisome pattern and simply telling players to not commit penalties only goes so far. At this point, it’s fair to put at least some of the onus on coaching. So what gives? “It is really technique,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Wednesday. “There is part of it that is awareness and those kind of things and mindset. There are cadence issues; there are formation things that are more the mental things sometimes – you work on those, too. But the technique is really what it boils down to. “We just have to do a better job with it.” Indeed. The most-oft called penalty on the Ravens thus far has been for offensive holding, with seven penalties for 70 yards. Only the Cleveland Browns and Green Bay Packers having been flagged more than Baltimore. With three new starters along the offensive line, including first-year player Andrew Vorhees at left guard and first-year right guard Daniel Faalele, along with rotating rookie right tackle Roger Rosengarten, it’s hardly a shock that the group has struggled. But that’s far from the only area of concern. In all, the offense has been flagged 16 times, the defense 11 and special teams four. Last season, the Ravens had 102 penalties for 955 yards, 10th most in the league. Through the small sample size of three games this year they are on pace to easily eclipse that mark. Other penalties where they rank among the worst in the NFL include delay of game (three), roughing (two), illegal contact (contact), defensive holding (two), illegal formation (two) and face mask (two). Cutting down on penalties has been a point of emphasis for Ravens coaches after three games. (Kim Hairston/Staff) Asked the day after the Cowboys game if anything stood out in regard to some of the penalties being questionable, Harbaugh said he isn’t allowed to comment. But he did point the finger at his own team for at least some of the blame. “The things that we can say that we can’t see that are wrong, we’ll ask the league about,” he said. “If they confirm that it wasn’t a wrong play by the guy, then we’ll let them know. “There are some head-scratchers, but there’s also some ones that are legit, and when you have the number that we have right now, it’s too many. That’s just something that has to get cleaned up.” Take your pick, there have been plenty of examples where the flags have led to drives being cut short or points for the opponent. Against the Chiefs, a third-quarter holding penalty on center Tyler Linderbaum wiped out a 29-yard run by Jackson as Baltimore managed only a field goal on the drive. Earlier in the same quarter, a roughing the passer flag on defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike turned a third-and-20 for Kansas City into a first down and two plays later a touchdown. On the Ravens’ failed fourth-and-3 attempt from midfield in the second quarter, an offensive pass interference call on wide receiver Rashod Bateman negated a catch by fellow receiver Zay Flowers and set the wheels in motion. A week later against the Raiders, there were a number of egregious errors. Notable ones included a Derrick Henry false start midway through the fourth quarter that nullified a successful third-and-1 conversion that would have otherwise kept the clock rolling with a fresh set of downs instead of a punt. Then there was cornerback Brandon Stephens’ pass interference on receiver Davante Adams in the fourth quarter that gave Las Vegas the ball at the 1-yard line to set up the game-tying touchdown. And Ka’Dar Hollman was flagged for being out of bounds on Jordan Stout’s 24-yard shanked punt in the closing minutes, compounding one mistake with another and helping lead to the eventual game-winning field goal. Last Sunday against Dallas, the Ravens’ offense was flagged three times in the span of just six plays (twice for holding, once for illegal use of hands) in the third quarter. Then there was the illegal contact by safety Marcus Williams on a third-and-5 incompletion with 3:59 remaining in the fourth quarter that resulted in a first down and two plays later a roughing the passer penalty on outside linebacker Odafe Oweh that gave the Cowboys 15 more yards. Dallas went on to score a touchdown on the series to pull within a field goal. With a more potent opponent this week in the undefeated Buffalo Bills led by quarterback Josh Allen, more discipline than the Ravens showed last week in Texas and all season will be required. “The first thing you do, obviously they’re not intentional, but you show them the tape,” offensive coordinator Todd Monken said when asked how the Ravens are addressing the issue. “Show them what they are calling, where their hands are, where their body placement is, because that’s a part of it – that we get out of position. Was it a call that put them out of position? All of those things are part of it. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens practice, September 26, 2024 | PHOTOS Baltimore Ravens | Ravens get 2 starting offensive linemen back at Thursday’s practice Baltimore Ravens | Ravens rookie Nate Wiggins provides details on recent car accident involving Lamborghini Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston’s Ravens mailbag: Answering questions about blown leads and more | COMMENTARY Baltimore Ravens | Ravens vs. Bills staff picks: Who will win Sunday night’s showdown in Baltimore? “Then just making sure that those things, like anything that we do technique-wise or schematically, is you try to get it corrected. … What is it? Body position, hand placement, what is it schematically, and how can we get it fixed? Because playing clean football [and] eliminating the penalties will allow us to not waste yards.” Which is exactly what the Ravens have done. Baltimore leads the NFL in yards per game (430.3). But it is just 11th in points per game (23.7). While the Ravens have never led the league in penalties since Harbaugh took over in 2008, they did have the second-most flags in 2012 with 121 for a league-high 1,127 yards. Ironically, they went on to win the Super Bowl that season. But they know they can’t afford to keep making the kinds of silly mistakes that have led to an abundance of laundry on the field. Perhaps then it’s worth remembering the conversation during their final possession against the Cowboys. “The conversation was just to execute and to make sure we’re communicating properly – everyone’s on the same page,” said left tackle Ronnie Stanley. “No stupid penalties.” View the full article