Lamar Jackson says he doesn’t like it, this overtime business, and the stress and nerves associated with games that go down to the thinnest of wires. Could’ve fooled us. Heading into Thursday night’s clash with the Miami Dolphins (8:20 p.m. ET on FOX), Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens have written the book on nail-biters, having played additional minutes in three of their eight outings and with one-point and two-point wins (the latter sealed by a Justin Tucker field goal from another dimension) piled on top. “I’m not trying to go to OT every week,” Jackson told reporters last weekend. “I would rather not be behind. I would rather step on the gas and just keep scoring.” The Ravens’ journey to an AFC North-leading 6-2 mark has sported just one big blowout, a 34-6 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, and the narrowness of their collection of victories has sparked reservations about how good they might be. That Tucker field goal was a jaw-dropper, but it needed Jackson to convert a fourth-and-19 to set it up, and if it hadn’t bumped the right way off the framework of the goal it would have handed the Detroit Lions their only win of the season. Wins against the Kansas City Chiefs, Indianapolis Colts and last Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings were high on entertainment value, but required delicate escapology from double-digit deficits. No one is going to question Baltimore’s tenacity and fortitude, but at the same time, most observers won’t proclaim them as infallible, particularly with a recent meltdown against the Cincinnati Bengals on the docket. “We don’t lay down,” Jackson added, soon after that Vikings win. “Our team, we are fighters, we believe in each other. We got faith, we just got to keep it going. Hopefully there won’t be any more overtime games. We just got to make things happen early.” The National Football League season moves along with blink-and-you’ll-miss-it rapidity. It is easy to forget that at the beginning of the campaign the Ravens were most associated with a tale of abject woe, as one key contributor after another fell victim to a wince-inducing array of serious injuries. Many of them had a direct impact on the way Jackson does business. Elite running back J.K. Dobbins sustained a torn ACL, the same condition that ruled out backup Gus Edwards for the season soon after. Reserve RB Justice Hill also saw his campaign end with an Achilles tear, while left tackle Ronnie Stanley was shut down for the year for ankle surgery and starting cornerback Marcus Peters added to the list of ACL sufferers. But the Ravens battled through it, even though the product hasn’t always looked pretty. “Ravens games this season have all the flow and rhythm of rush-hour traffic,” wrote Jonas Shaffer in the Baltimore Sun. “They’ve had to swap out a tried-and-true strategy of running teams over and running out the clock for a more improvisational tact. “The Ravens’ pole position near the NFL’s midway point might not make a lot of sense; their offense has run hot and cold and their defense has been a friend to big-play receivers everywhere.” On “Speak For Yourself,” FS1’s Marcellus Wiley insisted the skeptics are looking at the wrong thing when it comes to analyzing the Ravens and believes the tight margins of victory will put them in fine stead moving forward. “Naysayers, the way you shut them up is by winning,” Wiley said. “This team is compromised, all the injuries and they persevered through that. Also, their mental toughness, you play against Baltimore you already know you’re going to go through a slugfest. This is going to be a battle in the alley on the side. They always show up, even if they lose a game they still bring that mindset, that physicality.” The Ravens are -350 with FOX Bet to win at the 2-7 Dolphins and have narrowed to +1000 to win the Super Bowl. Jackson keeps on doing his thing and if he’s not in the running for a second career MVP award, well, not enough people are paying attention. He has more rushing yards (600) than any other QB and last week tied Michael Vick for the most 100-yard rushing games at the position in NFL history. It’s been a strange season with quirky results that seem to make little sense, though the Ravens, by embracing the madness, have been largely immune. “It’s the great thing about the NFL,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “It’s why it’s so much fun. It’s why it leaves you so many scars, because it’s just going to be unpredictable.” Here’s what others have said … Chris Broussard, FOX Sports: “Never doubt Lamar Jackson. We have to stop questioning whether or not he can throw it well enough. He may not be Mahomes or Rodgers, but he can clearly throw well enough to be an elite QB.” Colin Cowherd, The Herd: “If you still don’t get Lamar Jackson, you’re just not paying attention.” RJ Ochoa, SB Nation: “If there is a team in the NFL that can handle adversity, it’s seemingly Baltimore. I mean they find a way no matter what. When the bullets are flying, when chaos is ensuing, the Ravens seem to know how to handle it better than anybody else.” |
