Broncos at Ravens: Week 13 Bold Predictions & Picks
The Denver Broncos have fallen to 3-8, and while the team hasn't been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention yet, they're all but. A 9-8 finish might be enough to garner a Wildcard berth, but a look at the schedule from here on out, and an understanding of the mettle the team has shown thus far, it's clear the Broncos have a snowball's chance in H-E-double-hockey-sticks of running the table.
The next game on what is a brutal schedule down the stretch of this season is a road trip to take on Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. At 7-4, the Ravens are very much in control of their playoff destiny.
Let's go around the Mile High Huddle table to see how the staff envisions this one unfolding.
James Campbell (@JamesC_MHH) 6-5: The only real intrigue about this game is how many points the Ravens score as they try to snap their own mini-slump of sorts. The Broncos' defense will keep it close for a while, but they get no help at all from the offense, and to make matters worse, special teams fail as well. The wheels truly come off as the Ravens make a statement in front of their fans.
Pick: Ravens 37, Broncos 3
Keith Cummings (@KeithC_NFL) 4-7: After the debacle down in Charlotte, you would be more than a little unhinged to back the Broncos as they visit the Ravens. Let's face it, the Broncos might not register double-digit points, and the defense is showing signs of seriously wearing down. Expect Jackson to convert multiple third downs and Russell Wilson's struggles to continue on the east coast.
Pick: Ravens 31, Broncos 14
Mike Evans (@MHHEvans) 5-6: With the 2022 Broncos, it's best to keep your expectations of a win as low as possible. The Orange and Blue face a Ravens team ranked sixth in offense and ninth in defense. Remember, hope is not a strategy.
Pick: Ravens 28, Broncos 17
Brennan Grose (@BrennanGrose1) 4-7: This season is like Groundhog Day — the same story every single week. Awful offensive play combined with terrific defensive play. This week will look no different, and the most embarrassing season in Broncos' history will continue. Until real change is implemented, it would be foolish to assume things will change.
Pick: Ravens 24, Broncos 14
Thomas Hall (@ThomasHallNFL) 6-5: If getting steam-rolled by Carolina's running game and carved up by Sam Darnold, along with another anemic showing by the Broncos’ offense, wasn’t enough to convince you that the Broncos won’t win another game this season, I don’t know what will. Against the Ravens, it could get ugly.
Pick: Ravens 27, Broncos 13
Chad Jensen (@ChadNJensen) 4-7: Last week's performance by the Broncos screamed that while the lights might be on in Dove Valley, nobody's home. Expect another vacant team performance on the road against a quality AFC opponent still fighting for the playoffs. It wouldn't shock me to see Wilson get pulled in this one after Jackson hangs 30 on a Broncos defense that has fractured and can't close in the clutch.
Pick: Ravens 30, Broncos 9
Zack Kelberman (@KelbermanNFL) 7-4: Last week, despite my better judgment, I picked the Broncos to win a National Football League game against one of the sport's worst teams. Silly. That's what I get for maintaining a shred of faith in the 2022 Broncos. No more. This week, the outcome will be the same — except I'll be on the right side of history as Wilson is outplayed by Jackson and Nathaniel Hackett is outclassed by John Harbaugh.
Pick: Ravens 24, Broncos 16
Nick Kendell (@NickKendellMHH) 5-6: This Broncos team looks defeated. With questions about locker room division and TMZ-like off-the-field coverage, things have gone off the rails. Wilson looks bad and broken, the unforced errors keep coming, special teams are dreadful (again), and the Broncos' defense seems to be fading without Bradley Chubb. Denver plays with more fire than last week against a Ravens team with an out-of-sync offense but loses a close one.
Pick: Ravens 16, Broncos 13
Bob Morris (@BobMorrisSports) 3-8: There's no other way to put it: The Broncos are out of the playoffs and are going nowhere on offense, while the defense can't carry the load. The Ravens aren't perfect, but they are a team clearly in the playoff hunt. I don't expect this one to be pretty.
Pick: Ravens 23, Broncos 10
Luke Patterson (@LukePattersonLP) 4-7: If you think the Broncos were embarrassed by Carolina last week, wait until they play the Ravens on Sunday in Baltimore. Denver has become the proverbial ‘get right’ team for opponents and the Rat Birds will punish Wilson. The Broncos' defense will quit on the team and mentally check out. Maybe all that's left for Broncos Country is to cheer for Colorado native Calais Campbell, who will feast on Denver at the ripe age of 36. It's a blowout in Baltimore.
Pick: Ravens 34, Broncos 10
Lance Sanderson (@SandersonMHH) 1-10: This game is going to be a blood bath. There's not much else to say. Denver's offense is officially comatose, and the defense is faltering in a bad way. The Ravens are looking to get right after losing to a bad Jacksonville team last week, and the lowly Broncos are going to look like a child's plaything on Sunday.
Pick: Ravens 31, Broncos 6
Erick Trickel (@ErickTrickel) 3-8: This season has quite clearly not gone the way the Broncos hoped it would. Over the past couple of weeks, their cracks on defense have turned into fissures. The Ravens sit at 7-4, but they had higher expectations than that at this point of the season. There are always many variables in a game, but the Broncos' defense is a big one. With Jackson dealing with an injury, the defense manages to do just enough to get Denver the win.
Pick: Broncos 17, Ravens 13
Dylan Von Arx (@arx_d) 3-8: Denver embarrasses itself every week, even against bottom-five teams like Carolina. If Darnold can literally roll this Denver team, then Jackson will bust it wide open. Baltimore will handily secure the win with their ground game.
Pick: Ravens 30, Broncos 6
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