Running the football is something the Baltimore Ravens do as well as any team in the league, but its run game must be at its best vs. the Buffalo Bills.
It’s no accident that the Baltimore Ravens averaged 191.9 rushing YPG in 2020, the best mark in the league, and topped 3,000 team rushing yards in back-to-back seasons. When you have guys like Lamar Jackson, Gus Edwards, and J.K. Dobbins, you tend to have a ton of success in that department. That kind of success typically translates when the playoffs kickoff and the weather gets colder. It’s this kind of football that more often than not results in championships.
Baltimore displayed that in their Wildcard matchup against the Tennessee Titans, romping for over 200 total rushing yards including 136-yards from Jackson. It was largely the reason the Ravens won that football game coupled with the lights-out performance from the defense. When you can dictate the pace of the game both physically and on the scoreboard, you’re going to win football games more often than not.
With the Divisional round looming against the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore will need to be at its best running the football.
For one thing, there is likely to be snow in upstate New York for the Saturday matchup. This will put more pressure on the Ravens to run the ball early and often. Thankfully, this is an obvious strength to the team and might be the ultimate factor in deciding the winner of this game, as it’s an area where Baltimore has a clear advantage over Buffalo.
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Looking at this Bills team, they’re a very explosive unit on offense; one that is playing better than anyone else right now. Josh Allen should be an MVP finalist for a masterful 2020 season. Buffalo also hosts two All-Pro wide receivers in Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley. This trio is as good as it gets and breaks the backend of opposing defenses. The best way to stop these guys is to keep them off the field because when they’re out there there’s simply no slowing them down.
This is where things get interesting for Baltimore. The biggest question will be whether or not Jackson can move the ball enough as a passer to keep up in this game, but that’s not how the Ravens win football games. Instead, they need to rely on Jackson as a runner, an obvious strength of his, to keep the team in the game. It was a recipe for success against Tennessee and resulted in the final nail in the coffin to win that game.
Jackson won’t be alone running the football thankfully. Edwards and Dobbins are as good as any running back duo in the NFL and the two should see tons of opportunities this Saturday. These three rival the Bills trio, just on the ground rather than the air. With these guys running the backfield (pun intended), Ravens Flock should be confident.
With that in mind, there can be no excuses from this unit. The Bills are a very average run defense that got carved up a week ago by Jonathan Taylor and the Indianapolis Colts. The Ravens should be able to replicate that success and if they do they might just be able to pull off the upset.
This game will likely hinge on who has the ball the most. Baltimore can be that team if it runs the ball as well as we know they can.
Running the ball is more important than ever before for the Baltimore Ravens. In a bad weather game and against a ferocious offense, Baltimore will need to control the clock and set the tone through the ground if it wants to win this game.