The Baltimore Ravens will enter their Week 11 matchup with the Carolina Panthers as the odds-on favorites for a number of reasons, one of which is probably the quarterback they will be facing.
The Ravens are officially set to square off with familiar face and old rival Baker Mayfield when the Panthers travel to M&T Bank Stadium this Sunday. On paper, that presents a more-than-favorable matchup for the Ravens.
Mayfield has been one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL when on the field this season. That was before he was benched for former XFL star P.J. Walker, of course.
Walker is now set to miss at least a couple of weeks after suffering a high-ankle sprain which will propel Mayfield back into the starting lineup.
Baker Mayfield starting is good news for the Ravens
The former first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Mayfield has struggled mightily this season after being traded to the Panthers this offseason. The hope was that a change of scenery would do wonders for Mayfield’s career, but if anything, it’s done the exact opposite.
In six games (five starts), Mayfield has completed just 56 percent of his snaps while averaging 6.5 yards per attempt. He’s thrown six touchdowns and four interceptions while also fumbling an additional six times (one lost).
Mayfield’s 51.9 Pro Football Focus grade ranks 37th among 39 qualified quarterbacks with only Mac Jones and Taylor Heinicke recording lower grades. He’s been bad — very bad.
The Panthers enter the game with the third-worst average yard total per game, much of which can be attributed to their inept passing game. This is a bad football team starting a bad quarterback on the road. There’s no reason why the Ravens shouldn’t cruise to victory.
In eight career games against the Ravens, Mayfield has gone 3-5 as a starter with 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions. There isn’t a team in the NFL that Mayfield is more familiar with, although his success rate against them isn’t exactly great.
The Ravens will look forward to this AFC North reunion in Week 11 as they look to climb to 7-3 with their fourth straight victory.