OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- The Baltimore Ravens can’t win the AFC North for a third straight season, but they have staked their claim to another title: Best team in the division right now.
While the first-place Pittsburgh Steelers have lost three straight games, the Ravens have reeled off three consecutive victories, with Lamar Jackson reverting to his NFL MVP form. During Baltimore’s winning streak, the Ravens rallied to complete a season sweep of the second-place Browns in Cleveland.
Earlier this month, Baltimore was scrambling to fill its game-day roster after enduring one of the biggest COVID-19 outbreaks in professional sports. In the wake of that, suddenly the Ravens have become the most dangerous team in the AFC North during the playoff homestretch.
“I don’t think anybody wants to see the Ravens in January,” said Femi Ayanbadejo, a former Ravens running back and a member of the team’s radio broadcast team.
The Ravens are mathematically eliminated from capturing the AFC North. Even if Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Cleveland all finish with 11 wins, the Ravens are knocked out by tiebreakers.
But Baltimore is riding the most momentum in the division, thanks to Jackson looking like one of the top players in the league again. After an uneven first three months of the season, Jackson quarantined for 10 days after testing positive for COVID-19 and returned with more enthusiasm, confidence and swagger.
In his first 10 games of the season, Jackson ranked 23rd in Total QBR (62.0), throwing 15 touchdown passes and six interceptions. He averaged 57.5 yards rushing and ran for three touchdowns.
In his last three games, he ranks No. 1 in Total QBR (94.6), producing six touchdown passes and two interceptions. Jackson has averaged 84.3 yards rushing and has run for four touchdowns.
"We’ve just been bonding with each other a lot more ever since I came back from COVID-19 when we’re on the field,” Jackson said. "And our guys have just been focused -- that’s just what’s on the field. Each and every drive, we just stack, and we’ve been scoring points.”
Jackson and the Baltimore offense have been scoring lots of points. Over the last three weeks, the Ravens have averaged an NFL-best 40.3 points per game -- more than double the output by the Steelers (16.7) in that same span.
In beating the Browns and the Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore scored touchdowns on 11 of Jackson’s 19 drives (58%). The Ravens have found their rhythm behind the blocking of their seventh starting offensive line combination, the emergence of rookie running back J.K. Dobbins in a lead back role and the regained confidence of wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown.
Asked if the Ravens have finally found their offensive identity, coach John Harbaugh said, "I think that remains to be seen. We definitely have a plan. I commend our offensive coaches and our players. We have a clear vision of what we want to try to do; the key is executing it -- doing things the right way at a high level. So, we’ve had a chance to practice. We just have to keep getting better. We have to keep improving on the path that we’re at, and hopefully we can do well next week. Every game stands on its own two feet, and we have to focus on our next challenge.”
The Ravens' defense has shown flashes of being dominant this month despite the numerous injuries. Eight starters have missed a total of 16 games. Just three starters -- middle linebacker Patrick Queen and safeties Chuck Clark and DeShon Elliott -- have played every game.
Still, Baltimore has allowed the fourth-fewest points (20.5) and the ninth-fewest yards (343.7).
“This defense can be really scary,” Ravens pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue said. "We’ve got a lot of people that can play. As you can tell, we rotate, because we’ve got guys that can come fill in and not miss a beat. So, at the end of the day, I don’t even feel like we reached the peak yet, which is scary and exciting at the same time.”
The Ravens believe they’re playing their best because they were able to overcome so many hurdles and distractions recently.
Baltimore had at least one player test positive for the coronavirus from Nov. 23 to Dec. 2, forcing the Ravens to call up 11 practice squad players to suit up against the Steelers in Week 12. A week later, wide receiver Dez Bryant was scratched a half hour before kickoff with the Dallas Cowboys because he had a positive test. Then, in Week 13, Jackson missed most of the fourth quarter with cramps before returning to lead a comeback in Cleveland.
“This team is resilient,” nose tackle Brandon Williams said. "Definitely, we persevere. We’re grinders, and we keep balling no matter what. We don’t get fazed. We don’t flinch. That’s what I love about this team; we’re a bunch of warriors, and we go out there and do what we have to do."