That Baltimore Ravens take to the road this week after coming up short against the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs last weekend. They will head 40 miles up 295 to D.C. to take on the Washington Football Team in what should be a “get right” game for the Ravens and quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Jackson struggled last weekend against the Chiefs for the second straight game in a row. After the 34-20 loss on Monday Night Football in week three, Jackson referred to Kansas City as Baltimore’s “kryptonite.” Jackson’s quarterback rating of 73.1 in the game was his lowest in almost exactly a year when he put up a 69.4 (albeit in a win) over Seattle in week 7 of last season.
The Washington Football Team is not only struggling with choosing a name, they are struggling mightily on the field as well. Second-year quarterback Dwayne Haskins looked to be turning the corner towards competency in the first two weeks of the 2020 season but regressed heavily in a week three matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
Haskins went 21-37 and threw three interceptions (2 touchdowns) in a 34-20 loss. Look for Riverboat Ron to pull back on the reigns a little bit this weekend and keep it a little more conservative.
Just What the Avian Veterinarian Ordered
Right now, there are few teams you want to see after getting your behind whooped more than the Washington Football Team.
While Jackson has never faced the Washinton, or any other NFC East team for that matter, he is 6-2 straight up in his career against the NFC and averages roughly 125 yards through the air and 80 yards on the ground. Jackson has also never thrown an interception against an NFC team.
On the season, Baltimore is 2-1 against the spread, and all three games have gone under the total. The Ravens are 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games overall and 14-2 straight up in their last 16.
Slim Chance for Washington
It is difficult to be optimistic for Washington in this game, but the easiest thing to say is that they have to get the ball to their young playmakers on offense and hope for the best. Terry McLaurin and Antonio Gibson are nice players, and Ron Rivera needs to make it easy for Haskins to get them the ball.
Washington is 1-5 in their last six games overall against the spread and just 1-2 this season. They are only 2-11 straight up in their last 13 games and 0-5 in their last five games against teams from the AFC.
My Pick
This is possibly the easiest pick of the week. Jackson is going to come out land light these guys up. Washington is playing without their young star Chase Young on the defensive line, and I expect the Ravens to run wild.
The -14 spread is a big number, but I don’t think that Haskins will be able to move the ball against this defense, and Jackson will have his way on the other side of the ball. I’ll take the under (45.5) by a half-point and the Ravens to cover. I would also expect Mark Ingram to eat in this game and tally a bunch of carries in the second half.
