BALTIMORE — From a clinical opening touchdown drive to a dominant second-half pass rush, the Ravens looked like a playoff team from start to finish as they dominated the New York Giants, 27-13, at M&T Bank Stadium Dec. 27.
Now, after a couple of other NFL results fell their way, they know they are one win away from being exactly that.
By virtue of losses by the Indianapolis Colts and Cleveland Browns, the Ravens (10-5) control their own destiny; if they win their regular-season finale at Cincinnati next week, they advance to the postseason for the third straight year.
“We control our own fate,” said tight end Mark Andrews, who admitted to scoreboard-watching during the game, “and that’s a great feeling.”
For the past month, even as they stood to miss the playoffs after losing four of five games, the Ravens said repeatedly that they would worry only about what they could control, meaning they would focus on winning and hope the rest would take care of itself.
Against the Giants, the Ravens were in total control. They used a precise, methodical, 13-play, 82-yard touchdown drive to begin the game and opened a 14-0 lead before the Giants (5-10) had a first down.
The Ravens were never truly threatened, as Lamar Jackson and the Ravens’ offense continued its strong December run and the Ravens’ defense overwhelmed the Giants and quarterback Daniel Jones.
Jackson finished 17-for-26 for 183 yards and two touchdowns and ran 13 times for 80 yards.
Now, the Ravens (10-5) find themselves on the right side of the playoff bubble with one week to go. Of course, it was just three years ago when the Bengals ruined the Ravens’ postseason hopes with a last-minute win on New Year’s Eve in 2017, so the Ravens won’t be overlooking the Bengals.
In fact, the Bengals (4-10-1), despite losing No. 1 draft pick Joe Burrow to a season-ending injury, have won two games in row, so the Ravens, despite all the help on the scoreboard this week, very much remain in must-win mode.
Here are five other quick observations of the win, the Ravens’ fourth in a row:
1. Gus Edwards is much more than a battering ram between the tackles.
The Ravens’ run-game formula during this second-half-of-the-season surge for the most part has featured the shifty, speedy J.K. Dobbins or Lamar Jackson racing to the edge, and power back Gus Edwards blasting inside for sure yardage.
But in this game Edwards showed he is more than a one-trick bulldozer. More than once, Edwards shed a tackle or bounced outside and beat defenders to the edge, showing impressive quickness for a 238-pound battering ram.
Edwards finished with 15 carries for a team-high 85 yards, and also had one of the most impressive catch-and-runs of the year. Rolling out to escape pressure, Jackson threw to Edwards along the sideline, and he made a nice catch, bounced off a hit, stayed in bounds, broke another tackle and gained 27 yards.
“I’m just taking what’s given to me out there,” Edwards said. “I’m just trying to make plays for my offense. I know how critical these games are.”
Lately, the Ravens have unveiled offensive formations with both Edwards and Dobbins on the field together, and early in this game, they showed how potent that can be. Dobbins lined up in the slot on the right, came in motion and took a handoff, running behind Edwards as a lead blocker. Edwards helped pave the way for a 17-yard run to the Giants’ 2-yard line, and Dobbins scored two plays later for a 14-0 lead.
At the beginning of the year, with the 1,000-yard Ingram returning and the high-profile Dobbins arriving as a second-round draft pick, Edwards was somewhat lost in the shuffle. But throughout the past month, he has emerged as a dynamic, versatile offensive weapon.
Tight end Mark Andrews said Edwards “deserves a lot more credit than he gets. … He’s a beast. He’s one of our best players.”
2. Lamar Jackson’s second-half surge continues.
Since returning from his bout with COVID-19, Lamar Jackson has put together four consecutive impressive performances, and, not coincidentally, the Ravens have won all four games.
Granted, two of the wins — against Dallas and Jacksonville — came against two of the lowest-rated defenses in the league. But of course, Jackson also had his sprint-from-the-locker-room late-game heroics that led to a huge win in Cleveland, and in this game carved up the Giants with precision early, mixing the run, the pass and the improvised scramble to frustrate the Giants at every turn.
Jackson finished 17-for-26 for 183 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions for a passer rating of 111.5, his fourth straight 100-plus passer rating since returning from the reserve/COVID-19 list. He also ran 13 times for 80 yards.
Granted, Jackson is quick to point out that a well-run offense is a group effort, and that was especially true in this game.
Facing a Giants defense that ranked No. 6 in the league against the run (101.8 yards per game), the Ravens piled up 249 rushing yards, averaging 6.2 yards a carry. Jackson, Gus Edwards (15-85) and J.K. Dobbins (11-77) each topped 75 yards rushing.
“Gus and J.K. ran the ball exceptionally well,” Harbaugh said. “Lamar ran the ball exceptionally well. It was really a good performance by our run offense.”
It was also a balanced attack. On the Ravens’ opening 13-play, 82-yard touchdown drive, Jackson went 4-for-4 through the air, connecting with three different receivers.
The Ravens also used seven offensive linemen extensively, with Matt Skura replacing injured Patrick Mekari (back) at center and Tyre Phillips and D.J. Fluker again splitting time at right tackle.
After scuffling early in the season, and then being derailed temporarily by the COVID outbreak that sidelined Jackson and several other starters, the Ravens’ offense seems to have hit its stride at exactly the right time.
3. The pass rush dominated in the second half.
Whatever thoughts the Giants had about rallying from a 20-3 halftime deficit were buried by a relentless Ravens pass rush in the second half. Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (24-for-41, 252 yards, 1 TD) spent much of the second half picking himself up off the M&T Bank Stadium turf as he was sacked six times, all of them after halftime.
“I thought the pass rush was really key in the second half,” Harbaugh said.
The onslaught from the Ravens’ defense began on the first play of the second half when Jihad Ward buried Jones for an 8-yard loss. Rookie Justin Madubuike later recorded his first career sack.
During one sequence, Jones was dropped on back-to-back-to-back plays, with Matthew Judon, Pernell McPhee and Chris Board credited with the hits.
Board, the special teams ace whose defensive role has been increasing during the second half of the season, had recorded 0.5 sacks in his three-year career coming into this game but then dropped Jones twice.
“He has played excellent football,” Harbaugh said. “He’s becoming a really good inside linebacker.”
Overall, the Ravens had 11 hits of Jones, with two each by Board, Ward and Patrick Queen.
The Ravens were playing without two of their top three defensive backs, as Marcus Peters (calf) and Jimmy Smith (ribs, shoulder) remained sideline, so a disruptive pass rush was especially valuable. It also helped that the Ravens’ offense kept the defense well rested; thanks to long, sustained drives in the first half, the Ravens’ defense was on the field for less than nine minutes in the entire first half.
4. Special teams penalties didn’t kill them in this game but might later.
The Ravens can exhale after this win, but they can’t be pleased with the penalties, especially with the way they affected the game on special teams.
The Ravens again had what seemed to be their weekly illegal formation penalty, and they were flagged for too many men on the field on defense during a Giants touchdown drive that included three defensive penalties — after a huge one on special teams.
The Ravens had recorded three consecutive sacks to force the Giants into a fourth-and-23 punting situation when Justice Hill, going for the block, flew into punter Riley Dixon. The 15-yard penalty extended the drive, and three more defensive penalties helped the Giants march down the field for a score.
The Ravens also had a special teams penalty that cost them points early in the third quarter.
On the Ravens’ opening possession of the second half, Justin Tucker booted a 51-yard field goal for what appeared to be a 23-3 lead, but the officials wiped out the kick because of a delay of game penalty. Backed up 5 more yards, the Ravens opted to punt and Sam Koch pinned the Giants at their 10-yard line, but it was an error that cost the Ravens three points.
After the punt, Koch, who holds on field goals, spent some time talking to referee John Hussey, and John Harbaugh and kicking coach Randy Brown also had a long discussion the sideline.
“That’s never really happened to us, that I can recall,” Harbaugh said. “They do a good job of that, so I was really surprised to see that. … I don’t know what happened on that.”
Granted, the Ravens could afford a couple of special-teams snafus in this game, but come playoff time, should they indeed get there, the Ravens can ill-afford to cost themselves points with such unforced errors.
5. The Ravens will be limping into Cincinnati.
The Ravens didn’t have cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Jimmy Smith in this game, and Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey briefly exited with what looked like a calf or lower leg injury. He later returned but didn’t seem to be at 100 percent. Safety DeShon Elliott had his left hand braced and wrapped before returning to action.
Center Patrick Mekari left the game with a back injury and did not return, and running back J.K. Dobbins, fullback Patrick Ricard, wide receiver Willie Snead and wide receiver and kick returner Devin Duvernay all spent extensive time with the trainers.
Players will tell you that no one is ever 100 percent at this time of year, 16 weeks into a season full of violent collisions and contact. But the Ravens are banged up. And unlike last year, when they had the benefit of resting players in Week 17 with their seeding position secured, they need all hands on deck to beat a resurgent Cincinnati team that has suddenly put together back-to-back wins without No. 1 draft pick Joe Burrow.
It figures to be a crowded — though socially distanced — training room this week, but the Ravens know what’s at stake.
“I expect Cincinnati to come out and play us hard,” linebacker Chris Board said. “At the end of the day, we have to win the game to advance, so it’s playoff football. We’ve been playing playoff football the last three or four weeks, so we definitely need to come out, play hard, and we’ll see what happens.”
Photo Credit: Kenya Allen/PressBox