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The Baltimore Ravens steadied the ship on Sunday, finally getting in the win column with a 28-25 win over the Dallas Cowboys. The victory got John Harbaugh and the Ravens to 1-2 on the season and helped them avoid the dreaded 0-3 start that one of their AFC North rivals is currently dealing with.
The Ravens' offense was clicking for most of the game, and Lamar Jackson and new addition Derrick Henry were getting it done on the ground. The Ravens ran for 274 yards on 45 carries, consistently exposing the weakness in the middle of the Cowboys' defense.
Baltimore's defense shut down Dak Prescott and the Cowboys in the early going before Dallas got it going in the fourth quarter. Rookie cornerback Nate Wiggins forced a big fumble on CeeDee Lamb in the red zone, and the Ravens forced two field goals and a turnover on downs when the Cowboys entered opponent territory.
Despite the victory, which was impressive for the most part, there are still causes for concern about the Ravens and their ability to contend for an AFC Championship and a Super Bowl.
The Ravens still can't close games
Closing out games with a lead has been a big problem for the Ravens for a while, and it has affected them once again in 2024. Baltimore blew a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter of their Week 2 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, and the Cowboys nearly pulled off an improbable comeback in Dallas on Sunday.
A Derrick Henry touchdown run with 11:58 remaining in the third quarter gave the Ravens a commanding 28-6 lead against Dallas, and their defense continued to hold the Cowboys' offense down until the fourth quarter got underway. However, the offense stagnated and the Cowboys started to take advantage. Dak Prescott led Dallas to three consecutive touchdown drives in the fourth quarter, the last of which coming with just under three minutes remaining to cut the Ravens' lead to three.
Lamar Jackson bailed the Ravens out on their final drive with a pair of massive first downs — one through the air and one on the ground — to allow Baltimore to run out the clock and secure the victory.
The Ravens have lost 10 games with a 7+ point lead entering the fourth quarter over the last four seasons, according to the NFL on CBS on X, formerly Twitter. That number leads the league and is four more than the Chicago Bears in second place. Closing out games has been a repeated problem for Harbaugh and Jackson, and it has happened enough where it has become a concerning trend.
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Justin Tucker's struggles are becoming an issue
The Ravens' kicking game used to be one of its biggest strengths, as Justin Tucker provided one of the greatest advantages ion football. Anytime the Ravens crossed the 40-yard line, they could put at least three points in the bank.
Tucker is still the most accurate kicker in NFL history, but he is off to a brutal start in 2024. He has made just five out of his eight field goal attempts, the lowest make percentage of any kicker that has attempted at least three field goals this season. He is also 0-for-2 from 50+ yards, continuing a troubling trend of long distance struggles after finishing just 1-for-5 from 50+ in 2023-24.
Despite his kicker's slow start, John Harbaugh is remaining optimistic that Tucker will turn things around.
However, there are longer-term signs that point to the decline of one of the greatest to ever do it. Tucker made roughly 86% of his field goals in 2022-23 and 2023-24, which were his lowest marks since 2015. From 2016-21, Tucker had been at or above 89.7% in every season.
Tucker still has plenty of time to turn it around, and eight field goal attempts is still a very small sample size. Either way, Tucker's woes nearly hurt them against the Cowboys and cost them big time in losses to the Chiefs and Raiders. His struggles are definitely something to monitor moving forward.
