Happy game week, Ravens Flock!
It’s been a long offseason with tons of excitement and great expectations and it’s finally here! As the Baltimore Ravens get ready to kick off this Sunday on the road against the New York Jets, let’s go Out to Lunch one last time before the regular season gets underway! Follow me into the Twitter-verse for this edition of Out to Lunch, Flock!
Here’s a small hype video for the 2022 season from Ravens Flock member @SimplyAS10:
Baltimore Ravens 2022/23
New Season, Same Goal | #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/EZx8G3o3zj
— 🏜 (@SimplyAS10) September 2, 2022
We all know how draining the 2021 season was for the team and the fans, but there’s an old saying that goes like this: Minor setbacks make for major comebacks. Everything that has happened to the Ravens since the end of the 2021 season has set this team up for a bounce back in 2022 and it’s time to put the rest of the league on notice. Shout out to AJ for the hype video! Can’t wait for the season to kick off…
A quick signing update for the Baltimore Ravens, as the team announced it is bringing in linebacker Kyler Fackrell to its practice squad:
The Ravens are reportedly signing linebacker Kyler Fackrell to their practice squad https://t.co/K9bKc4U13E
— The Ravens Wire (@TheRavensWire) September 7, 2022
Fackrell, a third-round pick back in 2016 by the Green Bay Packers, is a pass rushing specialist. He has 23.5 career sacks, including a 10.5-sack season in 2018. While he isn’t quite a Pro Bowl-caliber player, Fackrell has demonstrated good pass rushing ability and, more importantly, durability. Fackrell has missed just 11 games in his six NFL seasons. This is a very attractive factor for Baltimore, a team marred by injuries a year ago. Considering the depleted unit that is the outside linebacker group for the Ravens, don’t be surprised if Fackrell is called up sooner rather than later. Again, he may not be Terrell Suggs, but he is as good as it gets right now for what’s on the market. And regardless, the Ravens could do MUCH WORSE than a proven vet like Fackrell.
Former Baltimore Raven quarterback Robert Griffin III has mighty high expectations and aspirations for the team in 2022:
RGIII: “My pick to win the Super Bowl is the Baltimore Ravens. I believe they are on a revenge tour.” pic.twitter.com/FIRMWBxVNn
— Sarah Ellison (@sgellison) September 6, 2022
We certainly agree with everything that Griffin has to say about these Baltimore Ravens. This team is certainly built like a champion and has the grit and determination to bounce back from a disappointing 2021 season. Regardless of the reasons/excuses we craft for 2021, it’s a new year now and the Ravens are out for blood. RGIII sees it just as much as we do, and that’s why he has the Baltimore Ravens ultimately winning this year’s Super Bowl!
What are good expectations this year for the Baltimore Ravens? CBS Sports give the team a ceiling and a floor for the 2022 season:
CBS Sports named the ceiling and the floor for the Ravens in 2022 https://t.co/4byP6hUre6
— The Ravens Wire (@TheRavensWire) September 6, 2022
CBS sees a best-case scenario for the Ravens at 13-4 and a worst-case of 9-8. This seems incredibly fair considering the roster talent, but they noted that part of the worst-case scenario was another Lamar Jackson injury… considering this has never been a problem until a freak play last season, that feels like grasping at straws at best. Still, if that’s what they believe it will take for Baltimore to drop to 9-8, then sign us up.
Who are the most important players to the Baltimore Ravens? Naturally, we would say Lamar Jackson is the top guy, but what about after the former MVP? Steven Ruiz of The Ringer says it’s Rashod Bateman:
Outside of Lamar Jackson, Rashod Bateman might be the most important player on the Ravens in 2022. I wrote about what it would mean for that offense if he emerges as the legit WR1 the franchise has been searching for since it moved to Baltimore. https://t.co/x0CH6mJK0W
— Steven Ruiz (@theStevenRuiz) September 2, 2022
There’s plenty of reason to back up this claim. The Ravens need themselves a true number one receiver for the offense. Mark Andrews can only do so much at the tight end position, and to this point there has been precious little to be excited about when looking at the rest of the pass catchers. Bateman, however, is looking for a breakout in 2022 and his arrival could mean great things for the Ravens offense.
With a true number one receiver, Baltimore would be able to field a more complete offense than what they have in recent years. Marquise Brown was a terrific pair with Jackson, but he never truly emerged as a top receiver and instead felt like a great role player. Bateman showed flashes of brilliance as a rookie and the potential for him to continue building off that success has us very excited. If Bateman indeed reaches his potential, the Ravens offense will be as potent as any in the league and could become the unstoppable force it was back in 2019.
That’s all I got for you this time, Ravens Flock! I’ll see you all next week with hopefully a win to start off the 2022 season! Happy game week, Flock!
