Getty Buccaneers QB Tom Brady should never be counted out and the Ravens know it all too well.
The Baltimore Ravens know better than to take any team lightly especially in this any given Sunday, Monday, or Thursday NFL that the 2022 regular season has proven to be through the first seven weeks. When an opposing team is led by none other than seven-time Superbowl championship-winning quarterback Tom Brady, they really should never be counted out even if they are struggling.
While the Ravens are coming off a nail-biting 23-20 win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 7 and are in sole possession of first place in the AFC North standings, Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dropped their second straight to an opponent with a losing record with the worst coming this past Sunday in a 21-3 loss to the lowly Carolina Panthers. The two teams seemingly headed in different directions will face off on a national stage in prime on Thursday Night Football to kick off Week 8.
“It’s Tom Brady,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said in a press conference on October 25, 2022. “It’s the same style, the same basic kind of an offense that he’s run over the years. It will be a big challenge for us.”
The 15-time Pro Bowler has an 8-4 career record against the Ravens that includes going 6-2 during the regular season and 2-2 in the playoffs. This will mark the team’s first meeting with Brady since he and the New England Patriots parted ways in the 2020 offseason following a 20-year run in which he led the team to six Superbowl titles in nine appearances.
While the vast majority of defenders across the league were elated when the future first-ballot Hall of Fame signal-caller announced what would be a brief retirement, Ravens second-year outside linebacker Odafe Oweh was one of the few that wasn’t. He wanted to get the opportunity to go against Brady at least once in his career and feels blessed that he’ll get a chance to try to sack him on Thursday night.
“I was like, ‘Thank God he’s coming back,’ because last year he retired, and I was like, ‘Oh, I just missed him,'” Oweh said to reporters on October 24, 2022. “He came back, so I guess it’s fate. It’s going to be good; I’m playing against the GOAT [greatest of all time], and that brings me jitters, so I hope I’ll have the opportunity to get after him.”
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is 1-0 over Brady head-to-head having won their lone matchup against each other. That game came in 2019 during Jackson’s unanimous MVP-winning season and Brady’s final with the Patriots and ended in a 37-20 statement victory for the Ravens over the reigning Superbowl champions who were previously undefeated at the time.
“I don’t play against Tom Brady. But he’s the ‘G.O.A.T.’ [greatest of all time], man,” Jackson said in a press conference on October 24, 2022. “I’m always playing against the defense, not the quarterback, so I’m going into every game the same way, the same mentality. I just want to go out there and do what I’m supposed to do to win.”
Tyler Linderbaum Has Been ‘Playing Really Well’
One of the most alluring traits about the Ravens’ rookie center that made him the consensus top prospect at the position in this past draft cycle was his incredible athleticism and understanding of leverage. The first-rounder out of Iowa has impressed through the first seven weeks of the regular season as the anchor in the middle of the team’s starting offensive line.
“He told me after Week 4, he said, ‘Hey, it’s only my fourth game. I’m going to keep getting better,'” Harbaugh said. “And I believed him, and it’s been true. He’s just that kind of guy; he’s all business, he’s all ball, he loves it, he works really hard at it. He’s been playing well. He’s already playing really well, so to say that he’s going to keep getting better is quite a statement, and that’s a good thing.”
Linderbaum is a weapon in the run game
The slightly undersized interior offensive lineman will face one of, if not, his toughest test to date when the Ravens take on the Buccaneers. He’ll be tasked with keeping hulking defensive tackle Vita Vea from being the disruptive force he has proven he can be on a consistent basis. The two-player will likely lock horns and engage each other early and often and it will be up to Linderbaum to block him one-on-one if need be at times when he can’t get any assistance from either guard or the running back.
David Ojabo Is Hungry & ‘Looking Explosive’
The Ravens’ pass rush is coming off its most productive game of the season in which the defense finished with a season-high five sacks. As good as they were against the Browns, the unit will get even better when their reinforcements on the edge arrive.
“It’s cranking up,” second-year outside linebacker Odafe Oweh said on October 24, 2022. “A lot of guys are starting to get healthy, and we’re getting the amount of reps that we need to really get after guys.”
Second-round rookie David Ojabo was only able to land at No. 45 overall in this year’s draft because he would miss at least half of his rookie season recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered at his Pro Day and has been practicing for the past few weeks.
His familiarity with Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Mcdonald’s scheme having played it in college will help reduce his learning curve once he’s allowed to suit up for and play in games.
“He’s getting better every day,” Oweh said. “I think they said he ran something crazy; I don’t know if it’s true or not, but they said he ran something crazy. He’s looking good, he’s looking explosive, and obviously, he knows everything as far as the defense.”