Ebony Bird
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Baltimore Ravens vs Arizona Cardinals: What to watch for

By Isaiah Stumpf

MIAMI, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 08: Marquise Brown #15 of the Baltimore Ravens catches a pass for a touchdown in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on September 08, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FLORIDA - SEPTEMBER 08: Marquise Brown #15 of the Baltimore Ravens catches a pass for a touchdown in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on September 08, 2019 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /
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BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – JANUARY 06: Desmond King #20 of the Los Angeles Chargers returns a 72 yard punt against Anthony Averett #28 of the Baltimore Ravens during the third quarter in the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 06, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – JANUARY 06: Desmond King #20 of the Los Angeles Chargers returns a 72 yard punt against Anthony Averett #28 of the Baltimore Ravens during the third quarter in the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 06, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

Anthony Averett’s performance 

What was once thought as the biggest strength of the Ravens, Baltimore is one injury away from being in trouble when it comes to their secondary. The loss of Jimmy Smith hurts, but Baltimore has been here before and has the necessary depth to compensate for now. Anthony Averett had an up and down game versus the Dolphins. There were a few plays where he got beat out of the gate, and there were also times where he held tight coverage.

Fortunately, the Cardinals do not have a plethora of top tier talent. Their best receiver is the ageless wonder, Larry Fitzgerald, who had a strong game in week one, catching 8 balls, for 113 yards, and a touchdown. Arizona’s next best receiver is rookie Christian Kirk. Rookie, Kyler Murray, showed the ability to sling the rock, albeit inconsistently, all over the field in his game against Detroit. Baltimore will have more of a challenge this week defending the pass. This is where Averett must step up and contribute more so than he did last week, no matter where he lines up.

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How will carries be split in the run game? 

What got lost in last week’s overpowering aerial attack, was the work their rushing unit put in. Almost 200 yards and 2 touchdowns were the result of the three-headed monster the Ravens pose in their backfield. Mark Ingram III lead the charge, tallying more than half of the yardage and both scores. Ingram was running with a basher mentality, fighting through contact, fighting for those extra yards on every play. The other two guys, Gus Edwards and Justice Hill, showed bits and pieces of what they bring to the table.

Edwards led the team in carries with 17, logging 56 yards. Hill played a much smaller role then the other two, carrying the rock only seven times for 27 yards. Hill did flash his speed momentarily on an outside run that went for 13. I’m expecting a much heavier dosage of the run game this Sunday. After watching what they did to the Dolphins, I find it hard to believe the Cardinals will build a game plan focused solely on preventing the run.

Teams will have to respect the improved arm talent of Jackson, which will provide the run game more opportunities to succeed. While I think Jackson and the passing game will have their moments on Sunday, it will be the run game that steals the show and resemble what we saw during last season, where the Ravens controlled the clock, and made the opposing defense want to quit come the fourth quarter.

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