Detroit Lions at Baltimore Ravens: How to watch and 3 things to watch in the Week 3 matchup
● What: Detroit Lions at Baltimore Ravens
● When: 8:15 p.m.
● Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
● How to watch: ESPN/ABC (Buck/Aikman/Salters/Rutledge)
● How to listen: 97.1-FM The Ticket in Metro Detroit or any number of network affiliates around the state.
● Line: Ravens -4.5
● Injury report: The Lions have ruled out defensive end Marcus Davenport with a chest injury. Four others — Taylor Decker, DJ Reed, Jack Campbell and Kerby Joseph — are listed as questionable.
The Ravens, meanwhile, will be without defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike, linebacker Kyle Van Noy, fullback Patrick Ricard and tight end Isaiah Likely.
● Officiating assignment: Bill Vinovich’s crew. A head referee since 2004, this will be his 16th Lions game in that role. His most recent was last year’s come-from-behind victory in Houston last season.
● Last meeting: The Lions went to Baltimore riding a four-game winning streak in 2023, but got pasted by the Ravens, 38-6.
Three things worth watching
● In 2024, the Lions had their best rushing attack since the retirement of Barry Sanders. The dynamic tandem of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery racked up nearly 2,200 yards and found the end zone 28 times on the ground.
Meanwhile, the Ravens defense made a living on shutting down the run a year ago, allowing just 80.1 yards per game and 3.6 yards per carry. Both those figures led the league.
In a new year, with some new faces, neither team is quite living up to the previous season’s standards. Detroit started to get on track last week with some explosive gains fueling a 177-yard, two-score day against Chicago. Still, most of that damage came on the perimeter, with the Lions’ backs struggling to find lanes up the gut.
Baltimore, which parted with veteran defensive tackles Michael Pierce and Malik Harrison this offseason, hasn’t been the brick wall it was last year, particularly in last week’s win over Cleveland. In the victory, they allowed 5.2 yards per carry, in large part due to a 31-yard romp by rookie Quinshon Judkins.
Running the ball is the one thing the Lions did well the last time these teams met. Montgomery was out with an injury, but Gibbs and Craig Reynolds managed to churn out 6.0 yards per tote. Clearly, that alone won’t be enough. Still, if the Lions want to control the clock and set up their lethal play-action game, being able to move the ball on the ground will be critical.
● Detroit’s edge rushing situation got dinged by Davenport going down with an injury, leaving the team thin on options experienced in the scheme.
Obviously, Aidan Hutchinson will continue to hold down the fort on one side. He'll be paired with Al-Quadin Muhammad much of the game. The rest of the edge snaps will likely be filled by players at other positions, including linebacker Derrick Barnes and interior linemen Pat O’Connor and Mekhi Wingo. Other candidates for playing time including linebacker Trevor Nowaske, returning from an elbow injury that sidelined him for the first two games, and Tyrus Wheat, who should make his Detroit debut after getting scooped off waivers just ahead of the season.
Muhammad is a nice piece to fall back on. He filled in admirably when Hutchinson and Davenport went down last season, and was productive against the Bears a week ago, generating three pressures and his first sack of the season.
And, if nothing else, there’s a lot of beef rounding out the rotation. That should help set edges and keep Ravens QB Lamar Jackson caged to the pocket.
Regardless of the depth concerns, the Lions have to do a better job of generating pocket pressure in the first half. Most of their success through two games, both with four-man fronts and blitzes, came after they’d built a big lead on Chicago, knowing the opponent would have to abandon the run.
If the Lions can’t pressure Jackson early, few quarterbacks can turn extra time into explosive plays better, whether that’s with his feet or his arm.
● Nowaske isn’t the only player the Lions are getting back this week. Running back Sione Vaki is also returning, looking to finally put his nagging hamstring strain behind him.
Both offer potentially significant boosts to Detroit’s special teams, which have been decidedly average through two games. Maybe Vaki doesn’t get thrust into the mix immediately. Still, he’s unquestionably one of the better options on the roster to handle kickoff returns, where the Lions’ 23.4-yard average ranks near the bottom of the league.
Vaki and Nowaske are also two of the roster’s top cover options, both on kickoffs and punts. And, as noted in this week’s post about themes in the Ravens’ recent losses, winning the field position battle is important.
At the beginning of the season we had to contend with the SoS (strength of schedule) nonsense. That is always based on LAST year's results which very seldom meaningfully transfers to the following year. Teams do change from year to year. It was and is said that the Lions have a very tough schedule. After the first three weeks, I am not seeing any team that looks all that scary.
Even this year's per-ordained SB winners, The Almighty Pack, tripped up over the endless verbiage of super-star Parsons who single handed couldn't beat the Browns. Philly, KC, the Rams, Cincy and the Skins have all looked shaky after three games. Even the Ravens don't look any more daunting than the Lions.
I wonder how many fans are still stuck with "the same old Lions" mentality buried deep in their minds? I fight it every game after more than 60 years of sitting through the muck the Lions often pretended was playing football. I see the Lions scoring at least 30 tonight. The Ravens under 30.
It's interesting that everyone brings up the smackdown in 2023 but no one mentions the fact that the terrible Lions of 2021 would have beat the Ravens if not for a last-second, NFL-record-breaking field goal by the man who will forever be known as The Masseuse. No, they didn't have Henry, but they had Lamar, and they were a SB-caliber team. And the winless Lions almost took them. Yes, that's what I'm leaning on.