Ravens vs. Seahawks staff picks: Who will win Sunday’s Week 9 game in Baltimore?
Here’s how The Baltimore Sun sports staff views the outcome of Sunday’s Week 9 game between the Ravens (6-2) and the Seahawks (5-2) at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Brian Wacker, reporter
Ravens 20, Seahawks 17: The last two times these teams met, in 2019 and 2015, the road team won handily. That included Lamar Jackson memorably telling coach John Harbaugh “hell yeah” he wanted to go for it on fourth-and-2 from the Seahawks’ 8-yard line and then running in for a score en route to a 30-16 victory in Seattle. This time, the Ravens are riding a three-game winning streak and come in averaging the sixth-most points (25.3) and second-most rushing yards (143) per game. There’s also a fun matchup of rookie receivers between the Ravens’ Zay Flowers and Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and of course the matchup of two strong defenses. The Seahawks do a lot of things well, ranking near the middle of the pack offensively, though quarterback Geno Smith has thrown six interceptions compared with nine touchdown passes. In other words, this figures to be another close one, but Baltimore’s defense will be the difference.
Mike Preston, columnist
Seahawks 21, Ravens 18: The Seahawks play tough defense and have enough offensive weapons on the outside to give the Ravens problems. Plus, it’s hard to root against Seattle quarterback Geno Smith.
Childs Walker, reporter
Ravens 27, Seahawks 20: This is a good midseason test for both teams. The Ravens will have the best playmaker in Lamar Jackson and the better all-around defense. But Seattle will make them earn drives on offense and has the weapons to punish defensive lapses. The Ravens will build another early lead and hang on with support from their home crowd.
C.J. Doon, editor
Seahawks 20, Ravens 19: This could resemble a typical AFC North slugfest the way both of these defenses are playing of late, but I’m giving the slight edge to Seattle because of its offensive talent. Running backs Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet will test the Ravens’ interior, and receivers Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba will take advantage of any weak spots in the secondary. It’s asking a lot of Geno Smith to outduel Lamar Jackson on the road, but the 33-year-old veteran will be up to the challenge and deliver some more late magic.
Tim Schwartz, editor
Ravens 21, Seahawks 17: This is going to be a fun game to watch. Seattle is coming off a last-minute win over the Browns, the league’s second-best defense, per DVOA, to vault into first place in the NFC West. And now they are set to face the NFL’s No. 1 defense in Baltimore. That feels like a tall task, especially with the Ravens getting healthier and seemingly hitting their stride (at least defensively). There’s no “Legion of Boom” to face if you’re Lamar Jackson, but the Seahawks boast one of the league’s best cornerback tandems in Riq Woolen and star rookie Devon Witherspoon. It won’t be an easy task for the Ravens offense.
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