OTL: Ravens Face Uphill Battle After Well-Timed Bye

After entering the season as Super Bowl favorites, the Ravens will head into their Week 7 bye with a 1-5 record, sitting in 12th place in the AFC. In what’s been a worst-case start for Baltimore, between the underwhelming play on the field and countless injuries to multiple key starters, the Ravens just haven’t been able to get out of their own way. Following Lamar Jackson’s hamstring injury against the Chiefs in Week 4, it was hard to picture the Ravens picking up wins in their next two games against the Texans and Rams.

No one expected the absolutely embarrassing performances that would follow, however. Entering Week 5, the Ravens were 4-9 all-time without their 2x MVP under center, with the defense holding opposing offenses to under 17 points in all four wins. Baltimore’s defense currently sits in the basement of every major defensive statistical category, and with Cooper Rush as QB1, the offense decided to join them in Weeks 5 and 6. The Ravens offense was held to just 13 points and 251 passing yards, while turning the ball over six times in just a two-game span.

Their Mona Lisa was a failed red zone trip in which they were stuffed on three plays from the 1-yard line with Derrick Henry and futile “tush pushes” from Mark Andrews. A less explosive offense without Jackson was expected, but the struggles went beyond the absence of their QB1.

Following Sunday’s loss to the Rams, the Ravens will have 14 days before their next game, when the Chicago Bears come to town, followed by three straight road games including a short week on Thursday night in Miami. Coaches and fans are hoping the break will allow the multiple key starters who have missed the past few games enough time to heal up and get ready for an important end to the season. The Ravens have been without Jackson, Roquan Smith, Pat Ricard, and Chidobe Awuzie over the last two games, and are in desperate need of their return.

Following a gauntlet to begin the season, the Ravens have a somewhat easier schedule for the second half of the year, with their opponents holding a combined 27-34-1 record, but they will have to travel for six out of the remaining 11 games. It’s going to take a lot for the Ravens to fight themselves back into contention, exactly where everyone knows they should be.

Baltimore currently has the sixth-best odds to win the AFC (+1100) and the second-highest odds to win the AFC North (+160). ESPN gives the Ravens a 24% chance to make the playoffs, a 16% chance to win the division, and a 2% chance to make the Super Bowl.  With five divisional games still in hand, the Ravens can still take care of business within the North. The five losses are obviously going to hurt the team’s seeding as the year progresses, but should the Ravens claw their way back into the big dance, it’s almost inevitable they’ll do so playing on the road throughout.

Losses to the Bills, Chiefs, and Texans, three playoff hopefuls, kill any chance at snagging a tiebreaker.

The Ravens season isn’t done just yet, but it’s going to take an absolute fight to save it, and it starts with finding their identity, and getting back to Ravens football.

The post OTL: Ravens Face Uphill Battle After Well-Timed Bye appeared first on Russell Street Report.