The Baltimore Ravens welcomed the Washington Commanders to M&T Bank stadium on Sunday as the Commanders made the short drive north in the battle of the beltway. This game was the talk all week nationally as Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels has taken the league by storm and has firmly commentated his place as the rookie of the year through the first five weeks.
Daniels has been compared to his opponent fellow quarterback Lamar Jackson with his unique ability to both run and pass, but it would be Jackson that would be the star on Sunday and show why he is one-of-one.
The Ravens wasted little time in getting themselves in scoring position on the games opening possession. The Ravens worked into the red zone before a Lamar Jackson pass went through tight end Mark Andrews hands into the hand of Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil. Sainristil would return the interception into Ravens territory.
Despite the good field position the Ravens defense would hold forcing the Commanders to make a 42-yard field goal as the Ravens trailed 3-0 with just over nine minutes left in the first quarter.
The Ravens would answer with a Justin Tucker 45-yard field goal of their own on their next possession to tie the game at three. The game would remain deadlocked at three until 7:55 to play in the second quarter when Henry found the end zone for his first of two on the day as the Ravens took their first lead of the day 10-3.
Daniels and the Commanders would answer right back however going on an eight-play 70-yard drive capped off by a Terry McLaurin seven-yard touchdown catch. But much was the theme of the game Jackson would rally the Ravens offense and answer right back. With just under a minute to play in the first half tight end Mark Andrews made up for his earlier drop that led to an interception by scoring his touchdown of the season, a 13-yard reception from Jackson to once again give the Ravens the lead.
A poor ending to the half by the Ravens defense nearly shrunk their lead as the Commanders offense was able to work down into field goal range with just five seconds to play in the half. But reserve offensive lineman Ben Cleveland would not be denied as he got his hands up deflecting the kick and keeping the Ravens ahead 17-10 heading into the half.
The two teams would trade field goals on their opening offensive possessions of the second half, before an eight-play 94-yard drive by the Ravens as running back Derrick Henry would find the end zone again, his eighth rushing touchdown on the year.
The Commanders would again answer back with a 12-play, 70-yard touchdown drive as Daniels would again find McLaurin for the six-yard catch and score, despite good coverage by Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens.
A Justin Tucker 39-yard field goal with 6:18 left to play would extend the Ravens lead to 10, but a Austin Seibert 49-yard field goal would again draw the Commanders back within a touchdown. With just 2;48 left to play and the Commanders with only two timeouts, the Ravens would need just two first downs to seal the victory.
A Henry 27-yard rush on second down would all but seal the victory as the Commanders were forced to use their last timeout, giving the Ravens the 30-23 victory, their fourth straight win, and moving them to 4-2 on the year.
Offensively for the Ravens it was another dominate performance so much so that despite just the seven point victory it felt as though the game was never in doubt. Jackson threw for over 300 yards for the second straight week while running back Derrick Henry eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the third time this season and second time in three weeks. The only real blemishes on the day were the one interception by Jackson as well as the one bad snap by center Tyler Linderbaum, which hopefully does not become a lingering trend as this is now the second straight week with bad snaps by the third-year center.
The defense while better than just one week ago against the Bengals still struggled in pass coverage. The Ravens secondary not only allowed 269 yards through the air, but often left Commanders receivers wide open. The difference in the game despite the secondary’s struggles was the ability to get off the field on third down as the Commanders went 4-12 on third downs. While also making the Commanders largely one dimensional as the Ravens defense allowed just 52 rushing yards.
The Ravens will now get an extra day to prepare as they will travel to Tampa Bay to take on the 4-2 Buccaneers.
Games Notes:
Wide receiver Zay Flowers nine first half receptions was the most receptions in a half by a Ravens in franchise history.
Tight end Mark Andrews is now tied with Todd Heap for most receiving touchdowns in franchise history (41).
The Ravens are the only team in NFL history to out rush their opponents by at least 100 yards in their first six games.
Running back Derrick Henry has become the first player since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2005 to rush for a touchdown in each of his first six games.
Cornerback Marlon Humphrey led all Ravens with nine total tackles.
The post Henry, Jackson Shine as Ravens Defeat Commanders appeared first on Marylandsportsblog.com.