Offensive standouts from Ravens lopsided win over Giants

The Baltimore Ravens extended their current winning streak to four in a row by dominating the New York Giants on both sides of the ball in a 27-13 victory in their last games at M&T Bank Stadium this season. They owned the line of scrimmage and dominated at the point of attack on both offense and defense.

Here are some of the offensive standouts from their impressive Week 16 victory:

QB Lamar Jackson

The Ravens’ electrifying dual-threat quarterback was in peak reigning league MVP form for the fourth week in a row and it shouldn’t a surprise that it coincides with the team’s four-game winning streak.

Jackson finished 17-of-26 for 183 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. He completed over 65 percent of his passes and produced a 100-plus passer rating for the seventh time this season and fourth straight week with a mark of 111.5.

Even though he had his streak of consecutive games with at least one rushing touchdown end at three, Jackson finished second on the team in rushing with 80 yards on 13 carries.

RB Gus Edwards

The third-year pro continues to make the most of his opportunities almost every time he touches the ball and has shown even more signs of development and growth in his game.

Against the Giants, he led the team in rushing with 85 yards on 15 carries and went over 100 yards from scrimmage by adding 37 yards on a pair of receptions.

He likely would’ve had his seventh rushing touchdown on the season late in the fourth quarter if a botched read-option handoff at the mesh point between him and Jackson hadn’t resulted in a lost fumble.

Edwards has been a consistent and productive presence in the Ravens’ backfield since emerging midway through his rookie season in 2018. The former undrafted free agent has gone from a bruising powerback to a more complete player at the position.

He has shown more burst, elusiveness, and acceleration in the open field this year is still a great short-yardage and goal-line battering ram.

RB J.K. Dobbins

The second-round pick has been Baltimore’s most consistently explosive back all season and has come on really strong during the second-half stretch as his involvement in the offense has increased.

That fact was evident by his yards per carry average even though he finished as the team’s third-leading rusher against the Giants.

Dobbins rushed for 77 yards on seven carries and broke the Ravens rookie record for rushing touchdowns by stretching out to score his seventh of the season from two yards out and mark his fifth straight game of reaching the end zone.

The previous record-holder was franchise legend Jamal Lewis who recorded six as a rookie on the 2000 team that went on to win the Superbowl 35.

He ran “exceptionally well” according to Head Coach John Harbaugh. His speed to get to the edge, balance after contact, and physicality to fight for extra yards and finish runs with authority were on full display in this game.

The rookie is rarely brought down after the first contact and routinely makes the first man miss in space once he gets past the line of scrimmage. Dobbins has been a lethal weapon for the Ravens offense this year and will key to what is shaping up to be an exciting playoff run.

TE Mark Andrews

The third-year tight end led the team in targets, receptions, and yards against the Giants with six catches for 76 yards on 11 targets. The 2019 Pro Bowler had a midseason slump but has played and produced at a high level since Week 10.

Despite missing two games due to contracting COVID-19, Andrews leads the team with 377 receiving yards over that span. He has recorded at least five catches and surpassed 60 yards receiving in each of his last five games.

On Sunday, he made several contested catches with one or more defenders close in coverage and was a reliable and sure-handed target for Jackson on third down.

Andrews has become one of the most complete players at his position this season and unlike this time last year, he is not only playing well but is healthy heading into the postseason.

Honorable mentions:

WR Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown:

The second-year speedster didn’t burn the Giants’ secondary deep, however, he did a lot of good work in the underneath passing and short passing game. He scored the first points of the game by weaving through traffic and hauling in a six-yard touchdown pass from Jackson.

Brown reeled in all four of his targets for 25 yards against New York. He is one of the many Ravens that have stepped up their game during the most crucial stretch of the season while the team has been fighting for their playoff lives.

WR Dez Bryant

While the veteran wideout was targeted just once in 19 offensive snaps, he made the most of it by catching an eight-yard touchdown pass after getting left wide open in the back of the end zone to extend the Ravens lead to 27-6 at the top of the fourth quarter.

It marked his first time since scoring in consecutive weeks since he did in Weeks 12 and 13 of the 2017 season when he was still a member of the Dallas Cowboys.

It also marked his 75th career touchdown reception in his 118th career game, making him the fifth-fastest to 75 career receiving touchdowns in NFL history.