Posts Tagged ‘NFL’

Saints (10-3) @ Ravens (9-4)

Posted by darnold on Friday, December 17th, 2010

Filling out the rankings chart (above) is getting to be a bit depressing. As the weeks rolled on, I really expected the Ravens’ offense to inch closer and closer to being a top 10 unit. Instead, even after playing the lowly Houston Texans and their 31st ranked defense, the Ravens dropped in every offensive category when compared to last week.

Total offense: 16th to 18th

Rushing offense: 19th to 21st

Passing offense: 13th to 14th

They did go from the #17 scoring team to the #14 scoring team, but as we know, the special teams and defense had as much to do with that as the offense did.

At least, though, the most important number – wins – moved in the right direction. However, it’s still a little disheartening that the offense continues to struggle as much as it does. Thinking that they can find a quick answer down the stretch seems to be becoming more of a…well, stretch.

This week, the defending Super Bowl Champs roll into Charm City, winners of six consecutive games. They’ve also put up 30 or more points in five straight games, which gives Ravens fans a nice pre-holiday case of indigestion after watching the Texans rack up 21 second half points on Monday night.

Upon further review though, it’s not like the Saints have been hanging 30 on the ’85 Bears. Their recent 30 point outputs have come against the Rams (15th in points allowed), Bengals (28th), Cowboys (31st), Seahawks (24th), and Panthers (26th). Even after blowing their first 21-point lead since 1997, the Ravens much-maligned defense is still fourth in the NFL in points allowed. Throw in a healthy dose of the elements, and this game should be far from the shootout that many are predicting/fearing.

Which isn’t to say that Drew Brees and his stable of big play wideouts/backs doesn’t present a formidable challenge. Brees is playing as well as any quarterback in the NFL right now, and is just the type of “elite” signal-caller that the Ravens have struggled time and again to find a way to beat over the past five years or so.

If Brees has one chink in his armor this season, it’s been the interception. “Breesus” has already been picked 18 times, tying his career high. That’s 3.4% of his throws that are being intercepted, highest since his third season in the league in San Diego (for comparison, Joe Flacco’s INT percentage this year is 1.9%). When the Ravens last played the Saints in 2006, they picked him off twice and both were returned for touchdowns. After four interceptions in his first four games back off the PUP list, Ed Reed hasn’t gotten his hands on a pass in three straight contests. Sunday would be a great time for Reed – who looked slow, old, and hurt at times Monday – to come alive again.

When you think New Orleans, you think offense. However, their defense is none too shabby either. After leading the NFL in turnovers a season ago, which helped mask their 25th-ranked defense, this year’s Saints have been much more consistent – at the cost of the turnovers – on that side of the ball. They currently sit as the #6 defense in the NFL, allowing just 308 yards per game. They’ve intercepted just nine passes though, four shy of the Ravens’ 13, and 13 less than the Philadelphia Eagles’ league-leading 22 picks.

They’re more vulnerable on the ground than they are through the air, but nothing the Ravens have done lately inspires any kind of confidence that they can exploit the Saints with the running game. Baltimore is still averaging just 3.6 yards per attempt on the ground, tied for next-to-last in the NFL. Monday in Houston – despite focusing on the running game with unbalanced lines and such – they were even worse, averaging just 2.6 yards per carry. Le’Ron “Ankle Sprain” McClain looked like he was still a bit bothered by the injury Monday, so hopefully he can get back to full strength and do a better job of opening some holes (McClain missed practice Thursday with an illness.)

Todd Heap still hasn’t returned to practice (as of Thursday), so his status is very much up in the air for Sunday. Heap has never been the best blocking tight end, but at this point he is worlds ahead of rookies Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta. Heap’s absence not only hampered the Ravens in the passing game against Pittsburgh and Houston, but on the ground as well. Keep your fingers crossed that #86 makes an appearance on the practice field Friday.

Even more concerning than their inability to run the ball lately, has been the Ravens’ pass protection. Joe Flacco has been sacked 32 times now, and an incredible 22 of those have come in the six games since the bye (3.67 sacks per game). The Saints are right in the middle of the pack in sacks, with 26 (the Ravens have 24). Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams, who never met a blitz he didn’t like, was surely licking his chops this week looking at film of the Ravens’ inability to stop a rushing safety. That’s right, even after Cam Cameron assured us that whatever breakdown in protection allowed Troy Polamalu to steal the Pittsburgh game from them was fixed, Houston safety Bernard Pollard came untouched over and over Monday night on his way to 1.5 sacks.

WTF, Cam? WTF, Matt Birk? WTF, Michael Oher? Fix it, please.

On the bright side, the Ravens’ special teams have been playing lights out lately. Rookie David “Cop Speed (cuz you got weed)” Reed now leads the NFL in kick return average after his franchise record 103-yard touchdown return last week. He also had an 84-yard return against Carolina. Billy Cundiff is now just three touchbacks shy of tying an NFL record. Sam Koch (more like Sam Kick, am I right?!) was incredible Monday, dropping 5 punts inside the 20-yard line, including the crucial one in overtime. He leads all punters with 34 placed inside the 20. Winning the field position battle will go a long way towards a Ravens win on Sunday.

The New Orleans Saints may be the best team the Ravens play all year (New England would be a close second, but they weren’t playing their best football in Week 6 when the Ravens saw them). Playing them on a neutral field (let’s hope that happens in early 2011) would be a very daunting task, but the home field should really benefit B’More this week. The Saints are a very good road team, but the Ravens are even better at home. They owe the fans one after pooping away the last home game in the final minutes.

Ravens 24 Saints 21

I met this guy – “The Sidewalk Saint” – in the Big Easy last summer. Here’s me showing him what’s what. Let’s hope he remembers me on Sunday, and shakes his fist angrily at the sky after a Ravens win.

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Buccaneers (7-3) @ Ravens (7-3)

Posted by darnold on Friday, November 26th, 2010

This week, the Ravens play their third straight game against an NFC South opponent, taking on the upstart Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Many Ravens fans had circled this game as a win coming into the season, as the Bucs were coming off a 3-13 2009 season, and have the youngest roster in the NFL. Tampa, however, has surprised so far in 2010, matching the Ravens’ 7-3 record, and look to be no walkovers on Sunday. The Ravens should still be able to pick up their eighth win of the year, but this game will be much tougher than we had hoped for when looking ahead to it back in September.

On paper, the Bucs’ offense doesn’t look too intimidating, as they are just 23rd in the NFL in yards per game. Second year quarterback Josh Freeman, though, has been deceivingly efficient, throwing 14 touchdowns to go with only 5 interceptions and 1 lost fumble, good for a QB rating of 92.0 – just 0.1 behind Joe Flacco. Rookie wide receiver Mike Williams leads the team in receiving, with 43 catches for 681 yards and 6 touchdowns. The Ravens secondary, after basically a week off in Carolina last week, will have to be on top of their game, and prove that they can at least stop a good — if not elite — quarterback.

Where Freeman and the rest of the Tampa offense should really give the Ravens and their fans a case of post-Thanksgiving indigestion, though, is on the ground. Freeman is a horse at 6’6″ 250, and can really hurt opposing defenses with his feet. He has 236 rushing yards this season, and averages over 6 every time he decides to take off. Even more dangerous is rookie running back LeGarrette Blount. Blount, the former Oregon Duck (you remember him, right?), is a 6’0 247 lb. battering ram, and is averaging 4.4 yards per carry since the Bucs started really working him into the offense about five weeks ago. Throw in Carnell “Cadillac” Williams, a big threat catching passes out of the backfield, and the Ravens front seven will have their hands full this week.

Blount is like a more athletic Peyton Hillis, who torched the Ravens in Week 3 for Cleveland. The Ravens looked like they had gotten their run defense fixed two weeks ago in Atlanta, completely shutting down Michael Turner. Last week, though, Mike Goodson of the Carolina Panthers went for 120 yards against them. The outcome of this one will depend heavily on the Ravens’ run defense, and they’ll need to perform much better than they did in Charlotte to contain the Bucs’ much more potent attack.

I had hoped to devote an entire post this week to thoughts on fixing the run defense, but I found some other things to write about instead. So I’ll have to just spitball a bit here in the preview…

First off, Brandon McKinney should be back on the field. McKinney played in seven games earlier this year, and started four, but has been a healthy scratch the last three contests. He played very well when he was in there, and could be an asset for this team down the stretch.

Who does McKinney replace?

It may be sacrilege to Ravens fans, but I’d nominate Kelly Gregg. “Buddy Lee” is having his worst season, and at this point is a liability to this defense. He’s a fan favorite, but it may be time to give #97 a game or two off.

The next guy who could help bottle up Blount is Dannell Ellerbe. Ellerbe, whose specialty is being a run stuffer at the linebacker position, has apparently made his way into the infamous John Harbaugh “doghouse,” after some special teams penalties. Ellerbe, like McKinney, hasn’t been active since the Buffalo game. Not only are these two very good at helping shut down opposing running backs, but they should also both have very fresh legs. Keep an eye on the inactive list Sunday morning – if these two are on it, I’d be very disappointed, and that much more worried.

Regardless who is active on the defense, the entire unit needs to tackle better. Freeman and Blount will be licking their chops in film study this week seeing the Ravens’ dismal tackling of late. Keeping the yards after contact down will be especially crucial on Sunday against the physical runners the Bucs showcase.

Offensively, Joe Flacco and the rest of the Ravens will look to continue the kind of performance they put up in the first half of the Carolina game, and put the second half of that contest behind them. Remember, despite the 37 points put up by the team, the Ravens managed only two offensive touchdowns against the Panthers. Fortunately, they’re generally better at home, having put up 31, 37, and 26 points in their last three at The Big Crabcake. Flacco has eight touchdowns and no interceptions at home this season (although defenders have dropped should-be interceptions on at least three occasions), and will look to continue that trend against a Tampa squad that is tied for second in the NFL with 15 picks.

The Bucs’ ability to force turnovers helps mask their deficiencies in run defense, where they rank 29th, giving up over 136 yards per game. Ray Rice and Willis McGahee should be in for big games, though at this point I’m not still delusional enough to think that Cam Cameron will come into the game with a plan of anything but something along the lines of “we’re going to pass the ball because they THINK we’re going to run it!” I can’t help but think back to the Buffalo game – the Bills came into B’More with the league’s worst run defense, and the Ravens’ first possession went: pass, pass, pass, punt. Tampa can’t stop the run, has very strong cornerbacks in Ronde Barber and Aqib Talib, and thrives on interceptions, so needless to say I expect a similar ass-backwards attack from Cam as the one we saw against Buffalo (at least prior to the Bills playing “light up the scoreboard.”) Hopefully the Ravens have enough talent running routes and throwing the football to move the ball and get into the end zone in spite of the guy calling in the plays.

With this game getting “flexed” by the NFL and moved to a 4:15 start from it’s original 1:00 slot, game time temperatures will drop significantly. Currently, the forecast calls for a high temperature of about 47 degrees on Sunday, which will likely have the mercury dipping near 40 by the time the second half rolls around. Historically, Tampa is awful in the cold; the franchise didn’t win their first game that featured sub-40 degree temperatures at kickoff until their Super Bowl season of 2002. As a Ravens fan who will be sitting at M&T Bank Stadium shivering, I’ll gladly plan on piling on an extra layer if it means the Ravens have even a slightly better chance of emerging victorious. If Mother Nature is on our side Sunday, all the better.

We’ll likely know by game time whether or not Pittsburgh pushes their record to 8-3, as they play at 1 PM. They are in Buffalo, so most likely the Ravens will need this win to keep pace in the division. Moreover, the Ravens need to win this game regardless of what the Steelers do, as the rest of the schedule doesn’t get any easier. If they can’t defeat this feisty but inexperienced (and, truthfully, overachieving) Bucs squad on their own turf, what chance do we really give them against the likes of Pittsburgh and New Orleans here, and Houston and Cleveland teams on the road?

Gotta have this one.

Ravens 27 Bucs 17

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Ravens 37 Panthers 13 (The DEFENSE AND SPECIAL TEAMS FINALLY SHOW UP Game)

Posted by darnold on Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

Despite leading by just a single touchdown two plays into the fourth quarter, the Ravens dominated the Carolina Panthers over the final ten minutes of play, and two defensive touchdowns gave B’More a comfortable 24 point victory.

The defensive touchdowns were the Ravens’ first two of the 2010 season, an oddity for a unit that has historically had no problem finding the end zone. The first came on an Ed Reed interception (his fourth in four games this year), but it was Dawan Landry who ultimately crossed the goalline, after receiving what may well have been the prettiest lateral of Reed’s lateral-happy career. It looked almost like an offensive option play, the way Reed hit Landry in perfect stride. For all the headaches he induces with those flips of the ball, when it works to perfection like it did yesterday, we hardly have any room to complain.

The second defensive score, on the Panthers’ very next play from scrimmage, was by the other Hall of Famer, Ray Lewis. It was Ray’s first touchdown since 2007 against Cleveland, and his 30th career interception. That puts Ray-Ray into the 30 sack/30 interception “club.” I say “club” in quotes because the only other member is former Patriot Rodney Harrison. Thats right, Lewis and Harrison are the ONLY NFL players to ever amass 30 interceptions and 30 sacks in a career. Watching Lewis get to waltz into the end zone one more time was a great sight for Ravens fans, who know that the sun is (slowly) setting on #52′s time on the field.

While the defense provided the points to finally put the game away, special teams nearly provided the nail in the coffin much earlier in the contest. Rookie David Reed took the opening kickoff of the second half 84 yards to the Carolina 18-yard line. Although he didn’t score on the play, Reed’s return was easily the Ravens’ best of the year, and it looks like the speedy first year player out of Utah has finally brought some stability to the kick return position.

Had the Ravens’ offense been able to capitalize on the great field position, the game would have been effectively over. A touchdown at that point would have put the Ravens up 24-3, and with Brian St. Pierre floundering under center for the Panthers, that would have been all she wrote. Unfortunately, we saw those same old red zone woes rear their ugly head, as Joe Flacco and Co. managed just 3 yards on 3 plays before settling for a 33-yard Billy Cundiff field goal.

It seems like the Ravens’ offense is just completely determined to sleep-walk through at least some portion of games these days. Last week a big deal was made about how they always start so slow in games played outside of M&T Bank Stadium. Well, that problem was solved quickly yesterday, as Flacco hooked up with T.J. Houshmandzadeh for a 56-yard touchdown on the team’s second offensive snap. After one quarter, the Ravens led 10-0, and looked to be moving the ball at will against Carolina’s defense. They racked up 258 yards of offense in the first half, and led 17-3.

Then they went into the locker room at halftime and…

took naps?

got deep tissue massages?

hung out in the sauna for 8 minutes?

Whatever the cause, they came out extremely lethargic after the break, looking nothing like the team that had dominated the first half. Taking possession with 9:40 left in the game, the Ravens had amassed just 63 total yards of offense in the second half.

What was most disappointing to me was their complete inability/refusal to run the ball.

Listen, I’m as big a Joe Flacco fan as you’re going to find. Two and a half years into his tenure, I am as “Wacko for Flacco as ever.” But holding a lead in the second half on the road is the time to pound the football, unleash the offensive linemen, and get “downhill” on your opponent.

Not in the mind of Cam Cameron, I suppose.

In the third quarter, the Ravens ran 17 plays – 12 passes and 5 runs.

That’s playcalling. That’s on the coaching staff.

Those 5 runs went for a total of 18 yards (3.6 ypc).

That’s execution. The blame there goes on the offensive line and running backs.

It’s obvious that this team just doesn’t have the make up or mentality to totally stomp on inferior teams – at least not on offense. While frustrating, that’s not necessarily a fatal flaw. What it is though, is a call for the coaching staff to realize it, and stop trying to keep throwing the ball all over the field when the team is leading. Especially as we get into the colder weather here in December, it would be nice to be reassured that the Ravens have the ability to “take the air out of the ball” when they get up, and use their running game to effectively hold onto leads.

Another sign that the Ravens may not have been 100% into the game mentally was the severe case of “fumbleitis” they experienced throughout the day. It started when Flacco and Rice botched a hand off at the Panthers’ 11-yard line midway through the second quarter (Flacco stated that it was his fault; the play was supposed to be a reverse, not a handoff to Rice). It then continued with normally very sure-handed guys like Anquan Boldin and Todd Heap. On the day, the Ravens put the ball on the ground a total of four times, and lost two of those. With three of their next four games against teams with winning records, those types of things could be detrimental to the Ravens’ chances.

Although they provided the knockout punches, it was hardly a dominant effort overall from the Ravens defense. Third string running back Mike Goodson ran 22 times for 120 yards, including a long of 45 (in fairness, 22 of those came in junk time when John Fox should have had his team taking a knee). It appeared the Ravens had gotten their run defense straightened out after back-to-back strong performances against Miami (to a degree) and Atlanta (vintage Ravens run-stuffing), but the gaping holes were there again yesterday. Against a team whose starting quarterback was literally a stay-at-home dad two weeks ago, and who can do next to nothing (88-yard touchdown passes notwithstanding), there is no excuse for a team to run wild like that. I have some ideas for things the team can try to plug up those holes, and I’ll write about that later in the week. For now though, suffice to say that Tampa Bay running backs LeGarrette Blount and Cadillac Williams will be licking their chops looking at film this week.

The Ravens are now 7-3 – their best record through 10 games in the John Harbaugh era – and have four of their final six games at M&T Bank Stadium, along with two very winnable road games. While Ravens fans seem to be eternal pessimists, the fact of the matter is that everything this team set out to do is still well within their grasp.

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Patriots 23 Ravens 20 OT (The GOTTA PLAY/COACH ALL FOUR QUARTERS Game)

Posted by darnold on Monday, October 18th, 2010

On Sunday, the Ravens lost.

They lost to a very good football team.

They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach.

They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback.

They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare.

They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare, on the road.

All of that, I can deal with.

What makes this loss so difficult to stomach is what I neglected to mention above…

On Sunday, the Ravens lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare, on the road…in a game in which they held a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter.

Yeah. That last point is the inexcusable part. For the first 45 minutes of the game, the Ravens beat the Patriots up and down the field, building a 20-10 lead with 14:57 remaining. What was unfortunate, and what ultimately proved to be the difference in the game, was that in the four plays prior to Billy Cundiff’s 25-yard field goal gave the Ravens what would be their final points for the day, Ravens’ receivers dropped two potential touchdown passes. On the first, Anquan Boldin was separated from the ball by a New England safety after a perfect strike from Joe Flacco from 20 yards out. On the second, Derrick Mason heard footsteps and couldn’t haul in what should have been a seven-yard score.

Sure, both plays would have required impressive, if not spectacular, catches. But both Boldin and Mason got two hands on the ball, and in the NFL, those passes should have been caught – especially by veterans like those two. If they are, this recap likely has a much different tone.

Compounding the problem was that, after that series, the Ravens offense (both playcalling and execution) seemed to climb aboard the plane back to Baltimore. With the exception of an 18-yard pass from Flacco to Boldin on the opening play of their next drive, the Ravens offense went 3-and-out, 3-and-out, 3-and-out on their next three possessions of regulation and overtime. The aforementioned Boldin completion came with 10:24 left in the fourth. The Ravens would not pick up another first down until the 10:17 mark of overtime – over a full quarter of play.

Three plays after that 10:24 first down, a sequence that could likely be pointed to as the pivotal one of the game unfolded.

On 3rd-and-1 from their own 47, leading 20-17, Cam Cameron called for a quarterback sneak. A play which, for anyone watching, was obviously doomed from the start. Flacco attempted to go through Pats’ defensive linemen Vince Wilfork and Greg Warren, and didn’t have a prayer.

The talk radio lines will no doubt be lighting up this week with people blaming Cameron for the odd call, and Flacco for not recognizing the defense and audibling out of the play. What is likely to be an even greater point of contention this week in B’More, though, is what happened next.

Facing 4th-and-the length of the football, Coach John “you have to put teams away when you have the chance” Harbaugh elected to punt. To punt the ball back to Tom Brady and the Patriots offense, who were fresh off an 8-play, 60-yard drive where they faced only a single third down, in that situation…puzzling, to say that least. To say a bit more, it was the kind of decision that we just aren’t used to seeing from Harbaugh, who has proven during his 2+ years as the head coach, that he has plenty of “balls” in those type of situations. This time, though, he went timid, and the Ravens paid dearly.

It wasn’t just Harbaugh that went into a shell in the fourth quarter and overtime though. He took the entire Baltimore coaching staff with him.

Cam Cameron stopped picking on the Patriots’ secondary.

Greg Mattison gave Brady the short underneath stuff in the passing game, and Brady took it eagerly.

Now, give New England credit. As mentioned, they have a great coaching staff of their own, and those guys made the necessary adjustments. They took away Flacco’s passing lanes. They threw quick screen after quick screen on offense. They did what was necessary to win the game. What the Ravens’ coaches were up to is anybody’s guess.

Flacco played very well all day, going 27/35 for 285 yards and two touchdowns. I don’t know if the Ravens’ coaches’ tentative mentality was preached to Joe on the sideline during the fourth quarter or what, but he wasn’t the same after those two dropped touchdown passes. He seemed much more willing to check down to Ray Rice, even though Rice was routinely swarmed by New England linebackers.

That’s another area where New England must be commended – they were not going to let Rice destroy them like he did in the two 2009 meetings. Although there seemed to be some nice holes on the Ravens’ opening drive, ultimately Rice ran the ball 28 times for just 88 yards, and his long of the day was just eight. He added eight receptions for 38 yards, but really wasn’t a major factor in the game.

Which brings us to the next puzzling thing about the gameplan of the Ravens’ staff…

Where the hell was Willis McGahee???

McGahee did not see a single touch in Foxborough, and I’m not even positive he was at the stadium. Sure, I was calling for Rice to take over goalline duties from Willis, but to just leave #23 on the sideline all afternoon? Especially considering the relative lack of success that Rice was having? It just makes absolutely no sense to me that McGahee was never even inserted as a sort of change-of-pace, and I’ll be anticipating how Cameron and Harbaugh explain that fact this week.

Before we wrap up, we can’t excuse the Ravens’ defense or special teams here either. While it’s commendable to hold New England to just 23 points, after they had put up 38 in each of their prior two home games, there were some disturbing signs from the “D.”

First off, what the hell is it with the Ravens’ inability to stop white running backs? We all remember Peyton Hillis running roughshod over them in week 2, and in Foxborough, Danny Freakin’ Woodhead had 63 yards and 5.7 per carry. They also had a hell of a time tackling Wes Welker, Aaron Hernandez, and Deion Branch, allowing the Pats to rack up an incredible amount of YAC, after doing such a great job against the Denver Broncos last week.

Next, Mattison’s insistence to only rush three men so often is starting to cost the team. By now we know not to expect the kind of blitzes that we saw when Rex Ryan was in town, but giving Tom Brady 5 or 6 seconds to find a receiver down near the end zone isn’t a recipe for success in any universe. I don’t care if the Ravens emptied the bench and put 12 guys in the end zone covering Pats’ receivers, if Brady can basically take his helmet off back there and stand flat footed, he’s going to find someone. And that’s exactly what he did to get New England to within 20-17. With the exception of Haloti Ngata, the Ravens’ pass rush was disturbingly non-existent, especially considering the past success they have had against the Patriots.

Finally, we come to special teams. While they never came up with the huge game-breaker that we feared, and that they used to beat Miami in week 4, New England was clearly the superior unit on Sunday.

Jalen Parmele needs to be out of a job. His indecision/terrible decisions cost the Ravens a good bit of field position on at least two occasions.

Neither Chris Carr nor Tom Zbikowski can generate anything on punt returns. And when it seems like they just MIGHT, it’s always because someone else is illegally blocking or holding. On top of that, their refusal to come up and field punts that aren’t hit directly to them cost the team additional field position several times. It’s a sad state of affairs for the Ravens’ return games.

Even Billy Cundiff, despite his three touchbacks, had a costly gaffe. After going up 20-10, Cundiff’s ensuing kickoff squirted out of bounds at about the two yard line…two yards too soon, which resulted in the Patriots starting at their own 40-yard line.

The Ravens outplayed the Patriots for three quarters Sunday. Despite the Pats having two weeks to prepare, the Ravens appeared ready to take their best shot and bring a 5-1 record back to B’More.

Unfortunately, they were outplayed and (thoroughly) outcoached during the final quarter and the overtime period, and 4-2 is the result.

Still not a terrible place to be, after four tough road games, and with only a home game against Buffalo standing between us and the bye week.

Oh, and a certain guy who wears #20 is rumored to be coming back this week.

Things could be worse.

Let’s not melt down like a bunch of complete morons, please (these comments make me embarrassed to be a Ravens fan).

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Ravens (4-1) @ Patriots (3-1)

Posted by darnold on Saturday, October 16th, 2010

For the third time in just over a calendar year, the Ravens travel to Foxborough to take on the New England Patriots on their home turf. So will this trip end in heartbreak like the 2009 regular season meeting, or in jubilation as the playoff matchup did?

The Patriots have won 22 consecutive regular season home games.

They are coming off their bye week, a situation in which Bill Belichick coached teams are 8-2 since 2000, and have not lost since 2002.

In short, it won’t be easy, but if the Ravens play a solid game, they could have the talent on both sides of the ball to hand the Patriots their well overdue post-bye week loss.

Tom Brady is having another stellar season so far in 2010, completing 69.7 percent of his passes for 911 yards and 9 touchdowns to go with only two interceptions. In the first meeting with Baltimore last year, “Tom Terrific” was just that, going 21/32 for 258 yards and a critical touchdown to Randy Moss. In the playoff game however, a time during which Tom has been exceptional during his career, the Ravens held Brady to 23/42 for 154 yards, and picked him off three times. One area in which B’More has had success against the Patriots, though, is in pressuring Brady. They sacked him three times in each of those 2009 meetings, and Terrell Suggs especially seems to dominate Pats’ left tackle Matt Light. Even last season, when Suggs was generally playing poorly, he got to Brady and forced a fumble in both games. He, and the rest of the Ravens’ pass rush, will need to be equally effective against Brady, who has only been sacked five times in four games, on Sunday.

The Pats’ offense is also dealing with the much ballyhooed departure of All-World wide receiver Randy Moss, who was traded to Minnesota during New England’s bye week. Moss was not particularly effective against the Ravens last year (managing just 8 catches for 98 yards and 1 score total in the two games), but his presence on the field undeniably opens things up for the Patriots’ very strong underneath passing game. Guys like Wes Welker, and more recently Julian Edelman, have found great success running routes against linebackers with Moss taking the coverage deep with him. New England reacquired Super Bowl XXXIX MVP Deion Branch from Seattle, and he and second-year wideout Brandon Tate will try to pick up Moss’s slack.

Perhaps the more dangerous weapon in the Patriots’ passing attack Sunday will be rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez. Hernandez, out of the University of Florida, has 18 receptions for 240 yards already (for comparison’s sake, Moss had 9 for 139), and at 6’1″ 245 lbs., could pose a big matchup problem for the Ravens. Ravens’ linebackers struggled mightily in pass coverage in the preseason, and will have their hands full this week. As a whole, the Ravens’ 2nd-ranked pass defense will face easily their biggest challenge of the young season. Though Kyle Orton managed over 300 yards last week, the defense held him in check while it mattered, allowing the offense to build a comfortable lead through the early part of the game, before Orton racked up some yards with the game out of hand. Even sans Moss, they’ll have to play their best game of the year to beat Brady and the Patriots.

On the other side of the ball, the Ravens have a clear advantage over the Pats’ young and struggling defense. New England is 29th overall and 28th against the pass, so Joe Flacco and the Ravens’ passing game could be in for a big day. In the playoff game, of course, it was Ray Rice and the running attack that won the game, racking up 234 total yards on the ground. Flacco, meanwhile, was just 4/10 for 34 yards and an interception. I don’t expect New England to allow such a one-dimensional attack to be successful again, so B’More will have to be much more balanced from the start to have a chance. Fortunately, with the additions of Anquan Boldin and T.J. Houshmandzadeh, along with Todd Heap and Ed Dickson, the Ravens have plenty of weapons to turn to, should New England shut down the run as they were unable to do in January.

One area where the New England defense has excelled is in catching errant passes from opposing quarterbacks. The Patriots have seven interceptions, tied for third highest in the NFL, through just four games. Let’s hope Flacco leaves his patented “back foot floater” at home, or he could be in for a long day.

The Patriots’ special teams have also been a strength, as evidenced by their single-handedly costing the Miami Dolphins’ special teams coach his job two weeks ago. Brandon Tate is averaging over 33 yards per kick return, and the Patriots have blocked several punts. Fortunately for the Ravens, they have the ultimate special teams trump cards in their excellent kickers. Billy Cundiff has 11 touchbacks already this season, and Sam Koch’s incredible directional punting skills were on full display against the Broncos’ dangerous returner Eddie Royal. Although the Ravens’ return games have been disappointing as a whole in 2010, the coverage has been solid, and John Harbaugh’s special teams background could be a great asset for the team in Foxborough.

Now, when you see my prediction, some may accuse me of “flip-flopping” or of pandering to the audience earlier in the week when I picked the Patriots to win in my chat with Foxboroblog.

However, I did that interview on Tuesday, and in the days since then I have been convinced otherwise. Through listening to the local and national pundits, and watching Playbook on the NFL Network, I’m now much more confident that the Ravens can pull out a victory against the favored Patriots.

Mike Preston says he “can’t figure out how” the Patriots will beat the Ravens.

All three guys (Brian Billick, Sterling Sharpe, Joe Theisman) on NFL Network picked the Ravens.

All the Boston-area media who were guests on Baltimore talk radio this week picked the Ravens.

As you can see below, 6 of the 8 ESPN personalities picked the Ravens (even Steeler-loving Raven-hater Merrill Hoge!)

via

Bill Belichick was the one that called Steve Bisciotti nearly three years ago and told him to hire John Harbaugh. He regretted that phone call, if just a bit, last January. Let’s hope he regrets it again, just a bit, Sunday.

Goob used TV commercials to decide his pick. I’m going to be a bit more superstitious, pick the score I picked for the playoff game, and hope for the same result:


Ravens 28 Patriots 24

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Ravens (1-0) @ Bengals (0-1)

Posted by darnold on Friday, September 17th, 2010

Next up in the “teams whose head coach owes their job to Ray Lewis” are the Cincinnati Bengals. Now we just need the Jacksonville Jaguars (Jack Del Rio) and the 2005-2008 San Francisco 49ers (Mike Nolan) to complete the “#52′s head coach’s tree.” Marvin Lewis’ team is still licking their wounds from that 38-24 drubbing at the hands of the New England Patriots (a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the score) in Week 1, and will look to rebound against a team that they had plenty of success against in 2009.

Those 2009 losses to Cincy were especially surprising for the Ravens and their fans not necessarily because of the outcomes, but because of the manner in which the Bengals were victorious. Running back Cedric Benson rad roughshod over B’More’s usually stout run defense, breaking their streak of 40 consecutive games without allowing a 100-yard rusher on his way to 120 yards in Week 5, and duplicating the feat with 117 yards just four weeks later. Benson managed just 43 yards on 15 carries in Week 1, but his opportunities were quite limited due to his team getting blown out of the water early and being forced to play catch-up.

The Ravens will be looking for some revenge against Benson Sunday. If rookie defensive tackle Terrence Cody is able to suit up (he practiced this week), it will go a long way to exacting said revenge. Along with Haloti Ngata and Cory Redding up front, Benson will be hard pressed to find even a sliver of daylight. Even without Cody, the Ravens did well against the Jets’ vaunted rushing attack last week, as RBs Shonn Green and LaDainian Tomlinson managed 80 yards on 16 carries.

“Well, wait a minute, that’s 5 yards per carry,” you might be saying. The stat is a bit misleading, as Tomlinson ripped off two 21-yard runs in the game. Take away those two, and the numbers drop to 38 yards on 14 carries, a 2.7 ypc average. Of course, you can’t just “take away” big plays – the Ravens need to avoid giving up similar big plays to Benson and Bengals’ “change-of-pace” back Bernard Scott.

Which of course, isn’t to say that stopping the run = Ravens win. Quarterback Carson Palmer has always done well against our Ravens, putting up a career record of 8-3. Even after throwing a pick-6 to Ed Reed last year, Palmer bounced back and led his team to a last-minute game-winning touchdown in Baltimore.

Palmer threw for 345 yards and 2 touchdowns last week in New England, but again – they were in catch-up mode all day after falling behind 31-3. He again has a full compliment of weapons to throw to, including two reality TV stars.

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Along with those two, rookie WR Jordan Shipley is dangerous, and Andre Caldwell (though I ripped Mike Preston earlier this week for bringing him up) is set to return from a groin injury and has hurt the Ravens in the past.

Just as getting Cody back could help the run defense, a return from injury in the secondary could greatly improve the Ravens’ chances Sunday. Lardarius Webb has been removed from the injury report, but is still “working out the kinks,” after ACL surgery. With Webby in there, the much maligned Ravens’ secondary is instantly better. Without him, newcomer Josh Wilson and safety Haruki Nakamura will be forced to line up against the Bengals’ receivers, matchups that favor Cincy.

The Bengals also gave the Ravens fits on defense last year, holding them to 14 and 7 points, respectively, in the two meetings. This despite Ray Rice racking up 143 and 135 yards from scrimmage (mostly receiving). The problem was that Rice was the team’s leading receiver in both games, as cornerbacks Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph gave Joe Flacco and the Ravens’ wideouts fits.

2010 is a new year, though, and now Hall and Joseph have to deal with Anquan “Q” Boldin and former teammate T.J. Houshmandzadeh, who weren’t there last year. Hopefully Housh can also bring some “insider info” to the Ravens in practice this week – the offense and defense could both use all the help they can get after being swept last season. Tom Brady had no trouble finding his wideouts last week, as both Wes Welker (8 catches, 64 yards, 2 TD) and Randy Moss (5, 59, 0) had better days than any Ravens WR had against the Bengals in 2009.

Of course, he’s Tom Brady. While Flacco looked like Brady on occasion last week, skillfully avoiding the Jets’ pressure and converting key 3rd-and-long situations, but looked downright awful at other times, holding the ball too long in the pocket, overthrowing a wide open Le’Ron McClain in the end zone, and throwing from his back foot. To show that he really is ready to step into the next tier of NFL quarterbacks, as so many experts see him doing, Joe needs to start beating quality QBs – not just the likes of Mark Sanchez and Jay Cutler – in head-to-head matchups. He has the weapons to do it now, so the time for excuses is over. In his defense, he had a perfect touchdown pass dropped last week (by Todd Heap) and another likely touchdown just flat out missed (by Derrick Mason). But he also underthrew Mason on another deep route, underthrew Boldin from his back foot, and missed Ray Rice on a slant that would have given the Ravens a 1st-and-goal inside the 5. We know he can make the throws. What we need to see now is consistency from #5.

The Ravens have revenge on their minds after being embarrassed by Cincy in 2009. The Bengals have redemption on theirs, after being blown out in Week 1.

I think the Bengals do bounce back this week…just not quite high enough.

Ravens 24 Bengals 20

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Ravens 2010 Preview – Weeks 10-13

Posted by darnold on Friday, September 10th, 2010

Today is Friday (WOOOOO!), which means we are now down to two work days remaining until we get to watch our purple and black shut Rex Ryan and his gang of green boogers’ collective mouths. Day 3 of our quick Ravens season preview sees the Ravens play 3 teams from the NFC South, as well as Rapey von Rapenstein and the Steelers.

See Day 1 here and Day 2 here.

Of course, all of these predictions are based on rosters, teams, etc., as they stand today. Injuries, suspensions, and whatever else could easily drastically change my feeling about any or all of the games. This is for fun more than anything else, so don’t go calling your bookie on my recommendations.

Week 10 – @ Falcons

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Matty “Ice” Ryan and the Falcons are looking to bounce back after missing the playoffs despite a 9-7 record in 2009. It will be a matchup of 2008 First-Round Draft Pick quarterbacks and third year head coaches. If this game were in B’More, I’d feel a lot better about it, but going down to the ATL to play inside the Georgia Dome in early November doesn’t sound appealing at all. The Ravens will have their hands full with Ryan, Michael Turner, and Roddy White, and, though Flacco is indeed a better QB than Ryan, our purple and black will likely have a tough time in this one.

Chance of Victory – 40%

Week 11 – @ Carolina

P

The Panthers are moving to Matt Moore at QB after jettisoning Jake Delhomme to the Cleveland Browns. Unless he is awful for the first 10 weeks, or gets injured, there is little chance rookie Jimmy Clausen will be lining up against the Ravens. Carolina also lost Julius Peppers, and their defense will likely be their undoing in 2010 as a result, considering their still-potent rushing attack of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. I see Flacco having a field day down in Charlotte, while the largely one-dimensional Panthers attack struggles to keep up.

Chance of Victory – 70%

Week 12 – vs. Tampa Bay

Bucs

The only worry here is that the Ravens look past the Bucs to the Week 13 matchup against Pittsburgh. Tampa has always struggled mightily in cold weather, and November 28 in Baltimore has the potential to be plenty chilly. On top of that, the Bucs were just 3-13 in 2009, and didn’t do much to improve their roster this offseason. Entering the season, their top two wideouts are Ronnie Brown (9 receptions in 2009) and rookie Mike Williams. Tight end Kellan Winslow could be effective, but he just had his fifth knee surgery this offseason (not to mention he has awesome memories of playing in Baltimore). Ravens win in a laugher.

Chance of Victory: 80% (+1% for every 2 degrees under 50 F at game time)

Week 13 – vs. Pittsburgh

Swat

The Steelers will have Baby Ben back by this point – let’s remember though, Ben has still won only once in Baltimore (though it seems like a far more frequent occurence). He may have the Steelers back in the thick of contention by this time, and even if he doesn’t, this game is always tense and tightly contested. The Ravens will hopefully be looking for their first season sweep of Yinz from Donton since 2006, while Pittsburgh will be chasing just their second victory in Charm City since 2002 (the other, of course, coming in 2008). This game gets my heartbeat above baseline already, just thinking about it nearly three full months ahead of time. I need a drink…

Chance of Victory – 60%

Monday – Weeks 14-17 AND Ravens-Jets full preview.

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Ravens 2010 Preview – Weeks 5-9

Posted by darnold on Thursday, September 9th, 2010

Today is Thursday, which means we are now down to three work days remaining until we get to watch our purple and black take the field for a meaningful football game for the first time since that awful night in Indianapolis. Day 2 of our quick Ravens season preview sees the Ravens take on a neck-bearded QB, a QB that wears a skirt, and two other AFC East foes.

See Day 1 here.

Of course, all of these predictions are based on rosters, teams, etc., as they stand today. Injuries, suspensions, and whatever else could easily drastically change my feeling about any or all of the games. This is for fun more than anything else, so don’t go calling your bookie on my recommendations.

Week 5 – vs. Denver

Broncos

The Ravens get Josh McDaniels’ crew at M&T Bank Stadium for the second straight season. Last year, the Broncos came to B’More 6-0. After a 30-7 beatdown courtesy of the purple and black, Denver went on to finish the season at just 8-8; new coach, same ol’ Denver collapse. What’s changed for the Broncos? Well, they lost their best player on each side of the ball – Brandon Marshall on offense and Elvis Dumervil on defense. A similar fate awaits the horseheads in Charm City this year.

Chance of Victory – 80%

Week 6 – @ Patriots

Pats

After going to Foxboro and slapping the Patriots around in the Wild-Card round of the 2009 Playoffs, the Ravens should have no reservations about winning football games in the land of chowdah and horrible, grating accents. While I don’t see the Pats falling to third in the AFC East as some are predicting, I’m not nearly as nervous about this game as I was about the 2009 version. Bill Belichick’s defense has more questions at secondary than even the Ravens do this year, and with Joe Flacco’s arsenal of weapons, its safe to say he’ll be in for a much better day statistically than he put up in January – but the result should be the same.

Chance of Victory – 60%

Week 7 – vs. Bills

Bills

The last time the Bills came to Baltimore was the 2006 season finale on New Year’s Eve, a game I personally have great memories of. In 2007, the Ravens visited Ralph Wilson Stadium and lost an ugly game under the direction of the Billick/Boller combination. This will be Buffalo’s first time seeing the John Harbaugh Ravens, and the Ravens’ first seeing the Chan Gailey Bills. Buffalo was 6-10 last season, but three of those wins came on the road. Looking at this game now in early September, it seems safe to pencil it in as a win, but with the Ravens finishing up a first tough “half” of the season and Buffalo coming off their bye week…I’ll just say this game worries me more than it probably should.

Chance of Victory – 70%

Week 9 – vs. Dolphins

Fins

The Ravens get their bye week to prepare for the Miami Dolphins, a popular pick to challenge the Jets and Patriots for the AFC East crown in 2010. John Harbaugh’s team had Miami’s number in 2008, beating them twice in their own house. The 2010 version of the Dolphins has some significant differences though, most notably a different Chad at quarterback. Henne took over for Pennington last year, starting 13 games and throwing for nearly 3000 yards. He gets a shiny new toy this year in the aforementioned Brandon Marshall, but there is a reason I chose the above picture of Ed Reed that I did. “Twenty” should definitely (fingers crossed) be back on the field for the Ravens after the bye (if not earlier), and it won’t matter which guy named Chad is putting the ball up in B’More that day – Reed will be receiving.

Chance of Victory – 75%

Friday – Weeks 10-13

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Ravens 2010 Preview – Weeks 1-4

Posted by darnold on Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

Just as I did last year, with four miserable work days to fill between now and the Ravens’ opening kickoff of the season, I’ll again do a quick little mini-preview of the Ravens’ schedule. First, the obligatory disclaimer:

Of course, all of these predictions are based on rosters, teams, etc., as they stand today. Injuries, suspensions, and whatever else could easily drastically change my feeling about any or all of the games. This is for fun more than anything else, so don’t go calling your bookie on my recommendations.

Week 1- @ New York Jets

Jets

The Jets’ first game at the New Meadowlands Stadium, in front of the big lights of Monday Night Football. Rex Ryan has been anything but shy about proclaiming his team to be Super Bowl-bound, and the Jets have taken over for the Ravens as the most swagger-ific team in the NFL. One problem – the Jets haven’t won anything since six months before Neil Armstrong was walking on the moon. I have confidence in the Ravens to come out and knock the Jets down a peg early.

Chance of Victory: 65%

Week 2 – @ Cincinnati

Bengals

The Ravens’ early run of road games vs. 2009 playoff teams continues with a trip to the Jungle. They were beat handily here in 2009, much worse than the 17-7 score would indicate. Carson Palmer has a bevy of weapons to throw to, between Ochocinco, T.O., and Jermaine Gresham, but it was Cedric Benson who gave the Ravens’ defense fits last year, putting up over 100 yards in both contests. The Ravens have the offensive firepower to keep up with the Bengals, but if they don’t stop the run better this time around, I’m afraid the results will be eerily similar.

Chance of Victory: 40%

Week 3 – vs. Cleveland

Browns

With some luck (and good execution), the Ravens won’t return home to Baltimore for the first time in over a month with a winless record. It could happen though. And, even if it doesn’t, Ray and the boys will be eager to take out some frustrations on the Brownies. After back-to-back road games against what are likely to be playoff contenders, Cleveland is going to look mighty cupcake-ish. Jake Delhomme looked good this preseason, but the interception master should have no problem finding purple jerseys, regardless of the fact that #20 still won’t be on the field. Baltimore whooped up on the Browns 34-3 in this matchup last year, and I don’t see this one being much different.

Chance of Victory: 85%

Week 4 – @ Pittsburgh

Steelers

Thanks to Ben Roethlisberger taking girls to his hotel/bathroom, the Ravens will again get to face Pittsburgh without their star QB, just as they did in the first meeting last year. This game presents the Ravens’ best chance to get their first win in the city of bridges since 2006 that they’re likely to see for a while. Even those who are bullish about the Steelers’ chances without Ben in the first four games concede that they will lose to the Ravens. Joe Flacco ALMOST won in Pittsburgh in his first game there in 2008. Then he nearly pulled off the upset in the 2008 AFC Championship, before throwing a late interception. In 2009, were it not for a terrible drop in the end zone by Derrick Mason, he would have likely secured his first road victory against Pittsburgh. This is the time he finally gets over the hump.

Chance of Victory: 70%

Tomorrow: Weeks 5-9

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The Double-Edged Sword of High Expectations

Posted by darnold on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010

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“If you don’t expect too much from me, you might not be let down”

One simple lyric from a nearly 20-year old rock song can sum up the way many Ravens fans are feeling these days. We Baltimoreans relish the role of the underdog, and we feel most comfortable when our teams do the same. For nearly the entirety of their existence, the Ravens have been all too happy to oblige us in the “us against the world” mentality. Sure, WE always expect our team to do well, but we’ll be damned if we’re going to let on that fact to “them.” We prefer to carry any optimism we may have very close to the vest.

And so, when we find the Ravens garnering the amount of positive national attention that they have been since their 2009 season unceremoniously crashed to the ground in Indianapolis, we become a bit…uneasy. There are a few reasons for this. On top of the aforementioned underdog fetish (or what some may call an inferiority complex), there is the fact that, under the previous regime anyway, the Ravens have always been much more likely to do prove prognosticators wrong than to inspire a chorus of “I told you so’s.”

On the way to the franchise’s only Super Bowl, Brian Billick’s team won two road playoff games, including victories in Oakland’s “Black Hole,” and Nashville’s Adelphia Coliseum, the latter in which they were, to that point, the only road team to ever win a game.

Long live the Baltimore Underdogs.

When they were expected to be dominant though, Billick’s teams were seemingly delighted to disappoint. Following their AFC North Titles in 2003 and 2006, they were quickly dismissed from the Playoffs, both times at M&T Bank Stadium and both times without recording a single postseason victory. In the seasons that followed each of those playoff losses, seasons in which they were expected to be in contention for defenses of their Division Crowns, they proceeded to post disappointing records of 9-7 and 5-11, respectively.

Enough of the quick history refresher course though. Let’s talk about how this relates to our 2010 Ravens.

  • Joe Flacco has led the team to the postseason in each of his first two years under center. He has done so with a less-than-stellar receiving corps. Traditional wisdom says that an NFL QB’s 3rd season is the one in which he really starts to grasp the speed and complexities of the game.
  • We acquired a true #1 wide receiver in Anquan Boldin. While Boldin is not the “deep threat” that has been missing from this offense for years, another guy that the Ravens picked up, Donte Stallworth, could be just that.
  • Ray Rice is, by all accounts, on the verge of absolute superstardom. Along with Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain, the Ravens have one of the most potent ground attacks in the league.
  • Defensive Coordinator Greg Mattison seemed to finally figure things out during the second half of 2009, and the Ravens’ defense, despite perceived struggles throughout the year, finished #3 overall.

Add all these things together, and you get what may be the highest pre-season expectations…well, EVER for a Ravens team. And not just locally. National publications are all over the Ravens in 2010, and we fans have, of course, been quick to take note. We are proud to see our team getting some high-profile respect. We love Ray Rice being ranked in the Top 5 of “Fantasy” running backs. We beam when John Madden talks about how impressed he is with Joe Flacco.

But, in the back of our minds, many of us are still uncomfortable with all the love. Which is a big reason why, when our first-team offense comes out and struggles a bit, as they have so far during the first two preseason games, many of us find ourselves being magnetically pulled to that figurative “cliff.”

Usually, I tend to be the one trying to talk Ravens fans back from that cliff. This time, though, one of the reasons I’ve yet to weigh in on Saturday’s Redskins game is that I am unfortunately feeling that same gravitational pull to the edge that, judging by the callers to local sports-talk stations, many Ravens fans are.

In a “normal” year, things like the offense going 0-for-5 on 3rd downs, or the starting linebackers getting absolutely torched in coverage, in preseason games, would be cause for concern, but by no means a reason to hit the panic button.

This year, though, the curse of high expectations makes those weaknesses appear to be all the more glaring.

“We’ll never win a Super Bowl with these bums around Ray! Heath Miller and Jermaine Gresham will kill us!”

“Why does Flacco STILL keep checking down so much?”

“What in the world happened to Michael Oher? Isn’t this guy supposed to be good?!”

Those are the kinds of things Ravens fans were screaming at their televisions Saturday night.

In the days since, I’ve found myself torn between agreeing with this kind of knee-jerk, reactionary (and sometimes alcohol-induced) hyperbole and with trying to remind myself that we really can take nothing from preseason football games. Hell, the Bills torched the Colts last week (with both teams’ starters on the field).

Again, I think it’s the expectations getting the better of me. In our stubborn (and usually unrequited) love of the underdog role, we take the defensive mechanism of talking ourselves into the notion that our team probably isn’t as good as everybody says.

If we don’t expect too much, we might not be let down.

Hopefully, the day is coming when these kinds of expectations are par for the course in Baltimore. As much as we despise the Pittsburghs, Indianapolises, and New Englands of the world, their fans have learned to deal with being preseason favorites long ago. That is the kind of culture that Ozzie Newsome and John Harbaugh are trying to build around here, and it would be great if it became common enough that we all just got used to it. That day obviously isn’t here yet. And in the end, all the predictions and prognostications go straight out the window once the opening kick of the season is in the air.

My suggestions, then, for my fellow Ravens fans and myself, are these:

  • Don’t buy into the hype. Make the team prove something before you label them as contenders or busts.
  • Recognize the weaknesses in the team, but also remember that this really is still the preseason. Until the games count, many of these guys just aren’t wired mentally to do anything more than go through the motions. Remember that the coaches are using these games to evaluate, and they too are careful of how much they are revealing.
  • Get excited about the strengths too. That 21-yard completion from Flacco to Boldin on Saturday was a pretty play, and there are plenty more like it where that came from.
  • Find something productive to do between now and September 13. Get your mind off the purple and black. The time for pulling out your hair isn’t until the games start to count.

I’ll try my best to abide by these. I hope you will too.

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