The Baltimore Ravens handle business on Monday Night with a big win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, 41-31. Here are tonight's MVP, Winners and Losers.
The Ravens defense struggled to stop anything in the first half; the Bucs drove downfield at will. Fortunately, Humphrey was there to put an end to two different drives as he intercepted Baker Mayfield twice. Not only did he force incompletions, but he generated the turnovers that put the Ravens back on top. An outstanding game for the Ravens. Now, the hope is for his knee injury to not be significant.
That was all but a perfect game from the Ravens' signal caller. From chip-shot passes to the seismic deep shot to Rashod Bateman for the touchdown, he was lethal. The only error was his under-lofted ball to wide receiver Zay Flowers, which turned into a lost fumble and fortunately not a defensive touchdown for the Bucs.
Oh yeah, he was also downfield blocking on Henry's 40-yard run. Sheer insanity.
Derrick Henry: The King keeps rolling as he continues to pursue his second 2,000-yard season. He once again broke loose for an 80+ yard run as he sprinted off the left side for an 81-yard gain. The 30-year-old running back hit a top speed of 21.72 miles per hour on his run, the fifth-fastest of any ball-carrier this season.
Rashod Bateman: The connection Ravens fans have been praying for has arrived as Jackson is finding Bateman more consistently this season. He's healthy, worked with Jackson all training camp and their chemistry is growing. And while it's still strengthening, it's still clicking. The latest being a pair of deep balls, one that was Jackson's fourth-longest completion of his career on a 49-yard touchd
Mark Andrews: "Mark Andrews is back." Shut up. He was never gone. He was just too busy throttling defenders as a downhill blocker creating lanes for the Ravens' rushing attack to body defenses the first few weeks. Now, teams are trying harder to defend the run and in turn, Andrews is getting his usual work. This is a quality over quantity situation as Andrews isn't being force-fed targets. And, it's paying off as he takes sole possession of the franchise record for most receiving touchdowns.
Justice Hill: In usual form, Hill slashed and used his vision to find lanes in the receiving game, and was rewarded with 44 yards and a touchdown on three receptions. His 13-yard touchdown was set up by Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken counter-punching the blitz-happy Bucs and he had an entourage ahead of him on the play. Perfect counter against the Bucs and perfect complement to Henry.
Justin Tucker: Another 50+ yard field goal knocked through without issue while the Ravens' opponent couldn't deliver it on the other end. He's back to making it look easy.
Jordan Stout: The snap on Tucker's 52-yard field goal was a bit high from Nick Moore. But smooth hands by Stout snared the pigskin and put it down fluidly for Tucker to knock it through. It's the small things like that we can't forget to credit.
Zach Orr: While the numbers are somewhat inflated due to the garbage-time Bucs offense, it doesn't mitigate the fact they allowed Mayfield to throw for 370 yards, with more than three quarters without wide receiver Mike Evans. In seven games, they've allowed 1,936 passing yards (277 yards per game). They rank last in the NFL. This game against the Bucs' offense was another test, and they didn't pass it.
Tyler Linderbaum: Another poor snap by Linderbaum and it's becoming a concern. Last week, his snap didn't leave the grass. This time, he snapped it late and as a result hit Flowers' shoulder.
Onside Return Hands Team: In 18 onside attempts this season, only two have been recovered by the kicking team. Both have been against the Ravens. No surprise onsides or anything with the new kicking rules. Yet, the hands team can't seem to snare them on the first try.
Penalties: Not counting the poorly called penalties, the Ravens are still hurting themselves too much. The Ravens faced a 2nd & goal from the 38-yard line. The only thing that appears capable of stopping the Ravens' offense is their own errors.