Is it time to worry?

The Baltimore Ravens played an absolute stinker of a game Monday night against the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Out of the last three contests between the two teams, this most recent one was the worst overall performance by Baltimore.

It seemed like nothing went the Ravens way the entire night. Poor play all around, bad officiating at crucial times, and questionable play-calling led to the 34–20 loss.

Many people are going to point the finger at QB Lamar Jackson, who went 15/28 for 97 yards with 1 TD. It may be Jackson’s worst regular season performance to date. I believe even Jackson would agree with that synopsis.

However, it also does not help the overall team effort when it seems like the Ravens’ receivers all collectively forget how to catch a football. The five drops on the night by the Ravens are the most in the Jackson-era.

With this loss, the narrative that has been created that the Ravens cannot win big games is being pushed even more. Many people point to the playoff losses against the Chargers and Titans and now the 0–3 record against Kansas City since Mahomes and Jackson took over as starters for their respective teams.

I disagree with this notion and I will point to four specific games from last season.

Week 7: Seattle Seahawks (5–1) vs. Baltimore Ravens (4–2)

CenturyLink Field: One of the hardest places in the NFL to win. In steps Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. Jackson, who goes 9/20 with 143 yards and 1 rushing TD, does not have the best game passing but does just enough with his legs to help carry the offense. He is complimented with a great defensive performance, highlighted by two touchdowns from Marlon Humphrey and newly-acquired Marcus Peters. Overall, this was a great team performance against a very good Seahawks team in a tough place to play.

Week 9: New England Patriots (8–0) vs. Baltimore Ravens (6–2)

If beating the last undefeated team in a season on national television is not a big win, I don’t know what is. Jackson was a much better passer in this game, going 17/23 with 163 yards and 1 TD. This was the second straight week where Marlon Humphrey scored a touchdown as well. The Ravens ended up winning this game 37–20, sparking the MVP talk that followed Jackson the rest of the season.

Week 13: San Francisco 49ers (10–1) vs. Baltimore Ravens (9–2)

The game that essentially won home field advantage for the Ravens as the playoffs came closer. Another good overall team effort, despite a rare fumble from Jackson, led to a win in the final seconds against the eventual NFC Champions.

Week 14: Buffalo Bills (9–3) vs. Baltimore Ravens (10–2)

Like CenturyLink Field, New Era Field in Orchard Park is another rough stadium for visiting teams to play in. Behind a solid throwing day from Jackson that saw him go 16/25 with 145 yards and 3 TD’s, Baltimore’s defense made a late stop on a 4th down to seal victory in one of the closer matches the Ravens faced all year long.

While I do not think the problem with the Ravens is that they struggle in big games, I do think they have a Chiefs problem. I mean, every team in the NFL seems to have a Chiefs problem right now. Patrick Mahomes is a once-in-a-lifetime player and Andy Reid finally has the team that allowed him to shed any negative label that was associated with him before last season. Also, Eric Bieniemy deserves a head coaching spot and it is a travesty he is still just a coordinator.

For a team as talented as the Ravens, the Chiefs are just in another stratosphere right now. We are watching the next dynasty play out in the NFL. That does not make the Ravens failures in any aspect. However, it does leave doubt about whether or not they can slay the dragon and make it to the Super Bowl before some key guys need to get paid and a potential Super Bowl-winning core is broken up and re-worked.

In the 2012–13 season, the Ravens had to get through the last generation’s top AFC QB’s in Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. The result is that they won the Super Bowl, despite a power outage’s best efforts to change that.

Until the Ravens get past Mahomes and the Chiefs or make it in a year where an act of God somehow stops Kansas City, it will be hard for this team to win the Super Bowl.

This should not all fall on Lamar Jackson either. It is a game-to-game basis in the NFL of who to blame for losses but the ability to not come back in games should not fall squarely on him. I will criticize Jackson though for feeling that he has to overcompensate when the team gets down by making insane plays when all he needs to do is play his style of football which has led to a 21–4 record as a starter in the NFL.

Do you know who did not win a postseason game until his fourth career playoff game in his sixth season? Peyton Manning.

Hell, Joe Flacco did not throw his second career postseason touchdown until his sixth playoff game. He also did not have a completion percentage over 60% in the playoffs until that sixth game as well. He eventually matured and helped lead the team to a win in the Super Bowl in his fifth year as a pro; sooner than even Manning when he won his first.

Yes, Lamar Jackson has a Heisman Trophy and an NFL MVP award but he should be allowed to fail without his entire future being questioned. I do not know if he can play 17 years like Peyton Manning or even 13 years like Joe Flacco has to this point but we should find out along the way, not make the assumption after every loss.

Is it time to worry in Baltimore? No. Ravens fans should recognize though that the team will play second fiddle to the Chiefs in the AFC until they can beat them.

It only takes one game to change a narrative; just ask “perennial choker” Andy Reid and how that label was shed this past February.

Related posts:

Health Practitioners in a Crisis of Disconnection Helper burnout creates disconnection of all kinds. As therapists (or other healthcare professionals), this kind of fatigue isolates us from our…

Proofreading is often overlooked or given too little importance in the writing process. But way too often marks are lost on mistakes that could have been avoided with more careful proofreading. To…

Every year new mothers take their own lives because motherhood is nothing like they were promised. Although postpartum depression and anxiety is more openly discussed lately, there are still many…