Ravens on Fire: Top Takeaways From Their Monday Night Victory Over the Bucs
Under the lights, the Baltimore Ravens, headed by the NFL’s leading rusher Derrick Henry and quarterback Lamar Jackson, delivered another spectacular offensive performance. This time, they battled the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by quarterback Baker Mayfield, on the road. The Ravens aimed to win their fifth straight game since their 0-2 start, facing another explosive offense in the Buccaneers, who suffered critical injuries to star receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin during the game. After falling behind 10-0 early, Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey's back-to-back interceptions on Mayfield's throws helped stall the Buccaneers' offense in the first half. This gave the Ravens' offense a chance to capitalize on short-field opportunities, and they ultimately won 41-31. Jackson recorded his fifth career game with five passing touchdowns, improving to 23-1 against NFC teams in his seven-year career. Following Monday Night Football, let's examine some of the most important lessons learned from the Ravens' victory.
Despite falling behind early in the game, the Ravens' offense remained composed and executed their strategy, scoring 34 unanswered points. This helped sap whatever momentum the Buccaneers' offense had built during their first two drives. Jackson's MVP-caliber performance, in which he dismantled the Bucs' bottom-ranked pass defense, saw him finish 17-of-22 for 281 passing yards, five touchdowns, no interceptions, and a near-perfect passer rating of 158.1, leading the Ravens to their fourth consecutive 30-plus point performance. In addition to Jackson's usual dominant quarterbacking, Henry finished with 169 rushing yards on 15 carries, including an 81-yard run late in the third quarter, marking his fourth game this season with over 100 rushing yards.
Additionally, Ravens' star tight end Mark Andrews has become more involved in the passing game after being overshadowed by fellow tight end Isaiah Likely for the first five weeks. Andrews has recorded back-to-back games with at least one touchdown, including two on Monday night, which helped him surpass legendary Ravens tight end Todd Heap's 41 career touchdown catches to become the franchise leader in touchdown receptions by a tight end. Last but not least, receiver Rashod Bateman had an outstanding game, leading the team with 121 receiving yards on four receptions, including a 49-yard touchdown catch. Next week, the Ravens will try to maintain their explosive offensive production against the Cleveland Browns, who are currently last in the AFC North with a 1-6 record and lost starting quarterback Deshaun Watson to a torn Achilles last week.
While the Ravens’ offense was nearly perfect on Monday night, the defense was the complete opposite, continuing to struggle against the pass as it had in previous weeks. During the game, Mayfield threw for 370 yards on 31-of-45 passing attempts and three touchdowns, which has now dropped the Ravens' pass defense to dead last in the NFL, allowing an average of 287.1 passing yards per game. Particularly in the first quarter, the Ravens’ defense allowed big chunk plays against both the pass and the run, as the Bucs became the first team to rush for over 100 yards against the Ravens’ top-ranked run defense. The biggest concern for the Ravens’ defense has been the miscommunication and defensive lapses that have occurred in multiple weeks this season, such as the Ravens not being set on defense during the Buccaneers’ first drive of the game, which led to a big run and a breakdown on one of the Bucs’ touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Moving forward, the Ravens’ defense will need to hunker down and address their issues, as there will be games in the remainder of the season where the offense may face some hiccups and the defense will need to step up and potentially lead the team to victory, as the offense has done in the first seven weeks.
