The Baltimore Ravens are getting every chance to prove themselves this year and have yet another great defense to face in the Buffalo Bills.
At this point, there’s not a defense that should intimidate the Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson has this team rolling right now. Unsurprisingly, the 22-year old quarterback is a front runner for the league’s MVP award. With a ground game powered by Mark Ingram and a receiving attack led by Marquise Brown and Mark Andrews, there’s no stopping these Ravens.
Nonetheless, they’ll be tested once again this week on the road vs. the Buffalo Bills.
The Bills currently own the league’s third-best defense in yards allowed per game, as well as in points per game. The unit is led by Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate Ed Oliver. Oliver, who had an incredibly slow and quiet start to the season, has four sacks in his last three games and has been nearly impossible to stop. Baltimore’s interior offensive line will be tasked with slowing him down.
On the outside, Shaq Lawson is beginning to come into his own with 5.5 sacks, while Jerry Hughes remains a steady vet with 3.5 of his own. Nose tackle Jordan Phillips is having himself a career-year in 2019, accumulating 7.5 sacks thus far. That makes for a good pass rush awaiting the Ravens.
Buffalo’s pass defense has been their claim to fame, allowing the third-fewest passing yards per game (195.8 YPG). Cornerback Tre’Davious White has blossomed into one of the league’s premier corners, and he’s helped even more by the fantastic safety tandem of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.
Between the pass rush and this secondary, don’t expect the Baltimore Ravens to be a very active team through the air. Instead, they’ll lean heavier on the run game than usual, as weird as that claim may be. There’s a real chance Lamar Jackson has a season-low in passing yards (104-yards or less) vs. the Buffalo Bills and could very well throw his first interception since week five. This Bills defense is not to be meddled with.
Still, the Ravens will just do what they always do and run the football down the throats of the Bills. Buffalo is a mere 14th vs. the run, allowing 104.2 rushing YPG, and surrendering 4.5 YPC. These numbers will be the death of the Bills hopes of taking down the Ravens.
There’s little reason to believe that the Baltimore Ravens will be unable to roll the Buffalo Bills even on the road; there’s simply too much evidence to think otherwise. Still, Baltimore must take this Bills defense seriously and remember there’s no free-wins in the NFL.