Baltimore Beatdown
The Baltimore Ravens will look to carry the momentum from their win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday into a Thursday night showdown with the Miami Dolphins. The staff of Baltimore Beatdown gives their bold predictions for the AFC contest.
The Ravens offense gets a massive boost with Lamar Jackson returning under center, even if he has to knock off some rust in his first game back in over a month. In the spirit of Halloween, Jackson carves up the Dolphins secondary like a Jack o’ Lantern. Zay Flowers shows out in his first game in Miami, going over 100 yards and scoring for the first time since Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills. Derrick Henry continues to pick up steam on the ground as he eclipses 100 yards for the second time in the past three games while adding another touchdown.
Rookie Mike Green got his long-awaited first sack last Sunday against Caleb Williams, and fellow rookie Malaki Starks gets his first interception this Thursday against Tua Tagovailoa. Kyle Hamilton wrecks shop up front, notching a pair of sacks on well-timed blitzes. Baltimore improves to 3-5 with a 27-23 win. – Dustin Cox
De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle test Baltimore’s defense and succeed in the passing game, but not enough to overcome the Ravens’ rushing attack, headlined by a 100+ yard Derrick Henry performance. Lamar Jackson looks healthy and plays a clean game. Ravens win 31-14. – Mark Myers
The Ravens score a defensive touchdown.
It’s been a tumultuous start to the season for a defense with high expectations, but since moving safety Kyle Hamilton closer to the line of scrimmage, the unit has temporarily stopped the bleeding. While the Ravens still have major issues generating pass rush, Zach Orr has put together some nice pressure packages to rattle opposing QBs. On Thursday, Hamilton will come up with a strip sack on Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, which the Ravens will run back for a touchdown. – Stephen Bopst
The Ravens snapped their losing streak last week, but so did the Dolphins. Their performance against Kirk Cousins was less impressive than their offensive output against a top-ranked Falcons defense. That is why Baltimore will still have some issues in Miami. Mike McDaniels will be more prepared for Nate Wiggins to follow Jaylen Waddle and will design some plays for him and De’Von Achane that produce a few explosives in the first half. The Ravens will give up one long touchdown but otherwise hang tough in the red zone for most of the game before Malaki Starks gets his first interception off an errant throw from Tua Tagovailoa. Jackson’s return only adds to the positive steps Baltimore’s offense took last week, and he tears through a weak Miami secondary for over 300 yards and three touchdowns through the air. Derrick Henry eclipses 100 rushing yards once again, but Keaton Mitchell is the one who breaks off a long score this week. 31-20 Ravens. – Nikhil Mehta
---...
