Ravens News 10/20: Stock Watch and more

NFL Week 6 grades: Browns get a ‘D-’ for blowout loss to Steelers, Packers get an ‘F’ for ugly performance - John Breech

Baltimore 30-28 over Philadelphia

Ravens B

The Ravens are humming along at 5-1, but something is off with their MVP quarterback. Lamar Jackson isn’t throwing the football as accurately as he did last season — especially over the past two weeks. The Eagles limited Jackson through the air, taking away the deep pass and the big play as the Ravens quarterback didn’t win the game with his arm. Jackson’s 37-yard touchdown run was the difference in this one, as he had his first 100-yard rushing performance of the season. The Ravens are going to need Jackson to throw the football close to his form last year if they are going to win the AFC. The defense is arguably the best in the league, recording three forced fumbles, 16 quarterback hits, and six sacks — making Philadelphia’s offense hectic early in this one. That ended up being the difference as the Eagles faced a deficit nearly impossible to overcome.

Baltimore Ravens rewind: Stock watch after win over Eagles, Lamar Jackson’s sidearm throws and more - Aaron Kasinitz

WR Devin Duvernay: Stock up

Duvernay’s role in the offense continues to expand at a gradual pace. After he amassed a career-high three receptions for 31 yards and returned a kickoff 37 yards Sunday, the Ravens might want to think about speeding that process up and giving the third-round rookie the ball even more in weeks to come.

OT Ronnie Stanley: Stock down

A reigning first-team All-Pro hoping to earn one of the NFL’s most lucrative contracts, Stanley committed four penalties against the Eagles: an illegal block above the waist, a false start and two illegal alignments. The miscues piled too high to ignore for one of the league’s best blockers.

DEFENSIVE NOTES WEEK 6 BALTIMORE RAVENS @ PHILADELPHIA EAGLES - Ken McKusick

Linebackers

Tyus Bowser (32 snaps) had a quiet day on the stat sheet, in part because he was only on the field for 3 runs. He beat RT Driscoll to blow up Wentz’s boot right which resulted in McPhee’s sack (Q2, 14:53). He had a cleanup QH of his own (Q2, 2:00), a fast QH by stunt (Q4, 4:38), and set up Campbell’s stunt flush of Wentz with an underneath move to cross the face of RT Brent Toth (Q4, 4:35). He dropped 11 times from the LoS to cover.

Matthew Judon (48 snaps) contributed 3 QHs and the game-winning tackle of Wentz on the final 2-point try (Q4, 1:55). He was deployed off the LoS and blitzed on 3 occasions.

Pernell McPhee (37 snaps) had another outstanding game. See “Star Treatment” below.

Patrick Queen (56 snaps) made just 2 tackles, but flashed with 2 fast QHs (Q2, 0:16; Q4, 4:45), excellent coverage of RB Scott in the back of the end zone (Q4, 14:32), and a hold drawn on LG Nate Herbig (Q4, 5:20). His PD (Q4, 14:35) could have sealed the game had he been able to secure the interception. He missed a tackle 13 yards past the LoS on Wentz’s 40-yard scramble right (Q4, 5:55). We’ve seen some of the peaks possible as a run defender and pass rusher, so it’s nice to see some positive coverage examples to help round out his play.

What the Eagles Said After Ravens’ Win - Ryan Mink

C Jason Kelce

(on the matchup problems presented by Calais Campbell)

“He’s a good player. Calais is a perennial Pro Bowler. He is a really great player. He is going up against a guy [Eagles G Jamon Brown] who has been here for a few weeks and trying to learn everything and we are trying to build that chemistry. I think that he did a good job of going in there and battling. Then, the other hard part about it is that they blitz so much. It is not like you are playing some weeks where you can apply help. When they are blitzing zero and sending guys all over the place, you really have to honor the numbers which lead to a lot of 1-on-1 matchups, which when you have a really good player, you try and not to leave him 1-on-1 as much as we had to with Calais.”

DE Brandon Graham

(on the most difficult part of defending QB Lamar Jackson)

“His speed. He’s a great quarterback and we know that he’s fast and you got to make sure that you stay in coverage with him. Let him go, let him run, [and] get those little yards. Just make sure that he doesn’t get – because he’s an accurate thrower on the run – make sure he doesn’t get those open receivers based off of him just running to the sideline to create different things. I think that’s the biggest thing, just trying to contain him.”

NFL Week 6 numbers to know: Browns’ drought in Pittsburgh continues, Ravens near scoring record and more - Kevin Bollard

29

After beating the Philadelphia Eagles 30-22 on Sunday, the Baltimore Ravens have now scored at least 20 points in 29 straight regular-season games. This streak dates back to the moment Baltimore made the switch at quarterback from Joe Flacco to Lamar Jackson halfway through the 2018 season. It is also one game shy of the NFL record set by Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos from 2012-2014. For those who insist on pointing out Jackson’s postseason record at this point, remember that the Broncos were also one-and-done in the playoffs twice during this stretch.

There are some legitimate criticisms of Jackson’s passing game. His completion percentage (63.0), average yards per pass attempt (7.0) and passer rating (99.2) are all down significantly from his MVP season a year ago. He does leave some plays on the field due to inaccurate throws, particularly on intermediate and deep attempts. Despite all this, Baltimore’s offense has not slowed down a bit. Against the Eagles, Jackson provided a reminder of the damage he can do with his legs, as he rushed for a season-high 108 yards and a touchdown on nine attempts. Nitpick his game all you want; NFL defenses haven’t been able to hold the Ravens under 20 points since he became the starter.