The Baltimore Ravens apparently don’t have a top-10 quarterback heading into 2022, but there are still a good number of reasons they could actually win the Super Bowl.
After finishing dead last in the AFC North, the Ravens have been touted by many as a bounce-back candidate and even a legitimate championship contender this upcoming season.
Some of the team’s biggest offseason moves include bringing on Marcus Williams, drafting Kyle Hamilton and Tyler Linderbaum, and re-signing key players from the 2021 season like Josh Bynes and Justin Houston.
Yet the most pivotal questions circle around the state of the Ravens’ offense, which fumbled the chance to reach the playoffs last year as the team lost by three points or fewer in five of the final six regular season games.
With Lamar Jackson back in the lineup, and with the impending returns of J.K. Dobbins, Gus Edwards, and Ronnie Stanley, could this year be the Ravens’ year?
Sports Illustrated’s Conor Orr named a dozen NFL teams that he viewed as serious Super Bowl contenders in 2022 and gave his reasoning for Baltimore’s triumphant return:
"“No one has figured out how to stop their offense yet! Teams have borrowed freely from Baltimore’s suite of backfield motion concepts and still, since ’18, they remain one of the most efficient units in football featuring a quarterback who has never thrown for more than 3,200 yards in a season.”"
Assuming Jackson, Dobbins, and Edwards all stay healthy for the duration of the season, the Ravens have one of the strongest rushing attacks in the league, period. That alone should boost the team’s chances of winning a championship, though the passing offense must keep up as well.
The Ravens have all the weapons to make a glorious Super Bowl run in 2022
Against indomitable goliaths like the Buffalo Bills or Kansas City Chiefs, the Ravens’ offensive firepower admittedly seems feeble in comparison. Baltimore’s starting wide receivers inspire very little confidence and may not possess the experience to consistently make an impact and help Jackson win games.
2022 could not be a more important year for Lamar Jackson, who has yet to sign a contract extension and continues to be doubted as an elite franchise quarterback season after season.
If none of his wideouts step up, his trusty target Mark Andrews could fill in the hole at pass-catcher and perhaps put together an even more impressive receiving season than last year.
"“I have seen your rebuttal, that they have only one potentially good wide receiver, and I will counter by saying that Mark Andrews is one of the 10 best pass catchers in the NFL, and that a 10-yard pass to a tight end is largely the same as a 10-yard pass to a wide receiver.”"
Jackson’s burgeoning relationship with Andrews remains a steady constant in Baltimore and based on the talents of those two alone, the Ravens should be able to employ a fairly efficient, above-average passing offense.
To reach the postseason and the Super Bowl, however, the team needs to see breakthroughs and career-best seasons from its offensive role players. Jackson, Andrews, and a star-studded defense just won’t cut it.