Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Crossover Thursday: New England Patriots vs. Baltimore Ravens in Week 3

Episode Date: September 22, 2022

It’s Crossover Thursday on the Locked On Podcast Network. Join hosts Mike D’Abate of Locked On Patriots and Kevin Oestreicher of Locked On Ravens as they preview this Sunday’s showdown between the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens from Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts at 1 p.m. ET in Week 3 of the 2022 NFL Season.Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-patriots-daily-podcast-on-the-new-england/id1140512627 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFmwg3WbfxAU3tR5Ve?si=k196wH-yRqifUcQQz8SjIQStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-patriots And follow host Mike D’Abate on Twitter, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans.On Twitter: @mdabateNFLSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!NugenixNow get a complimentary bottle of Nugenix Total T when you text NFLto 231-231.Text now and get a bottle of Nugenix Thermo, their most powerful fat incinerator ever, with key ingredients to help you get back into shape fast.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFLBuilt BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!BriteCoThe guys at BriteCo Jewelry Insurance made buying insurance for your engagement ring, your watch, or whatever so easy you can get covered in 2 minutes on your cell phone. You won't find a better deal on coverage that's so affordable. Go to https://brite.co/lockedonPrizePicksFirst time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDONTuroDitch boring rental cars and find your drive at Turo.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans and Ravens fans, welcome to week three Locked On NFL crossover here on the Locked On Podcast Network. It is Mike DeBate of Locked On Patriots, Kevin Ostreicher of Locked On Ravens as the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens get set for battle this Sunday, September 25th, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts. And it is always a blast when these two teams get together on the gridiron.

Kevin and I are going to break down all of the action for you here today on this Crossover Thursday. And please keep in mind, folks, that today's episode, today's Crossover Thursday episode is presented by our friends over at PrizePix. PrizePix is so much fun, and it's easy to play. No competing with others, just you versus the projections available. Pick two to five players, and if they score more or less than their PrizePix projection, you can win up to ten times your money on your entry.

It can literally take less than 60 seconds to enter. Yeah, that's right, folks. It is that easy. We love PrizePix, and we know that you will, too. So the first-time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with the promo code LOCKEDON. That's prizepix.com, promo code LOCKEDON. Pats fans and Ravens fans. Once again, it is locked on NFL crossover Thursday, Pats and Ravens ready to do battle in week three. I'm Mike debate. I am the host of locked on Patriots.

And of course, Ravens fans, you know, this gentleman that is sharing the screen with me right now. He is the amazing Kevin Ostrich, our host of the lockdown Ravens podcast. Good friend of mine, valued colleague. And Kevin, it is always a blast when Ravens podcast. Good friend of mine, valued colleague.

And Kevin, it is always a blast when we get together for these crossovers, my friend. Yeah, I am so ready for this game, Mike. So ready to talk to you about this game. And you're right. These two teams, they always usually provide us with a good matchup. I think we're going to get another one of these good matchups on Sunday. Is Lamar Jackson and Matt Jones face off for the first time in their NFL careers. Absolutely. And this will be a definite classic. These two teams always seem to fight

through some of the greatest adversity that you could think of, whether it be battling each other out on the field, whether it be coming back from playoff deficits, sorry, Ravens fans, I just couldn't resist, or the last time these two teams got together, the weather played a significant factor. This one's going to be in Foxborough, and we're definitely looking forward to that. But being the host team this week, Kevin, I want to throw the ball over to you first. And I wanted to get your idea on what is the biggest story right now in Ravens country in Baltimore heading into this matchup with the Patriots. Yeah, I think, and you can even go back to last year with this one, Mike, it's the health situation for the Ravens and just where they are at multiple different positions. Now on Sunday and

week two against the Dolphins, they went through that incomprehensible collapse in the fourth quarter, 21 points blown. They were up 35 to 14, lose 42 to 38. Their secondary, the cupboard was bare. They had Marcus Peters out there who hadn't played in over 600 days. Salem Armour Davis, who was a rookie out of Alabama, his first real NFL action. And then Darrell Worley, who was called up off the practice squad. Marlon Humphrey was in and out of the game with a groin injury. Brandon Stevens, who was effectively the number three corner because Kyle Fuller tore his ACL in week one, out for the game as well so the secondary hopefully they'll get some of those pieces back hopefully Humphrey will be healthy enough to play in this one Brandon Stevens as

well and Marcus Peters will continue his ramp up process but that is one area to look at the outside linebacker position another one where the Ravens lose Steven Means to a torn Achilles in week two after losing Ben Spiegel to a torn Achilles in the training camp portion of the offseason. You lost Tyus Bowser to a torn Achilles last year in week 18 against the Steelers, and they draft David Ajaba, who, you guessed it, had a torn Achilles in his pro day. So a torn Achilles is the major storyline there. Baltimore is just two healthy outside linebackers on their roster right now, Nidafe Owe and Justin Houston. And a storyline from Wednesday's practice, Mike, is the fact that Lamar Jackson was wearing a little protective sleeve on his arm. And John

Harbaugh talked a bit about it. Lamar Jackson too. He's good to go for Sunday. Both Harbaugh and Jackson made that very clear. But there is a play that you can look at in the Miami game where he seems to hit his arm on a helmet or something of that nature. And it's just, as John Harbaugh called it, just some regular season injury where these things happen. It's football. You get banged up here and there, but it shouldn't impact the availability or the electricity that Jackson has showed so far throughout these first two games. He's number one in so many categories. He had a 75 yard rushing touch or 79 yard rushing touchdown last week alongside a 75-yard passing touchdown. Big playability from him.

So the story is health for the Ravens. Can they get back J.K. Dobbins? Can they get back Ronnie Stanley, a couple of those guys as well? So I'm pinpointing it on health for the Ravens, and hopefully they'll be able to have a bit more health luck this weekend as the Patriots. So, Michael, I'll ask you the same thing. What are you looking at right now in Patriots Nation?

What are some of the big storylines you're looking at here as we talk on this crossover Thursday? Yeah, Kevin, health is the big storyline here in New England as well. Look, the Patriots have the potential to head into this matchup without two key players, one on offense, one on defense. On Wednesday's practice, Kyle Duggar, who left Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers with a knee injury, was a non-participant.

Now, there is still an undercurrent of optimism regarding Kyle Duggar, and the Patriots definitely do need him if they're going to hope to contain any of the Ravens' offensive weapons, particularly Mark Andrews at the tight end position, because this is something that the New England Patriots have typically had difficulty with, but Kyle Duggar has been a guy that can cover a tight end, can cover big physical receivers, and you know that the Ravens would love to get him involved. When he was out of the game, Brett Friermuth of the Pittsburgh Steelers was able to find easy seams and was able to get a touchdown catch from Mitch Trubisky.

So you look at what the Patriots can do. Kyle brings a lot of speed. He brings a lot of thump to that defensive backfield. And if they're going to be missing him, that could be a very big hole for the Patriots to dig out of. The other injury to watch right now is Jacoby Myers. Jacoby Myers also out with a knee injury right now. He was not present at Wednesday's practice. Now, Jacoby played for the vast majority of Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, was the Patriots' leading receiver, caught 95 yards receiving, was definitely a big part of Mack Jones' offense, and really he has been the security blanket, the go-to guy whenever Mack gets in trouble or gets into difficulty. Nelson Aguilar was a wide receiver that had a big time game on Sunday, but if the Patriots are going to hope to have consistency on offense, it's almost imperative that they have a guy like Jacoby Myers out there. So these are two injuries

the Patriots fans are going to have to watch for. That's something that toward the end of the week, I think Ravens fans are going to be watching for. If either one of these guys enters the game, questionable, or if they're ruled out for any reason big win for Baltimore on either one of those or dare we say in New England hopefully not both but at the same time that's how vital these guys are to each of the units aside from injury the other big issue is making sure that Mac Jones has the comfort and the ability to make the throws he needs to make. The offensive line was abysmal in week one against the Miami Dolphins. They bounced back very nicely, really doing a great job of protecting the edge, sealing off the middle, and Guy Lake Cole Strange,

who's a rookie, really did a phenomenal job in recognizing some of those pressures and be able to put that back on the opposing defense. If the Patriots can give Mac Jones that type of comfort, it allows him to be able to neutralize some of those second and third level blitzes that come from the defense that have given Mac fits throughout his career last year and into this year. So right now it's all about health, but it's also about getting continuity on offense as well. And I think when you're looking at a non-health storyline for Baltimore, there are a couple you can look.

Also, I'll give one on offense and one on defense. The offensive side of the ball for Baltimore, the run game has to be one of the major storylines because they have not had any semblance of a running game outside of Lamar Jackson. That's really the only guy you can say has actually made a positive contribution in the run game on Sunday against the Dolphins. If you take out Lamar Jackson's stats, the Ravens ran 16 times for 36 yards. That's 2.3 yards per carry. You had Mark Andrews, one carry for three yards, out yards per carrying their running backs like Kenyon Drake and Mike Davis, who himself had five carries for four yards. The offensive line, they've been good at protecting Lamar Jackson in the pocket,

but the run blocking has been a bit of an issue so far in some circumstances. The running backs aren't seeing the field well either. There was a play where the Ravens wanted Kenny and Drake to go to the outside. They set up the play, so it goes to the outside. Kenny and Drake cuts the ball back inside, I think loses a couple yards. The Ravens are missing J.K. Dobbins. They're missing Gus Edwards. Those are two guys they've been missing since the beginning of last year when they both went out. Those two haven't played, just like Marcus Peters, in over 600 days for this team.

So last year they relied on Latavius Murray and Devonta Freeman and Le'Veon Bell. And this year it's more veterans than Mike Davis and Kenyon Drake and those guys. On defense, we saw miscommunication after miscommunication late in the fourth quarter against the dolphins. And that's something that Ravens have to clean up. And again, it goes back to last season where the secondary injuries were a thing last year too. I mean, you go to the

Cincinnati game, the second time around Joe burrow through for five 25 on the secondary is one of their worst units in a long time. But in this game against Miami, they could not keep Tyree killing Jalen waddle in front of them. They got beat deep for 40 plus, 60 plus plays on multiple occasions. And part of it was because guys just weren't lining up in the right places. Assignments were blown here and there. You can't have that in the NFL, especially not consistently. And the Ravens are probably thinking they're lucky stars. They don't have to play Tyree Kill and Jalen Waddell again this year because they post all sorts of problems the Patriots have their own bunch of wide receivers but I think for the Ravens in their miscommunications that's something they definitely

have to get in check because even one miscommunication can cost you a football game if it's bad enough absolutely and the Patriots saw that with miscommunications last week and they were very fortunate to end up on the positive side of some special team snafus which is very unusual for this team these are two teams that have placed such a premium on special teams and we know the Baltimore Ravens are going to be ready in that area the New England Patriots have to be ready in that area as well so definitely great storylines heading into this one folks but what are the key matchups everybody's looking to see well we know the Patriots defense is going to have their hands full with Lamar Jackson.

We know that Ravens defense might be licking their chops trying to get after Mac Jones, but there goes deeper than that. And Kevin and I are going to go deeper than that when this episode of Crossover Thursday, Pat's Raven style, continues in just a moment. But first, Kevin, not so much yourself because you're still a very strapping young lad, but someone who's aging a little bit like me. Folks, I'm talking to you out there. Do you want more energy to counter the negative physical effects of aging? Well, Nugenics Total T testosterone booster with testosterone will help you turn back the clock.

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their most popular fat incinerator ever, with key ingredients to help you get back into shape fast. Absolutely free. Text NFL to 231-231. Text NFL to 231-231. Message and data rates may apply. Terms apply. Available at Nugix.com slash terms patriots fans and ravens fans we are crossing the streams here on locked on nfl crossover thursday

it is the new england patriots and the baltimore ravens ready to hook it up in a week three showdown at foxborough and kevin we talked in the first segment a lot about some of the key storylines for both teams heading into these matchup. But we know that the Ravens always look forward to playing the Patriots. And I can assure you, the Patriots always look forward to playing the Ravens. There's a rivalry and a very deep respect between these two franchises and the fan bases as well. When you look at the teams from top to bottom, Patriots offense, Patriots defense, Ravens offense, Ravens defense, two special teams units that definitely know how to win the game.

What are the key matchups that you're zeroing in on here as we approach week three on Sunday. Yeah, well, Mike, I'll tell you, one of mine was going to be Marlon Humphrey versus Jacoby Myers, but we don't know if those guys are going to be playing in this one with Marlon Humphrey with the groin, Jacoby Myers with the knee. So I'm going to generalize it a little bit and say the Ravens secondary versus the Patriots pass catchers. I know that's a very broad one to look at,

but you have the Patriots go out there and get Devontae Parker in the offseason. You mentioned Nelson Aguilar as well. They have other pass catching weapons. And for Baltimore, how are they going to match up with those guys if they're missing Humphrey in this game or if Brandon Stevens isn't able to go? How healthy is Marcus Peters going to be in terms of his snap count? Is he going to be able to play a bit more than he did on Sunday against the Dolphins? It's going to be important for the Ravens to make the Patriots offense one-dimensional in some way, whether that's stopping the run game early, or I think what the Ravens might prefer

in this one and who knows if it is, but making Matt Jones and this Patriots offense, not be able to throw the football effectively so they can key in on the Patriots run game, stack the box a little bit more. And I think that starts with the Ravens being able to put safety help out there with Marcus Williams, who has three interceptions through two games he's been super impressive so far you talk about Chuck Clark who's kind of like the glue guy of this defense he wears the green dot and Kyle Hamilton who has had some nice moments but has been working his way through a couple rookie struggles as well so I think for the Ravens if they can stop whether it is Jacoby Myers or Nelson Aguilar or Devontae Parker or some of those other pass catchers in that New England offense,

it's going to be huge for them because then it makes that Patriots offense one-dimensional, which I think they really need to do in this one. Absolutely. I think that's a great matchup, and I'm definitely looking forward to that. From a Patriots standpoint, in terms of a defensive matchup, I'm going to generalize a little bit as well, because that Patriots run defense, I think, has really been the unsung hero. They're not getting a lot of press. The offensive line got an awful lot of credit this week uh the Patriots uh you know linebackers got an awful lot of credit for getting after Mitch Trubisky and making life difficult for him but the Patriots run defense I think has been one of their best aspects start to finish and their most consistent parts of their game right now in the first two games they've all they've uh they're ranked fifth in the league right now,

both in rushing yards allowed, which is 78 per game, and per attempt at 3.5. That's a dramatic improvement from what we've seen from the Patriots in recent seasons. And it's going to be put to the test against Baltimore's running game, which is very unique and very powerful, no question about it. Lamar Jackson obviously is leading the team. 136 yards on the ground, 9.1 yards per attempt. But Baltimore's backs are definitely capable of being an explosive unit if they have the right opportunity to make things happen.

And like you said in the previous segment, with J.K. Dobbins looking likely that he's going to suit up, practicing, coming off of the injury report, being a full participant, not completely coming off yet, as of Wednesday anyway. Dobbins looks like he's going to get back in there, and he can join guys like Kenyon Drake, Justice Hill, Mike Davis. That's a good backfield. So what the Patriots are going to have to do is prove that the middle trio

that they've been going with of Lawrence Guy, Devon Godchow, Christian Barmore, can do a good enough job of sealing off the middle and allow Dietrich Wise the opportunity to be able to set the edge, allow guys like Matt Judon, Juwan Bentley, even Jelani Tavai getting into the action a little bit. Give them the opportunity to make plays and get after the quarterback. It's something that is not going to be easy. Patriots have been victimized by Lamar Jackson's legs a number of times. Patriots did a little bit better of a job in containing him in 2020, but again, weather was a big time factor there as well. So if the Ravens can't

generate more from their backs in addition to Lamar Jackson, that could be a key for New England to have some success on Sunday. Yeah, and I was going to go with an old friend here in Baltimore and Matt Judon a little bit, talking about the impact he can make and that he has made in his first year and some change in New England. I mean, he burst onto the scene and we kind of saw it here in Baltimore, the Z'Darrius Smith breakout after he left where Judon was scratching that surface. But he was incredible last year for the Patriots, already has two sacks this season through two games. So I think him against these Baltimore tackles, Patrick McCary and Morgan Moses, assuming Ronnie Stanley doesn't play.

If Ronnie Stanley plays and it's a little different story, but the Ravens are going to have to hold him in check. You mentioned that the Patriots' ground defense, it's going to be a big test for Tyler Linderbaum out there in the Ravens' interior. Kevin Zeitler is as steady as they come from the guard position you're not really right you can kind of put him on an island to be pretty pretty safe with what you're getting from him but Ben Powers and Tyler Linderbaum on the interior that's going to be huge but I think another matchup and this is

you're talking about generalization I'm generalizing a whole ton here I think Matt Jones versus the Ravens defense is is huge And you're saying, well, how can you put one player up against the whole defense of these things? Well, I'll tell you, it's because this is the first time that Mac Jones is facing off against this Baltimore defense. Now we've seen, and it's been a theme and the Ravens do have a new defensive coordinator. I want to point that out. Don Martindale moves over for Mike McDonald in this circumstance, but the Ravens have had success historically, especially over these last couple of seasons, with younger, you know, first, second, third-year quarterbacks

going up against their defense for the first time because of the looks they present at the line, confusing these young quarterbacks. We saw it on multiple occasions. Joe Burrow had arguably the worst game of his career during his rookie season against the Ravens defense. Justin Herbert last year entered the MVP conversation heading into Baltimore. He has a terrible game against the Ravens.

You never really hear him again in that MVP conversation. Still had a good year, but was never in the MVP conversation. Even Tua in his first game against the Ravens defense struggled a little bit. Now the second game, which happened on Sunday, we're not going to talk about that one. But for Mac Jones, it's going to be important for him to ID at the line. And it depends on how much Mike McDonald really does want to send these exotic looks at Mac Jones and his Patriots team. Because what the Ravens can do is they can put eight, nine guys in the box on a third down and 10. And they'll force the quarterback and the offensive line, whoever else to ID

who's coming and who's not. They can send all those guys, or they can rush just three of them or just four of them, and it really can get into a quarterback's head. They'll send guys off the edge, corner blitzes, safety blitzes, and I think for Mac Jones, it's going to be super important to just stay calm, cool, and collected against this Ravens defense if he wants to have a chance to. What he wants to do is pick them apart. What the Ravens want to do is pick Mac Jones apart.

So that's why I'm saying that for a defense that does have veterans such as Claes Campbell on it and Marlon Humphrey and all these other players, it's going to be important for Mac Jones to, I think, be able to ID these guys at the line and make sure he's confident in who's coming and who's not. Because if he's surprised at one of these plays and he's hurried into a throw, if Marlon Humphrey is able to play Marcus Peters and has made countless quarterbacks pay for bad decisions, I think that it's going to be important for the Ravens defense to get Mac Jones head early and make sure that he's not comfortable throughout the entire game. Yeah, and that's something that Mac has had difficulty with. Decision making is one of my keys to this week's success for the New England Patriots because Mac's decision making against the Pittsburgh Steelers was suspect.

A couple of those throws I know Mack wants to have back. Definitely the interception that he threw to make a Fitzpatrick in the first quarter, or in the first half, I should say. Not a good throw, just very ill-advised. He had a couple of guys open underneath, Jacoby Myers being one of them. He could have easily gotten the pass, went for the big play, and paid the price for it. The other, obviously, is the pick that was almost a pick, a very errant throw by Mac Jones, and that could have gone the other way, but for a, a luck of the draw drop on that one, that was a real, just ill-advised throw from Mac. So he cannot afford to make those kinds of mistakes on Sunday against the Baltimore defense that will

make him pay a little bit more than the Pittsburgh Steelers defense made because of the lack of a guy like T.J. Watt. You mentioned Calais Campbell, and I think he's going to be a very big factor in not only trying to make Mac Jones uncomfortable, but also trying to contain the Patriots running game. Because one thing that we saw on Sunday from the Patriots is that downhill gap style running game that they've ran so well for the last few years is still their bread and butter. It's still their go-to. As much as we hear about the Patriots trying to incorporate outside zone run into their offense, they did a very good job when bringing back that gap, that downhill style. And I think the Patriots are going to try to do that on Sunday in order to catch the Baltimore

defensive front, maybe a little bit off guard. Now that's going to be a difficult task because there are great players in that defensive front for Baltimore. Patrick Queen, Josh Bynes, obviously they do a good job of filling holes inside. Patriots tandem of Damian Harris and Ramondre Stevenson are going to try to challenge these guys without any question. That's where you're going to want to see who's going to have the chess match advantage is it going to be Baltimore being able to contain the run or the Patriots going to be able to run and extend long clock killing drives they did it against Pittsburgh on Sunday that's what they'd like to do going to be a tougher task coming up on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens yeah it's it's important for Baltimore also to be able to convert in their third and short and even fourth and short situations.

One of my keys to last week's game was, hey, you get yourself in a second and short. That's an easy, you know, two yards. You can have two or three plays or one yard, but they went three of 10 on third down, one of three on fourth down. The two fourth down plays were on fourth and one. One was at the Miami one yard line. There was a bad exchange between Jackson and Tyler Linderbaum and the and the dolphins got the ball back no point scored on that drive the other one came late in the game right around the miami 40 yard line with the ravens i believe they were up two scores maybe i can't remember the exact trying to block that game out of my mind

but i i think that what you have is a team that you're just two one or two yards away from really sealing this game or winning that game against miami so if you're in that situation against the patriots lamar jackson for as good as he is in so many different aspects he's not been able to get down the quarterback sneak aspect of things so maybe just rip out that page of the playbook you burn it you throw it into the abyss and you do something else the ravens picked up a first down on a short situation with a marky andrews sneak so maybe you just put mores in there and let the tight end run the football. But you have to convert on those third and short situations because it's hard to convert.

You know, you get yourself into a second and 10, and you're then, you know, you go into a third and seven. And that's a lot harder than the third and one. But even so, Baltimore wasn't able to convert on those. So against a Patriots defense that has a ton of talent, you don't want to get yourself into those holes again and then force yourself to maybe get into a fourth down situation a little too far back in the territory that you're not really comfortable going in it.

So I think, yeah, Baltimore has to be able to convert on those short situations. Absolutely, without question. And folks, we've almost arrived at that time. It's prediction time here on Locked On Crossover Thursday. Patriots, Ravens, who you got? We're going to tell you who we got in just a moment when this crossover episode of the Locked On Podcast Network continues. But first, Kevin, please tell our good friends all about our good friends over at BetOnline.net.

Absolutely, Mike. Yes, BetOnline.net is your number one source for football betting info this season. You can find all the latest player developments, team matchup, news, podcasts, and in-depth articles and analysis on every game you can find. And as always, BetOnline remains your continued source for all your sports and waging information with live betting and up-to-the-minute scores for every sport out there. It's the fastest and easiest way to check out all your favorite games in advance, including MLB, MMA, boxing, and even golf.

You can head over to BetOnine.net or use a mobile device to learn more. Bet online where the game starts. Patriots fans, Ravens fans, it is that time. We've told you all of the key matchups. We've told you all of the key stories we're watching heading into Sunday's game. That's Ravens at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Kickoff time, 1 p.m. Sunday, September 25th. And Kevin, I will throw that over to you. We've talked about the strengths and weaknesses of both teams. I think this is going to be an evenly matched game. I think this is going to be a hotly contested game. But how do you see this one playing out over in New England? Yeah, this one I think is going to be another good game and a close one at that. I think when you're looking at both teams and what the Ravens in particular,

I'll talk from their side and their perspective, what they went through on Sunday against the Dolphins, that's something that will probably keep some of the players and coaches up for months just because of how embarrassing, flat out embarrassing it was for them to blow that lead and just to have it go the way it did. Now, I do think that with Mac Jones, and you mentioned some of the decision-making that he's had in terms of some good, some not so good decisions that he's made so far,

I think that Baltimore can get him into situations, especially if they're able to generate pressure. Pressure is going to be huge for them. It's been a mixed bag. Week one, they were all over the place with pressure in a good way. You had Justin Matabike, Michael Pierce, Clayus Campbell, Justin Houston, all these guys constantly pressuring Joe Flacco. He had no space to do anything.

Then in week two against the Dolphins, it's a different story. Tua has all day to throw for most of the game. So they're going to have to be able to take advantage of maybe some Patriots offensive line right now and get to Mac Jones. If they can do that, force them out of the pocket a little bit, speed his internal clock up, his decision-making clock up. I think that will be the X factor in this game. And as I always say with a close game, if it comes down to a field goal, I'm always taking Justin Tucker in that situation. I can't not do it. So if we're talking about an actual score prediction, I think it'll be in the middle in terms of high scoring versus low scoring. I'm going to say the Ravens win this

one 27 to 24 on a field goal by Justin Tucker. Excellent. Excellent. Excellent. And always good insight, Kevin. And my insight is very similar to yours. I think this is going to be very hotly contested. I think it's really going to come down to whether or not the Patriots offensive line can provide Mac Jones the time he needs to make what his throws need to be, which is short, accurate, right on the money, put it only where the receiver can get it. And where not only the receiver can get it, but also where they can do something with it and get yards after the catch. We've seen seedlings over the course of the last couple of weeks, mostly against the Pittsburgh Steelers, that the Patriots do have a little bit of deep ball in their arsenal. So I think the Patriots might test that a little bit.

But ultimately, I think where they win this game is the surefire passes in the middle of the field, which means tight ends have to get involved. Hunter Henry, Jonu Smith have to get quick catches early, especially if either Jacoby Myers is out for this game or if he's going to be hampered by a knee injury and he's not going to be at 100%. Patriots need to compensate for that. We know the Ravens defense is going to be licking their chops, trying to keep Mac Jones away from making the big play, force him into bad decisions, and then try to pick the ball off.

And if that happens, it's going to be a very long day for the Patriots in Foxborough. But I like what I've seen from the offensive line, and I think they're going to continue that on Sunday. Defensively, again, it's going to be about not trying to stop Lamar Jackson. You and I both know it is not a smart idea to blitz the guy. He does a great job of being able to work through it as the Miami Dolphins they'll tell you so you know it's not something where you want to go ahead and cause him difficulty you want to be able to try to marginally disrupt what he does well and

if it's the Patriots you want to try to stop that run game I think this is going to be a nail-biter probably going with my heart a little more than my head on this. What the hell? I'll go with the Patriots 20-17, but this is going to be a tough game for the New England Patriots. And I'll tell you, it's tough to root against Lamar Jackson because he is the most fun player to watch in all of the NFL. And I say that without hesitation, but we're hoping that maybe he just has a little less than normal on Sunday to pull out the win here in New England. Yeah. And I think regardless of who wins and who loses,

I think with these close ones, especially on the Ravens side, they all, they know how to make a game entertaining. I'll tell you that. But so I think we're in for a good game. And Mike, I know that,

look, we're not in elimination right now. If either team loses this game, they're not eliminated from the playoffs. But I think, and I talked about this last week with Kyle Krabs and Locked On Dolphins, I'm sure that you and Patriots fans have the same sentiment about the Steelers game and that win that you guys picked up. I mean, these are important games early in the season where you talk about conference record and you're talking about, hey, we get to late December, early January, and maybe the Patriots are in contention for the AFC East title

or Baltimore is fighting for the AFC North title, and you look to a tiebreaker, which one of them is conference record, or maybe both teams are fighting for a wildcard spot and they're going up against one another. And that's another aspect of things that I think with the Ravens' loss to Miami, that hurts them a little bit with the Patriots winning against the Steelers. That helps them. So I think picking up as many of these wins as you can, especially against conference

opponents, is so huge early in the year. It certainly is. And the New England Patriots know that better than anybody. Last year, losing a nail biter in the opening game against the Miami Dolphins really came back to beat them when the Patriots were on that win streak and they were looking for wins down the stretch in that season. That could have made the difference between maybe giving them a little bit more of a boost at the end of the season when they started to sputter. So always, always tough, always a great

matchup. And I, for one, cannot wait for this matchup on Sunday. Again, folks, kickoff starts 1 p.m. Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, Sunday, September 25th, Baltimore Ravens, New England Patriots. You got to love it. It's all NFL football, and we are so glad to have it back. Kevin, it's always my honor, always my privilege to share the microphone with you on these crossovers. I hope the Patriots fans were able to get the insight that they need.

I have no doubt that they did on the Baltimore Ravens. As far as Ravens fans go, I hope I was able to drop a little bit of wisdom and counsel when it came to the New England Patriots. But folks, we appreciate you taking time out and making all of us here at the Locked On Podcast Network your first listen every day. And Ravens fans, Patriots fans, now that you've made your respective podcast your first listen every day. Now make your second listen, the Peacock and Williamson NFL show. Brian Peacock and former NFL scout Matt Williamson give you the expert analysis in less than 30 minutes. It's free and available wherever you get your podcasts. On behalf of the great Kevin Ostreicher, host of the Locked On Ravens podcast,

I'm Mike DeBate, host of Locked On Patriots. Stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.