This article is part of our NFL Observations series.
As someone who had the Ravens minus 14.5, it got a little tighter than I would have liked at the end. Overall, I thought the Ravens looked surprisingly shaky on defense and special teams, and the game was closer than the score, given the two turnovers and the Jets being stopped twice on fourth and one.
• Adam Gase gets top billing for punting on 4th-and-3 down 21 points (if I recall correctly) late in the third quarter, then shortly thereafter trying an onside kick. I'm fine with the onside kick, but if you're willing to take the risk there, why not go for it on fourth and short? There was at least one other bad punt by Gase, but that one was the most egregious.
• As a Giants fan I hate to admit this, but Sam Darnold looked good to me. He threw a bad pick, but otherwise he moved well and was accurate, connecting even to receivers who were well covered.
• Jamison Crowder had one of the worst drops I've ever seen -- a wide open, perfectly-thrown, short pitch and catch TD, but was able to make a great catch in tight coverage for a score on the next play. He scored again in the game, but he was incredibly fortunate to erase an embarrassing mistake that quickly.
• Le'Veon Bell ran hard and well, but couldn't get going in the passing game. He looks like the same guy who was a star with the Steelers to me, but just needs a better line and playcaller.
• Lamar Jackson had another five TD passes and might have had six had he not missed a wide open Mark Andrews on a deep throw. It's insane that in addition to the 1,100 rushing yards he already has 33 TD passes in 14 games. The 35-TD, 1,000-yard-rushing QB is a unicorn among unicorns.
That said, he lacked touch on some throws, looking herky-jerky at times when releasing the ball. But his decision making has become very sound, and he showed poise, calmly throwing the ball away under pressure a couple times.
• Marquise Brown draw a long PI in the end zone and caught another TD. He's the player who will make defenses pay if they sell out to stop Jackson and Mark Ingram. Speaking of whom, it's no fluke how much production he gets on modest work -- he plays in the league's No. 1 offense, behind a great offensive line and where defenses have to devote resources to stopping Jackson. The red-zone looks and efficiency should continue as long as the offense plays at this level, and Ingram is also good in his own right.
• The Ravens defense didn't tackle well early, and Robby Anderson and Crowder found some open space. Their kick coverage was terrible, they had a punt blocked for a TD and Justin Tucker (who never attempts field goals anymore) missed a PAT and lost another when the Ravens went for two to make up for the miss.
• As I mentioned, the spread got tight late after the Jets made a seven-yard two-point conversion to cut the lead to 21, and then the Ravens brought out the carcass of RGIII and punted it back to New York with four minutes left. The Jets drove into Ravens territory but fortunately called a pass play on 4th-and-1 (a sensible call down three scores), that was broken up.
• The Ravens can lock up the No. 1 seed if they win either of their last two games -- at Cleveland or home against the Steelers.
