Blog

Ravens:
Hindsight is 20/20. So, do you want those 2 critical decisions reversed? Quite frankly, given the same situation, I would do it the same way again, and expect different results. Anytime I score a touchdown, and have the chance to go for 2 and tie the game, I am going for it. Similarly, to accept a penalty and give them another shot at 3rd down knowing if they fail, it will be a longer field goal attempt or even be out of range, I am taking it. You have to depend on your D. If they can’t get that done (ultimately giving up 7 in this case), do you really deserve to win? These are the gutsy calls that separates .500 teams from winning teams. You have to make these hard decision, especially in the ultra conservation NFL, if you want to win. But your team has to deliver for you. Some times these choices pay off, and you are a genius. Other times… not so much. This week… not so much.

Now, the biggest game of the year. Yeah, the stealers are a big game, but do you actually expect this Ravens team to win the super bowl this year? Hope, yes. Expect, no. Therefore, you must have this local rivalry win to put those potato fans back in their place: the fryer.

Ravens:
Drama? You want Drama? We got your drama right here! Just as the guy sitting in front of me at the Orioles game was saying that we can’t win 2 weeks in a row on a game ending INT, we snag a game ending INT. Flacco was his usual inconsistent self. If it wasn’t for the 21 in a row, his numbers would have been horrible. Running game? What running game? Our defence came through, but what will they do against a good QB? I opponents for the first three weeks combine for a 1-8 record, and now we go up against a surprisingly 2-1 Raider team. PS: I still don’t think the place at the end of the first half was leveraging, but I will take it.

Well, it is what it is, and it all looks the same in the standings, which now has us alone after the stealers got their behinds handed to them by their cross state rivals. This week, the Ravens enter the game as 3+ point favorites, which is the standard home field advantage. Just goes to show that the odds makers don’t know what to make of us either.

Ravens:
That is the ugliest 2-0 I have seen in a long time, but this is Baltimore Football. Can’t win without drama, and boy did we produce some drama. Inconsistent offense, which a shaky streaky Joe Flacco, and non-existent run game; and a defense that was easily devoured if the pass rush didn’t get to the QB in 3.2 seconds nearly done us in. It is clear that beyond our defense front, there is wide open spaces, and I estimate that any quarterback worth his salt will wipe the floors with us. Special teams generated the sparks we needed with the Block-2 PAT which started are excavation out of our 20 point hole.

Next up is a toss up game against the Jags on the road. They are not the push over team of recent years, and could make us pay for incompetence. If the Ravens have aspirations of building on this 2-0 start, they need to find more receivers than Pitta, Wallace and Smith (and figure out how to run the ball goes without saying). Defensively, our secondary needs to get faster, or read the QB better to make up for the fact that they aren’t. Otherwise, they will become Swiss cheese. Hester, just keep on running (and hold on to that ball). Good things will happen yet.

After studying they statistics further, I reverse my pronouncement on Monday night: Ravens for the win!

Ravens:
The first win is under the built, but boy was it ugly! Other than a 66 yard touchdown reception, the offense sputtered the whole game. Fearless Joe Flacco looked anything but fearless, and mostly uncomfortable in the pocket and rolling out. The run game was weak, the special teams was anything but special unless you count their remedial status (special Ed?). The defense and the Bill propensity for flags saved our bacon on many occasions. I held my breath as Harbs went against conventional wisdom by taking points off the board when Buffalo was called for leveraging. In the end, it is what we are accustomed to in Baltimore: winning ugly.

Next up is a reeling (yes, already) Cleveland Browns team, who just placed starting QB RG-knee, on the 8 week DL. Line is the Ravens by 6.5, but expect us to play down to their level… Again.

Ravens:
preseason is now over, and the dust is starting to settle on the numerous roster moves. With the starting pieces set, one can’t help but notice the 4-0 preseason record. How does that translate. Simple: It doesn’t. In the last 15 seasons, 23 teams have finished the post season undefeated. Of those, about half made the playoffs. So, our odds are the same as everyone else at this point: 50/50. Yes, some teams have better parts and pieces making their odds better or worse. SI, has predicted the stealers to go to the Super Bowl this year, but keep in mind that they also predicted the Ravens to win it all last year, so their track record isn’t that great right now.

Ravens:
Ok, I am back from California where I saw the O’s play the Giants (and other lesser family stuff and entertainment), and I just watched preseason game number 1. Generally, you can’t tell too much from preseason, but what I saw from our starters, I didn’t like. Bad offence, and a D that let the Panthers move the ball at will. I can’t even begin to describe what they need right now, but “playmakers” comes to mind.

Ravens:
Just Tucker inks a deal to remove franchise tag. Outstanding question: Do the Ravens still have “play makers?”

Ravens:
No deal yet on Tucker and his franchise tag and this week is the deadline to make a deal or ride out the tag. Camp opens July 30, with the first presason game August 11.