5 bold predictions for Baltimore Ravens in the second half of 2023 season

2. The Baltimore Ravens defense will come back to earth a bit 

The Baltimore Ravens defense has been electric. You cannot make many knocks against it other than the reality that they have not had a signature performance yet this year. It is fair to say that they did well against CJ Stroud and Joe Burrow. However, Stroud was making his first start, and the Texans' offensive line was a mess. For Joe Burrow, he was injured, and the Bengals did have 24 points. 

They shut down prolific offenses like Seattle and Detroit, but they are led by Jared Goff and Geno Smith, who we know come up short. The rest of the teams have been Gardner Minshew, Kenny Pickett, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Ryan Tannehill until Malik Willis came in, and Joshua Dobbs. They feasted on some backups. 

The defense is for real, but they will be tested more in the second half than the first. Deshaun Watson will be one of the worst quarterbacks they face in the next couple of months. This is the real test against a healthy Joe Burrow, and then they get Justin Herbert.

Trevor Lawrence, plus two of the best run offenses in the NFL with the 49ers and Dolphins loom. If they can play well in the five games against the 49ers, Dolphins, Jaguars, Chargers, and Bengals, then this is an all-time defense. They may fall off a little bit.