Hail or Fail: Washington’s defense no match for Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry

Washington’s rookie quarterback shined again, completing 24 of 35 passes for 269 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. He was limited to a season-low 22 rushing yards on six attempts and was sacked three times, but he kept the Commanders within striking distance of a legitimate Super Bowl contender on the road despite the Ravens scoring on five straight possessions, racking up 484 yards and dominating time of possession.

“I believe he deserves all the hype he’s getting,” Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, a two-time MVP, said afterward when asked whether he was motivated by the hype surrounding Daniels coming into Sunday’s game. “He played a tremendous game out there. They just came up short. He’s been proving it. His rookie season, the first six games, he’s been playing amazing.”

CBS analyst Tony Romo had high praise for Daniels after his first touchdown pass, a perfectly placed seven-yard strike to Terry McLaurin in the back of the end zone after he froze Baltimore’s defense with a pump fake. “That’s a Patrick Mahomes-, Josh Allen-esque type play,” Romo said of the throw, which tied the score at 10 in the second quarter.

The second-year Ravens wide receiver took a screen pass 44 yards on Baltimore’s second play from scrimmage and finished the first half with nine catches on nine targets for a career-high 132 yards. Flowers, who took advantage of Washington’s determination to slow running back Derrick Henry by stacking the box, was held without a catch in the second half, when Baltimore found more success on the ground. Flowers did most of his damage against Commanders cornerback Benjamin St-Juste, who was penalized twice for pass interference.

The No. 3 draft pick by Jacksonville in 2015 had two sacks and three tackles for loss against the Ravens, who had allowed five sacks in their first five games. Fowler was one of the few bright spots for a Commanders defense that allowed Henry to rush for 132 yards and two touchdowns, the Ravens to average 7.4 yards per play and Baltimore to register a pair of 90-plus-yard touchdown drives. It didn’t help that defensive linemen Dorance Armstrong and Jonathan Allen left the game with injuries.

The Commanders entered Sunday with the league’s second-ranked rushing offense after eclipsing 200 yards on the ground in three of their first five games. With starting running back Brian Robinson Jr. sidelined with a knee injury, Washington struggled to find running room against Baltimore. Daniels attempted a career-high 35 passes, and the Commanders managed just 52 yards on 18 carries. Austin Ekeler, who had 21 yards on nine attempts, was more effective in the passing game, finishing with four catches for 47 yards.

Seconds after the CBS play-by-play announcer mentioned that Washington’s defense hadn’t recorded an interception all season, Commanders rookie Mike Sainristil picked off a Jackson pass that deflected off the hands of Ravens tight end Mark Andrews. Sainristil returned the interception 38 yards to the Baltimore 49-yard line, setting up a short drive that culminated in an Austin Seibert field goal and a 3-0 Commanders lead. Washington is one of five teams with just one interception. The other four are a combined 5-18.

After the Ravens took a 17-10 lead on an Andrews touchdown catch with 53 seconds remaining in the first half, Daniels led Washington on an impressive 36-yard drive with the benefit of only one timeout. With five seconds remaining, Seibert, who had made all 13 of his field goal attempts since signing with the Commanders before Week 2, had his 52-yard try blocked by Ravens guard Ben Cleveland. Seibert drilled a career-long 55-yard field goal on Washington’s first possession of the second half, but the missed opportunity loomed large.

Washington’s No. 1 wide receiver had six catches on seven targets for 53 yards and two touchdowns, giving him four touchdowns over the past four weeks and equaling his total from last season. After a slow start, McLaurin and Daniels have become a perfect match. McLaurin’s diving catch in the end zone on a fourth-down throw in the fourth quarter with Brandon Stephens in tight coverage gave him his first two-touchdown game since October 2021.

According to ESPN, Sunday’s starting quarterback matchup was the third since 1950 between the reigning Heisman Trophy winner and the reigning NFL MVP. The MVP improved to 3-0 in those showdowns, including two wins by Jackson. In 2020, he led Baltimore to a 27-3 win over Cincinnati Bengals rookie and reigning Heisman winner Joe Burrow. In October 1971, 49ers quarterback John Brodie led San Francisco to a 27-10 win over New England Patriots rookie and 1970 Heisman winner Jim Plunkett. Jackson, who completed 20 of 26 passes for 323 yards against Washington, improved his record against NFC teams to a ridiculous 22-1. The CBS broadcast noted that having four former Heisman winners active for Sunday’s game — Daniels, Commanders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota, Jackson and Henry — fell one shy of the NFL record.