Winners and Losers From Ravens Bounce Back Against Browns

ILB Roquan Smith: With the legend himself in the building, the three-time All Pro selection channeled his inner Ray Lewis on Sunday and turned in an elite performance. Smith was flying around making plays all over the field by blowing up ball carriers at and behind the line of scrimmage, plowing into the backfield on blitzes and delivering punishing blows in space. He finished with a game-high 15 total tackles, including 9 solos and 3 for a loss, to go along with 2 quarterback hits and a 63-yard fumble return touchdown.

QB Lamar Jackson: It was a tale of two halves for the two-time league MVP as he was errant and off-target, either throwing behind or too far ahead of his intended targets, especially down the field. Coming out of halftime, he was much sharper, throwing three of his four touchdowns in the final two quarters and finishing 19-of-29 for 225 passing yards and a passer rating of 128.6. Even though Jackson didn't use his legs to scramble much, he did utilize them to extend passing plays and come up with big plays through the air.

OLB Tavius Robinson: After Pro Bowl veteran Kyle Van Noy left the game with a hamstring injury, the third-year pro was the edge defender who stepped up the most. In addition to being stout against the run, he was consistently disruptive as a pass rusher, forcing throwaways with swift wins off the edge and coming up with the strip-sack that led to Smith's scoop-and-score.

WR DeAndre Hopkins: The Ravens didn't bring in the five-time Pro Bowler to be their No. 1 or No. 2 option at his position but rather to provide a veteran presence to a young group of wideouts and come up clutch when called upon with contested catches. He hauled in both of his targets for the second week in a row, and this time, both of his catches were highlight-worthy plays, with the first being a 41-yard bomb that was nearly a touchdown, and he found the end zone on a 23-yard scoring strike on his second.

Special Teams: Highlighted by masterful performance from fourth-year punter Jordan Stout, who was a field-flipping weapon, the Ravens won the battle for field position. Stout pinned the Browns inside their own 20-yard line twice, rookie return specialist LaJohntay Wester nearly went the distance on his second punt return but sparked the offense's first scoring drive, Loop made both of his field goal attempts and all five extra points, although he still struggled with free kicks and veteran special teams ace Jake Hummel blocked a punt with his cast.

WR Tylan Wallace: The fifth-year veteran once again showed that he can contribute in more ways than just a special teams ace by catching both of his targets for 25 receiving yards, including a 15-yard touchdown. On the play before his scoring grab, he came up clutch with a fumble recovery after Derrick Henry had it punched out while fighting for extra yards. Wallace also stepped up on special teams as a kick returner after second-year running back Rasheen Ali left the game with a concussion.

CB Nate Wiggins: Following an up-and-down outing in Week 1, the second-year pro looked every bit like the budding superstar many pundits predicted he'd be this season with an absolute lights-out performance against the Browns. He was suffocating in coverage with 3 pass breakups and physical coming downhill, highlighted by a huge hit that resulted in a tackle for loss. Wiggins nearly scored his second career touchdown and interception on the same play where he picked off an ill-advised pass from Flacco and returned it 60 yards to the Cleveland 5-yard line.

Secondary: As a unit, the Ravens' defensive backfield as a whole bounced back in a big way, only yielding 207 passing yards in four quarters after allowing 251 in the fourth quarter alone against the Bills. All Pro safety Kyle Hamilton was flying around and hitting as well, and second-year pro T.J. Tampa stepped up with two-time Pro Bowl veteran Jaire Alexander out and played especially well.

DT Nnamdi Madubuike: The two-time Pro Bowler continued his strong start to the season with a second straight game with a sack to go along with a solo tackle for loss and a pair of quarterback hits as he brought relentless interior pressure.

ILB Teddye Buchanan: After rotating with third-year pro Trenton Simpson in Week 1, the fourth-round rookie not only got to start the game, but he rarely came off the field. He tied for the third-most total tackles on the team with 6, including a pair of solos, and was very active on special teams as well.

Losers

Offensive Line: Baltimore got bullied in the trenches for most of the game when it came to both run and pass-blocking. The Ravens were held to just 49 yards on the ground before a trio of kneeldowns to ice the game, which marked their lowest rushing total since Week 16 of the 2021 season when a Lamar Jackson-less squad was held to 39 yards. They struggled to consistently protect Jackson, allowing him to get sacked three times and pressured relentlessly. All Pro defensive end Myles Garrett was highly disruptive, finishing with 5 total tackles, including 2 for a loss, 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hits.

RB Derrick Henry Fantasy Owners: Coming off a monster season-opening performance and with a little extra motivation after Browns safety Grant Delpit went viral for saying how he wasn't hard to tackle, the five-time Pro Bowler was held in check. His 23 rushing yards are his lowest single-game total as a Raven, and his 11 carries tied the fewest in a game since arriving in Baltimore. He only got two carries in the red zone and was fortunate that his second fumble in back-to-back weeks was recovered by one of his teammates and not the other team.

Marlon Humphrey's Hands: The four-time Pro Bowler led the Ravens and entire AFC conference with a career-high six interceptions last year. Yet, when he had a golden opportunity to record his first of the season against his former teammate, he not only didn't finish the play after making a great break on the ball along the sideline, but it ricocheted off his hands and right into the grasp of Browns wide receiver Cedric Tillman in the end zone on fourth down. It wasn't all bad for the two-time All Pro as he made a trio of solo tackles and forced an incompletion with his famous Fruit Punch.

RB Keaton Mitchell: The third-year speedster was a healthy scratch for the second week in a row to start the season, but that could be subject to change next week if Ali can't clear the concussion protocol before their next game.