4 reasons why Ravens can make a Super Bowl run and 4 potential flaws

This year’s team is more than capable of going all the way but also have some flaws that could prove to be fatal.

The Baltimore Ravens making the playoffs is a foregone conclusion. With a favorable schedule for the final four games of the regular season, they still have a strong chance to catch the Pittsburgh Steelers and repeat as AFC North champions.

While just making it to the postseason and winning a division title would quantify a successful season for the vast majority of teams in the NFL, anything short of at least a Super Bowl appearance would be a major letdown for the Ravens this year.

After making it to their first AFC championship in over a decade last season as the No. 1 seed, expectations heading into this year were high in the eyes of some and not as high for others following the exodus of several key veteran players on both sides of the ball and a massive brain drain from many believed was the best coaching staff in the league.

Nevertheless, the Ravens are among the handful of teams who realistically have a shot at going all the way this year for some key reasons but also have some flaws that could prove fatal in their pursuit of the third Super Bowl title franchise history if they persist.

Reasons why they can

Lamar Jackson: The Ravens are blessed to have one of the best quarterbacks in the league as the face of their franchise. Anytime he touches the field, they have a chance to win. Unlike the Philadelphia Eagles or Detroit Lions who don’t have quarterback-centric offense, it is a rare feat when the Ravens win a game where Jackson isn’t the focal point or significant catalyst to their victory.

Derrick Henry: The Ravens have had a dominant rushing attack ever since inserting Jackson as the starting quarterback midway through his rookie season but they haven’t had an elite game-changing running back since Ray Rice’s heyday over a decade ago. The addition of the four-time Pro Bowler and two-time league rushing champion has taken a lot of the burden in the ground game off of the Ravens quarterback and gives them no excuses not to stay committed to the running game even when they fall behind.

Defensive improvement: While the Ravens’ defense has been one of the stingiest units against the run all season, their pass defense ranked dead-last in the league through the first 10 weeks. They were allowing 20-plus-yard plays through the air at a high clip and were giving up an average of nearly 300 passing yards a game during that span.

Over the last three games since making some personnel changes, they’ve allowed an average of just 280 yards of total offense altogether and just 165 passing yards per game. First-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr’s unit appears to have finally turned a corner toward stability and now the next step needs to be playmaking ability when it comes to generating more turnovers.

Battled-tested teams prevail more often than not: Pundits and prognosticators love to hype up and predict that the hottest teams with the most wins during the regular season will go all the way and make it to the Super Bowl. However, as the Ravens know all too well, compiling the best record from September to December doesn’t always translate or lead to the same level of success come January during the playoffs.

The teams that don’t peak too early, get hot at the right time and experience and overcome adversity over the course of the season are the ones who are built to succeed in the postseason because they’re battle-tested and often get overlooked by the media and their opponents alike. Last season the Ravens were in cruise control heading into the playoffs after being the hottest team in the league during the second half of the year. They clinched the NFL’s best record and home-field advantage as the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a week left to play. In a recent appearance on the Punchline Podcast, Hamilton expressed why he believes this year’s Ravens are still a Super Bowl contender despite not having the best record and having yet to consistently play a complete game in all three phases this season.

“Although out record may show we have five losses and I’m not going to make excuses for that,” Hamilton said. “I still do think we have a good chance to win the Super Bowl. That’s our goal obviously. I feel like vibe wise, it’s a different vibe this year because we didn’t really face too much adversity last year. We were just rolling from the jump so I think we’ll be better for that.”

Potential fatal flaws

Offensive line: The Ravens moved on from three starters on their starting blocking unit in the offseason and after some early season struggles, this year’s much-maligned revamped bunch has come a long way. While their improvement has been impressive and they have even proved to be a strength at times against mediocre-to-above-average defensive fronts, against some of the better front sevens in the league, they’ve gotten exposed and taken advantage of which has led to some of their losses. While they’ve given up the third-fewest sacks (19), the fourth-lowest sack percentage (4%) and second-lowest pressure-to-sack percentage (13%), their pressure percentage is the seventh-highest (34%) which is more of a direct reflection how Jackson is able to avoid sacks with his electric elusiveness.

Special teams: After being an overwhelming strength and the gold standard in the league for more than a decade, the Ravens’ third phase of the game has been inconsistent and even a liability at times this season and not just at placekicker. As if it weren’t bad enough future Hall of Famer Justin Tucker is having a nightmare season from hell with a career-high and league-leading 10 missed kicks between point after attempts and ties from short and long range, they’ve also struggled to field punts, decisions to return kickoffs and the occasional untimely shanks from punter Jordan Stout. In the playoffs, giving up field position and missing out on scoring opportunities could cost a team dearly in close games and by shifting momentum and keeping their opponent in the game.

Deviating from the winning formula on offense: Despite being one of the dominant and punishing rushing attacks in the league, offensive coordinator Todd Monken has strayed away from their overwhelming strength at times when games get tight even when they’re only trailing by less than a touchdown with plenty of time left in the game. While they are balanced on paper, there are times in his play-sequencing where they get too pass-happy and lack balance even when the run game is working.

There are also times when Jackson waits too long for routes to develop downfield and elects to not take and scramble or waits too long and absorbs ill-advised sacks or throws the ball away instead of using his God-given ability to pick up positive yardage and then some. Both tendencies have contributed to the offense getting derailed or starting slow early in games as well as coming up short late, neither of which can’t continue down the stretch and in the postseason.

Penalties: Though they were called for the second-fewest penalties in a game of the season and last week with just four accepted flags for 20 yards, the Ravens remain the most penalized team in the league through 14 weeks, ranking first in both call (105) and yards against (885). In the playoffs, being undisciplined in tight games gives the opposing team an edge within the margins which could prove costly in the end, another lesson the Ravens can take from their shortcoming in last year’s conference title appearance.