Ravens vs. Titans: 7 storylines to watch in Week 6
The Baltimore Ravens (3-2) travel to London this week to face the Tennessee Titans (2-3).
It will mark the Ravens’ second all-time game in London and their first appearance at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (capacity 60,000).
Kickoff is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. EST.
With both teams set to hold their second practice of the week, we’re looking at seven storylines to watch in Sunday’s intriguing matchup.
1. All eyes on Todd Monken
The Ravens are 3-1, and the retooled offense under Todd Monken has been much improved in key categories through four games.
Baltimore is converting 47.4 percent of its third downs, the fifth-best mark in the NFL.
Lamar Jackson and the Ravens offense is scoring touchdowns on a league-best 80 percent of its red zone trips and has scored touchdowns on eight consecutive drives inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.
The next step will be more explosive plays, and the return of Odell Beckham and Rashod Bateman could check off that box.
2. Matchup history
The Titans and Ravens have met on 26 prior occasions, highlighted by five postseason contests—most recently a 20-13 Ravens wild-card victory on Jan. 10, 2021.
Tennessee has squared off with Baltimore more than any other opponent in franchise postseason history, despite the first matchup not occurring until January 2001.
Including all regular season and postseason games, the series is tied 13-13.
3. Ravens WR play concerning
Baltimore’s wide receiver corps was one of just two units in the NFL that didn’t have a single drop over the first four weeks, but during last Sunday’s loss to the Steelers, they combined for 5 drops.
Zay Flowers has been a stud early-on and he’s still looking for a breakout game, while Nelson Agholor has been solid as a third or fourth option.
Odell Beckham Jr. and Rashod Bateman have been concerning, and neither player has yet to have a big game, while missing multiple contest with injury.
4. Underused rushing attack
After years of discussions about an elevated passing attack, are the 2023 Ravens too dependent on the pass. Baltimore ranks fourth in the NFL with 164 rushing attempts this season, yet all anyone has talked about is the Ravens pass catchers dropping 5+ balls in the loss to Pittsburgh.
Still offensive coordinator Todd Monken has to improve the run-pass balance in key situations, and when it’s useful for his team to put the opposing defense away with a stout rushing attack.
Justice Hill averaged 4.6 yards per carry in Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh and displayed his elusiveness on some of those runs, while the talented Gus Edwards should be the focal point, with his one-cut, and run approach.
5. London flavor
The Ravens have played in one overseas contest, and the results were less than favorable, so they switched things up.
In the Ravens’ only international game in franchise history, Baltimore was blown out by the Jaguars 44-7 after allowing the team two days to acclimate.
The 37-point loss is the second-largest margin of defeat in an NFL international game, and six years later, the organization will uproot for an entire week, spending six days overseas ahead of the Sunday morning broadcast, according to Clifton Brown of the team’s official website.
“It’s mostly driven by the fact we didn’t do well,” Harbaugh said. “We did the opposite. There’s no data. We looked for it – when you should go out there, what’s the science on that. As often is the case, they really don’t know.”
Adapting to the five-hour time difference will be a challenge, with Sunday’s kickoff scheduled for 9:30 a.m. EST. Departing on Monday gave the players more time to adjust their body clocks.
The team spent that first day resting, while using a Tuesday off day to recalibrate and see the city, and then practice for three days ahead of their matchup with the Titans.
Sunday’s contest will be nationally televised on NFL Network and streamed to mobile devices on NFL+. The broadcast team includes play-by-play announcer Rich Eisen,analyst Kurt Warner and reporter Jamie Erdahl.
6. physical matchup on display
Roquan Smith has talked about “bringing a physical brand” of football to London for the Ravens matchup against the Titans, and he’ll have an equal counterpart when he faces off against Derrick Henry.
The two powerful forced will collide early and often in the contest.
7.Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
In Week 6, several Buffalo Bills players complained about the turf being hard and unsafe at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where the Ravens and Titans will face each other in Week 6.
Buffalo had two players suffer significant injuries, including linebacker Matt Milano, who’ll miss the remainder of this season with a a serious leg injury.
“The turf is terrible,” Bills cornerback Taron Johnson told reporters, via Thad Brown of WROC in Rochester, N.Y. “My foot got stuck in the ground. Take that turf out. I don’t know why we’re playing on stuff like that.”
Ravens coach John Harbaugh had this to say.
“There are good turf fields and all that,” Harbaugh said. “I’m looking forward to seeing the one here at the [Tottenham Hotspur] stadium, but I’m a grass guy. I’m with the players on that. Grass is natural. It plays better.
