The Baltimore Ravens won their fourth straight game in Week 6, as they defeated the previously red-hot Washington Commanders, 30-23. This matchup between the reigning Heisman Trophy winner and reigning NFL MVP was highly anticipated, and both quarterbacks certainly delivered.
Lamar Jackson completed 20 of 26 passes for 323 yards, one touchdown and one interception, while Derrick Henry again led the Ravens rushing attack with 132 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson's No. 1 wideout, Zay Flowers, also had himself a career day with 132 receiving yards on nine catches.
As for the Commanders, Jayden Daniels shined despite the loss. He completed 24 of 35 passes for a career-high 269 yards and two touchdowns. Washington entered this matchup with the No. 2 rushing offense behind Baltimore, but Austin Ekeler and Jeremy McNichols combined for just 30 rushing yards on 11 combined attempts. That led the Commanders to attack through the air, and Terry McLaurin was again Daniels' favorite target. He caught a team-high six passes for 53 yards and two touchdowns.
Let's take a look at what went down in Baltimore on Sunday.
The NFL world was expecting fireworks in this matchup, and if you were curious, the Over did indeed hit. The Ravens won because they were much more efficient on offense. Jackson passed for 323 yards, Henry rushed for 132 yards plus two scores and Flowers had 132 yards receiving.
Baltimore racked up 484 yards of total offense, and scored on its final five drives if we aren't counting the last possession, where the Ravens ran out the clock. This Ravens offense has established itself as one of the best in the NFL. They have recorded 475 yards of total offense in back-to-back games for the second time in team history, and are the first team in NFL history to out-rush their opponents by 100 yards in each of the first six games of the season.
Just look at what they've accomplished over the past few weeks:
| Week | Opponent | Total yards | Points scored |
|---|---|---|---|
4 | Buffalo Bills | 427 | 35 |
5 | Cincinnati Bengals | 520 | 41 |
6 | Washington Commanders | 484 | 30 |
The Commanders lost on both sides of the ball on Sunday. They recorded just 305 yards of total offense, and went 4 of 12 on third downs, but the defense really hurt them.
Washington's defense is not one of the best in the league, and this is something we knew coming into this matchup. Remember, the Bengals did not punt once or turn the ball over in that Monday night shootout a few weeks ago. This Sunday against the Ravens, Washington forced one punt and recorded its first interception of the season. That was not enough to win the game.
If this Commanders team wants to win, they have to be the best offense on the field. If you want to be the best offense on the field, you have to ... be on the field. The Ravens won the time of possession battle, 36:08 to 23:52, and put together three drives that went for at least 78 yards -- including two 90-yard drives.
Up a touchdown, the Ravens took over at their own 30-yard line with 2:48 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Commanders had two timeouts plus the two-minute warning to stop the clock. However, Henry ran for 27 yards on a second-and-8, and then Jackson converted a third-and-1 minutes later to ice the game. The Commanders defense needed one stop to give the offense a chance, and they couldn't get one.
Washington didn't get to the Baltimore 6-yard line to kick a field goal down double digits in the fourth quarter. On fourth-and-goal, Kliff Kingsbury dialed up a Daniels-McLaurin timing route, and it worked to perfection.
The Commanders return home to host Andy Dalton and the Carolina Panthers. As for the Ravens, they will hit the road to play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on "Monday Night Football."
Washington goes 40 yards on eight plays, and Seibert is good from 49 yards out. He's 3/4 now today.
Game not over. Washington has two timeouts.
WAS 23 BAL 30
2:48 remaining in the fourth quarter
Baltimore ran 5:44 off the clock after Washington cut the lead down to 7 points with the second McLaurin TD. The Ravens' nine-play, 57-yard drive ended with a 39-yard Tucker field goal.
WAS 20 BAL 30
6:18 remaining in the fourth quarter
Commanders DT Jonathan Allen (pectoral) has been ruled OUT
Washington didn't get to the Baltimore 6-yard line to kick a field goal down double digits. On fourth-and-goal, Kliff Kingsbury dialed up a Daniels pass to McLaurin on a timing route, and it worked to perfection. Play of the game?
WAS 20 BAL 27
12:12 remaining in the fourth quarter
Another long TD drive for Baltimore. The Ravens went 94 yards on eight plays here, and Derrick Henry scored his second touchdown of the game. Lamar and Co. have now scored on FOUR consecutive drives.
It looks like the Ravens could be ready to pull away in this one, but remember, Baltimore is not exactly known for holding on to their double-digit leads in the fourth quarter. Plus, Daniels is an electric playmaker.
Stay tuned.
WAS 13 BAL 27
2:08 remaining in the third quarter
On their first drive of the second half, the Ravens went 57 yards on eight plays before the drive was halted at the Washington 13-yard line thanks to a sack. Justin Tucker is good from 32 yards out.
WAS 13 BAL 20
8:19 remaining in the third quarter
Washington went six plays, 33 yards into enemy territory on the first drive of the third quarter, but Daniels couldn't connect with Noah Brown on a third-and-5. Austin Seibert is good from 55 yards out, and cuts the deficit to four points.
WAS 13 BAL 17
12:45 remaining in the third quarter
First downs: WAS 9 BAL 16
Total yards: WAS 145 BAL 248
Third downs: WAS 3-6 BAL 4-6
Penalties: WAS 3-21 yards BAL 2-10 yards
TOP: WAS 11:42 BAL 18:18
Jayden Daniels 15/20 131 yards 1 TD, 3 rushes for 15 yards
Lamar Jackson 14/19 2018 yards 1 TD 1 INT, 5 rushes for 11 yards
Austin Ekeler: 3 carries for 10 yards
Derrick Henry: 9 rushes for 38 yards 1 TD
Zay Flowers: 9 catches for 132 yards
Austin Ekeler: 4 catches for 47 yards
After directly causing an interception in the first quarter, Mark Andrews redeemed himself with a 13-yard touchdown right before halftime.
It capped a 10-play, 78-yard drive
WAS 10 BAL 17
53 seconds remaining in the second quarter
Washington answers the Ravens' TD drive with a TD drive of its own. Daniels leads the offense 70 yards down the field on eight plays, and he finds WR1 Terry McLaurin for a 7-yard score.
Daniels is 12/16 for 104 yards and 1 TD
WAS 10 BAL 10
4:16 remaining in the second quarter
With just under eight minutes remaining in the second quarter, we got our first touchdown of the game.
Baltimore went 93 yards on nine plays, and Derrick Henry punched it in from 3 yards out. His 101st career touchdown.
The offensive fireworks we were expecting have not arrived just yet. Washington punted back-to-back times after picking up just nine yards on those two possessions, while the Ravens also had a three-and-out where Lamar was sacked on third-and-9.
The Ravens had another long drive going, but a botched snap from Linderbaum on third-and-7 forced Justin Tucker to come on and hit a 45-yard field goal.
WAS 3 BAL 3
3:45 remaining in the first quarter
Washington went seven plays for 25 yards on its first possession, thanks to a nice 25-yard pickup from Austin Ekeler through the air. However, Jayden Daniels was sacked on third-and-7 at the Ravens' 13-yard line, meaning Seibert had to come on and try a 42-yard FG, which he hit.
WAS 3 BAL 0
9:11 remaining in the first quarter
While it didn't lead to points, check out this 46-yard pickup from Zay Flowers:
Washington entered Week 6 with zero interceptions on the season. That changed on the first drive of the game. Mark Andrews couldn't reel in a pass in the red zone, and the rookie Mike Sainristil picked it off!
I think the NFL world would like to see Jayden Daniels' dominance continue, but one of my favorite stats in the NFL has to do with the Ravens taking on good teams. Baltimore has won six straight regular-season games by 14+ points vs. teams entering the matchup at least three games over .500. It's the longest such streak in NFL history!
Check out my full preview of Ravens-Commanders below. It's 1,000+ words, and is full of stats that will shock you. These are two of the best offenses in the NFL!
