BALTIMORE – Something had to give when the NFL’s top-ranked offense on Sunday went against the No. 3 defense. It was the Broncos’ defense.
The Baltimore Ravens lived up to their billing by rolling up 396 yards of total offense in a 41-10 rout of Denver at M&T Bank Stadium. At one point, they scored on seven consecutive possessions. The Broncos (5-4) entered the game No.
3 in total defense, allowing 282.6 yards per game and No. 3 in points allowed, giving up 15 points an outing.
So much for those gaudy statistics. “Just knowing what team we are and knowing the type of defense and knowing the kind of stage that we had to prove ourselves and not playing up to the standard was kind of a disappointment,’’ said Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto. The game got away from the Broncos after Wil Lutz kicked a 37-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 17-10 with 54 seconds left in the first half.
The Ravens (6-3) quickly moved down the field and scored on a 53-yard touchdown pass from Lamar Jackson to Zay Flowers with 16 seconds left before intermission for a 24-10 lead. Safety Devon Key missed a tackle on Flowers at the 23. He said Flowers “just slipped through my hands.
” Key, who also had a facemask penalty in the second quarter, had a shaky game. He replaced starter P.J.
Locke, who missed his second straight game due to a thumb injury. “I think there’s some communication issues involved on that play, but collectively as a unit going into halftime, we weren’t r.