Coming into Week 12, plenty of pundits and doubters wondered just how the Baltimore Ravens and their league-leading rushing attack would fare against a Los Angeles Rams defense well equipped to stop it. On the very first drive of the night for Baltimore, we had our answer . . . Running the ball seven of their first nine plays, the Ravens gained 49 yards on the ground. They finished the game with 285 net rushing yards while only allowing Los Angeles to have 221 total net yards.
Since Week 7, Baltimore has been answering every question and caveat put up by those doubting them; and in dominant fashion. After having claimed lopsided victories over four playoff-caliber teams and going on a seven-game winning streak, there should be no one doubting how great this Ravens team actually is.
At the very least, Nate Davis of USA TODAY Sports isn’t. For a third consecutive week, Davis has Baltimore in the No. 1 spot on his power rankings list.
“Yet another milestone now in Lamar Jackson’s sights? He can break franchise’s single-season record for TD passes, which is 33 — set by Vinny Testaverde in 1996.”
Jackson is currently the frontrunner for the NFL’s MVP award this season as well as the leader in Pro Bowl voting — and all for good reason. Jackson was already a dynamic runner but has steadily improved his passing game with each week as he picks apart solid defenses.
Jackson is tied with Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson for touchdown passes at 24. But by doing that on 53 fewer attempts, Jackson leads the league in TD% rate. He’s also tied for the third-highest passer rating and is just the third player in NFL history to post two perfect, 158.3 passer rating games in a single season. All of it combined makes Jackson the best quarterback in the NFL at this point.
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