The biggest advantage the Baltimore Ravens have over Titans
The Baltimore Ravens are the most unique team in the NFL and that is the biggest advantage they have over the Tennessee Titans.
The Baltimore Ravens are the most unique team in the NFL. There is no team in the league that does what they do. The Titans are a good running team and the Ravens offense could do laps around it. The Ravens average over 200 yards on the ground. Their quarterback is their leading rusher. That sentence may make teams think selling out to stop Jackson’s running is the key to victory. It sounds good until Jackson is having one of those games with five touchdowns and practically no misfires in the passing game.
If we’ve learned anything from the Ravens this year, it’s that they are hard to prepare for. At this point the Ravens have seen just about every look that can be thought up. The NFL spent an entire season trying to “figure Lamar Jackson out” and “find a blueprint” to beat the Ravens. The frustration that trying to stop Jackson has caused NFL coaches almost merits a relief fund.
Stopping Lamar Jackson isn’t simple. Stopping Lamar Jackson, Mark Ingram and the best tight end trio in football isn’t simple. It’s not even simple to deal with what Pat Ricard brings at the fullback position.
Stopping the Ravens is about playing completely disciplined up front and having the athletes to get the job up front. That whole seven defensive back model that the Chargers used doesn’t work because Mark Ingram and Gus Edwards will just do their thing.
Greg Roman has become a head coaching candidate from his work with the offense. Roman has become the most creative and innovative play-caller in football. Lamar Jackson is the perfect instrument for the medley of offense he thinks up on a regular basis. If you don’t think Roman has wrinkles for the playoffs, you haven’t been paying attention. The Ravens don’t get overly predictable despite the core ideas remaining constant.
If you get behind against the Ravens, the game will snowball on you. The Ravens were practically built to play with a lead. The defense can then make their opponent one dimensional, blitz and rely on an incredible secondary. If the Ravens get out to a slow start, they can always find the turbo button as the wins against the Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns suggest.
The Titans haven’t played the Ravens this season. Stopping Lamar Jackson always sounds like a plausible objective on a chalkboard or a tablet. On the field, he’s faster than you think he is. He can beat you with his arm, and if you can’t stop Mark Ingram, you’re already done. The Ravens’ innovation brings an almost unfair advantage. Beating Baltimore, in a pumped up M&T Bank Stadium is going to be hard for any team in the playoffs. Like everybody else, the Titans go into the game behind the eight ball.