Two weeks into the 2025 NFL season, the Baltimore Ravens are once again showcasing the league’s best offense. It has been another slow start for the defense, but after a dominant Week 2 win over the Cleveland Browns, the unit is gaining momentum entering the toughest stretch of their season.
While everyone knows about the amount of talent in Baltimore’s secondary, their ferocious defensive line is starting to reveal itself as one of the best position groups on the team. Defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike is well on his way to his third consecutive Pro Bowl, Aeneas Peebles is having a great start to his rookie campaign, and Travis Jones is truly taking off this year.
For Jones, just two games into the season, he is already joining elite company among the league’s best interior defensive linemen. In his fourth season, the 25-year-old is excelling against the run like usual, but he has already cemented himself as a top-tier run defender this year. He is also providing some pressure on passing downs.
Pressures x Run Stops for DTs through week 2
— Stat Acccount (@AcccountStat) September 16, 2025
- Sacks = 2 pressures pic.twitter.com/Qk2JaeTRNN
On the chart, Jones is surrounded by the likes of Vita Vea, Chris Jones, and Derrick Brown. That is some excellent territory to be in, and he is just getting started.
Travis Jones ascending rapidly into elite territory in 2025
Going into Week 3, Jones is playing lights out. He was crucial in stopping Buffalo Bills’ running back James Cook in Week 1, holding him to just 44 yards on 13 carries. In Week 2, the Browns found success on the ground, but Jones held his own against one of the best interior offensive lines in football.
So far, Jones ranks as the 12th-best defensive lineman, per Pro Football Focus, registering a 76.8 overall grade. In terms of run defense, he ranks third with an 81.9 grade, just behind Buffalo’s Ed Oliver and the New York Jets’ Quinnen Williams.
In Week 3 against the Detroit Lions, Jones and the Baltimore defense will be matched up with another electric rushing attack. While the Lions rank just 15th in total rushing yards with 223, Detroit’s duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery is far and away the NFL’s best.
Montgomery is an aggressive back who will pound the rock between the tackles, and Gibbs is one of the best at creating open lanes for himself with his speed and elusiveness. They are borderline unstoppable. Jones and company should be up for the task, though.