After beating the Cincinnati Bengals in Cincinnati, the Baltimore Ravens are in a great spot to make a run for the playoffs. The season is very early, but they now have a win over their division rivals and a two-game lead.
Beyond that, the Ravens look like a team that could be surging toward a playoff run. What are the reasons to believe in this team?
3. The Baltimore Ravens have plenty of depth
The one area of concern in recent years has been injuries. They deplete the team, and they take them from a hot start to a sputtering finish. Despite injuries coming again this season, it feels different this year. They just beat the Bengals without J.K. Dobbins, Ronnie Stanley, Tyler Linderbaum, Marlon Humphrey, and Marcus Williams. That is because this team is deeper than ever before.
Justice Hill has earned the respect of Todd Monken in ways that he could not for Greg Roman. He looked sharp in a duo with Gus Edwards. Patrick Mekari seems to have found a place as a solid backup tackle. His experience last season made this season's transition easy.
Sam Mustipher is not Linderbaum, but he is a center with over 2,000 career snaps at the position, They could worse in a tough spot.
We saw the value of Geno Stone in this game. Besides a game-changing interception that we would expect from Marcus Williams, Stone was all over the field making tackles. Lastly, the Ravens' cornerbacks are not high-end talents, but they are deep.
The team shuffled Rock Ya-Sin into the mix more than the previous week, and he made a key pass breakup on Ja'Marr Chase. Meanwhile, Brandon Stephens has been the cornerback who plays every snap, and Ronald Darby has been their best cornerback, although they have maintained his health by pulling him for Ya-Sin here and there.
Even at other positions, this roster is deep. Nelson Agholor is better than any receiver they had late into the season last year, and he is the number four right now. Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar are backups with potential. Malik Harrison is depth at linebacker; they have Travis Jones and Brent Urban along the defensive line.
The Ravens have been able to withstand this injuries with depth. This could go a long way.
2. The Baltimore Ravens could get healthier
Beyond the reality that the Baltimore Ravens have a heap of serious injuries is the reality that they could end up getting healthier. No, J.K. Dobbins is not coming back, but the rest of the group is not expected to be out for the season. Marcus Williams is supposed to have the most serious injury, but he was not placed on the IR.
Marlon Humphrey has not practiced, so he may not play in week three, but he certainly could be back by week four. Ronnie Stanley and Tyler Linderbaum are week-to-week, which is ominous, but it does entail them coming back this season.
The Baltimore Ravens winning this game and getting off to a 2-0 start goes a long way. The team cannot take their foot off of the gas, but it does take the need to push any of these players back into the mix-off. In a perfect world, these players get the adequate time needed to heal and are able to come back healthy with the team in good playoff standing.
If the Ravens get Humphrey back in two weeks, then over the next two months, they get Linderbaum, Stanley, and Williams back, it could lead to them peaking at the right time.
1. The Baltimore Ravens offense should only improve
The Baltimore Ravens offense has scored 25 points in both of their games this season. Still, in both games there was a growing sense that there is a lot more that can be made from this unit. We still have to remember that this is the second game that Lamar Jackson and Todd Monken have worked together.
Beyond that, Zay Flowers is a rookie, Rashod Bateman has not been healthy much, and Odell Beckham and Nelson Agholor are new. This offense is not going to come out firing immediately. However, 27 points on the Bengals defense that was feared at times last season is something to gain momentum off of.
Todd Monken should get more comfortable, not only with Jackson but the rest of the personnel on the roster. As this happens, the offense will naturally open up more. If this is the worst of the offense, and the best is yet to come, the ceiling remains sky-high.