Ravens suffer stunning loss to Jaguars in Week 12

The Baltimore Ravens were just handed their worst defeat of the season, falling 28-27 to the Jacksonville Jaguars in a Week 12 thriller.

Yet it was a thriller for all the wrong reasons. The Ravens’ offense didn’t pick up until late in the fourth quarter, and by that time, it was too late. Baltimore thought they could sneak away with a win riding on Justin Tucker’s incredible automatic leg, yet even Tucker misses sometimes, especially when it’s a game-ending 67-yard attempt.

Where did Baltimore go wrong? Everywhere, really.

The Ravens’ offensive issues from Week 11 have seeped into Week 12 as Baltimore yet again had to settle for field goal after field goal.

The issues started on the Ravens’ very first drive as Lamar Jackson drove down the field for 65 yards, but after a few incomplete passes and a sloppy delay of game penalty, the Ravens had to settle for a 27-yard field goal.

Baltimore would fail to score a touchdown for the next three quarters; they had to settle for three more field goals, all of which were easy points thanks to Justin Tucker’s automatic leg.

Those missed points nonetheless came back to bite the Ravens in the rear as Baltimore trailed Jacksonville in the fourth quarter 19-17, the first time they’ve trailed in the fourth quarter this season.

Then Jackson did this:

Josh Oliver, the former Jaguar, had a nifty touchdown run to finish the drive, and Mark Andrews seemingly delivered the nail in the coffin with the successful two-point conversion catch. A one touchdown lead with two minutes to go in the game should be good enough to win, yes?

Not quite.

Ravens avoid fiasco with late offensive surge in Week 12 vs. Jacksonville

Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence buoyed his squad with a touchdown almost immediately after, taking a little less than two minutes to tie the game. Jacksonville made the gutsy, Harbaugh-esque call to go for two, and what do you know, the Jaguars got it, and suddenly Jacksonville was winning by one.

Tucker gets a last-gasp chance to be the Ravens’ knight in shining armor with a 67-yard field goal try (only he could complete such a long distance attempt), and the ball falls several yards short. Baltimore goes home scratching their heads after this unthinkable upset.

All performances considered, the Ravens did not deserve to win this one after their ugly offensive and defensive outings.

On the offense:

Baltimore ended the first half 10-9, and the stats did, indeed, tell the story. Jackson had 88 passing yards and one lost fumble. Gus Edwards had nine rushes for 39 yards. And trusty tight end Mark Andrews had just three catches for 33 yards.

The third quarter saw more sluggish performances from the purple and black, and the team’s red-zone problems continued — Baltimore were 1-for-7 in the end zone over the last seven quarters. It was until the start of the fourth quarter that Lamar Jackson finally bullrushed it in for a touchdown.

On the defense:

A supposedly elite defense conceded 18 points in the fourth quarter alone, reminiscent of that early season collapse to the Miami Dolphins.

The Ravens entered the second half of the season believing they had one of the best defenses in the league, chockful of playmakers on every level.

Now, the question is: what exactly is the team’s strength?

Not the offense, not after Jackson missed three potential touchdown throws throughout the game, all of them relatively easy throws to boot. This goes without saying, but too many of the team’s offensive drives ended in field goals.

And not the defense, not after Marcus Peters, Marlon Humphrey, and the rest of the secondary gave up over 300 passing yards this game.

Week 12’s loss left the Ravens reeling in the wake of an all-around inferior offensive and defensive showing, and the usual suspects couldn’t save the team this time around. Jackson was inconsistent, the run game stifled, and the passing game nearly nonexistent.

The Ravens fumbled the bag big-time against a feisty Jaguars team, and this will be one game that haunts Baltimore for the rest of the 2022 season.