Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots’ win streak is over, now the task at hand is to start a new one. The first opportunity to do so comes on Sunday night against a Baltimore Ravens team fighting for its playoff life.
While this is not an elimination game for Baltimore yet, a loss to the Patriots would severely hurt the team’s chances of returning to the postseason for a fourth year in a row. Needless to say that the prime time battle will be a challenge for the visitors, whose own advantage in the AFC East is down to a single game now.
With all that said, let’s get to know the Patriots’ Week 16 opponent.
Through 15 weeks, there might not be a more mediocre team than the Ravens. They are an even 7-7 so far, while statistically hovering round the middle of the pack with few true outliers in either direction.
Record: 7-7 (2nd AFC North/9th AFC)
Scoring differential: +15 (16th)
Turnover differential: -4 (t-21st)
Offense: 23.9 points/game (14th), 324.6 yards/game (20th), 20 giveaways (t-25th), -0.001 EPA/play (19th), -0.007 EPA/dropback (24th), 0.006 EPA/run (6th)
Defense: 22.9 points/game (15th), 344.4 yards/game (23rd), 16 takeaways (18th), 0.006 EPA/play (14th), 0.064 EPA/dropback (17th), -0.095 EPA/run (12th)
The Ravens might be a statistically unremarkable team overall, but two numbers on the offensive side of the ball still stand out. The first is takeaways, which have been a problem for Baltimore this year: they have thrown 10 interceptions while also losing 10 fumbles. For a Patriots team that has struggled to consistently take the ball away this year, there might be opportunities to do so and add to their 21st-ranked tally of 14 so far.
The other number worth highlighting, meanwhile, is a concerning one. The Ravens are ranked as the sixth-best team in the NFL in terms of expected points added per run. Ranked 12th in the league in rushing attempts (394), they are third in yards (2,047) and seventh in touchdowns (16) on the ground. Their yards-per-carry number (5.2),meanwhile, tops the league after 15 games. Given New England’s recent woes stopping the run, that could become an issue.
For Baltimore, the 2025 season so far has been one of two halves. The first saw the team struggle to play winning football on a consistent basis, in part because of quarterback Lamar Jackson missing time with a hamstring injury. Following their bye, however, the Ravens won five in a row to get themselves back into the playoff mix.
Week 1: 41-40 loss at Buffalo Bills (0-1)
Week 2: 41-17 win vs. Cleveland Browns (1-1)
Week 3: 38-30 loss vs. Detroit Lions (1-2)
Week 4: 37-20 loss at Kansas City Chiefs (1-3)
Week 5: 44-10 loss vs. Houston Texans (1-4)
Week 6: 17-3 loss vs. Los Angeles Rams (1-5)
Week 7: Bye
Week 8: 30-16 win vs. Chicago Bears (2-5)
Week 9: 28-6 win at Miami Dolphins (3-5)
Week 10: 27-19 win at Minnesota Vikings (4-5)
**Week...
