THE Baltimore Ravens are a much better offensive team than last season, especially in the second half. They demonstrated it in a thrilling 37-31 overtime victory against the Los Angeles Rams. The Ravens needed special teams play, and some questionable arbitration, for a 76-yard punt return for a touchdown to seal their 10th victory this season, making them the first team in the AFC to reach that total.
Lamar Jackson was great with 313 passing yards and three touchdowns. He was also the Ravens’ leading rusher with 70 yards. Along with their offense playing in Week 14, the Rams kept up their pace all afternoon. Until the final touchdown, the Rams held the largest lead of the game at 20-14 and never trailed by more than four points the rest of the game.
It was a Matthew Stafford-led drive with a minute left that sent the game into overtime. However, all he had to do was get his team within field goal range. On the previous drive, Jackson led Baltimore on a 13-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown and a two-point conversion to take a 31-28 lead.
Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken decided to take Jackson’s arm. The 2019 MVP put the ball where he wanted, completing eight passes to five different players. He relied most on Zay Flowers, who was the leading pass catcher on that drive with three. One of them was a 21-yard touchdown run on 3rd and 11 with just over a minute to play. Flowers also caught the pass on the successful two-point conversion.
Coming out of the two-minute warning commercial break, the Fox broadcast team informed viewers that the Ravens had the worst point differential in the league in the final two minutes of a game this season. Last season, Baltimore ranked 23rd in second-half points per game. Whether Monken or Greg Roman called the plays, the offense was too tight late in the game.
Several Ravens’ wins have been closer than necessary this season because they have been too conservative with playcalls. They would be alone at the top of the AFC if they hadn’t lost At Indianapolis Colts in Week 3, when they ran the ball over and over again in the fourth quarter.
Jackson will need to let the ball fly frequently late in games if the Ravens want to compete for a championship. They brought in a new offensive coordinator, brought in Flowers and signed Odell Beckham Jr. to bolster their passing attack.
Flowers has been the Ravens’ best pass catcher this season. Although he sealed the match, he wouldn’t have had the chance without a great performance from Beckham. The veteran led the team in receptions with four catches for 97 yards and a touchdown – his second-best performance of the season. One of his biggest catches was an attack route in that fourth quarter.
The Ravens had three and outs on their only possession in overtime, so the offense is far from perfect. Their defense tightened up at the right time and they got away with massive special teams play.
Yet the Ravens let Jackson be the primary playmaker on a drive they desperately needed and rewarded his coaches. This is the player he needs to be every week. The receiving corps has been upgraded so it can endure times like Week 14 against the Rams.
If the Ravens want to win big, the recipe is to put the ball in Jackson’s hands and live with the results.