The Buffalo Bills look like the hottest team in the NFL as they prepare to travel to M&T Bank Stadium to take on the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4.
The Sunday Night Football matchup on NBC features a Bills squad (3-0) looking to assert their dominance on the road over a Ravens team (1-2) trying to prevent their season from going sideways early on.
The Ravens, last year’s number-one seed in the AFC, are favored to win the game. It will take a strong showing from the Bills to come away with the win.
To move to 4-0 they will have to be wary of these three things on Sunday:
Running may be hard to come by
The Ravens have the best run defense in the NFL. Through three weeks they are only allowing 50 yards per game on the ground.
In Week 1 they held Isaiah Pacheco to 3 yards per carry. In Week 2 they held Zamir White to 2.7 yards per carry. And, in Week 3 they held the Cowboys’ running backs to 3.14 yards per carry.
Much of the success of the Ravens’ stopping the run can be credited to the play of their run-stuffing defensive linemen. Heading into Week 4, Pro Football Focus ranked the Ravens as the third-best defensive line in the NFL.
Bills running back James Cook may find difficulty between the tackles at times as a smaller ball carrier (5-11, 190 lbs).
Ravens need a win
The Ravens have looked shaky to start the 2024 season, to say the least. After starting the year with back-to-back losses to the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders, the Ravens snuck by the Dallas Cowboys in Week 3 (28-25). The win improved them to 1-2 but it can’t feel good in the Ravens’ locker room.
Even though they started slow, the Ravens have a good enough recent track record to always be a tough opponent. And, in any given week they could bounce back and look like one of the best teams in the NFL. They are still waiting to put it all together for four quarters. With losing two games to start the season, now would be a good time to turn it on at home if you’re the Ravens.
Studs on the ground
The Ravens have a couple of studs in their backfield by the names of Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson. The two are leading a rushing attack that ranks first in the NFL in rush yards per game (203.3).
Through three games, Henry has already amassed 281 yards on the ground while Jackson has scampered for 254 of his own. That’s 535 yards between the two already.
Although running the ball has been effective, it hasn’t equated to wins yet for Baltimore.
The Bills’ rushing defense ranks 16th in the NFL through three weeks, and they will have their hands full on Sunday night. The Bills will hope to stuff the run on early downs and force Jackson to test the Bills’ stout secondary in the passing game down the field.