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Things are looking up for coach John Harbaugh's team as a Baltimore Ravens Week 12 showdown with the Los Angeles Chargers takes center stage on Sunday Night Football. It's a perfect contrast to where Brandon Staley finds his team heading down the stretch.
A glance at the standings shows a tight race in the AFC North, with the Ravens at 8-3 just one win ahead of the 7-3 Cleveland Browns. But the Browns and Cincinnati Bengals have each lost their franchise quarterback for the remainder of the season; the Browns' defense might be good enough to secure a playoff spot anyway, but the Bengals are likely cooked. The Steelers just fired their offensive coordinator, but it's still Kenny Pickett under center in Pittsburgh.
Which is to say, the Ravens have a very clear path to a division title and a top spot in the AFC playoff picture. Losing star TE Mark Andrews will hurt, but more on that later.
The Chargers, meanwhile, have reached the “head coach scolding reporters for asking if he's good at his job” phase of the season. Week 11 featured another dazzling Justin Herbert performance and another notch in the loss column. If it can go wrong in L.A. (outside of Herbert,) it seems like it will.
Are we setting the stage for a “trap game!” reveal? Or is this simply two teams heading in opposite directions that will continue on their merry ways? Dive into some Ravens Week 12 predictions below and find out!
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Isaiah Likely fills the Mark Andrews void
Make no mistake, the Ravens will miss having Andrews out for an extended period of time, and quite possibly the rest of the season. Likely is not going to make fans forget about Andrews or match his production. But he will be more than serviceable.
Likely flashed his potential as a rookie in 2022. He ended the season with big production, catches eight passes for 103 yards in Baltimore's regular season finale. It was his second game breaking the 75-yard receiving mark in his first NFL year.
But with Zay Flowers and Odell Beckham Jr. to feed in the passing game, Likely has been quiet in 2023. So far, he's produced just one game with more than a single catch. But he's also only played 40% or more of the snaps in a game on offense twice in Year 2. He has one game with more than two targets, and he caught all four passes that were thrown his way in that contest.
Look for Lamar Jackson to make sure Likely gets involved, to the tune of 40+ receiving yards in his new, expanded role.
Keaton Mitchell hits another big play
What happens when a team that cannot stop giving up long runs meets a back that rips off big gains with the best of them?
In its last two games, the Chargers defense has surrendered a 75-yard TD run by the Detroit Lions' David Montgomery and a 32-yard score by the Green Bay Packers' Jayden Reed.
On the season, the Ravens' Mitchell has produced rushing TDs from 40 and 39 yards out. (He also hit a 60-yarder that fell just short.) Now, as any fantasy football player can tell you, predicting the usage of Baltimore running backs in any given week is a fool's errand.
But this match made in heaven seems too good to pass up. So if Mitchell cranks out another chunk play on Sunday, don't say we didn't warn you.
TD for OBJ
Don't look now, but Odell Beckham Jr. is hitting his stride with Lamar Jackson. Following an 0fer against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 8, Beckham has caught 10 passes on 16 targets for 212 yards and two scores. He's also flashed his big-play ability, with two catches of 40+ yards over that span.
The injured Andrews' targets will need to be diverted elsewhere, and it won't all go to Likely. Oh, and the Chargers secondary gives up the most passing yards per game in the NFL, more than 20 yards clear of any other team.
Certainly seems like a winning formula for Beckham Jr. to continue his strong play in Week 12 on the big stage.
Ravens roll over Chargers comfortably
Let's take the general pulse of each team, shall we?
The Ravens have not lost back-to-back games this season. They've won five of their last six. Their quarterback is a strong contender for MVP honors. Their defense gives up the second-fewest points and third-fewest yards per game in the NFL.
The Chargers have played 10 games, and their sequence of results is as follows: lost two, won two, lost two, won two, lost two.
But they don't feel like a team on the upswing after last week, as their coach defiantly vowed to keep calling the plays on defense despite giving up 64 points in the last two games.
A team doesn't have to be perfect to defeat the Ravens. But it can't be as sloppy across the board as the Chargers have been. A porous defense, receivers who can't catch. Justin Herbert ain't gonna be enough in this one. Ravens cruise to victory.
