Ravens vs. Colts: Derrick Henry Scores Three Times and Lamar Jackson Throws for 324 in Week 1 Rout

Derrick Henry is 32 years old, which in running back years is roughly the age of the Roman Colosseum. Nobody told the Colts. Henry ran for 144 yards and three touchdowns, Lamar Jackson threw for 324 yards, and the Baltimore Ravens flattened the Indianapolis Colts 41-23 on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.

It was over by halftime. Baltimore led 31-13 at the break, outgained Indy 506 to 251 for the day and handed Jesse Minter the kind of head coaching debut that usually comes with a soundtrack.

A Jab From Indy, Then a Knockout

The Colts actually landed the first punch. Their opening drive went nine plays and 65 yards, and Jonathan Taylor punched in a 1-yard touchdown. Then the extra point failed, a fitting preview of Indy's afternoon.

Baltimore needed three plays to answer, with Jackson scoring on a 5-yard run. Roquan Smith picked off Daniel Jones on the second play of Indy's next drive, and on the ensuing series Jackson produced the escape of the half: third-and-16 near midfield, a sack seemingly locked in, and somehow he wriggled free and ran for the first down. Three plays later, Henry bulled in from 4 yards out. 14-6.

The second quarter was a highlight reel. Jackson hit Zay Flowers on a 54-yard catch-and-run touchdown for a 21-6 lead. On Indy's very next snap, Marlon Humphrey stripped Taylor and came up with the ball, and three plays later Henry went 32 yards for another score. 28-6.

Indy got a pulse back when Jackson lost a fumble deep in his own territory and Taylor scored from 3 yards out, but Tyler Loop drilled a career-long 57-yard field goal as the half expired. 31-13. That's the fifth time in franchise history the Ravens have put up at least 31 points in a first half.

The second half was mostly clock management with occasional violence. Spencer Shrader's 58-yard field goal pulled Indy within 31-16, Henry answered with a 3-yard touchdown 2:14 into the fourth quarter, and after Jones found Tyler Warren for a 9-yard score, Loop's 45-yarder and a fourth-down sack by Malaki Starks closed the book.

King Henry Still Owns the Throne

Henry's line: 24 carries, 144 yards, three touchdowns and a 19-yard catch. It was his 56th career 100-yard game and his eighth with at least three rushing scores. It also pushed him to 125 career rushing touchdowns, two more than Hall of Famer Marcus Allen and third-most in NFL history. His 130 total touchdowns now rank ninth, one ahead of former Indy star Marvin Harrison, which is a deeply rude thing to do in Indianapolis.

He tormented this franchise for years as a Titan. Apparently the jersey change didn't change the habit.

Then there's Jackson, coming off a frustrating 2025 season. He went 17 of 25 for 324 yards, a touchdown and a 124.2 passer rating, added 40 rushing yards and a score, and had 229 passing yards by halftime. It was the 10th 300-yard game of his career.

"We were all on point, from the play-calling to the execution," Jackson said. "I've been dialed in since OTA (offseason team activities)."

Flowers was the other headliner. Five catches, 150 yards and a touchdown, a career high in receiving yards, all before a hamstring injury kept him out of the second half. Thirty yards per catch isn't a stat line. It's a cheat code.

Chris Moore, elevated from the practice squad, chipped in a 53-yard catch and 121 yards on four kickoff returns. Smith finished with 11 tackles, an interception and two pass breakups. And 40-year-old Calais Campbell, back in Baltimore, joined Jim Marshall and Hall of Famer Bruce Smith as the only defensive linemen in league history with 260 career starts.

The 32-Yard Run That Ended the Argument

If you want one snap that decided this, take Henry's 32-yard touchdown with 5:04 left in the first half. Indy had just turned it over, the score was 21-6, and the Colts still had a sliver of hope. Rashod Bateman and Chris Moore threw key blocks, Henry found daylight up the left side, and that sliver was gone. The Colts never got within 14 points again.

Colts coach Shane Steichen didn't dress it up afterward.

"Obviously, we've got to be better," Steichen said. "We've got to coach better. We've got to play better."

Numbers That Tell the Story

• 506: Baltimore's total yards, its first 500-yard game since Oct. 21, 2024.
• 7.9 to 4.7: Yards per play, Ravens versus Colts.
• 23: Combined yards on Indy's four drives after its opening touchdown.
• 13-6: Baltimore's record in openers since 2008. The Ravens have now topped 20 points in a league-best 10 straight Week 1 games.
• 11 of 13: Openers Indy has now lost in 13 years.

The Minter Era Opens With a Statement

A September road blowout doesn't win a division, but it says plenty about where Baltimore's head is. Minter's halftime message was to keep pressing, and his players clearly heard it.

"We came in at halftime, and he wanted to continue to pour it on," Humphrey said.

That matters for a team that blew a 15-point fourth-quarter lead last season. Indy twice pulled within 15 in the second half and never got closer.

"It's surreal a little bit, honestly. I don't know if it has actually hit me yet," Minter said.

The cleanup list is real. Flowers (hamstring) and rookie receiver Ja'Kobi Lane (wrist) both left, Humphrey exited briefly in the fourth quarter and cornerback T.J. Tampa Jr. didn't return after hurting his knee in the first. Ten penalties for 86 yards also need work, including a hold that wiped out what would have been Lane's first NFL touchdown.

Indy has bigger questions. Jones went 19 of 31 for 166 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his first game since tearing his right Achilles tendon in December, and Taylor's 98 yards and two scores came with a costly fumble. The Colts visit Kansas City next Sunday. Baltimore hosts New Orleans.

Long Live the King

The best moment didn't happen on the field. Jackson closed his postgame news conference by bounding down from the podium and wrapping Henry in a hug.

"Oh, King Henry, I love you," Jackson said.

Honestly? Same. In a league that treats 30-year-old running backs like expired milk, Henry keeps climbing all-time lists and running through defenders like the calendar is a rumor. Some guys age. King Henry just keeps collecting crowns.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Postgame quotes as reported by the Associated Press and BaltimoreRavens.com.