Baltimore Ravens

Baltimore Ravens Win 3rd Straight: The Good, Bad & Ugly

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 1:02 p.m. ET

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Sep 25, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles (5) looks to throw the ball in the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

The Baltimore Ravens Are 3-0 after beating the Jaguars: Here is the good, the bad and the ugly:

The Baltimore Ravens are doing something that is mind boggling. What we are seeing, is a team that hasn’t played up to their true potential and is winning any way. This is a game that needs no sugar coating. The Ravens won, but they need to start improving. Before we vent our frustrations, here is what the team is doing right.

The Good:

The Ravens defense was phenomenal in this game. Blake Bortles only had 194 yards and was picked off three times. The Jaguars rushed for only 48 yards. Bortles was sacked three times and had a few passes tipped. The Jaguars scored two touchdowns but nothing was given. The Jaguars earned 17 points and it wasn’t enough to beat the Ravens.

Eric Weddle played huge in this game. He dislodged the football from a receivers grasp multiple times in this one. Terrell Suggs had two sacks, and he finally looked like Terrell Suggs. Timmy Jernigan impressed in front of his hometown crowd.

The blocked field goal by Brent Urban was huge. The Ravens won by two points, and that play prevented the Jaguars from adding three points to the board. The offense wasn’t doing much of anything. They had three good drives and a bunch of “oh come the heck on” inducing moments. Blocking the kick was a sensational play that the Ravens needed.

Sep 18, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco (5) and Baltimore Ravens running back Justin Forsett (29) at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Bad:

The Ravens had a 16-7 lead. All they needed to do was to keep adding to the lead. They didn’t need a great offense attacking on all cylinders. More than anything the Ravens just needed a functional offense. They simply didn’t have it. Flacco threw two interceptions. Flacco missed horribly throwing to some open receivers. The Ravens running game was non-existent. You’re looking at an offense that doesn’t have a problem. They have many problems.

The offensive line is getting man handled. Ronnie Stanley is going to go through some growing pains but veterans like Jeremy Zuttah and Marshall Yanda have to play better. The Ravens had every chance to walk away with an easy win. Turnovers and doing practically nothing on offense made this a heart pounding finish.

The bad thing about this game is that the Ravens did it to themselves. The Jaguars played an ugly game. There were three interceptions from Blake Bortles and this game went down to the wire. The Jaguars didn’t outplay the Ravens, the Ravens beat themselves. Somehow they did this without losing.

The Downright ugly:

Devin Hester has one job to do. He returns kicks. His muffed punt is simply unacceptable. It gave the Jaguars a chance to take the lead after two straight sacks would have given the Ravens good field position. The Ravens were penalized heavily in this game. The Ravens had eight penalties, most of them were of the dumb variety. Ronnie Stanley and Marshall Yanda’s penalties compounded the Ravens poor offensive line performance.

The Ravens played as poorly as you can without losing. The defense did good. The ugly thing is that is the only bright spot from this game. In every category the Ravens were man handled. The field goal block was good, but special teams also allowed a huge punt return that set Jacksonville up for a touchdown.

So there you have it. That is the good, the bad and the ugly. Nothing matters more though, than the Ravens 3-0 record.