Jaguars vs. Ravens: Complete Week 15 Preview for Baltimore

The Baltimore Ravens are poised to make a run for the NFL playoffs. After a win over the Miami Dolphins last week, Baltimore improved to 8-5 and tied for one of the two wild-card spots in the AFC.  

Now, they get a host a 2-11 Jacksonville Jaguars team that's among the worst teams in football this year. Jacksonville has also failed to win a road game this year, going 0-6 on the road.

Baltimore is 4-2 in the friendly confines of M&T Bank Stadium, and don't expect it to take the Jags lightly with its playoff hopes at stake. 

There are currently five 7-6 teams sitting behind the Ravens in the AFC playoff picture, and with the 8-5 Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers still ahead of it, Baltimore has to treat every game like a it's must-win.

Here is a preview of the Ravens' Week 15 game, which starts at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Dec. 14 and can be viewed on CBS. 

Week 15 Recap

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

The Ravens and Dolphins faced off in a Week 14 matchup of playoff contenders, as both teams entered the game at 7-5 with a chance to ascend to one of the two wild-card spots in the AFC.

The Dolphins scored on their first two offensive possessions to give themselves a 10-0 lead, and it looked grim for the Ravens early on. 

However, Baltimore's defense would stiffen up and hold the Dolphins to just three points the rest of the way.

The Ravens offense didn't get going until late in the second quarter, but when it did, it took off in a hurry. After a Miami punt pinned Baltimore at its own 3-yard line, the Ravens went on a 12-play drive that culminated with Joe Flacco hitting Steve Smith for a one-yard score.

That trimmed Miami's lead to just 10-7. On the opening drive of the second half, Baltimore once again marched down the field before Flacco hit Kamar Aiken for a 13-yard score.

That gave the Ravens a 14-10 lead they would not relinquish. After Miami scored a field goal early in the fourth quarter, Baltimore responded with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Justin Forsett running for a two-yard score to give the Ravens a 21-13 win.

Baltimore's defense would keep Miami from scoring the rest of the way, and the Ravens held on for a 28-13 win.

News and Notes

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Torrey Smith Dealing with Knee Injury

The Ravens were able to beat the Dolphins last week without the services of wide receiver Torrey Smith. He left during the fourth quarter of the Week 13 loss to the San Diego Chargers with what was later determined to be a knee injury. 

The injury lingered into last week's game, and though Smith was active, he saw just 15 snaps versus the Dolphins. 

Unfortunately, the injury isn't getting better, as Smith has missed two days of practice leading up to the Week 14 game against the Jaguars, according to ProFootballTalk's Josh Alper. 

If he's held out or gets limited snaps, Steve Smith Sr., Kamar Aiken and Marlon Brown will be the top three receivers against Jacksonville. 

Torrey Nominated for Sportsmanship Award

Though Torrey Smith is dealing with a knee injury on the field, he continues to be a role model off the field Baltimore is proud to have representing its franchise. 

The Ravens announced Tuesday Smith was the team's nominee for the new NFL Sportsmanship Award. Each team nominates one player for this, which is awarded to one player in January prior to the Super Bowl. 

The award was invented to honor an NFL player who “best demonstrates the qualities of on-field sportsmanship, including fair play, respect for the game and opponents and integrity in competition.”

Ravens Sign Cornerback Antoine Cason

The Ravens are dealing with a thin group of cornerbacks after injuries have cost several players at that position. One week ago, rookie Tramain Jacobs was placed on season-ending injured reserve. 

Now, Anthony Levine is dealing with a concussion that has his Week 15 status up in the air. Baltimore also just placed Danny Gorrer on injured reserve after he suffered a knee injury in Week 14.

In order to boost their cornerback depth, the Ravens went out and signed Antoine Cason. The veteran was released by the Carolina Panthers after he was ineffective there, so it's hard to expect him to do much other than provide depth for the Ravens.

For his seven-year career, Cason has 380 tackles, 16 interceptions, 64 passes defended and eight forced fumbles.

Injury Report

USA TODAY Sports

NAME	POSITION	INJURY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY
Daniels, Owen	TE	NIR	-	DNP	-	-
Gillmore, Crockett	TE	Back	DNP	DNP	-	-
Levine, Anthony	S	Concussion	LP	FP	-	-
Reid, Jah	T	Hand	-	LP	-	-
Smith, Torrey	WR	Knee	DNP	DNP	-	-
Smith, Daryl	LB	NIR	-	DNP	-	-
Smith, Sr., Steve	WR	NIR	-	DNP	-	-
Taliaferro, Lorenzo	RB	Foot	DNP	DNP	-	-

• Practice Status
• DNP = Did not participate in practice
• LP = Limited Participation in Practice - Less than 100% of a player's normal repetitions
• FP = Full Participation - 100% of a player's normal repetitions
• Out = Player will not play
• (-) = Not Listed = No practice status available

The Ravens were without Torrey Smith on both Wednesday and Thursday, so it's tough to see him getting a lot of snaps Sunday even if he is active.

His knee injury limited him to just 15 snaps last week, so expect to see both Kamar Aiken and Marlon Brown getting his reps. 

Running back Lorenzo Taliaferro also missed Wednesday and Thursday. With Bernard Pierce getting most of the backup carries last week behind Justin Forsett, not having Taliaferro wouldn't be much of a loss if he doesn't play this week.

Injury report courtesy of BaltimoreRavens.com.

Matchups to Watch

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DE Chris Clemons vs. OT Eugene Monroe

The Jaguars thrive off of rushing the passer, and defensive end Chris Clemons is leading the charge. The 11th-year veteran is tied for the team lead with eight sacks to go with 14 quarterback hurries, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).  

As a team, the Jaguars are tied for No. 3 in sacks this season. While there have been several players contribute to this cause, Clemons is one guy Baltimore must constantly account for.

The man who will often be tasked with blocking Clemons will be left tackle Eugene Monroe. Clemons likes to rush from a quarterback's blind side, and Monroe is Joe Flacco's blindside protector. 

Monroe has done well at keeping Flacco clean this year. According to Pro Football Focus, Monroe has allowed just two sacks and six QB hits this year. 

This will be a good battle to watch that will also go a long way in determining how effective Baltimore's offense operates. If Monroe fails and lets Clemons get the better of him, Flacco will have to worry about his blind side instead of focusing on hitting his receivers down the field. 

OTs Luke Joeckel and Sam Young vs. OLB's Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil

Outside linebackers Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil were nearly unstoppable during last week's win over the Dolphins. Those two combined to record five sacks and six QB hits. They also chipped in four tackles for loss and 10 tackles, and they were all over the field.

Those two have formed one of the best pass-rushing duos in football, and Dumervil is now in the midst of a record-setting season. He just broke the Ravens’ single-season sack record after getting to 16 last week.

Dumervil is also tied with the Kansas City Chiefs' Justin Houston for the most sacks in the NFL. And he's within striking distance of the single-season record of 22.5 sacks that Michael Strahan holds. 

He and Suggs will look to come up big again this week when they face a Jaguars team that isn't very good at protecting its quarterback. 

In fact, the Jaguars have allowed the most sacks in the NFL with 54 in 13 games. Offensive tackles Sam Young and Luke Joeckel allowed three QB hurries, one QB hit and one sack last week in a loss to the Houston Texans, per Pro Football Focus. 

Joeckel is a rookie who has played better as of late, but he's still allowed five sacks this year. How well he and Young can block Suggs and Dumervil will greatly affect the Jaguars offense.

Prediction

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The Ravens are on the verge of making it to the postseason after failing to make it there last year. Baltimore has made it to the playoffs in five of head coach John Harbaugh's six years at the helm, and he isn't about to let his team lose at home with the playoffs at stake. 

The Ravens likely need to win at least two of their next three games to get to the playoffs, and that starts this week against a 2-11 Jaguars team that's arguably the worst team Baltimore has faced this year.

The Ravens will come out and jump on the Jags early to build a big lead and force Jacksonville to play from behind. 

That means Elvis Dumervil and Terrell Suggs get more opportunities to rush and terrorize the passer, and the Ravens defense suffocates the Jags throughout the contest. 

Baltimore gets big games on the ground from Bernard Pierce and Justin Forsett, while Joe Flacco tosses a pair of touchdowns as the Ravens cruise to an easy win.

Baltimore 31, Jacksonville 13