Monday Night Battle Will Tell Us A Lot About Who Baltimore Actually Is

The Baltimore Ravens went and snapped a three-game losing streak on Wednesday with a win over Dallas. It was great, wasn’t it? They hung 34 points on the Cowboys and ran them out of the building! Lamar was flashy, zipping into the endzone from 37 yards out in the first quarter. They’re back! Right?

I don’t know, at least not yet.

The Cowboys are awful against the run. Like, they’re actually the worst team in the NFL against the run. What if the win for Baltimore was just a good matchup? What if they were able to hide their totally legitimate COVID-19 concerns for a week against a bad team that highlights their strengths? It’s very possible.

We’ll surely find out on Monday when they face off against division rival Cleveland. The Browns are a Top-10 team against the run so Lamar will be forced to throw, something he hasn’t done much of lately. Lamar Jackson hasn’t thrown for more than 200 yards in a month, and arguably his best possession receiver Dez Bryant isn’t a lock to play in Week 14. We’re going to find out a lot about Baltimore this week in their primetime game against the Browns.

The Ravens are going into the game as 2.5-point favorites over the Browns, and it should be noted they have dominated Cleveland recently as far as the spread is concerned. In their last 10 meetings, the Ravens have gone 7-3 ATS, including ATS wins in their two matchups in the last 12 months. Also, with games specifically in Cleveland, the Ravens are 9-2-1 ATS in the last 12 meetings.

We have been getting a lot of midweek NFL games recently with middle TV ratings. This one shouldn’t be one of those; this is a game everyone should be watching. The league’s reigning MVP is going up against a very good division rival who hasn’t been legitimately good in forever. And the Ravens have the chance to prove they’re for real? This is a GREAT Monday Night Football game, full stop. Make sure to tune in.