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2022 Ravens Betting Preview: Picks And Predictions

Nick Galaida Sat 9/10 12:32am PT

Last year, the Baltimore Ravens lost both of their top-two running backs to torn ACLs during the preseason. Marcus Peters was also lost for the entire season before playing a single snap of meaningful football. Then, Baltimore lost their starting left tackle, Ronnie Staley, in Week 1. Lamar Jackson ended up playing in only 12 games as well, and the Ravens finished 2021 ranked 32nd in injury luck. Still, Baltimore managed to finish the regular season with eight victories, and had an opportunity to clinch a postseason berth if they could have defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in a Week 18 overtime loss.

During the offseason, the Ravens added Marcus Williams in free agency and had 10 picks in the first four rounds of the NFL Draft. Thus, expectations are high once again for this group heading into the new campaign. Let’s take a look at all of the new faces on this roster to see if they are capable of returning to the playoffs this fall.

Ravens 2022 Team Preview

Quarterback

Depth Chart: Lamar Jackson, Tyler Huntley, Brett Hundley, Anthony Brown

In 2019, Lamar Jackson won the Most Valuable Player award in the NFL, totaling 43 touchdowns against only six interceptions. In 2020, he regressed slightly – posting 33 touchdowns against nine interceptions. Last fall, he seemingly fell off of a cliff, with only 18 touchdowns against 13 interceptions in an injury-riddled 12-games.

Notably, Jackson regressed sharply against the blitz, on 3rd down, and in the red zone in 2021, and struggled mightily on throws 20-plus yards down-the-field, with only a 5-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a well below league average 77.6 passer rating on such throws. During his MVP campaign in 2019, only 1.9 percent of Jackson’s throws were graded as turnover-worthy by Pro Football Focus. He regressed to a 3.9 percent turnover-worthy-play percentage in 2020, and then followed-up with a 3.4 percent rate in 2021.

Jackson has proven that he has the tools to be an elite quarterback at the professional level. Returning to full health, and playing in a contract year – it is possible that we see a 2019-esque season from the talented signal caller this fall. At +1800 to win his second MVP award, he holds substantial upside for bettors.

Running Back

Depth Chart: J.K. Dobbins, Gus Edwards, Mike Davis, Justice Hill

Lamar Jackson was one of only two quarterbacks last year to lead their team in both passing yards and rushing yards – the other being Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles. Baltimore fans are hoping that the burden on Jackson in the running game will be reduced in 2022, with the return of J.K. Dobbins to the field after he missed the entire 2021 campaign with a torn ACL. As a rookie, Dobbins averaged 6.0 yards-per-carry (3rd-best in the NFL) en route to nine rushing touchdowns (11th-most in the NFL) in only 15 games. If Dobbins is healthy and ready to go, the Ravens could have one of the more dangerous rush-attacks in football, pairing Jackson and Dobbins together.

Wide Receivers

Depth Chart: Rashod Bateman. Devin Duvernay, James Proche II, Mark Andrews

The departure of last season’s second-leading pass-catcher, Marquise Brown is ostensibly a big loss for this group, but it is far from debilitating. Brown managed 1,008 receiving yards and six touchdown catches, but issues with dropped passes and inefficient route running caused headaches at times. 

Mark Andrews, last year’s yardage-leader for Baltimore, returns and figures to have another outstanding season. Andrews has scored 26 touchdowns across the last three years, and has at least 58 catches in each of those three seasons as well. Expect him to continue to be one of the best tight ends in football, and a tremendous asset in the passing game.

Offensive Line

Depth Chart: Ronnie Stanley, Ben Powers, Tyler Linderbaum, Kevin Zeitler, Morgan Moses

Since entering the league as a first round draft pick out of Notre Dame in 2016, Ronnie Staley has been one of the most dependable left tackles in the entire league. His absence in 2021 was acutely felt by the offense, and was a big reason that the Ravens missed the playoffs. His return to full health for 2022 will go a long way in improving Baltimore’s passing attack after a year of major regression last fall.

Ben Powers was outstanding as a rookie in 2019, but has settled into league average production across the last two years. The former fourth-round pick is a capable pass-blocker, but is unlikely to replicate his elite production from his rookie season. Still, he makes for a reasonably effective left guard.

Tyler Linderbaum was a major investment for this group during the summer, drafting him with the 25th overall selection out of Iowa. Linderbaum was unquestionably one of the best starting centers in college football last year, if not the best. Pass protection is a potential area of concern to watch for early in his rookie season, but he should have little trouble emerging as a positive influence for this unit from Day 1 in the league. Growing pains should be minimal and infrequent.

Kevin Zeitler and Morgan Moses form a strong right side of this offensive line. Both players should be better than league average as both run-blockers and in pass protection in 2022. If these five guys can stay reasonably healthy, this unit has the potential to be one of the best in the league.

Base 3-4 Defense

Defensive Line

Depth Chart: Justin Madubuike, Michael Pierce, Calais Campbell

Last year, the Ravens finished 28th in the league in sacks per pass attempt, according to NFL GSIS. During the offseason, the front office added skilled pass-rusher Michael Pierce, who had three sacks and 13 quarterback hurries in only eight games in 2021 with the Minnesota Vikings. Calais Campbell returns for his 14th season after finishing as the 8th-highest graded defensive lineman in football last year, per Pro Football Focus. At some point, Campbell will be slowed by his advanced age, but there is little reason to expect major regression in 2022 based on what we have seen from him recently. Justin Madubuike is the biggest question mark for this group, coming off of his sophomore campaign, during which he struggled mightily to defend the run or to make an impact as a pass-rusher.

Linebackers

Depth Chart: Odafe Oweh, Josh Bynes, Patrick Queen, Justin Houston

Odafe Oweh was a first round pick last summer by the Ravens, but the Penn State standout was only mediocre as a rookie. If Oweh can take a notable leap forward in production as a sophomore in the NFL, this unit could go from good to great. Josh Bynes was undrafted out of Auburn in 2011, but has consistently been a better than league average linebacker across the last decade. He totaled only two sacks last fall, but he also added three quarterback hurries and graded as an excellent run defender. Baltimore will certainly take a similar performance out of him in 2022.   

Patrick Queen carried a good amount of hype with him when he was drafted in the first round in 2020 out of LSU. However, he has been incredibly underwhelming in his first two seasons with the Ravens. If there is any reason to be optimistic, Queen went from unplayable in 2020 to simply a liability in 2021. If he can improve to be mediocre in 2022, it will go a long way in solidifying this unit.

Few defensive players in the NFL have more name recognition than Justin Houston, and for good reason. Houston has been elite in nearly every season since 2012. He figures to be an asset for this Baltimore defense again this season.

Secondary

Depth Chart: Marcus Peters, Kyle Hamilton, Marcus Williams, Marlon Humphrey

Simply, the Ravens have the most talented secondary unit of any team in the league. Marcus Williams and Chuck Clark form one of the best safety tandems in the NFL, and should protect Baltimore from having the top taken off of the defense much this fall. Marlon Humphrey had a down year in 2021, but still graded as above average in coverage, per Pro Football Focus. Having more talent around him in 2022 should enable him to return to the borderline elite production that he delivered from 2017 to 2020. Marcus Peters did not play in 2021, but should be able to immediately reclaim his position as one of the best cornerbacks in football when he takes the field in Week 1 against the New York Jets. The Ravens also spent their top draft pick this past summer on Kye Hamilton, who figures to have an immense positive impact on this side of the ball as a rookie. Hamilton is a versatile prospect that will be utilized at multiple positions in his first year – and will likely excel at everything he is asked to do for this team.

2022 Outlook

Not only did Baltimore have unimaginably poor injury luck in 2021, they also finished 28th in the NFL in turnover differential (-11). Similar to other “luck” metrics, turnover differential tends to regress to the mean sharply, especially following a season in which a talented football team finished near the bottom of the league. 

On top of getting numerous key players healthy again for 2022, the Ravens also added significant talent via free agency and the draft. Baltimore managed to win eight games last fall with one of the most unlucky, injury-decimated rosters in the entire NFL. Better health, better talent, and slightly better luck should enable the Ravens to blow past their projected win total this season – take the over.

PICK: Baltimore Ravens o9.5 wins (-165)

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