NFL
Coming off their bye week, the Baltimore Ravens get a much-needed win in week 8 against the Chicago Bears by the score of 30-16, with backup quarterback Tyler Huntley as the star quarterback, as Lamar Jackson missed his 3rd consecutive game with a hamstring. And now the Ravens will get their star quarterback back for a week 9 matchup against the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night.
The Baltimore Ravens were coming into the game, knowing they needed this crucial win against the Chicago Bears to save their season and potential path to the postseason and the Super Bowl. And, they got that much-needed win, and they did without star quarterback Lamar Jackson, who missed his 3rd straight game with injury. Backup quarterback Tyler Huntley came in and had himself a very respectable game against the Bears, never turning the ball over once. Thanks in large part to some significant contributions from WR Zay Flowers, who caught seven receptions for 63 yards, and Derrick Henry had a vintage “King Henry” kind of game with 21 carries and 71 yards rushing, and two touchdowns that helped catapult the Ravens to victory against Chicago in Week 8. Also, the defense made some good adjustments coming into this game and made plays that helped lead to this victory over the Bears. 2nd round rookie Mike Green got his 1st career on Caleb Williams in the 1st drive of the game on 3rd and goal, which held them to a field goal. And the Ravens defense put the game away on a Nate Wiggins interception in the 4th quarter, then two plays later on a Tyler Huntley touchdown pass to Charlie Kolar.
The Chicago Bears, on the other side, had an up-and-down performance on both sides of the ball. Caleb Williams had 285 passing yards on 25/38 pass attempts and a QBR of only 62.5, and while he didn’t throw a touchdown pass, he kept them in the game with their 50/50 playing call of the half, passing and half running the ball. Their only offensive touchdown came on a D’Andre Swift touchdown run. The defense only sacked Tyler Huntley twice in the game, both by Gervon Dexter Sr and Montez Sweat. Another shining light for the Bears was WR Rome Odunze, who had 114 receiving yards on seven catches. Overall, the Chicago Bears had some chances, but the Baltimore Ravens’ defense stepped up and held the Chicago Bears to only 16 points on one touchdown and three field goals.
Baltimore in Week 8 against Chicago knew they needed this win to have any hopes of making a postseason push, and now that they’ve got it, they need to keep it up for the next few weeks. Looking at their schedule, it appears favorable, with matchups against Miami, Minnesota, Cleveland, and the NY Jets. This schedule seems like a potential five-game winning streak, but they need to get back to what they do: play smash-mouth running football. If they can fix things, the NFL will look out for the Baltimore Ravens in December and all the way into January. And making sure this team stays healthy going into November and December, so if they make the playoffs, the Ravens will need to make sure everyone is healthy and playing come postseason time.
Now the Baltimore Ravens head down south for a Week 9 matchup with the Miami Dolphins in South Beach on Thursday Night Football. A matchup that looks good on paper, but not every win is a guarantee. The Ravens will need to watch out for this to be a trap game, because these kinds of matchups could derail the rest of their season. But the Ravens will get the best news possible, and that is the return of quarterback Lamar Jackson, who is coming back from a hamstring injury. And having Lamar Jackson under center can be the best possible outcome for the Ravens moving forward this season and into the playoffs.
