By Tim Barbalace
September 29th. That was the last time the Ravens lost a football game, and it was probably the low point of a season that has featured so many highs.
The Ravens entered Week 4, coming off their first loss in which they gave up 503 yards against the Chiefs. The Browns came to town fresh off their first win and looked to avenge a Week 17 defeat from last year.
Despite outgaining the Ravens 239-102 in the first half, the Browns led by three entering halftime. Cleveland came out of the intermission and scored touchdowns on their next three drives, the last of which was a back-breaking 88-yard touchdown run by Nick Chubb to give them a double-digit fourth-quarter lead.
It was a sloppy game for the Ravens. The offense turned the ball over three times, and Lamar Jackson and Mark Andrews had a miscommunication on a failed fourth-down try, but it was the defense that struggled mightily throughout. The Browns racked up 530 yards and dropped 40 points as Baltimore had no answers.
Defense has been the calling card for the Ravens for several years, but this group looked to have been overhyped as they had allowed over 500 yards of offense in back to back weeks. Pundits believed Baltimore had the best secondary in football entering the year, but positive resulted were nowhere to be found. Through the first four games, the Ravens ranked 27th in total defense, 23rd in scoring defense and 30th in pass defense.
After starting 2-0, two straight losses dropped the Ravens to .500 and left fans and pundits alike with more questions than answers. No one could have imagined at the time that the Ravens would win their next ten straight games heading into their second matchup with the Browns.
Of the 46 players activated against Cleveland, nine of them are either no longer on the team or on injured reserve. Defensively is where Baltimore has undergone the most changes.
Jihad Ward, L.J Fort, and Josh Bynes were picked up off the street, while Marcus Peters was acquired through a trade with the Rams. Chuck Clark has worn the green dot and stabilized the defense since Tony Jefferson went out with a season-ending knee injury. Jimmy Smith and Brandon Williams were also out versus the Browns due to injury.
During the team's ten-game winning streak, Baltimore has held opposing offenses to under 300 total yards in five of those weeks and have forced 18 turnovers. Their defense now ranks 6th overall, 4th in scoring and 6th against the pass. That's despite facing Russell Wilson, Tom Brady, Deshaun Watson, Jared Goff, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Josh Allen in that stretch.
Offensively, Lamar Jackson continues to be the focal point of the league's highest-scoring offense. Jackson is the touchdown pass leader and just broke Michael Vick's single-season QB rushing record. He has played at an MVP caliber level while going against top teams in the NFL as the Ravens have beaten seven teams in playoff contention over their win streak.
The NFL thrives on unpredictability. After the Ravens dropped their first meeting with the Browns, no one could have predicted they would have a chance to lock up home field advantage entering their second matchup against Cleveland.