huntrgathrr

I think the analysts have lost their minds. In the last 3 years the Ravens and Steelers have played 6 times, most with the Steelers favored. The Ravens are 5-1 including a stunning beatdown in the playoffs as heavy underdogs at Heinz field 2 years ago. This year the game was 21-0 with 8 minutes left and the Steelers were physically dominated on both sides of the ball.
The formula for these wins has been the same. Shut down the run, triple team Brown, run the ball and don't turn it over.
The Steeler defense is ripe for the picking....Heyward and now Tuitt are on IR....they should have little or no run defense. We need to pound the ball behind Yanda, Stanley and Wagner...it's a big mismatch. Their LBs are old and slow (except Dupree) and can't match up with Moore or Dixon out of the backfield. Their secondary counts on 2 rookies, Sean and Ernie. They can be beat all day by Perriman and Wallace. We have mismatches all over the field.
Our front seven is one of the best in the NFL and is facing a below average offensive line. Dumervil, Suggs and Judon need to put Ben on the ground.
If Jimmy Smith plays I can't see a possible way in the world the Ravens don't blow these guys out.....we match up too perfectly. This is why we are 5-1 the last 3 years.....that is not an accident.
The final determining factors (if needed) are we have the best kicker in NFL history and we have better coaching (usually). Tomlin seems to under perform routinely, having one playoff win in the last 5 years with the best QB in the league.

What troubles me about the Ravens is a lack of consistency. I follow them religiously and I have no idea who they are. Great defense plays horribly, horrible offense plays great, coaches make bonehead decisions giving opponents a chance to win games....it starting to make me sick at my stomach.
One thing is for sure....Tucker is money and the only thing the Ravens can actually count on. Also for sure, the secondary (and therefore the defense) is helpless without Jimmy Smith. Another thing we can count on is that Flacco is so inconsistent that he must be doing it on purpose. Sometimes he looks like Joe Montana and in the blink of an eye he looks like he's on heroin.
I can't figure this team out and have no idea what to expect from them. It's crazy but even the coaches appear to be schizophrenic (except Pees who has done an incredible job).
They could shut out the Steelers next week or lose by 30. Who knows??
But it's clear that something needs to change to get back to the team we used to be. Now that I've said that they will probably win out and go to the Super Bowl.

Plain and simple, IMO the Ravens are a legitimate playoff team. This team has talent to burn and excellent quality depth. Incredibly, they are very healthy which is huge in December.
The way for them to win this game is to physically dominate the Pats on both sides of the ball. This will frustrate Brady and take the air out of the usually excellent schemes by Belichek. Stop the run and then the Pats become one dimensional....5-7 yard quick passes by Brady. Without Gronk they are much less talented than the Ravens. Put Brady on the ground and he gets rattled, which reduces him to a below average QB. Pressure on Brady, LBs in the passing lanes and contact at the line of scrimmage will shut down the Pats offense.
Our offense has incredible depth at WR and 2 fast RBs. Playing up tempo and rolling Joe out makes us tough to defend. Ducasse and the return of Stanley were the missing pieces to complete a very strong offensive line. Long sustained scoring drives will keep Brady on the bench and give our defense a chance to show their dominance.
I look for Dumervil, Suggs, Judon and Z.Smith to have big games tonight. But the secondary has to shine which they can do now that Jimmy is back. Orr and Mosely bhind Pierce, Williams and Jernigan should be able to stop Blount cold.
But make no mistake about it.....turnovers and penalties could easily decide this game. We have to play mistake free football and then should win this game with room to spare.

Forget about unpredictable future win-loss scenarios.....the only thing that matters right now is the NE game on Monday Night Football.. Save all the conjecture for the week before we play Cincy in the final game. By then it might not even require discussion.
This is an incredible opportunity for the Ravens to showcase their defense and Flacco to do what he always does in Foxboro. Of all the teams in the NFL, we have the most wins in Foxboro, including 2 playoff wins, in the last 5 years. We are also one of the few teams that have punished Brady routinely, win or lose. I think he has 8 TDs and 10 Ints against Balt in Foxboro in the last 5 years.
Facing an NFL leading, dominant defense this week is not what Brady would prefer. He hates being hit and the Ravens are the only team in the NFL, through physical domination, that have reduced him to a less than average QB. Beating him twice in the playoffs in Foxboro is something he distinctly remembers. Plus in the other 2 playoff games they needed Lee Evans to drop a TD pass and overcome two 14 point deficits in the other to get the wins.
This will be a knock down drag out affair and I give the edge to the best defense. The Vegas line opened at 9 and is now down to to 6.5. That reflects a huge amount of money bet on the Ravens.
If Flacco and the offense don't turn it over and eliminate penalties they will score enough to win this one. In the cold, Tucker could easily make the difference. Having Jimmy Smith healthy is a HUGE benefit for the Ravens. Having Gronk out is a huge loss for the Pats.
Ravens 31 NE 13.

Secret?? Shouldn't be. We've done it several times and we have the defense that can do it again.
First. stop the run. Without Gronk this makes the Pats very predictable: 5-7 quick passes by Brady. So secondly, disrupt these routes by contact at the line and putting LBs in the passing lanes. Then watch Brady get rattled. He is a below average QB in this setting and just Hates being hit....he turns into a real [profanity deleted] (ie..kicking Ed Reed in the AFC CH game).
The other very important key to beating Brady is keep him on the bench for long periods of time. Long sustained scoring drives are essential and the Ravens are very able to do this against the Pats. It goes without saying that turnovers and penalties must be completely eliminated.
Can't wait for Monday night and hope the officials don't rig this game. IMO the Ravens have a better than even money chance to win.

Everything about this season reminds me of 2012 except for a couple differences. The one big difference is that this is a much more talented and deeper team. Anther difference is that we are very healthy going into the stretch run. And thirdly, this defense is a dominant defense that is far better than the Super Bowl team.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if we go into Foxboro and dominate the Pats. Stop the run, no Gronk and all you have left is Brady throwing 5-7 yard quick passes. Just get the LBs in his passing lanes and we have a good chance to rattle him. Then he becomes a less than average QB as we have seen many times in the last 3-4 years. I like the Ravens history in Foxboro as heavy underdogs....we have won at least 3-4 times so this team can certainly defeat the Pats.
Can't wait for Monday night.

I don't care what schemes Belichek comes up with next Monday night we should win this game. NE won't be able to run the ball and will only have one offensive option.....Brady throwing 5-7 yards passes quickly to avoid the pressure from our front seven. This means our LBs have to step it up and take this away. If they can do this then we can shut them out. No Gronk really hurts their chances against this defense. The NE defense is nothing to fear, not nearly as good as the Miami unit we just punished. Up tempo, rolling Flacco out and using 10 different receivers looked unstoppable. The emergence of solid offensive line play, Pitta and Perriman makes this an offense to be feared. Granted the performance against Miami was a first but it should be repeatable. That was the toughest defense we will face the rest of the season.
Plain and simple the Ravens are a more talented team than New England and finally have discovered the formula needed to realize this potential.

I'm here to eat crow. I've been VERY critical this season mainly because this team has talent. I agree give Joe protection and then he's can be an elite QB. I really feel that the make shift line and coming off ACL surgery had Joe hearing foot steps early in the season, now the line is playing better and he feel more confident in the knee and he's playing stronger. The D needs still needs to put more pressure on the QBs and the O still needs to keep the holding penalties at a minimum. Do that and this team is a sleeping giant that no team will want to face in January. GO RAVENS keep it up !

Yep.....the way this season has gone reminds me exactly the way the 2012 season went. If they can run the table starting in NE Monday night then they may enter as the best team in the AFC and get a rematch with the Cowboys. The most critical factors are the healthy return of Jimmy Smith and that the team is virtually injury free.

Finally!! The Ravens realized their full potential on both sides of the ball. The improvement in the offensive line was started by the return of Stanley but I'm impressed with the play of Ducasse and even Zuttah.
The defense plays at a whole new level when Jimmy Smith is in and it showed on Sunday. Having virtually the entire team healthy gives us a huge edge over most teams, We have real quality depth and should be strongest in the 4th quarter.
If this is what we can expect and not just a one time deal then NE is in serious trouble. Brady hasn't played against this good a defense all season. Against a strong front seven putting him under pressure he can be rattled. Without Gronk or the ability to run the ball he may be in for a long day. If our offense plays the way they did Sunday the NE defense will not stop them. As usual, Tucker could be the X factor.
This season reminds me of the 2012 Super Bowl year. Firing the O coordinator in mid season, the mid season slump, and their marginal record keeping them off the radar is like deja vu. Based on yesterday's performance I can see them making the playoffs and making a deep playoff run again. And once again they will have to do it on the road.

Weddle may not be a loser but our secondary without Jimmy Smith is helpless. The best they can do is stop the deep pass and force the opponent to try and score from the red zone where our front seven can exert their dominance and there is less field to cover for the secondary. On a positive note however, it is clear we have probably the best front seven in the NFL and this group rotates at least 10 without a drop in quality.
So I think we now have the Ravens formula for winning a football game....a smash mouth defense and the best field goal kicker in the NFL.
This seems to work well until the 4th quarter when we have built a narrow lead and then abandon tough defense for a prevent defense which "prevents" us from playing our best football and gives the opponent hope. I think everyone that plays us rightfully waits for the 4th quarter to try and steal a game that they clearly couldn't win unless we ease up on defense. The Raiders and the Giants beat us exactly this way. The losses of these games which we should and could have won hurts even more now that these 2 teams are clearly among the best in the NFL. It shows how close we are to being one of the best teams in the league.
But I'm not complaining. All great defensive teams play and win tight games with everybody. It is a shame that our backs are to the wall and we are even close to a weak, paper tiger team like Pittsburgh. At least we control our own destiny. We should beat Miami, Philly, Pitts and Cincy which will win the North and get us in the playoffs. If Smith comes back healthy we should be a tough out for anybody come December and January. Even if we lose one of these games we will just need to punish the Steelers on Christmas day to win the division. We have physically dominated this team every time we have played them for the last 3 years.
The emergence of Dixon and our run game against Dallas and Cincy could be all we need to make a deep playoff run. West and Dixon are turning into legitimate NFL running backs. I think Waller and Boyle will also make big contributions. We have so many good receivers I can't understand why the offense is so ineffective. This offense should be impossible to stop but they continue to perform poorly. I really have to question if we would do better with Mallett instead of Joe.....and it pains me to even think this may be the case. Once Lewis gets back hopefully it will make a difference.
I'm grateful we have a team that is in contention after last year's fiasco. The addition of Judon, Stanley, Dixon, Pierce, Lewis, West and Weddle have made a huge difference. The emergence of Urban, Perriman, Orr and Pitta has also been a pleasant surprise. That's 11 players who are making an impact this year that were not here last year. God is good. The full recovery of both Smiths, Suggs, Wagner and all of the others that went on IR last year was a blessing.
If we don't make the playoffs with this team it falls firmly in Harbaugh's lap. He made some bonehead decisions that probably cost us one or two games this year. I hope he learned his lesson from these mistakes and takes every point he can get when it is available. I'm hopeful and optimistic that the Ravens can do just what they did in 2012.....fly under the radar due to subpar performances and then step up and show the world how good they can be.

On paper and by comparing records the Cowboys are and should be favored but their edge stops there. The Ravens match up very well with Dallas. This will be a knock down, drag out type of game...just the type the Ravens have a good chance of winning. We have better special teams and better coaching. Our offense also has a good chance against an average Dallas defense. In this type of game the best defense usually wins. Turnovers will be key. If we shut down the run it will be interesting to see how effective Prescott can be. My guess is he will make a lot of mistakes without a run game to depend on. I like our chances if we don't turn it over and generate some offense.

It's nice to look ahead positively but basically a waste of time. What matters is beating the Cowboys this week. To do that we will need to stop the run. Our front 7 against their offensive line will be an awesome matchup. Whoever wins this battle will likely win the game. Prescott will be helpless without an effective run game. I hope for a low scoring game that we can eke out a win with a couple turnovers. I doubt many give us a chance but that is when we seem to play our best. Fortunately we match up very well with them and have a chance to come out of there with a win.

As a long time Flacco supporter, I think it may be time to give Mallett a chance to see what he can do with this offense. Flacco just doesn't seem to ignite the offense. The lack of creativity in play calling is a big factor as well. Roll outs, [play action and draws are noticeably absent. The pure vanilla approach is not working without a dominant run game.
In hindsight it might have been better to pay Osemele. A dominant running attack combined with a top 5 defense would have the Ravens looking at possibly an undefeated record and in the drivers seat in the division.
Going forward at least the Ravens are in a position to win the division. Doing so will depend on continued excellence from the defense and key special team plays. If we can manage 11 wins it shouid be enough to win the division. Since Cincy seems to be struggling this looks to be possible. A 5-1 record in the division is essential and it starts with Thursday night's game against Cleveland.
One positive note is the last second loss to Oakland seems to be a mmuch better performance than previously thought.

I apologize for over commenting but I want to offer further thoughts on Flacco. He seems to be less confident today than he was in his first 6 years. I'm really disappointed that he can't read the defenses and call his own plays after 7 years in the NFL. I'm sure there are a lot of reasons for this but the offense will never be prolific getting plays from the sidelines. His check offs are predictable and usually ineffective. He should be reading the defenses at the line of scrimmage and calling the plays from there. I guess the coaches don't have confidence in his ability to do this. This seems to be the reason the Ravens have a very ineffective offense.

This team will be carried by a top 10 defense. If the offense just does a little we will be in every game. Hopefully we will win 10 of them and be in the playoffs. Injuries to the offensive line put too much pressure on the defense and resulted in a terrible loss to the Jets. Oakland is a really tough club and we could have beat them...tough loss. Same with the Giants and the Skins....tough losses to decent teams that we probably would have won with a healthy offensive line.
The reason I target the injuries to the O line as critical to the outcomes in our 4 losses is because an abysmal offense just put too much pressure on the defense.
With a healthy O line we totally dominated the Steelers. Despite scant offensive production we still gave the defense time to rest and a small lead to protect. This allowed them to make mistakes and our special teams a chance to capitalize on one of their mistakes.
Forget the final score....they couldn't score until there was 8 min left in the game and it was basically over. The Ravens defense did the same to Buffalo, Cleveland and Jacksonville so it was not unexpected. They would have done the same to the Giants and Oakland but for exceptional plays by exceptional players.
But for this team to advance in the playoffs (assuming we get there) the offense will have to step up and score 24-30 points a game.
I have tempered my expectations however, realizing that each week will be a mystery. The Ravens are clearly capable of playing exceptionally well and equally able to play very poorly. Hopefully they can scratch out a win against Cleveland on Thursday night.
But make no mistake about it........after half a season it's fkn great to be in first place in the AFC North

I also forgot to mention that West and Dixon should run like wild deer against this Giant team. We have excellent quality depth at the offensive line and i expect to see a good performance from the probable starting five....Zuttah, Urschel, Stanley Jensen and Hurst. With the proper play calling including screens, draws and roll outs they will be fine.

Wright and Dumervil don't mean squat for the defense to perform at a high level. Young is playing better than Wright and Powers can man the slot.
Judon exceeded all expectations and it would be hard for Dumervil to live up to Judon's performance. If Mosely is out that will hurt but Correia will get a chance to shine and McClellan can also play well next to Orr. Weddle can call the defenses and may be even better truth be told.
So i see the defense playing well and ho;ding the Giants to less than 20 points.
If the offense can't score 20 dang points then we don't deserve to win and should play the rest of the season just for high draft picks next year. FOR REAL.
Waller, Dixon and Moore should step up and lead this offense in scoring. With Morningway and Flacco, these 3 unused talents and TEs Gilmore and Pitta we should score every possession against the Giants. If Perriman doesn't have 7 catches for 100 plus yards and 2 TDs just cut him. He should be having a breakout year with a game at least one winning TD catch but he looks like a fool...dropping passes and failing to get his feet in bounds to win games. Any fan could be as unsuccessful as he has been given the chance.
Hopefully Morningway realizes that Waller is the truth....he can be the best receiver on the team and should be a TD machine, especially in the red zone. At 6'6" with 4.6 speed he is a mismatch nightmare. He is a bigger, stronger and faster Anquan Bolden. He and Flacco should be undefensible. Waller should be a TD machine with Joe flinging the ball where only he can catch it.
Anything less than a blowout win against the Giants will be the writing on the wall for the Ravens.

It's hard to ignore the historical parallels that accompany this move. First of all, Trestman got the very least he could get out of the offense (not all his fault). The Ravens now face a mediocre Giants team which they could scorch given the right play calling. With a very good defense they could go on a significant winning streak that could propel them to the playoffs. If they get there then anything can happen with "January Joe".
What I love about the move is the Ravens are really upset about losing 2 games at home with terrible offensive performances. Firing Trestman makes a statement to the league that they believe they should be 5-0 right now,. I think the players can and will respond.....I look for a blow out win against the Giants. We are so much better than they are it would be disgusting if the game was even close.
I am sure Marty has let everyone know if they don't produce they will sit. That should get Perriman's attention at least. He should be having a breakout year but dropping the ball and poor foot position makes him almost a joke. Right now I wouldn't blame the Ravens for cutting him and bringing back Jeremy Butler.
What I expect to see is the emergence of Darren Waller as a TD machine. This guy can be unstoppable in the red zone and overall as well. IMO he is the best receiver on the team and will have a huge impact going forward. He will be playing as the #2 and #3 wideout as well as TE depending on the offensive scheme. But trust me, he is a matchup nightmare at 6'6 and with 2.6 speed. He is a bigger, faster and stronger Anquan Bolden. I think they are saving him for the Steeler game. He will be a game breaking receiver before the season is done.
I also look forward to the emergence of Chris Moore who will become a reliable receiver for Joe as the season goes on. The same goes for Dixon who will become the Raven's #1 RB. Morningway will get these guys to play well at the NFL level. Morningway is superb at recognizing talent and IMO will have Waller, Dixon and Moore leading a high powered Ravens offense. They will put up 28 a game from here on out is my humble prediction.
But the defense is why the Ravens will go 11-5, win the North and return to the playoffs for a deep run. They have played incredibly well in the first 5 games and have the talent and depth to continue that trend. Putting Judon on inactive last game shows the incredible depth with which Pees is dealing.
This is a very talented team with great depth. The wins over Buffalo and J'ville were quality wins. Oakland could very easily win the AFC West. Last week was an inexcusable loss to an inferior team, and every team will have one. The comeback against Cleveland showed how good they really are. And the reason they are so good is they have a great defense.....even Rex Ryan said as much after the Buffalo game.
So Raven's fans take heart....we have an excellent team that is just finding it's groove right now. What I can say for sure is that we are better than both the Steelers and Ciny.

This was a true team loss....everyone contributed from the coaches on down. Almost a comedy of errors. The continued stupidity was really hard to watch. This was the perfect example of getting the absolute least out of a team and for that Harbaugh is totally responsible. A good coach gets the most out of his players and creates a team where the total is greater than the sum of the parts. The total here is remarkably lower than the sum of the parts as the Ravens have now lost 2 games in a row at home to teams that are less talented.
If this continues Harbaugh should step down and accept he is not doing the team any good. He appears to have lost the ability to guide the team in a winning direction. This despite 5 standout performances by a top 5 NFL defense. When you have a great defense the smart thing to do is take every point you can and run the ball to shorten the game. He has thrown away countless opportunities for points with stupid and unnecessary gambles.
Granted the players have made some stupid mistakes as well but these would not have mattered if the team had taken all the easy points it could have taken. Specifically the failed 2 point conversion against Oakland and the failed fake field goal against Washington.
Wake up or you will soon be unemployed John Harbaugh.

This is the game the offense needs to step up and dominate the game. The raiders defense is ripe for the taking and flacco needs to be on the money. Our D should hold them down enough but the offense needs to put it all together. I think this game will come down to turnovers. If we don't blow them out I don't like our chances to win a close one. Either we dominate or they will win this game.

He makes every player on the defense better. Now we are a real top 5 defense and will win a lot of games we would have lost last year.

The fact of the matter is that we can only beat the teams that we are scheduled to play. We have successfully done that and that is all we can do.
Any team in the NFL can beat any other team on any given Sunday. Cleveland lost in OT at Miami and looks like a pretty good team despite their 0-3 start. They could easily be 2-1. Buffalo demolished Arizona last week and narrowly lost to the Jets. The Jags were victimized by 16 incorrect calls that went against them or they would have easily beaten Green Bay. They also look like a pretty good team.
Baltimore could have easily lost all 3 of their games but because they have an excellent defense, great special teams and remarkable determination they pulled out close victories. They deserve to be 3-0 and are definitely one of the top 10 teams in the NFL. If the offense ever gets it together they will difficult for any team to beat.
I really hope the offense can break out this weekend against the Raiders in Baltimore. I expect that they will against the weakest defense they have faced so far this year. Going 4-0 will also be the best they can do.

it's still very early in the season so we can't really judge the quality of the teams we've beaten. But Buffalo pounded Arizona and Cleveland lost in overtime to Miami this weekend. In week one the Jags beat GB but had the game stolen from them by 16 incorrect calls that went against them according to the NFL. IMO all 3 of our opponents have pretty good teams with a lot of talent despite their records and public perception.
What I have seen that is certain is that the Ravens have a dominant defense and this was mentioned by Ryan after their loss. We may have the deepest and most talented defense in the NFL. We will win a lot of games allowing an average of 12 points a game which I believe is leading the NFL. We seem to be physically dominating teams on defense which IMO is due to our size, speed and quality depth. Of course when you win with this kind of defense the wins are not blowouts and not very sexy in general. But the ability to create turnovers exactly when we need them to win the game is not luck. It's superiority and determination.
However I'm underwhelmed by the offense. With the best talent we have ever had on offense you would think they would be putting up 25-30 a game. But they just manage to what is necessary to win and have heavily relied on the defense.
However I am ecstatic that the best defense in the NFL has translated into a 3-0 record joining only 4 other teams in the NFL. Of those 4 I can easily see us beating all of them. But every game will be a nail biter. I stand by my preseason prediction of the Ravens going 12-4, winning the AFC North and making a deep playoff run.
One other important fact is their lack of injuries which is due to physical superiority and just good luck. Compared to the other teams in our division we are light years ahead in depth and talent. Pittsburgh should reserve a wing at John Hopkins when they get to Baltimore for the players they have left after they were decimated by Philly. Too bad.

  2 hours ago, Purple Dawg 96 said:

Everybody and they momma know Baltimore wants to run and they are waiting on it! Instead of run on 1st and 2nd pass on 3rd and punt how about passing on 1st and 2nd and run on 3rd and TOUCHDOWN! I really feel some people need to be patient with the running game because I like what I saw Sunday and that was Joe Flacco slinging that Rock! Face it the Browns played the run very well but I feel there is no reason to point fingers at anyone prematurely rite now! Me myself personally in all three regards want to see my QB light it up again this Sunday and then run it down their throats! 2-0 and they sniveling about more runs smh!

I completely agree. Most teams are expecting a run on first down and many times they have been correct. Flacco has the weapons to be throwing on on first down easily even if just short "extended hand-offs".

Other than that though, Trestman needs to blend the drop back looks of pass plays and run plays more so it is more difficult to see what is coming. It just seems the drop back right now largely gives away the play just before it happens. Joe can work on selling his fakes a bit better too IMHO. Should be selling them hard even if he isn't throwing the ball to draw defends deep and keep them off the ball carrier.

Lastly, cannot have Joe throwing from the shotgun so much. It makes the chances/odds of plays being a run significantly higher as soon as he steps back under center. That is no way to help the run game.

Accept the fact that our O line will not be punishing anyone. Use unexpected schemes and play calling to give them an advantage. We have the skill players to accomplish a great variety of offensive schemes. Keep the defense guessing. Establishing the run when everyone knows it is coming just won't work.

It's not about running the ball, it's about dominating the line of scrimmage. We are not doing this and hence we can't run the ball or give Joe reliable protection. So Trestman needs to change his mentality and play calling to give our O line the advantage. Accept the fact that we are not going to bludgeon people to death with our offensive line and start calling plays that keeps the defensive front seven guessing and gives our offense the element of surprise. Predictable, vanilla schemes need to be discarded. We have the playmakers at the skill positions to put defenses on their heels.....start exploiting this advantage.