Dec 15, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh looks on during the first half against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
The Baltimore Ravens were expected to dominate the New York Giants, especially coming out of their bye week, and for the most part, they did just that en route to a 35-14 victory.
Even with a fumble on the opening drive, Baltimore still outclassed a struggling and incredibly beat-up New York team. The Ravens nearly doubled up the Giants in total yards (445 to 236) and Lamar Jackson threw five touchdowns in an MVP-caliber performance.
Despite all the good, there was one huge problem for Baltimore in this game, and a familiar one at that: penalties.
The Ravens finished the day with 12 penalties for 112 yards, and even if some of them were questionable calls, that's still far too many for any team's liking. The low point came on the Giants' first touchdown drive of the game, when the Ravens took four penalties for 41 yards on an 80-yard drive.
Penalties have been an issue for Baltimore all season, so it's disappointing to see it still pop up even after the bye week.
"Well, the biggest thing was the pass interference calls... They called it tight. Those are tight, tight called plays there in terms of pass interference, so we have to adjust," head coach John Harbaugh said post-game. "[For] roughing the passer, you have to find a way to get off to the side. You have to find a way to do it, so we'll be drilling it.
"We'll be working on those. Those are kind of technique things that we just have to do a good job of working on because that's really ... Their drives were penalty-inspired. If it wasn't for the penalties, those drives wouldn't have happened, so it's obviously something that's very important."
The Ravens were able to survive these miscues against the lowly Giants, but against better competition, like the Pittsburgh Steelers in next week's pivotal AFC North showdown, these penalties simply cannot happen. Baltimore has a short week before that game on Saturday, so working on discipline will be a huge focus between now and then.