Report Card: Ravens Clinch North in Inconsistent Effort

In a game where we got a little sampling of all the highs and lows that the 2024 Ravens have put on film this season, the Ravens clinched the AFC North with a resounding 35-10 win over their rival Cleveland Browns.

Wind and cold probably led to some of the passing-game deficiencies for both teams in this one, and we’ll try to take some of that into account. Let’s look at some grades.

Offense

Overall: B

The Ravens scored 28 offensive points (seven came from a pick-six), generated 437 yards of offense against a strong defense and imposed their will against the Browns in the second half. This isn’t the first game this season when the offensive line looked overwhelmed in the first half and responded with a gritty second-half performance. The injury to Zay Flowers is certainly concerning, but this is the unique Ravens team that seems to have a plethora of weapons. Still… Flowers is a big one.

Quarterback: B

I struggled with this one a little bit, as the aforementioned weather conditions certainly played a part in some of Lamar Jackson’s down-field throws. Still, even with the weather in consideration, I’m guessing there are a few he’d like to have back. The touchdown passes were each brilliant in their own way — he led Andrews to the ball on his first pass, and showed his patience int he pocket waiting for Rashod Bateman to spring open for his score. Jackson finished 16-32 for 217 yards with two touchdowns and rushed for 63. Oh, that pass he threw downfield to Andrews for a sliding catch with a defender draped all over his was a gem. He did enough to guide his team to a win.

Running Backs: A

Derrick Henry had eight yards in the first half. He had 130 and two touchdowns in the second half, when he basically closed the door on any hopes the Browns might have had for staging an unlikely comeback in this one. He had very little room to work with for much for much of the game, but ripped off runs of 43, 25, 21 and 16, to go along with a 13-yard catch. He showed his superstar credentials on his 31st birthday. Patrick Ricard was punishing people, particularly standing out on Henry’s 43-yard touchdown run, and brought in a nice 14-yard catch-and-run. Rasheen Ali had a drop, and Keaton Mitchell picked up 10 yards on four carries.

Receivers: B

Rashod Bateman had a really, really good game. He worked himself open for his touchdown catch, but also showed great run-and-catch all game. Bateman finished with 76 yards on five catches, and converted two big third downs. Mark Andrews had a couple balls pulled away by really good plays by defenders, but also brought in two great highlight-reel catches, including on his touchdown. Isaiah Likely caught three balls for 38 yards, and they were big catches. Zay Flowers only had one catch and one carry before his injury.

Offensive Line: C+

They really imposed their will in the fourth quarter, in particular, but it was a really tough first half. Henry had nowhere to run and Jackson was under pressure immediately. Tyler Linderbaum sprung a big block on Henry’s big 25-yard on the first play from scrimmage in the second half. Ronnie Stanley had a nice block on Henry’s 43-yarder. Andrew Vorhees picked up a hold in the third quarter that negated a big Henry run, and Roger Rosengarten had a false start in the red zone in the fourth quarter. They improved as the game wore down, but it was not a pretty start.

Defense Overall: A-

It was Bailey Zappe, and he was leading a then-3-13 team on the road, and the wind was abusive on anything attempting to navigate the air. Still, the Ravens put forth another dominant performance on this side of the ball. The Browns had 230 yards of offense, were 4-12 on third downs and averaged 2.9 yards per rush. The Ravens also generated two turnovers, one of which scored points.

Defensive Line: A

Michael Pierce had an interception. Life is good, Flock. Nnamdi Madubuike seemed to live in the Browns’ backfield all game, and Kyle Van Noy and Odafe Oweh each added another sack tot heir impressive season totals. Travis Jones was disruptive and drew a pretty-weak flag for a late hit on Zappe, and … did I mention that Michael Pierce had a pick?

Linebackers: B+

Roquan Smith continued his good play of the second half of the season, and had 10 tackles. He stopped a third-down run on the Browns’ opening possession, and then stuffed their fourth-down attempt the next play. Chris Board had a nice open-field tackle on third down in the fourth quarter, and then dropped a potential interception the next play — but he still killed the drive with the incompletion.

Defensive Backs: B+

Nate Wiggins got the scoring going when he reacted to a goofy pass by Zappe, broke on the ball and brought it in for a touchdown. Marlon Humphrey was great again, diving to break up a fourth-down pass in the first quarter, and delivering a huge hit to break up a third-down pass in the third quarter. Kyle Hamilton gave an injury scare, but returned, and was steady all game. Ar’Darius Washington continues to shine. He just missed a pick in the end zone int he second quarter, and then made a tackle on a tight end screen the next play to force a field goal when the Browns were driving. How do I say this… when Bailey Zappe is picking on you, there’s a problem. Brandon Stephens has a problem. He did a great job getting in his hand to break up a touchdown pass, and had offensive pass interference called on his receiver. But he gave up that fourth-quarter touchdown pass, was targeted over and over again and seems to be the “weak link” when other teams are looking at options to target with the ball.

Special Teams: C-

Justin Tucker still appears to be back on the right track, and he nailed his five extra points. Jordan Stout was inconsistent, placing one beautifully at the 10, dumping another as a touchback and booting a moon ball. His 70-yarder upped his average to 44.8. Keaton Mitchell teased us again with his speed on a 47-yard kick return. It feels like he’s close. The Ravens coverage teams were not great, giving up 107 yards on three returns by Kaden Davis, fora 35.7 average.

Coaching: B

The Ravens came out a little sloppy, which can probably be expected after not playing for 10 days after playing three times in 11 days. They were 0-3 on fourth downs, but I didn’t mind any of those decisions — though I didn’t like the play call after calling a time out on the first one. I liked that the Ravens came out running Jackson, seemingly trying to loosen things up later for Henry. I also like that they kept feeding Henry in the second half. Lesson learned?

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Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2025/01/04/report-card/ravens-35-browns-10/