The Baltimore Ravens will travel to take on the New York Jets in the opening game of their respective seasons on Sunday afternoon. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NFL odds series, which includes a Ravens-Jets prediction and pick, laid out below.
Baltimore suffered an 8-9 season in 2021, missing the playoffs, in part due to star quarterback Lamar Jackson missing some time. While the team went 7-5 with Jackson starting, the 1-4 record without Jackson is what ultimately kept the team from reaching the playoffs.
New York is entering the second year of head coach Robert Saleh, coming off a 4-13 record in the first year of his tenure. Somehow, a fanbase of perpetual pessimism found some optimism in a four-win season, thanks in large part to young quarterback Zach Wilson.
Here are the Ravens-Jets NFL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NFL Odds: Ravens-Jets Odds
Baltimore Ravens: -6.5 (-115)
New York Jets: +6.5 (-105)
Over: 44.5 (-108)
Under: 44.5 (-112)
Why The Ravens Could Cover The Spread
As long as Lamar Jackson is the starting quarterback for this team, they have a chance to win football games. Jackson is one of the most electric quarterbacks in the league, going 37-12 in his starts, scoring 105 total touchdowns in 58 games. Healthy for only 12 games last season, Jackson threw 16 touchdown passes, adding two rushing touchdowns. After spending the offseason mired in contract rumors, Jackson will play out the final year of his rookie contract, possibly motivating Jackson even more. JK Dobbins is back and hopefully healthy after missing all of 2021.
As a rookie in 2020, Dobbins rushed for 805 yards and nine touchdowns. Gone is Marquise Brown, a favorite target of Jackson's, further frustrating the star quarterback. Rashod Bateman should see an extended role in his second season, after totaling 515 receiving yards. The team drafted Bateman in the first round in 2021, setting the expectations high. Tight end Mark Andrews caught 107 passes, totaling 1,361 yards and nine touchdowns last season, bringing his career total to 29 in four seasons.
Baltimore's defense should be improved after a down year in 2021, drafting former Notre Dame star safety Kyle Hamilton with their first-round pick. Marcus Peters is back after missing 2021 and has totaled seven interceptions in his 24 games with the team. Kyle Fuller has 19 career interceptions and will be entering his first season with the club. Calais Campbell is back for a 15th career season, needing just six and a half sacks to reach 100 in his career.
Left Tackle Ronnie Stanley will not play as he won't travel to New York either.
Why The Jets Could Cover The Spread
New York will turn to veteran Joe Flacco with Zach Wilson set to miss at least the first three weeks as he continues to recover from knee surgery. Flacco has played sparingly for the Jets across the last two seasons, tossing nine touchdowns and just three interceptions. While Flacco has not played more than ten games since 2017, he is more than capable of taking care of the ball as a part-time replacement. Breece Hall enters with tons of fanfare after being drafted in the second round in 2022. Hall will likely share carries with Michael Carter, who totaled 639 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie in 2021. Corey Davis and Elijah Moore desperately need to rebound from tough 2021 seasons, as the team welcomes first-round pick Garrett Wilson to the receiving corps. CJ Uzomah enters his first season with the club, coming off a career-high 493 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
New York's defense has been awful for years now, and there is plenty of room for improvement. Carl Lawson arrives from Cincinnati, bringing 20 career sacks to breathe some life into the pass rush. Quinnen Williams has been so-so since being drafted third overall in 2019, with 15.5 career sacks. Jermaine Johnson, the team's third and final first-round pick, will team with CJ Mosley and Kwon Alexander to form a solid linebacking crew. Fourth overall pick Ahmad Gardner will be counted on to make some plays in the secondary.
Final Ravens-Jets Prediction & Pick
This should be a pretty easy one for Jackson and company.
Final Ravens-Jets Prediction & Pick: Baltimore -6.5 (-115), under 44.5 (-112)
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