Baltimore Ravens Week 1 Preview
The two-time defending AFC North champion Baltimore Ravens will officially open their season on Sunday at home in M&T Bank Stadium when they take on their division rival Cleveland Browns at 1 pm eastern standard time on CBS.
Here is a detailed breakdown of the matchup including key matchups to look for, potential X factors, who will likely be out with an injury for each team, and a final outcome prediction.
What’s at stake:
The Ravens have high expectations for the 2020 season and would like to start off the year on a good note by avenging the embarrassing 40-25 loss the Browns handed them in their own house in Week 4 of last season. As for Cleveland, they are out to prove that the post-hype humbled Browns are legitimate contenders this year, and what better way to do that than by pulling off an upset over a Superbowl favorite in their own building for the second year in a row.
Since neither the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals aren’t playing each other to start the season, the winner of this game will give the victor the first lead in the race to win the division crown by going 1-0 and dropping the loser to 0-1 in overall and divisional play.
Key matchups:
Marlon Humphrey v Odell Beckham Jr-
The last time these two faced off in Charm City, the Ravens’ First-Team All-Pro corner put more than just the clamps on the Browns’ star wideout, and I’ll leave it at that. Even though Beckham’s team came away with a win, he didn’t have much to do with the end result because Humphrey limited him to just 20 yards on a pair of catches.
Beckham faired a bit better in the second meeting between the two teams last season in Cleveland with four catches for 44 yards and a touchdown but by then Humphrey was spending half of his time in the slot when opposing teams rolled out three-receiver sets which the Browns ran the majority of the time. With the return of elite nickel back Tavon Young this year after he missed all of 2019 with a neck injury, Humphrey will be back to playing on the outside full time and will likely get Beckham Jr’s undivided attention in the season opener.
Ronnie Stanley v Myles Garrett-
During Garrett’s hot start to the 2019 season before getting suspended for the final six games of the regular season, he recorded 10 sacks in the first seven games. He logged one or more sacks in all but one of those first seven games to begin the season. That one game came against the Ravens in Baltimore where Stanley held him in check for the entirety of the game, limiting the former No.1 overall pick to just one tackle, zero sacks, and zero quarterback hits on the day.
Since Garrett was suspended for the second matchup in 2019 due to his suspension, he was denied a mulligan against the Ravens First-Team All-Pro blindside protector. Watching two elite players engaged in trench warfare is not only fun to watch but it could be the tipping point in a tightly contested game depending on who makes or allows the other to make a clutch play or block.
Marquise Brown v Denzel Ward-
This will be the matchup to watch on the outside when the Ravens’ offense is on the field and reigning league MVP Lamar Jackson drops back or rolls out of the pocket to pass. Brown is entering the season fully healthy and at full speed after being hampered in his rookie season by residual effects from offseason Lisfranc foot surgery. Ward is the only best and only healthy starting corner the Browns have at their disposal and he will be tasked with trying to keep up with and limit the impact of the Baltimore prime breakout candidate for the 2020 season.
Chuck Clark v Baker Mayfield-
With today’s modern defenses structured to stop modern offenses that are primarily driven by the passing game, the quarterback of the defense is the safeties now more often than inside linebackers. The mental chess matches that quarterbacks engage with on the field with the opposing team’s top safety can be the deciding factor in who wins and losses.
A month ago, I would’ve had Earl Thomas penciled into this spot but even before the seven-time Pro Bowler had his contract terminated for conduct detrimental midway through training camp, Clark already owned the title of the most intelligent member on the defense. He already wears the green dot on his helmet given to the defender that relays the defensive play calls. Look for him and a determined Baker Mayfield looking to bounce back from a sophomore slump in 2019 to test each other’s wits in the season opener.
Tavon Young v Jarvis Landry-
As I previously stated, Young is returning to the fold on defense as the starting slot corner where he established himself as one of the league’s best in 2018 during his breakout season. On Sunday he’ll get his first real test in live-action against one of the best slot receivers in the game in Landry.
While Beckham Jr struggled when the Browns came to Baltimore last season, Landry did the exact opposite. He had his best game of the season with a game-high 167 yards on eight catches with a yard per catch average of over 20 yards. That result prompted the Ravens to move Humphrey into the slot for the rest of the season. Young had an excellent camp and is looking like his pre-injury self per reports and the Ravens coaching staff. It will be fun to watch two of the most competitive and skilled players at their respective positions duke it out on Sunday when Landry lines up in the slot.
Brandon Williams v JC Tretter
This is arguably the most underrated key matchup to watch for since it involves two players that don’t play sexy positions, but it could prove to be one of the most pivotal. Williams is returning his natural position back at nose tackle where he shined early on in his career following the departure of Michael Pierce in free agency back in March.
This could spell bad news for the Browns starting center who has been a limited participant in practice this week after having a minor procedure done to his knee. He hasn’t missed a start wince signing with Cleveland in 2017 but could have his hands full and potentially struggle going up against a rejuvenated Williams who is back playing the position he’s most comfortable and previously played his best at.
Lamar Jackson v depleted Browns secondary-
Last but not least there’s the matchup between the reigning league MVP who led the league with 36 passing touchdowns and is hungry to prove that his breakout campaign wasn’t a fluke and a Cleveland secondary that has already been hit hard by injuries.
They’ve already lost rookie safety Grant Delpit for the season with a torn Achilles tendon, will be without one starter and a primary starter at cornerback for the opener (which I will get into shortly), and reserve corner MJ Stewart has been a limited participant in practice this week with a hamstring injury and is listed as questionable.
In the 2019 season opener, Jackson lit up a Miami Dolphins secondary that featured a Pro Bowler at both safety and corner for a whopping five touchdowns, over 300 yards passing, and a perfect passer rating on the road. Now he will open 2020 at home against a depleted defensive backfield that is slated to have one Pro Bowler suit up but he even more weapons this year than he had during his MVP winning campaign last year.
Even though the Ravens are dedicated to being the most dominant rushing team in the league again this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if they began the season with a similar unexpected bombs away performance that they did in Week One last year and let Jackson let it loose on Sunday.
Potential X factors:
ILB Patrick Queen-
The Ravens remodeled and reloaded their front seven this offseason by aggressively addressing the interior of their defensive line and their inside linebacker depth chart. Their first-round pick out of LSU will be making his first NFL start as the main man in the middle of the new-look unit and is expected to assist veteran defensive end Calais Campbell and company in stifling what appears to be the formidable rushing attack that the Browns are bringing to Baltimore.
Queen will be responsible for flying around from sideline to sideline with his incredible lateral speed and quickness to make plays at and behind the line of scrimmage. In addition to being expected to bring down the Browns’ Pro Bowl running back tandem of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt in the ground game, Queen might find himself in coverage lined up across from either of them at time sin this matchup and use his instincts and ability to move well in space to make plays in the passing game as well.
Ravens wide receivers outside of Hollywood-
The Browns will be without starting cornerback Greedy Williams who hasn’t practiced all week due to a shoulder injury and has been declared out for the opener. They will also be without one of their primary backups at the position now that Kevin Johnson has been declared out as well after not practicing due to a lacerated kidney and his backup [Stewart] has been in the injury report all week with a hamstring.
Since Ward will likely be shadowing Brown for most of the game that means that the Ravens’ other receivers will be matched up with backups and reserves. While veteran Willie Snead is listed as the other starting receiver on the initial depth chart, the biggest benefactors will likely be second-year wideout Miles Boykin and rookie Devin Duvernay.
Boykin is coming off a strong camp and the team is expecting more contributions in the passing game from this season. Duvernay has been carving more and more of a role for himself in the offense according to Head Coach John Harbaugh with his consistently high performance in practice over the last month. Both players will have prime opportunities to show what they can do going up against a banged-up backend.
Who will likely sit out:
The Ravens will likely be without the services of second-year running back Justice Hill, rookie defensive tackle Justin Madubuike and veteran wide receiver Chris Moore for the opener against the Browns. None of them have practiced this week due to injuries that they have been dealing with for weeks.
Hill, who was listed as the starting kick returner on the initial depth chart, has been battling a soft-tissue thigh injury for the past couple weeks. The Ravens have plenty of depth at running back with Mark Ingram, Gus Edwards, and promising rookie J.K. Dobbins so they won’t miss him on offense.
Moore didn’t practice all of training camp with a broken finger and has yet to take the field since it concluded last weekend. He is one of the best special teams players on the roster so his presence will be missed there. Since he was listed behind Hill on the initial depth chart at kick returner, the duties will likely fall to rookie wide receiver James Proche.
The third-round rookie didn’t suffer a major knee injury but is considered week-to-week per Harbaugh last week. Baltimore has a lot of depth in the interior of their defensive line so they should manage just fine with who they have behind their starters for the time being.
As for the Browns, as stated earlier they will be without one of their starters and a primary back up at the cornerback position with Williams and Johnson declared out. Their other injury inactives that have already been announced include starting outside linebacker Mack Wilson and backup right tackle Chris Hubbard.
Recent history of the matchup:
Baltimore has won seven of the last 10 matchups between the two teams dating back to 2015. However, the Browns have historically played the Ravens tough regardless of their record in a given year which has been poor since returning to the league in 1999 and especially this century.
While the Ravens own a sizable lead in the all-time series (31-11), they have split the season series with the Browns in each of the last two years with a total point differential of 91to 93 with the slight advantage going to Cleveland. Harbaugh acknowledges that the Browns are a threat and fully capable of delivering his team a loss every year no matter what pundits or Las Vegas oddsmakers say, and this Sunday won’t be any different.
Final prediction:
I expect the Ravens to pull out a win in the opener by a touchdown or more but wouldn’t be surprised if it winds up being a more tightly contested game like some pundits are predicting. That being said, I believe the Ravens will take advantage of the Browns’ injuries at a few key positions and win 38-20.
