Jaguars vs Ravens finished 33-10 on Thursday night as Jacksonville handled a depleted Baltimore side that turned to the Wildcat with Derrick Henry amid a quarterback crisis. With Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley sidelined, the Ravens started rookie Joe Fagnano, and Jacksonville’s defense smothered the makeshift approach.
Jacksonville coach Liam Coen said the team anticipated Baltimore’s wrinkles. “We practiced Wildcat a ton,” he said.
Trevor Lawrence passed for 242 yards and a touchdown, guiding the Jaguars to a comfortable win over Fagnano and the Ravens. Short-week travel typically challenges the visitor, but it was Baltimore that looked out of rhythm with its top two quarterbacks injured.
Fagnano, a 25-year-old rookie who debuted last week against Buffalo, managed 60 passing yards as Baltimore fell to 4-5 with a fourth straight defeat. With Jackson and Huntley on injured reserve and Fagnano managing an ankle issue, the team now awaits the arrival of Jacoby Brissett to stabilize the position.
“Tough situation for our guys. But I just told them, there’s no excuses,” Baltimore coach Jesse Minter said. “There’s no, ‘Whatever, we don’t have this guy, we don’t have that guy.’”
Jacksonville, now 6-2, did not need to press on a rainy night. The Jaguars protected the ball, avoided major risks, and extended their surge to five wins in six games to strengthen their lead in the AFC South.
Jaguars vs Ravens: fast start and a deep strike
The Jaguars opened with a 77-yard march capped by a one-yard Bhayshul Tuten touchdown run for a 7-0 lead.
“That opening drive was huge, just to set the tone,” Lawrence said. “Especially when you get the ball first … that’s something that’s important, is to be able to go and get points right away.”
Baltimore sought answers with repeated Wildcat snaps to Henry and came away with a field goal on its first series, but produced little else until late.
With 58 seconds left in the second quarter, Lawrence connected with Parker Washington on a 50-yard touchdown, sending Jacksonville to halftime up 17-3. “When it was really a game,” Coen said of Lawrence, he was “extremely sharp” and accurate.
It was 20-3 when a fumble gave Baltimore a short field in the third quarter, but the Ravens turned it over on downs. Boos followed from the home crowd.
“They have every right to boo or do whatever they want to do,” tight end Mark Andrews said. “Us in here, we have to stay together, be on one accord, and just keep on relying on each other.”
Fagnano finished 10-for-18 with two second-half interceptions. A fumble on a kickoff return set up Chris Rodriguez Jr’s two-yard touchdown run with 7:26 remaining to make it 33-3.
Justice Hill replied 11 seconds later with a 65-yard touchdown run, Baltimore’s first second-half touchdown since Week 5. He closed with 85 yards on nine carries, ending Jacksonville’s 24-game run of not allowing a 75-yard rusher.
Injuries mount as Baltimore’s slide deepens
It is the first time in franchise history the Ravens have dropped three consecutive games by at least 20 points. Before Thursday, they lost 35-13 to Cincinnati and 36-10 to Buffalo.
Compounding the quarterback issues, Baltimore played without starting cornerback Nate Wiggins, who was listed with an illness earlier in the week. The team also lost star safety Kyle Hamilton to a hip injury during the game.