New York Jets 24, Baltimore Ravens 16
Here are the top takeaways and highest-graded players from the New York Jets' win over the Baltimore Ravens.
Quarterback grade: Geno Smith, 73.5; Ryan Fitzpatrick, 50.6
What started out as Geno Smith's first start of the season for the New York Jets, quickly turned into what will almost certainly become a quarterback controversy next week. Fitzpatrick will get the credit for leading the Jets to the win, but in truth Smith didn't look bad before he left the game injured. When Fitzpatrick replaced him he did find the big plays downfield, going two-for-two on throws 20 yards or further in the air, but also was somewhat lucky not to throw an interception after hitting outside linebacker Za'Darius Smith square in the chest with the ball at the line of scrimmage. It will be interesting to see who gets the nod next week for the Jets, provided Smith is healthy enough to start.
Top offensive grades
G Brian Winters, 78.7
T Ben Ijalana, 74.7
WR Robbie Anderson, 73.4
C Wesley Johnson, 71.5
T Ryan Clady, 69.5
Forte provides spark as a receiver
Matt Forte saw a large volume of carries against the Ravens, but with just 59 of his 97 yards coming after contact, and a fumble, it wasn't his best performance as a runner. Despite that, he did get better as the game went on and helped the Jets grind out the win. Where he really excelled though, was as a receiver. Passes to Forte netted an NFL quarterback rating of 158.3, with the former Chicago Bears star catching all four passes thrown his way for 54 yards and a touchdown.
Top defensive grades
LB David Harris, 84.6
S Marcus Gilchrist, 84.4
CB Darrelle Revis, 82.5
DI Sheldon Richardson, 78.0
ED Lorenzo Mauldin, 76.4
The return of Revis Island?
Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis has taken his share of criticism this season for not being the dominant force that he once was. The Ravens failed to get the better of him though, with Revis allowing just one reception for 11 yards on the five passes thrown into his coverage. He also came away with a pass breakup and, with those 11 yards coming on 46 snaps in coverage allowed an average of just 0.24 yards per coverage snap. Revis had been allowing 1.72 yards per coverage snap coming into the game, so this was a big improvement.
Quarterback grade: Joe Flacco, 42.4
Joe Flacco played hurt after picking up a shoulder injury in the same stadium against the New York Giants a week ago, and it showed in the loss against the Jets. On throws travelling 10 yards or further downfield he was just five-for-15, including two poor interceptions, the first of which was thrown straight to Buster Skrine, with the second coming on an overthrown post route. He struggled when the Jets got pressure on him too, completing just 22.2 percent of his passes under pressure, compared with 65.7 percent when the Ravens offensive line kept him clean.
Top offensive grades
FB Kyle Juszczyk, 87.0
WR Mike Wallace, 78.0
TE Dennis Pitta, 75.7
G Ryan Jensen, 71.6
T Ricky Wagner, 70.9
What running game?
The Ravens rushed for just six yards on 12 carries against the Jets, with a rushing attack that failed to get going from the beginning. Don't be fooled by the inclusion of two offensive linemen in the top five grades, with that having more to do with the overall struggles of the offense, and solid outings in pass protection. While they totaled six yards, the Ravens actually saw 17 yards come after contact, but no missed tackles were forced by running backs. The Ravens didn't attempt to run the ball much, but when they did they struggled to create lanes for their running backs, and the backs failed to make anyone miss.
Top defensive grades
S Eric Weddle, 81.0
DI Brandon Williams, 79.8
DI Michael Pierce, 78.6
ED Za'Darius Smith, 76.8
LB Albert McClellan, 74.3
Big men in the middle
On an otherwise disappointing day, Brandon Williams and Michael Pierce on the interior of the Ravens defensive line had nice outings. Williams made five tackles resulting in a defensive stop on 31 snaps against the run, and added another on a running back after a short catch. Undrafted rookie Pierce had two on 21 snaps against the run and added a sack as a pass-rusher, continuing his impressive start to his career. Undrafted out of Samford, Pierce has registered seven defensive stops against the run this year, and chipped in with two sacks, three hits and three hurries as a pass-rusher.
PFF Game-Ball Winner: Ravens FB Kyle Juszczyk
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