New York Giants Week 15: A Look at the Baltimore Ravens Offense

The New York Giants will face arguably the toughest task in the NFL this week as they try to slow the Baltimore Ravens’ offense. The Ravens are coming off a bye and are about as healthy as they come at this point in the season.

What exactly are the Giants up against? Let’s break it down.

The Ravens offense is led by two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson, who has 3,290 passing yards, 29 touchdowns, and three interceptions along with 678 rushing yards and three more rushing touchdowns.

Jackson is tied for the league lead with 8.7 yards per attempt and leading the league in passer rating with 116.3.

The Ravens also have the NFL’s second-leading rusher in Derrick Henry, who signed a two-year contract worth $16 million this past offseason. Henry’s presence as a runner gives the Ravens the most explosive two-headed backfield with him and Jackson.

Justice Hill is an important pass-catching threat out of the backfield for Jackson. While he’s a less-than-stellar runner, he’s having arguably his best year as a runner and already has a career-high in receptions and receiving yards.

When using a fullback, the Ravens still have one of the league’s best in Patrick Ricard.

The tight end duo of Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely is more effective than it’s ever been.

Andrews is a chain-mover who isn’t as dominant as he once was but still plays a key part in the offense.

Likely has more vertical ability and has emerged as an important part of the red zone offense that creates havoc for defenders in tight windows.

Zay Flowers has taken the next step needed to establish himself as a legitimate WR1 in the offense, and Rashod Bateman has finally found some consistency with WR2 potential.

The offensive line has been middle of the pack statistically, but it’s also one of the most blitzed units in the NFL, with a 32.8% blitz rate—the sixth-highest rate in the NFL.

The Ravens use 11-personnel (one running back, one tight end) at one of the lowest rates in the NFL (30.8%; league average is 60.4%). They use 12, 21, and 22 personnel at significantly higher rates than the rest of the league. 

The offense is still built around successfully running the ball with both Henry and Jackson and building off of that with the RPO and play-action.

Andrews and Likely are mismatch nightmares in the passing game. While also being viable blockers, they create chaos for defenses to match up with.

Few offenses take as many deep shots as the Ravens do, with long-developing passing plays built to entice then attack defenses that come up to defend the run.

Screens underneath, combined with the run game, tempt defenses. Simply put, it’s the perfect mix of speed, dual-threat ability, and heavy personnel.

This week, the Giants’ defense will face what I think will be their toughest matchup of the season. As one of the defenses that operate with a light box frequently against an offense that goes as heavy as the Ravens do, it’s a tough task.

This game has the potential to get ugly for the Giants; there’s no way to sugarcoat it. The Ravens’ offense is efficient and effective at moving the ball while remaining explosive in the air and on the ground.