Ravens Run Over Buffalo; Next Travel To Cincinnati

In-front of a National TV audience, the Baltimore Ravens got back to .500 with a convincing 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills.

The Bills entered the game averaging 37 points per game.
Baltimore’s defense was a different animal vs. what the Bills had faced so far.

With Pittsburgh losing today at Indianapolis, the Ravens are now 1GB in the AFC North.

The Ravens will now travel to Cincinnati to face the Bengals, who grabbed their first win of the year today vs. Carolina.

The Bottomline

The Ravens were able to get a head-to-head win vs. a quality team.
If the Ravens were to face the Bills again come January, the head-to-head W here could be the difference of facing the Bills here in Baltimore, vs. having to go to Buffalo.

Heading into last week’s game at Dallas, there was National discussion that the Ravens could be on the precipice of falling off a cliff.
ESPN’s Morning Shows were talking about the possibility of the Ravens starting 0-5.
Local fans were talking about changes being needed with the existing leadership.

Instead the Ravens have reminded the league they are one of a small handful of legitimate contenders to win the Lombardi Trophy.

What Happened Today? What Are The Takeaways?

The Bills were held to 4 punts and a FG in the first half.

The Ravens started the scoring, with Derrick Henry going 87 yards for the score. Pat Ricard with a big block to help spring Henry.
In-fact the Ravens had touchdowns on their first three series.

With Andrew Vorhees inactive, Patrick Mekari started at LG.
The first half saw the Ravens O-Line consistently pushing back a quality Bills D-Line.

We’ve said it before, and I’m sure we will say it again.
Good things happen with Justice Hill gets touches.
He has excellent burst running, and he runs away from would-be defenders when he gets the ball in space.

Leading 21-3 with 6 minutes left in the half, the Ravens took over on offense.
They knew they were getting the ball to begin the 2nd half.
The Ravens missed an opportunity to deliver a potential knock out punch when Lamar Jackson fumbled.

As Buffalo took over, the Ravens seemingly tried to give the Bills a chance to get back in the game, as they called a timeout they couldn’t take on a 4th and 2.
Still, the defense was able to stand-up and again forced a punt to basically end the 1st half.

The 2nd half began with the Ravens going 3 and out, and the Bills scoring their first TD of the night.
The Ravens again went 3 and out, and admittedly I gulped wondering if this was a game the Ravens were going to have sweat out.

Any worry there was short-lived as Kyle Hamilton recovered a Josh Allen fumble with about 6 minutes left in the 3rd Quarter.
This turned the momentum back towards the Ravens, who capitalized on the turnover, with Jackson finishing off a 6 play 59 yard drive on his own.

Other Notes?

• ESPN’s Mike Tannebaum (former Executive with the Dolphins and Jets) said this week that Jackson was struggling to start the season. Just a ridiculous statement. Even with the fumble, and the 2nd half intentional grounding; it was another good game for Jackson tonight. He’s in complete control.
• Henry put up 199 yards on the ground.  His 87 yard run to start the night, immediately put Buffalo on their heels. NBC pointed out how Buffalo’s Safeties moved into the box on the next series.
• Zay Flowers, Isaiah Likely, Rashod Bateman, Mark Andrews, and Nelson Agholor combined for 5 receptions, and the Ravens beat Buffalo by 25.
• Fantastic game for the Ravens defense.  Two more sacks for Kyle Van Noy.  Odafe Oweh, and David Ojabo also brought pressure. Adisa Isaac had a TFL. The Secondary was in complete control, with Hamilton leading the way.
• The O-Line didn’t get a lot of credit for opening running lanes in Dallas last week, given the Cowboys struggles against the run. It’s more of a story tonight, because the Bill have a quality D-Line. The Ravens controlled the line of scrimmage.

Traveling To Cincinnati 

The Bengals are now 1-3 after beating Carolina 34-24 today.

ESPN is currently showing the Ravens as a 1 point favorite, and their Matchup Predictor is giving the Ravens a 51.3% chance of winning.

I thought the Bengals were getting too much hype in the off-season, but I recognize they are a threat.
Mainly that’s respect for Joe Burrow. If he’s under center for 17 games, the Bengals are capable of getting hot and causing problems in the division, if not more.
That’s the importance and opportunity this game presents for the Ravens.

AFC North games are always a fight.
Winning on the road is never easy.
But if you go and win this game, you’ll have the head-to-head road w, and leave the Bengals demoralized at 1-4.
If the Bengals are able to win, both teams are 2-3, with Cincinnati having the leg-up with the head-to-head.

In our AFC North quick hits before training camp, I said about the Bengals:

Joe Burrow was done for the year after his Week 11 wrist injury. Truthfully, he didn’t look right all of last year starting with the calf strain he had in Training Camp. A healthy Burrow elevates the entire roster. He’s the definition of an elite QB. Injuries are hard to predict, but going back to the Bengals ’21 Super Bowl season, I was saying then that I thought Burrow might be a guy that flashes bright, and sees his career end quickly. He’s listed at 6’4, 215, but he seems pretty slight. If he does have to miss a week or two, I liked what I saw from Jake Browning. Zack Moss is now the starting RB, coming over from Indianapolis. He’s fine. Chase Brown will also get carries.  Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins are a talented WR duo. Neither seems happy with their existing contract. The 3rd WR is 2024 Rookie 3rd Rounder Jermaine Burton (Alabama). New TE Mike Gesicki had 73 catches for the Dolphins in 2021, but just 61 over the last two years combined with the Dolphins and Patriots. Orlando Brown Jr is back at LT for Year 2 of his 4 year deal. The Bengals 1st round pick (18th overall) was OT, Amarius Mims. The Defense is led by Trey Hendrickson who had 17.5 sacks. He apparently wanted to be traded, but the Bengals declined. I liked their 2nd round pick of Kris Jenkins Jr.  The Secondary added former Raven Geno Stone. I’d expect that DJ Turner II emerges. I’ve seen lots of people saying that a healthy Burrow means the Bengals are the AFC North’s best team. I think that’s a step too far.  I’m obviously biased as a Ravens fan, but it seems apparent to me that Baltimore has a stronger roster overall. Can Cincinnati win the North? Yes. Will the differences in schedule strength help Cincinnati? Yes.  Should the Bengals be the favorite? Not in my opinion.