Ravens Soar, Establish Super Bowl Contender Status
After defeating the San Francisco 49ers, the Baltimore Ravens undoubtedly won the title of Super Bowl favorite. At an NFL-best 12-3, the Ravens clearly look like the best team in the NFL with two weeks left in the regular season.
This team showed itself in the best light on Monday Night Football with a 33-19 victory over the 49ers, who were previously considered by many to be the best team in the NFL. The Ravens stopped former MVP favorite Brock Purdy four times and sacked the 49ers quarterbacks a total of four times.
The 49ers’ offense, usually one of the best, hurt the Ravens’ shoddy pass defense. That pass defense was led by safety Kyle Hamilton, who had two interceptions for the Ravens. The first interception cost the 49ers a score and caused Purdy to lose accuracy for the night.
The Ravens defense is stacked across the line with Hamilton and Marcus Williams at safeties, linebackers Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen and cornerbacks Brandon Stephens and Marlon Humphrey. Their defense ranks first in the NFL in both sacks and tackles as defensive coordinator Mike McDonald consistently confuses opposing quarterbacks. Offensively, Baltimore is led by MVP candidate Lamar Jackson.
Jackson regularly leads his team in both passing and rushing yards while making some amazing plays. That included a 30-yard scramble through the 49ers defense on third-and-long that led to a field goal. The Ravens also have arguably the best receiving group as Jackson has taken over with Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and Odell Beckham Jr.
Their offensive skills are lacking in part due to injuries and running back J.K. Dobbins, Keaton Mitchell and tight end Mark Andrews probably for the rest of the year. However, Baltimore has a lot of weapons and a quarterback who can create even when his receivers can’t separate.
Besides Ravensand#039; talent, there are no teams in the NFL that look compelling. In the AFC, all teams have significant weaknesses. The Kansas City Chiefs look a far cry from the Super Bowl champions of a year ago, losing three of their last four games. Behind them, the Jaguars currently lead the AFC South but have lost four straight, including a week ago to the Ravens on Sunday Night Football. The Dolphins have trouble beating winning teams, even though they beat the Dallas Cowboys just this week.
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