Baltimore vs. Denver
Jackson’s Perfect Passing Day, Henry’s 2 TDs Highlight Ravens’ Offensive Outburst in Win Over Denver
Dating back to the franchise’s first Super Bowl victory nearly a quarter of a century ago, the Baltimore Ravens’ identity has been an explosive defense. Even though there have been some offensive highlights – including Lamar Jackson winning two NFL MVP awards – this may be the most well-rounded offense that has taken the field at M&T Bank Stadium.
Jackson’s 280 yards and three touchdowns led to a perfect 158.3 passer rating while Derrick Henry crossed the 1,000-yard mark on the season in a 41-10 Ravens win over Denver, stopping the Broncos’ three-game winning streak in its tracks.
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Jackson’s performance was even more impressive considering that he didn’t practice for two days this past week, reportedly nursing a sore back and knee. But the reigning MVP logged more minutes in the film room.
“I knew what the assignment was,” Jackson said. “I definitely studied those guys.”
Henry, meanwhile, has proven to add the missing ingredient to the Ravens’ offense in recent years, allowing Jackson to not run the ball as much and take fewer hits. The former Titan extended his feat of scoring in each game this season, and his two touchdowns were the 100th and 101st of his career.
“We have been really good at running the ball for a long time, but he is different. Derrick Henry's different,” coach John Harbaugh said. “He is adding a dimension that we have not had before. I don't know. You go back to Jamal Lewis maybe.”
Denver (5-4), led by rookie quarterback Bo Nix, has overachieved this season, but this was a hard lesson for the up-and-coming team to learn.
“[Jackson] a phenomenal football player, throws the ball really well. Hard to do what he does on a consistent basis,” Nix said. “He missed some practice this week and came out and looked very sharp. Props to him. He’s a phenomenal player. That’s why he gets all the accolades that he does. It’s special to be able to share a field with a guy like that.”
It was a big bounce-back win for Baltimore, who had a five-game winning streak snapped at Cleveland last week. Now, the 6-3 Ravens host division rival Cincinnati on Thursday night with a chance to put some distance between itself and an AFC North rival.
GAME RECAP
The scoring opened late in the first quarter with Henry’s first score – a seven-yard run to make it 7-0 Baltimore. After Justin Tucker added a 33-yard field goal to bump the lead to 10-0, the Broncos got their only touchdown of the day on a trick play. Courtland Sutton took the ball and passed to Nix from two yards out in a play that resembled the “Philly Special” in Philadelphia’s Super Bowl win in 2018.
But the Ravens responded with a scoring drive of their own, as Zay Flowers hauled in a seven-yard pass to make it 17-7. After a Broncos’ field goal with 57 seconds remaining, it looked like the score at the half would be 17-10. But Baltimore turned the game in their favor permanently with a 53-yard connection between Jackson and Flowers to make it 24-10 at the half.
Denver wouldn’t score again, while Baltimore added another score from Henry and a Jackson pass to Patrick Ricard. Both third-quarter TDs made it 38-10, and a Tucker field goal early in the fourth quarter capped the scoring at 41-10.
UP NEXT
Baltimore hosts the 4-5 Bengals, who need a win to keep pace with the Ravens and first-place Pittsburgh. Joe Burrow and company have won three of their last four games after defeating Las Vegas 41-24 today.