Lamar Jackson Signing: Impact on Ravens' Over/Under Win Predictions?
The Baltimore Ravens were fascinating to watch this offseason. Lamar Jackson's contract saga stole the headlines, as did the fight against lack of weapons on offense, as tight end Mark Andrews was the only consistent threat last season.
As we cast an eye in on OTA's, however, Jackson has signed a long-term contract, and receivers Odell Beckham Jr. and Zay Flowers now call Baltimore home.
The Ravens' over/under win total for next season is 9.5. Will they surpass that mark with a new-look offense? CBS Sports' Will Brunson thinks so and suggests that a double-digit win total is a mere formality for Jackson's Ravens.
"The Ravens' win total shot up significantly since Lamar Jackson inked his deal, jumping a full game and plenty of juice as well," Brunson writes. "Baltimore has three divisional road games in its first five games of the year. If the Ravens manage to go 2-1 in those games, they'd be a borderline lock to get double-digit wins. Todd Monken will make this offense fun again."
With the AFC North a two-horse race between the Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals, many expect both teams to sweep through Pittsburgh and Cleveland.
Looking at Baltimore's schedule, it ranks 21st in terms of difficulty, making it one of the easier ones for them to navigate. The bonafide contenders Jackson and co. will have to deal with the Bengals twice, Seahawks, Los Angeles Chargers, Jacksonville, San Francisco, and Miami. That is doable for Baltimore.
Much of their success is predicated on players picking up new coordinator Todd Monken's offense this offseason (it would be helpful if Jackson was there). Ranking 19th last season for points per game (20.6), the offense needs Jackson fully fit for 17 games to have a real chance at a deep playoff run.
The defense was ranked third for points allowed last season (just 18.5 per game), and that will again need to be the case.
On both sides of the ball, Baltimore looks like the real deal on paper, and surpassing the 9.5-win total mark seems like a formality for this storied franchise with Jackson at the helm and an offense and defense that brimming with talent.
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