Quarterback Lamar Jackson finished with the fourth perfect passer rating of his career as the Ravens stomped the Denver Broncos and their well-regarded defense 41-10 Sunday in Baltimore.
Jackson went 16-for-19 for 280 yards and three touchdowns at M&T Bank Stadium, leading a Ravens offense that averaged 8.1 yards per play and scored on seven straight drives. The Broncos (5-4) entered Week 9 leading the NFL in yards per play allowed (4.4) but struggled to stop Jackson, who was limited in practice last week by back and knee injuries.
Jackson and the Ravens’ receiving corps dissected a Broncos defense that had ranked among the NFL’s best. Wide receiver Zay Flowers had five catches for 127 yards and two touchdowns, including a 53-yarder near the end of the first half to give the Ravens (6-3) a 24-10 lead. Six Ravens had at least 25 receiving yards, and fullback Patrick Ricard’s 1-yard catch in the fourth quarter marked the Ravens’ fourth straight drive with a touchdown.
Despite a shaky start and injury concerns up front, the Ravens’ defense bounced back from a woeful performance in their 29-24 loss last Sunday to the Cleveland Browns. The unit held rookie quarterback Bo Nix to 223 yards on 19-for-33 passing and forced an interception on Nix’s first drop-back. Denver finished with 319 total yards and 4.7 yards per play.
The Ravens, whose pass rush has been a subject of trade speculation ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, finished with three sacks. Outside linebacker Tavius Robinson had two, while inside linebacker Trenton Simpson added another.
The Ravens have a short turnaround ahead of Thursday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The midseason MVP
Lamar Jackson left no doubt Sunday. He was the NFL’s best player through eight weeks, and he’ll be the NFL’s best player in Week 9. If you have anyone else as the front-runner for league Most Valuable Player awards, please seek help.
The most impressive aspect of Jackson’s perfect-passer-rating day — the fourth of his career, tying Ben Roethlisberger for the most in NFL history — was that he didn’t need to dominate as a rusher. Jackson had just three carries for 4 yards, a good bit of load management from offensive coordinator Todd Monken as Jackson eased his way back from minor back and knee injuries.
With Jackson in command, the Ravens have everything they need to dominate on offense. If this defensive performance is more than a flash in the pan, watch out.
— Jonas Shaffer, Ravens reporter
Rushing the rushing quarterback
The Ravens have struggled to get to the quarterback in recent games, but Tavius Robinson finally broke through, recording two sacks.
The Ravens struggled through the start, but they found more lanes to Denver QB Bo Nix as the game ran on. Nix also outran some of the pass rushers on plays that might have resulted in a sack of a less nimble quarterback. Nnamdi Madubuike almost caught the rookie a few times but was tripped up twice. Linebacker Trenton Simpson got involved with his first sack of the season, an important step for a defense that previously benefited from Patrick Queen’s pass rushing abilities.
There’s still a way to go for this pass rush to live up to expectations — the Ravens need more production from Madubuike and Odafe Oweh, in particular — but it was a start that gives hope that maybe things are turning around.
— Giana Han, Ravens reporter
On defense, just enough
It felt as if the Ravens were going down a familiar path early as Bo Nix scrambled out of pressure multiple times in the first half. His touchdown reception against Marcus Williams was a particularly dispiriting moment. But where the Ravens failed to adapt last week in Cleveland, against the Broncos, they surged in the second half.
Over the course of three possessions, Denver lost 2 total yards, going three and out twice as the Ravens grew their lead. Tavius Robinson helped give the pass rush some juice, including a big 9-yard sack. Trenton Simpson added a fourth-quarter sack and was one of the leading tacklers. Nix helped them out with errant throws, especially to the end zone. It feels that there isn’t much hope for Baltimore to become an elite defense, but if the offense continues to hum, it might not need to reach that level to get the Ravens to the Super Bowl.
— Kyle Goon, columnist
Score, score and score some more
As we saw last week when it amassed almost 400 yards and put up 24 points, even when the Ravens’ offense isn’t at its best, it’s still pretty damn good. And, when it’s functioning at maximum capacity, look out.
In Sunday’s beatdown, Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry and Todd Monken systematically dissected Denver’s defense, blinding the Broncos with an array of explosive pass plays and forceful run plays. It’s scary to think how dominant this unit can be when it adds running back Keaton Mitchell to the mix and gets new wideout Diontae Johnson up to speed. The defense remains a huge concern, but nine weeks into the season, Baltimore has the best offense in the NFL.
— Paul Mancano, Ravens Banner Podcast co-host
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