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Baltimore Ravens: How to temper our expectations moving forward

By Richard Bradshaw

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 25: General view of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the start of the game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Baltimore Ravens on November 25, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 25: General view of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the start of the game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Baltimore Ravens on November 25, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /
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When your favorite sports team is good, it’s easy to buy into them being perfect. That’s how the 2019 Baltimore Ravens, but we have to remain realistic…

How can you not be excited about what the 2019 Baltimore Ravens are about? The offense is absolutely electric and keeps us on the edge of our seats. The way Lamar Jackson is playing is out of this world and we can barely comprehend it. The defense is getting hot, and the turnovers are coming at a high-pace. The special teams are elite, the coaching is outstanding, and the fanbase is bought in.

Right now is a time for celebration for Ravens Flock. We’ve never had a team like this before. We’ve experienced plenty of success during the team’s tenure, but this is truly something special.

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With that being said, we still must understand that this Baltimore Ravens team isn’t perfect. We have to realize that there will be bumps in the road and there will be some tough moments remaining. Hell, a Super Bowl berth, let alone victory, is far from guaranteed right now…

But with everything going on how in the world can we temper our expectations?

For starters, remind yourself of a famous saying for football fans: Any given Sunday. For those who don’t know what that means, it means that anything can happen when the lights come on and the game starts. No wins are promised in the NFL and we see great teams lose games that make us scratch our heads.

It doesn’t help that the Baltimore Ravens remaining schedule isn’t kind, with games against the San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers left to go. Each of those teams is in the hunt for the playoffs and will give Baltimore a run for their money.

We may feel confident about those games now, but that can change in a hurry. Rewind to the 2011 season where Baltimore marched to a 12-4 record and a perfect 8-0 home record. The Ravens dropped four road games that season to bad teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars and Seattle Seahawks. It was uncharacteristic and it wasn’t something we thought would happen. Unfortunately, it did happen. Worse yet, Baltimore lost in the AFC Championship in the most heartbreaking fashion (which we don’t need to revisit…). Again, we never saw it coming.

Good teams still lose games, it’s just the way it is. The Ravens are an elite team this season, but they’re likely going to lose another game or two before seasons end. A 14-2 record would be outstanding, but 12-4 seems more realistic.

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Hopefully, we’re at a point of being realistic now, but we can still be plenty confident and prideful in this Baltimore Ravens team. They’re different, the vibe and the swagger are unique and unlike any team before it. They’re far from perfect, but they’re complete. A scary offense and a strong defense will take you places, and the 2019 Baltimore Ravens seem Super Bowl-bound, even with tempered expectations.

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