In a weekend of upsets within the NFL, from the Saints throttling the Cowboys in Dallas to the Buccaneers edging out the Lions in Detroit, nothing was extra stunning than the Ravens falling to 0-2 after a loss to the Raiders in Baltimore.
The Ravens blew a 10-point lead because the Raiders scored 13 unanswered within the last 10 minutes for a 26-23 victory. Baltimore, the AFC’s prime general seed within the playoffs a 12 months in the past, is off to an 0-2 begin for simply the second time in John Harbaugh’s tenure.
“We’re not going to be outlined by everybody that’s saying we’re not any good, that we’re good (or) that the season is over after two video games,” Harbaugh mentioned. “That’s what’s going to be mentioned, and we perceive that, however they’re not right here; they’re not inside. Nobody inside goes to say that. We all know that we’re soccer group, and we’re going to go preserve getting higher and higher and higher and outline the season by the way in which we play.”
The Ravens misplaced by a toe, actually, within the season opener on the reigning Tremendous Bowl champion Chiefs in Week 1. In Week 2, they had been heavy favorites to knock off a Raiders group that has posted consecutive shedding seasons.
After working again Derrick Henry scored a landing to make it 23-13 early within the fourth quarter, it appeared just like the Ravens would cruise to a victory of their house opener. Then the Raiders had three straight scoring drives to complete the sport whereas forcing a few three-and-outs by the Ravens’ offense.
Reigning MVP Lamar Jackson completed 21 of 34 for 247 yards passing with one landing and one interception, and he rushed for 45 yards on 5 carries. Based on ESPN, Jackson is simply the fourth reigning MVP to lose his first two video games of the season because the 1970 merger and the primary since Kurt Warner in 2002 with the Rams. The Rams went 7-9 in 2002, a 12 months after reaching the Tremendous Bowl.
“I’m positively going to speak to my guys as a result of we’ve acquired to search out our mojo,” Jackson mentioned. “We’ve acquired to search out (it), and do what we do, as a result of that’s not us in any respect.”
The season remains to be younger, after all, however an 0-2 begin has been traditionally troublesome for groups to battle out of, with lower than 10 p.c of groups to begin this poorly reaching the postseason within the expanded playoff period.
Getting out of this gap gained’t be straightforward for Baltimore, both. The Ravens’ subsequent sport is on the Cowboys, a fellow 2023 playoff group that will probably be seeking to bounce again after a forgettable efficiency. Then, Baltimore hosts Buffalo, a group that has made 5 straight postseason journeys and is off to a 2-0 begin.
However the schedule could possibly be seen as a chance for the Ravens. They will flip their season round and reestablish themselves as legit contenders. Nevertheless it’s seen, there’s no query; it’s stunning to see Baltimore on this place this early on.
Most would have anticipated Baltimore (0-2) to be flipped with Pittsburgh (2-0) within the AFC North given the Ravens returning the MVP at quarterback and the Steelers bringing in rebuilding tasks on the place.
As the nice Invoice Parcells mentioned, you’re what your file says you’re. And the Ravens are 0-2.
“Our customary may be very excessive,” deal with Ronnie Stanley mentioned. “That’s positively not OK for us to begin that method.”
