Ravens run into record books and 4 more takeaways from historical win over Texans

Some questions were answered while others came into focus on Christmas night.

Coming off a vindicating win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in which they exorcised some demons, the Baltimore Ravens went on the road for the third and final game of a brutal stretch that took place over 11 days and demolished the Houston Texans 31-2 on Christmas. In doing so, they now sit alone atop the AFC North standings with one game left to play after the Steelers lost at home to the Kansas City Chiefs.

“These guys took these three games in 11 days and smashed it, obliterated it, tore it up and made into a bunch of smithereens laying around everywhere,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “I’m proud of the guys [and] how they did it. They did a great job.”

Offensively, the Ravens did the bulk of their damage on the ground for the second game in a row and saw both Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson break records. Defensively, Baltimore had its best game of the season in which they barely bent and never broke, notching a takeaway and forcing two turnovers on downs. The special teams continued to contribute in a positive way in the kicking game again.

The win gives the Ravens control of their destiny as it pertains to repeating as division champions. There were several encouraging performances by players and units in all three phases that were vital in securing a third straight win in lopsided fashion to improve the Ravens’ overall record to 11-5.

Here are five takeaways from Wednesday’s vindicating victory at NRG Stadium.

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Ravens are the scariest team in the NFL

Not only is Baltimore getting hot at the right time in terms of stringing wins together but the team is peaking at the right time in all three phases. The offense has averaged 29.8 points over their past five games and posted their third straight of 30-plus, the defense has only given up just 16 points per game over that span and the special teams are playing its most consistent of the season. They’ve cut down significantly on penalties with just three against the Texans after only getting called for a season-low two against the Steelers on Saturday, showing improved discipline in all facets of the game.

The Ravens’ offense is not just highly productive but it’s incredibly balanced even if it still operates off a run-centric approach. With their ninth game of over 400 yards of total offense, they broke the single-season franchise record with a week to spare, surpassing the historic mark that the 2019 set in Jackson’s first season as the full-time starter.

The Ravens are rounding into the type of team that no one will want to play and everyone will have a problem slowing down on offense and moving the ball against on defense, making them the most dangerous threat to anyone they go up against.

“We felt that it’s playoff time, so you lose and you’re out,” cornerback Marlon Humphrey said about peaking at the right time. “Our plan now is to peak at the right time, and I feel like we’re doing that, and we want to continue that effort.”

Lamar Jackson cemented MVP front-runner status

As much as the national media would like to prematurely anoint Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen as the clear-cut favorite or make a compelling argument for Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley to be the first player at this position to win it since Adrian Peterson, the reigning league MVP is the rightful front-runner to earn the third of his career. Not only did Jackson add to his league-leading total touchdown total but he did it in the typical electrifying style that only he can as was the case in his second MVP-winning campaign last year, the box score stats alone didn’t do his incredible performance justice.

Jackson was responsible for 255 of the Ravens’ 432 total yards of offense in this game and scored a trio of touchdowns—two through the air and one on the ground. More impressive than the numbers themselves were the plays he made to accumulate them, especially in the passing game where he used his legs to extend plays and make magic. The two most spectacular examples of his one-of-a-kind playmaking ability were on the 67-yard catch-and-run connection between him and Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews and two plays later, he worked wonders behind the line of scrimmage again to buy third-year tight end Isaiah Likely enough time to uncover in the end zone so he could deliver a nine-yard touchdown strike.

It seems like almost every Ravens win this season has come with some sort of franchise or NFL record being broken by Jackson and Christmas was no different as his 87 rushing yards including a 48-yard touchdown increased his career total to 6,110. In doing so, he surpassed his childhood idol and NFL legend, Michael Vick, for the most career rushing yards by a quarterback in league history and he did it in 41 fewer games—141 to 102.

“It feels unreal, to be honest with you,” Jackson said. “I just give God all the glory. I’m grateful, man, because that’s a record that’s been held for a long time with Michael Vick, one of my favorite players. That’s just dope.”

King Henry is Ravens best offseason acquisition since Anquan Boldin

The last time Baltimore went on a Super Bowl run, one of the main catalysts to their success that helped them finally get over the hump early in the Harbaugh era was the presence of the future Hall of Fame wide receiver. Boldin brought a similar physical and reliable element to the Ravens passing game during his two-year stint with the team that Derrick Henry is providing to their rushing attack as they look to return to the mountaintop.

Against the Texans, he got rolling early and nearly had 100 rushing yards before halftime and finished with 147 rushing yards on 27 carries for an average of 5.4 yards per carry. Henry snapped his four-game scoreless streak on the first drive of the game when he plowed his way into the end zone for the Ravens’ first points and set a new franchise single-season record for total touchdowns in the process.

The four-time Pro Bowler mad a monster stretch in the first half of the season when he was leading the league in rushing and now appears to be heating up at the right time along with the rest of the team. He now has rushed for 309 yards on 51 and averaged over six yards per carry in the last two games combined to help put the team in a position to not only repeat as division champions but emerge as a prime championship contender.

Defense continues evolve into dominant unit

Through the first 10 weeks of the regular season, the Ravens were elite when it came to stuffing the run but were the worst in the league when it came to defending the pass. Those struggles seem like a distant memory now after watching first-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr’s unit technically pitch its first shutout of the season as the Texans’ only points of the game came on a safety their defense registered in the first half after an excellent punt led to Henry getting tackled in the end zone for a safety.

The Ravens allowed a season-low 211 yards of total offense, held their fifth straight quarterback to under 220 passing yards and 205 net passing yards—including Russell Wilson twice, extended their NFL-leading streak of multi-sack games by recording five and forced a turnover for the third straight game since returning from their Week 14 bye. After being tabbed as the team’s biggest liability to a potential Super Bowl run, this defense is not only rounding into shape but emerging as a dominant force heading into the postseason.

“I’d say we’ve come full circle,” Humphrey said. “But no, it felt good. I was talking with [senior advisor Dean] Pees. He was here when I was a rookie, and I think we had maybe one or two shutouts. I was telling ‘Z.O.’ [Zach Orr], it feels good to play good defense.”

Post-bye week Justin Tucker stays perfect

Much like the Ravens defense, the first three-fourths of the season was nightmarish for the seven-time Pro Bowler and future Hall of Famer. After amassing a league-leading and career-high 10 missed kicks between field goals from any range and extra points, Tucker has not only made all 16 of the kicks he has attempted since returning from the team’s Week 14 bye—three field goals and 13 extra points—but he has drilled each one right down the middle of the uprights.

On Christmas, he nailed his second 50-plus yarder in the last five days against the Texans on the Ravens’ second drive of the game that put them up 10-0. Leg strength was never Tucker’s issue as all but one of his misses was wide left and they all had the distance, just not the accuracy. It clearly seems that he has corrected whatever technical issue and overcame whatever speculated mental hurdle that was preventing him from performing at his typical elite level and he’s back to being a reliable weapon the Ravens can consistently depend on again.