Ravens Judiciously Preparing for Flacco, Jets and Beyond

Baltimore plays opener Sept. 11 at New York.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens coach John Harbaugh has been balancing his workload.

Between training camp, the preseason games, and final cuts, he's been burning the midnight oil.

Throughout that heavy workload, Harbaugh and his staff have also been preparing for the regular season opener against the New York Jets and beyond. 

It's a process that began when the schedule was unveiled in the spring. 

“We’ve been preparing for the Jets and the Dolphins and the Patriots and the Bills and the Steelers and the Bengals and the Browns, I would say," Harbaugh said. "We’ve sprinkled all that stuff in throughout camp and the offseason – that’s part of what we do. But it hasn’t been focused, per se, so now we start turning towards the Jets and the first four games, but mainly the Jets.”

The #Ravens have a solid mix of veteran and young players that should be able to challenge for an AFC North crown.
Baltimore has the ninth-best roster heading into the regular season, per PFF #RavensFlock #RavensNation https://t.co/EOW2YUlLcM via @toddkarpovich

— Todd Karpovich (@toddkarpovich) September 2, 2022

While the Ravens still have uncertainty with their starting lineup on both sides of the ball, namely with left tackle Ronnie Stanley and running back J.K. Dobbins, they are still favored against the Jets. 

Baltimore will play against a familiar face in the opener, Jets quarterback Joe Flacco, who led the Ravens to a Super Bowl victory almost a decade ago.

Flacco was thrust into the starting job when Zach Wilson went down with a knee injury. Flacco will be gunning for his former team and he will be playing with confidence before a raucous crowd at home.  

However, Flacco and the rest of the Jets' starting offense struggled in the preseason finale against the Giants. Flacco threw an interception in his final drive.

The Ravens have just over two weeks to prepare for Flacco and the Jets. 

Harbaugh is using his time wisely. 

“It feels great. It feels great," Harbaugh said. "We like it. I’m a fan of it. I want to just work on some things this week, give the guys a break over the weekend – a chance to catch their breath – and come back for a game week next week.”