Five reasons the Ravens will remain dominant 

Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens didn’t get what they wanted, and that was a trip to the Super Bowl. Jackson and the Ravens, however, have the ingredients to finally kick that door down. 

When that happens don’t be surprised if Jackson and his Baltimore teammates make multiple trips to the NFL’s ultimate prize. After coming close and knocking on the door, here are my five takes on why the Ravens will remain Super Bowl contenders.    

LAMAR JACKSON

Lamar Jackson has completed his sixth season in the NFL. In six years, all Jackson has done is win the league MVP and positioned himself to win No. 2 after leading the Ravens to a superior season in 2023. Jackson is the ultimate dual-threat quarterback in the game today, and he’s just 27. 

Yes, as painful as his postseason record is at the moment (2-4), we must remember that Peyton Manning didn’t win his first Super Bowl until Year No. 8. Drew Brees didn’t get his Super Bowl ring until his ninth year in the league and that game was played in his hometown. Jackson flourished as a passer in 2023, throwing for 3,678 yards and 24 touchdowns. 

He also rushed for 821 yards in 16 games. A playoff positive for Jackson is that he took the next step and advanced his team to the AFC Championship Game for the first time. Jackson will process and learn from what he didn’t do against the Kansas City Chiefs. Be ready.

ZAY FLOWERS

My goodness. What can you say about Zay Flowers? The Ravens desperately needed to get young, fast and good at the wide receiver spot to give Jackson another weapon to throw to. They found a real prize in Flowers. The rookie wideout from Boston College turned out to be that guy for Jackson when it comes to hitting the home run down the field. 

While he didn’t break rookie receiving records like Puka Nacua did for the Los Angeles Rams, Flowers has been all of that and a bag of chips for the Ravens. On the season, Flowers caught 77 passes for 858 yards and five touchdowns. You can expect those numbers to improve dramatically in 2024. 

Flowers is the real deal. He’s a game breaker. That’s why we can overlook that silly taunting penalty and heartbreaking fumble he had in the AFC Championship Game. He’s only going to get better. And Baltimore will be better because of it. 

RUN THE BALL 

Running the football has always been the core of the Ravens as long as John Harbaugh has been the head coach. Don’t expect that to change. The AFC Championship Game notwithstanding, Baltimore had the best rushing attack in the NFL. 

As a team, Baltimore rushed for over 156 yards per game in 2023, averaging 4.9 yards per rush attempt. The Ravens have some quality running backs in the stable, but getting a more punishing runner like Derrick Henry, who is a free agent, would only manifest the run game even more. 

On to 2024. pic.twitter.com/SNqvAEtDAU

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) January 31, 2024

As a dual-threat quarterback, Jackson is the pulse of makes Baltimore’s running attack go. So goes the run game, and so goes the Ravens. Harbaugh and the Ravens learned a painful lesson with that one after outsmarting themselves and abandoning the run game against the Kansa City Chiefs in the AFC title game. 

Running the football is Baltimore’s bread and butter. That tradition should continue in 2024. And while they’re at it, the Ravens might want to dial up Jackson’s number a little bit more. 

DEFENSE

The Baltimore Ravens defense is nothing to sneeze on. The Ravens led the NFL in sacks (60), points allowed (16.5 points), and takeaways (31) for the 2023 season. The worst-case scenario for opponents is that the Ravens can improve. Now that is a scary thought.

With Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, and Terrell Suggs back in the day, the Ravens have always had a dominating defense. Expect that tradition to continue with linebackers Patrick Queen, Roquan Smith, and safety Kyle Hamilton. The caveat, of course, is if Queen stays put following free agency.    

Queen, Smith, and Hamilton bring the same type of star power trifecta effect to the Ravens much the same way that Lewis, Reed, and Suggs did. With that being said, expect Baltimore’s “D” to be on point for a long time. The Ravens hit hard. They also tackle well and are aggressive ballhawks, trademarks of a great defense. 

Going up against these rough riders will be tough sledding for future opponents.      

COACHING

Coaches are human, too. And every now and then they get things wrong. The gameplan John Harbaugh and his crew had for the AFC Championship Game, at least on the offensive end, was lame to say the very least.

The shoulder of the blame for Baltimore not making it to the Super Bowl should be put squarely on Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Todd Monken or whoever signed off on a very flawed offensive game plan in which they tried to turn Lamar Jackson into Tom Brady in one game.  

The strength of the Ravens is defense and running the football. The Ravens decided to jump ship on running the football and the fact they had the No. 1 rushing attack in the entire NFL and try to force Jackson into being a pocket passer.  

The Ravens got cute and outsmarted themselves. That is why they are sitting at home. This huge debacle notwithstanding, Harbaugh and his coaching staff have been solid.

But just like the players they oversee, the coaching staff has to raise their standards as well. It’s not good enough anymore to coach Jackson up to get to the playoffs and win a game to two. Harbaugh and his staff must figure out a way to coach Jackson up to be a Super Bowl winner.

That means putting your players or athletes in the best position possible to win. The Ravens didn’t do that against the Chiefs. At least on the offensive end. Harbaugh and Monken both failed this test in the AFC title game.