The Final Score Is Deceiving...

[RavenoutWest]

Ok, new day..I think it obvious the offense, coaches and players, need this time off to work out their issues. It's not all Flacco's fault. I'm taking the message "We'll beat you with everything we've got" into the break. I'll be on the other side, in purple n black, to see what a rested healthy offense and a pitbull mean defense will do to Houston. 3n1 and we're not even clicking on all cylinders yet!! [img]http://content.boards.baltimoreravens.com//public/style_emoticons/default/minioiseau1.gif[/img]

[Rob H]

We have the best point differential in the league. Stop complaining.

[UMDan]

The Ravens always have had issues finishing games/playing a full sixty minutes and it could be a problem down the stretch in tight games, but so far we haven't had a tight game where this became an issue. Part of it is that when we're far ahead we aren't going to play as aggressive offensively.

We're 3-1 into the bye week and I'm pleased.

[ravenanchors]

There seems to be this thought going around to excuse the Ravens Offense for not scoring past the 1st quarter that goes "Well they didn't need to score because they were ahead".

This is not an intelligent football mantra.

Last year the Ravens were ahead by 21 points in the playoffs and they got beat by the steelers.

I am pretty sure that the philosophy of the coaches is not to stop scoring during the game.

You play to the end of the game. You don't sit back and wait to see if the other team is going to catch up to you and then start trying to score again.

The other mantra is
The Ravens will get better as the year goes along. The problem is that all the other teams will get better also.

I am hoping the Ravens win the superbowl, but I can't blindly close my eyes to problems during the regular season and pretend they don't exist because I want to see the team improve.

[Tank 92]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1317639549' post='814019']
Well, we really don't know if we can't score in the 4th, we haven't needed to. Last night, we just ran the ball and ran the clock out.

I'm convinced that we could score if we needed to, but aside from Tennessee, the situation hasn't presented itself, and [i][b]it looks like Tennessee might've been the fluke of the year for us.[/b][/i] The offense is fine fellas.
[/quote]

I think you are right. You can't totally blame that loss on the O. It was a total Team breakdown, including coaches, mentally and with execution. A fluke. Don't think we'll see that again. Call it pburgh hangover and move forward.

Like you, I also think if things could have been different if the jets game were tight. But who cares, we won and have the bye week to try to straighten out any issues.

[Trilogique]

Not scared, not worried, not anything. We're 3-1 and stats are very deceiving. The Jets are a LOT better defense than their ranking suggests. As someone said earlier, sometimes the defense will carry, sometimes the offense will carry. The point is we got a lead and we held onto it. We've done that in all of our wins. Flacco also has a ton of new receivers this year he needs to gel with.

Really, I don't think there's anything to be worried about. The defense played phenomenally and our offense, while playing poorly, didn't give the game away. Shoulda, woulda, coulda - we won. We're first in the division. We have a bye week to get some of our inactives back in action. We're fine. Let's just concentrate on our next opponent.

[Gordo52]

Theres no such thing as an ugly win

[1/28/01]

That was an ugly win, but I'll take it

[flynismo]

This thread is decieving

[RivenHale]

[quote name='RavenoutWest' timestamp='1317620750' post='813899']
Yeah, I no longer think Flacco will be an elite QB. I think he's fair to good but not elite..no I'm not a Flacco hater, I look at what's really happening and [b]edreedfromtheu makes a valid point.[/b] Since the Pittsburg game, the offense has shown little, Flacco has shown little. I was hoping it was going to be a break out year for him but when you look at the numbers...they tell the story.
I'm glad to go into the break at 3-1 for sure, but I'll be looking and hoping for a better offense on the other side.
[/quote]

That's where you lost me.

[True]

It is a concern but since the Ravens are 3-1 and the defense is arguably the best in the NFL it is OK. The offense is still developing and will take time to develop.

A few points:

-Brandon McKinnie and Andre Gurode are new pieces on the left side of the OL and will take some time to get acclimated.

-Lee Evans had an ankle injury and was slowed down.The Ravens will get him back after the bye week and he will be a healthy veteran presence that will be a good starting tandem with Anquan Boldin.

-The receiving group is very young. Torrey Smith, Laquan Williams, and Tandon Doss will take time to develop. WRs are tricky and can burst out of nowhere so having a veteran in Evans will be good for the offense to move them along steadily. Ed Dickson has high hopes to be the Ravens TE and he has shown flashes of being a good player, but has to work on his blocking and not dropping passes; same with Dennis Pitta.

-Joe Flacco is taking a new commanding role. I've recently seen quite a few line adjustments, motions, and even audibles. He will get better as the season goes on and he develops a repertoire with his receiving corps as the passing game grows. Flacco relies heavily on play action to succeed in the passing game, but he will get better on his own that when the running game isn't working he can take over by getting in shotgun and doing what he does best.

Winning cures all ills. The offense is a concern with consistency being an issue. But with the more games played and experience being gained, the veteran presence will help develop this offense to get better and ready for the post-season.

[bdravens]

The Tennessee game is suspect, yes. But we havent "needed" to score touchdowns in the second half other than that. Our defense has done a great job of holding down teams after halftime, after which we run the ball like we should with a lead. we saw what happens when you try to keep running it up last night, when Joe made two bad decisions. I'm fine with what's happening in terms of no touchdowns until it's proven that we need to score them in the 2nd half.

[colljb9]

There was a good point made in one of the articles where the ravens didnt score any points on the one big drive towards the end of the third and into the 4th quarter but they did eat up 7 minutes of clock, which is something the running game did not do last year. If we're up by 17 i dont care to see us score but the fact we wasted 7 minutes in a game like this shows me our offense is getting better at finishing games even if the scores are not there yet.

[berad]

[quote name='colljb9' timestamp='1317669057' post='814650']
There was a good point made in one of the articles where the ravens didnt score any points on the one big drive towards the end of the third and into the 4th quarter but they did eat up 7 minutes of clock, which is something the running game did not do last year. If we're up by 17 i dont care to see us score but the fact we wasted 7 minutes in a game like this shows me our offense is getting better at finishing games even if the scores are not there yet.
[/quote]

Exactly. Who cares if you don't score second-half TDs in a blowout when you can milk the clock and end the game on the ground.

[sflegend89]

You Play to Win the Game!

[bauer77]

[quote name='edreedfromtheu' timestamp='1317618161' post='813801']
[size=4][font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif]Sure, people see that the Ravens scored 34 points this week. 37 last week. and 35 points in Week 1.[/font][/size]

[size=4][font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif]But check this out : [/font][/size]

[size=4][b] [font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif]For the 2nd straight week, the Ravens offense scores 0 touchdowns after the first quarter. [/font][/b][/size]

[size=4][b] [font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif]For the 3rd straight week, the Ravens offense scores 0 touchdowns after halftime. [/font][/b][/size]

[size=4][b] [font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif]And for the 4th straight week(every single game this season), the Ravens offense has 0 TDs in the 4th quarter.[/font][/b][/size]
[b] [/b]


[size=5][font=tahoma, geneva, sans-serif][size=4]Make of it what you will. The team is 3-1. They've supposedly played at least two of the better teams in the league(both in Baltimore), but lost to Tennessee.[/size][/font][/size] I guess the good news is that most of the remaining games that are considered good opponents are also at home(Houston, Indianapolis). But there is still that huge game in Pittsburgh, that trip to San Diego, and plenty of "mediocre" or "bad" teams for the Ravens to not show up against.

All I know is, going into the playoffs,[b] I'd like my offense to be able to score in the 2nd half[/b]. And especially in the 4th quarter if needed.
[/quote]

You'd also like you're offense to be ran by Troy Smith, but i guess thats a different story eh?

And the colts are a good team? Since when?

But anyway, while i understand the people who are worrying that we can't score in the 4th quarter. But if we are up by 20+ (or it takes the other team about 3 scores to even tie the game), then who cares? Just run the ball, like we did last night, milk the clock, and take the W. A win is a win no matter if Flacco passes for 300 yards or 100 yards.

We are still 3-1, getting a few players that are key to this team back from injury (Smith, Carr, Grubbs, Evans, Reed, etc.) and we are sitting pretty. I personally am gonna take this win for what it is; a huge defensive performance (a typical ravens performance) and walk away.

[Ravens549]

And had we scored these touchdowns we would be accused EVEN MORE of running up the score. A team plays differently when blowing a team out then when trying to come from behind.
But I guess one needs to find something to dislike about our 3-1 Ravens that blew out the Steelers and Jets....

[Purple_Polo89]

[quote name='ROH522155' timestamp='1317620622' post='813893']
[b]For the fourth straight week, the Baltimore Ravens are in first place.[/b]
[/quote]

[Purple Punishment]

[quote name='RavenoutWest' timestamp='1317620750' post='813899']
Yeah, I no longer think Flacco will be an elite QB. I think he's fair to good but not elite..no I'm not a Flacco hater, I look at what's really happening and edreedfromtheu makes a valid point. Since the Pittsburg game, the offense has shown little, Flacco has shown little. I was hoping it was going to be a break out year for him but when you look at the numbers...they tell the story.
I'm glad to go into the break at 3-1 for sure, but I'll be looking and hoping for a better offense on the other side.
[/quote]

So Flacco to Torrey Smith for three touchdowns in the first quarter against the Rams showed u nothing?

[Moderator 2]

Boldin is the only VET WR that was out there last night and the TE's are young also--growing pains WITHOUT OTA's and workouts are showing

[edreedfromtheu]

[quote name='Moderator 2' timestamp='1317675660' post='814816']
Boldin is the only WR that was out there last night and the TE's are young also--growing pains WITHOUT OTA's and workouts are showing
[/quote]

Torrey Smith was out there. LaQuan Williams was out there.

[ROH522155]

[quote name='edreedfromtheu' timestamp='1317680942' post='814959']
Torrey Smith was out there. LaQuan Williams was out there.
[/quote]

You know what Mod 2 meant dude. Obviously there was more than one wide reciever.

[Guest ArmyRaven52]

How odd is this thread?

Ok Flacco had a bad game.. true
Our offense has not scored in the 4th.. true
we should not be worried about that.. [u][i][b]FALSE[/b][/i][/u]. If you are not worried about that I am not sure what to say

"We had a big lead" so did GB and against an inferior opponent, and yet we would not because..... The SB champs have nothing that can be learned from, or what? There is a reason that they are there they swing hard, and they dont stop until it is over, there is no mercy killing with them.

Some people are going to feel really dumb if we are winning by 20 late in the 3rd start playin conservative, lose our rhythm and lose. now if we are up 27 in the 4th you are going to need the greatest show on turf, and this years Pats defense, defendin that for a comeback to happen.

Point is we need to be aggressive all the way through until we are inside the 2 minute warning and leading by 2 score, I am not sure where so many of you got compassion for our opposition all of the sudden.

On a positive note, a great coach once said " A QB is not good until his 10th year." Which I hope is not the case, but it is meant to say Flacco sucked last night (statistically) he was not aided by drops but he still shoulders his blame in the bad Offensive performance. That being said he also showed something we already knew, he ran 12 yards behind the line was still backpedaling and zinged a ball to a receiver, that is impressive, and it just shows that he is developing in his game.

[RavenoutWest]

[quote name='Purple Punishment' timestamp='1317674496' post='814781']
So Flacco to Torrey Smith for three touchdowns in the first quarter against the Rams showed u nothing?
[/quote]
and since that first quarter what has the offense done? Last year they offense showed up for at least a half before disappearing. I don't want a repeat of that this year..I don't want the defense to outscore our offense, like they have since then. I'm gonna wait until half the season is over before I post again..I want to see where we really go, after all it's only been four games.

[raveon]

Allways got to be someone running around ringing their hands and saying woo is me. Relax your team is 3 and 1 at the quarter pole and the future looks bright

[Moderator 2]

Edited to add VET. The rest are youngun's

[The Raven]

The offense is fine... Do people realize we were [i]quite obviously [/i]running the clock out in the 4th? And successfully I might add. There's really no need to score in the 4th if you have a [b]17 point lead. [/b]Especially when your defense only allowed [u][b]3[/b][/u] points. The other 14 were a KRTD and a INT-TD.

Quit worryin guys!

[Militant X 1]

[quote name='1/28/01' timestamp='1317665882' post='814530']
That was an ugly win, but I'll take it
[/quote]

it was falling out of an ugly tree and hitting every branch on the way down ugly!!!!

~Mili

[Purple Punishment]

[quote name='RavenoutWest' timestamp='1317682527' post='814987']

and since that first quarter what has the offense done? Last year they offense showed up for at least a half before disappearing. I don't want a repeat of that this year..I don't want the defense to outscore our offense, like they have since then. I'm gonna wait until half the season is over before I post again..I want to see where we really go, after all it's only been four games.
[/quote]

They didn't need to show up after that first quarter. We were pulverizing them.

However I truly believe you put your foot on their throats and keep it there and put all your weight on it. If we beat the Rams by 55 points, oh well. Nobody says anything when the Pats put up 40-50 pts in a game, nobody gives them flack about it. We should do the same. I believe letting up on a team breeds complacency and can cost you a game.

[AsianRice]

[quote name='RavenoutWest' timestamp='1317682527' post='814987']
and since that first quarter what has the offense done? Last year they offense showed up for at least a half before disappearing. I don't want a repeat of that this year..I don't want the defense to outscore our offense, like they have since then. I'm gonna wait until half the season is over before I post again..I want to see where we really go, after all it's only been four games.
[/quote]
Sound like u'r going to jump the Greenbay ship pretty soon.....

The Ravens have been built as smash-mouthed football ever since they came from Cleveland. Since Joe's era, our offense start to pick up and gradually taking the burden of game winning dependency off the defense. We are not the Greenbay or Phillies wannabe; we are the Ravens with great defense and good offense. Even with the elite offense from Rodgers, they score only 13pts against the Redskins, 9pts from the Jets last year, and additionally 10pts against the Bears in the Championship where the defense carried Rodgers to win the game. There are ups and downs on the defense and offense side of the game; it's important both offense and defense have to compliment each other. We are still experimenting on the offense of side and seeking in sync with the rookies recievers. Soon, every1 will be on the same page and the offense will be clicked.

BTW, where do you see the sign of repeat of last year? We ran the ball into the 4th quarter and chewed up 7mins of game time. That's alot of team are dreaming to do that when they are leading in a large margin; especially running against the Jets when they expect you're running. Did you even investigate what Rex Ryan defense are built for? They are built to stop Brady and any great passer in the game. I expect Flacco to struggle in this game, but at the same time with this kind of game he will learn from it and grow from it. That's y great QBs are built through experiences, not by natural born talent.