# Ralph Vacchiano: Vacchiano expects the Ravens under new coach Jesse Minter to win 10-plus games and contend for the Super Bowl, with a healthy Lamar Jackson near the top of the MVP race. They also flag rookie WR Ja'Kobi Lane as a deep fantasy sleeper battling for the No. 3 receiver job and expects Derrick Henry to stay healthy and power an unstoppable rushing attack.

**Claimed:** Aug 13, 2026
**Pundit:** Ralph Vacchiano — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/ralph-vacchiano
**Outlet:** Fox Sports — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fox-sports
**How it reached us:** published in writing
**Original:** https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/ravens-hc-jesse-minter-has-quickly-won-over-players-now-he-must-win-games

4 checkable claims — 2 depth chart calls, 1 award pick and 1 season win total — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.

It names 4 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.

Of the 3 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room on every one.

> But all the pieces are right there for the Ravens to win 10-plus games, even in what could be a much more competitive AFC North.

*(their words, quoted for attribution)*

## The claims

- **Rashod Bateman to be 2nd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Ja'Kobi Lane to be 3rd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Ja'Kobi Lane, Baltimore Ravens
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Lamar Jackson to win MVP**
  - Kind: Award Picks · About: Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Baltimore Ravens to finish with 10 wins**
  - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: Baltimore Ravens
  - Verdict: not settled yet

## Who this take is about

- Rashod Bateman — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/rashod-bateman
- Baltimore Ravens — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/ravens
- Ja'Kobi Lane — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/ja-kobi-lane
- Lamar Jackson — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/lamar-jackson

## What others said about the same people

- Albert Breer on Jacoby Brissett: Breer argues the Jaguars should be taken very seriously, seeing a path to 13 wins and the AFC's No. 1 seed with a first-round bye, and they expect the Jacoby Brissett trade to Baltimore to be completed within a day. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c51d9762-3ca3-4143-9372-bf508348053f (scored 100)
- Nathan Jahnke on Jacoby Brissett: In a Week 9 recap, Jahnke expects Mark Andrews to remain Baltimore's lead tight end but says rookie Matt Hibner is more likely than Josh Cuevas to eventually overtake them, and they anticipate the Ravens acquiring Jacoby Brissett to start at quarterback. They also suggest Brian Thomas Jr. may have played their final game for Jacksonville ahead of the trade deadline. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/15c4c161-616c-4ed8-be6d-ad326cc50853 (scored 100)
- Nic Bodiford on Joe Fagnano: Previewing Week 9 running game matchups, Bodiford expects Jacksonville to win lopsidedly over a depleted Baltimore team, with Bhayshul Tuten sitting out and Chris Rodriguez taking over as lead back, while Joe Fagnano starts at quarterback for the Ravens. They also view Broncos rookie Jonah Coleman as an RB2 going forward. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a13b9f29-bb76-4c56-b226-aca74b21f5b7 (scored 100)
- Mike Florio on Jake Moody: Florio expects Jake Moody to be promoted from Baltimore's practice squad to the 53-man roster if Tyler Loop lands on injured reserve. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/886a925c-c92f-46d9-a318-6203a5064de7 (scored 0)
- Rich Eisen on Baltimore Ravens: Eisen gave a top-10 power ranking of NFL "game wreckers," predicted Will Anderson Jr. wrecks a game at least twice for the Texans this year, and walked through a Jaguars game-by-game prediction landing on a 13-4 record. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c3c4f49b-d302-4b0a-927f-a151ca5da8d0 (scored 0)
- John Breech on Jacoby Brissett: Breech picks the Jaguars to blow out the quarterback-depleted Ravens on Thursday night, and in Week 9 takes the Bengals to outlast the Falcons in a Madrid shootout. They also expect Jacoby Brissett to be a Raven within 48 hours and to make their first Baltimore start in Week 11. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e93e4009-fa0b-4806-b8f4-bfd9ea948984 (scored 100)

## More depth chart calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

- Jeremy Brener on Drew Lock: Brener picked the Seahawks to beat the Cardinals in Week 9 by a multi-score margin, giving a final score of 27-13, and expressed confidence Seattle would be fine with Drew Lock starting at quarterback. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/7eb2d245-63d0-4be0-80ba-3f60197e2b16 (scored 100)
- Jeremy Brener on Jalen Milroe: Brener suggests Seattle may turn to rookie-contract quarterback Jalen Milroe for their first career start in Week 9 against the Cardinals, with Sam Darnold ruled out and Drew Lock dealing with an elbow injury. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/42d1bd81-5e19-456e-9f68-b3b135170ec0 (scored 0)
- Michael Moore on Shedeur Sanders: In a Week 9 injury roundup, Moore forecast which banged-up fantasy contributors would play or sit: Deshaun Watson, Garrett Wilson, David Montgomery, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, TreVeyon Henderson and Terrance Ferguson are expected out, while Travis Kelce, Saquon Barkley, Michael Wilson, Christian Watson and Emeka Egbuka should play. They also expect Shedeur Sanders and Drew Lock to start at quarterback. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e26319a3-10aa-49a6-a24d-a257521363f0 (scored 100)
- Zachary Pereles on Shedeur Sanders: Pereles writes that if Deshaun Watson can't clear concussion protocol in time, the Browns would likely turn to second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders to start Week 9 against the Saints. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/6dad75dd-1818-4a6a-91ea-832f491c2530 (scored 100)
- Garrett Podell on Carson Beck: Podell argues the Cardinals have maxed out with Jacoby Brissett and that rookie Carson Beck should be ramped up to replace them as starter, targeting Week 8 at Dallas for Beck's regular-season debut. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2f499498-ebbe-41f8-8ea3-41fe96f79432 (scored 0)
- Jacob Herlin on J.J. McCarthy: Herlin published Week 7 fantasy D/ST rankings with projections for 28 team defenses, led by Houston, Minnesota and Cleveland. They also expect Cleveland to post a fourth straight top-10 fantasy defense result, and predicts Jalon Daniels starts another week for Tampa Bay while J.J. McCarthy takes over as the Giants' starter. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/cf4a2992-3760-464e-b540-6182ebc4457f (scored 100)

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Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages.

Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology

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