The (8 – 0) New England Patriots will travel to Baltimore to play the (5 – 2) Baltimore Ravens on sunday night. The Patriots will be coming into Baltimore with their defense playing probably as best ever under Belichick. However, they have yet to play against an offense who is better than 19th in the league. Both teams are in need of a statement game to justify their talents, and this is the one.
The Ravens are coming into week 9 fresh off a bye week following a really good win in Seattle. The Ravens have the number 2 total offense, which is mainly reliant of its run game as the Ravens are ranked 18th in the passing game. This offense can truly test how legendary this Patriots defense is. Up to this point, the Patriots defense has only allowed an average of 85 rushing yards per game. The Ravens average over 200 rushing yards per game, which is best in the league by a healthy margin. To sum up, something must give.
Impact Going Forward
New England’s schedule gets much more difficult after the midway point starting this sunday night. Their opponents combined overall record during their first 8 games is 15 – 43 — they went against the 1-6Jets twice. In the back half, the combined record is 28 – 29. That is mostly due to playing the Dolphins and Bengals, who both have no wins. In addition, 4 of their final 8 games are against teams who have a top 8 rushing attack. If New England can go to Baltimore and come out with a major win, this will prove their true dominance and gives them that much of an edge going forward.
For the Ravens, a win sunday night has a much greater effect. So far, outside an overtime win against a Steelers team with their third QB, they have yet to play against a top 20 overall defense. Excluding Pittsburgh, their opponents average ranking in total defense is 27th. This will prove to the league that the Ravens aren’t papering the cracks and have a real offensive force.
MVP Moment for Lamar
This is a bigger statement game for Lamar than anyone else. How Lamar Jackson plays sunday night can really help or hurt his MVP campaign. When Lamar played against his toughest defense this season, Pittsburgh, he threw a season high 3 interceptions and ended the game with a 54% passer rating. Furthermore, the Patriots have a league high 19 interceptions so far this season. It is very crucial that Lamar relies on his legs over his arm this game.
However, he can throw away his poor performance against Pittsburg with a huge performance against New England. If his run game develops early on, this will allow him to open up the Ravens passing attack. Over the last 6 games, Lamar Jackson has averaged 95 yards rushing per game. Over the past 8 weeks, only 2 players have rushed over 70 yards against this Patriot defense.
Having a monster game during a statement game for Jackson should elevate him to MVP frontrunner. Especially against this defense.
Key Factor
The 2019 Patriot offense is the worst offense New England has seen since 2003. They are currently sitting at 16th overall, which is heavily based on their passing game. Their rushing attack ranks among the bottom third of the league. Tom Brady and the Patriots passing offense will be the gamebreaker as Baltimore averages over 265 passing yards per game, which is in the bottom quarter of the league.
However, Lamar has a generational running attack that cannot be simulated in preparation. Once the hype of the game wears off, i’m eager to see which Lamar shows up.
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