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The Baltimore Ravens Are Having a Hell of a Start to The Season

The Baltimore Ravens have had a topsy-turvy start to the 2022 NFL season, with the Maryland-based franchise having gone through the wringer over the last eight weeks of football.

Indeed, this is all before the team takes on the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football on November 7. Nonetheless, the Baltimore Ravens have positioned themselves at the top of the AFC North standings, which many certainly believe is the only thing that really matters at this stage of the campaign.

This article will look at how up and down the Baltimore Ravens’ season has been. We will try and work out how the rest of the campaign will go regardless of the result against the Saints on Monday, as the team will hit the BYE in Week 10 and then play the second half of the season after that.

Ravens have been all over the place

While the Ravens may be 5-3 on the season before the clash in Louisiana on Monday Night Football, there is no denying that things have not gone without their issues for John Harbaugh’s team throughout the current campaign.

Indeed, the three defeats have been, in many cases, their own fault, as they have blown fourth-quarter leads that really should not have been possible to blow. Additionally, the defense has been unable to keep teams out of the endzone this season, having given up 183 points thus far in their eight games.

Nonetheless, it has not all been bad, though. As highlighted already, the team does remain top of the AFC North standings at the moment, and they will take confidence from the fact that Lamar Jackson and the offense are still able to put several points on the board courtesy of regular touchdowns.

Through eight games, the Baltimore Ravens have been able to put up 208 points. This is more than some teams have managed despite having played more than the team as of this weekend. Naturally, the Maryland franchise will be level with many or ahead once they complete the game against the Saints and enter their BYE Week next week, but it is still a testament to the fact that things are not as bad as some may have made them out to be at times.

Fans will not be too bothered at the moment

Given that the team is still performing adequately well, fans will not be too bothered that the 2022 NFL season has been anything but easy for the organization at this moment in time. Indeed, while there is always room for improvement, and many will not have liked how hellish the start of the season has been in many aspects, there will still be many that will be confident that the team can get the job done.

With the state of Maryland being extremely passionate about their team and the fact that they still remain atop the AFC North after eight games, there may have been some that are already considering whether or not to place sports bets on the team.

With it possible to place wagers with the likes of Caesars Sportsbook in Maryland for the Baltimore locals, some will have already been pursuing the markets and odds that have been made available.

Baltimore Ravens
All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Some might have been looking at what value is available to them if they were to bet on the team being crowned the AFC North champions. Others may be considering whether a run to the Super Bowl is possible, even though the team has already blown a couple of results this season.

Nonetheless, some may be looking forward to the upcoming BYE Week, where they can better assess where the Baltimore Ravens are in their pursuit of the Vince Lombardi Trophy and then try to work out where to go next.

BYE Week could be a great time for the team to reset

Image by: https://ravenswire.usatoday.com/gallery/2021-nfl-schedule-key-dates-and-events-in-the-ravens-offseason/

While the team is starting to pick up wins and will enter the BYE Week with a positive record regardless of the result achieved against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football, there is no denying that Week 10’s BYE Week will be very welcome to those in Maryland.

It will allow them to rest up for the final stretch of the 2022 NFL campaign, while it will also give players and coaching staff the ability to assess what is to come, especially as several divisional games are still left to play.

The Ravens may be in first place despite the start of the season that they have had. However, they will still have to play the Pittsburgh Steelers twice, as well as the Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals on the road. That means – of the four divisional games to still be played – they have three on the road.

This is not something that many will consider ideal at any moment in the season, let alone in the run-in to the NFL Playoffs, thus making the BYE Week all the more significant. Indeed, a positive result against the Saints in Week 9 will be helpful, as it could make entering the final stretch that little easier, especially as the Bengals were victorious (Steelers and Browns were both on their BYE Weeks).

Final Thoughts

Of course, there is every chance that the Baltimore Ravens could end up having a hell of an ending to the 2022 NFL season, too. Imagine if they were to experience what they have already experienced this season; fans in Maryland might be left feeling rather nervous about their chances of victory this year.

However, at this moment in time, there is nothing too serious to worry about. As we enter the BYE Week, we know the organization will be No 1 in the AFC North, and this is something they will have to continue to build on if they want to play in the postseason in January 2023.

Featured Image by Bruce Emmerling from Pixabay