Unsung heroes from the Ravens’ Week 15 win over the Jaguars

 

Once again, the Ravens found a way to pull away late in a game they were supposed to win. The Ravens won in the end because of some underappreciated but significant play by a few of their less-heralded players who made plays on both sides of the ball, as well as the Jaguars’ persistent efforts to keep the game close.

This piece honors the unsung heroes—the players whose contributions went unnoticed but were nonetheless crucial.

Despite playing in just the first half of the game, the experienced free safety in his sixth year managed to finish with five tackles, including four solo stops, which put him in third place on the team. When Williams stopped rookie wide receiver Parker Washington in bounds with less than ten seconds remaining and the Jaguars out of timeouts, it proved to be his last takedown of the game. It appeared as though Jacksonville could have been able to tie the score after moving the ball down to the Baltimore five-yard line with a 36-yard gain on the previous play, but as the remaining time passed, the Ravens’ first-half shutout was preserved.

The ball was moved past midfield and into Jaguars territory by the third-year pro on the Ravens’ opening offensive play, when he made back-to-back catches for gains of nine and eighteen yards. After quarterback Lamar Jackson stumbled over running back Keaton Mitchell’s ankle and avoided being sacked by throwing an incompletion, the drive eventually came to a stop in the red zone. However, on the following play, Jackson was called for intentional grounding.