By Week 7 of the 2019 season, many were still trying to figure out just how real the Ravens and Lamar Jackson’s MVP candidacy were.
Baltimore certainly looked the part of a playoff-caliber team, but its four wins had come against teams with a combined 4-19-1 record through the first six weeks of the season. And while Jackson had amazed the football world by throwing seven touchdown passes in the first two games — topping his total from his entire rookie season — the 22-year-old quarterback had thrown four touchdowns and five interceptions over the last four contests, quieting some of the early MVP hype from September.
A daunting cross-country trip to Seattle to take on Russell Wilson, the early MVP favorite, and the 5-1 Seahawks would be a great litmus test going into the bye week. A win would combat doubts about the Ravens being legitimate Super Bowl contenders, and Jackson shining in a showdown with one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks would command more respect from his skeptics.
Defensive touchdowns scored by cornerbacks Marcus Peters — acquired from the Los Angeles Rams only days earlier — and Marlon Humphrey and 116 yards rushing from Jackson were the difference in Baltimore’s 30-16 win, but what transpired late in the third quarter would have a far greater reach than any highlight-reel play or the victory itself.
The moment defined the 2019 season and could define the Ravens in the years to come.
With the game tied 13-13, the Ravens had moved the ball inside the red zone before seemingly self-destructing with two uncharacteristic drops from tight end Mark Andrews and a delay-of-game penalty leading to a third-and-15 from the Seattle 21. A terrific 13-yard run by Jackson set up fourth-and-2 from the 8-yard line, but head coach John Harbaugh wanted to at least come away with the go-ahead field goal in the rainy conditions at CenturyLink Field.
His quarterback wasn’t happy coming to the sideline after the Ravens had already twice settled for field goals inside the red zone in the first half.
“He came off, and I could just see it in his face,” Harbaugh said. “I asked him, ‘Do you want to go for it?’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah, I want to go for it; let’s get it.’ I was told that Marshal [Yanda] said, ‘If he wants to go for it, I want to go for it.’ I felt the same way. If he wants to go for it, I want to go for it too.
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“I went down and called timeout, and it was just a great play.”
Always give Lamar the ball on fourth down ? @Lj_era8
(via @Ravens)pic.twitter.com/vX91Coeo7a
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) October 21, 2019
Offensive coordinator Greg Roman called “quarterback power,” a play that included six offensive linemen, three tight ends, and a fullback on a designed inside run by Jackson, a tactic the Ravens tried to avoid as much as possible to keep their quarterback out of harm’s way. Patrick Ricard motioned to the play side and left guard Bozeman pulled to the right as Jackson plowed his way to the end zone for the touchdown and a lead the Ravens wouldn’t relinquish over the final 16:20 of the game.
The execution was impressive and the touchdown run important, but the conviction and confidence exuded by Jackson in the moment had prompted a Super Bowl-winning head coach in his 12th year and the perennial Pro Bowl right guard in his 13th season to follow his lead. Jackson’s performance that day moved him into the top tier of an MVP race he would win by unanimous vote and Baltimore made its statement as a legitimate contender on the way to a franchise-best 14-2 season, but the story was bigger than that, extending beyond the remainder of the 2019 season.
The Ravens were officially Jackson’s team now.
