Are The Ravens [4-1] The Team To Beat In The AFC?

[CHRISSY G69]

Whatcha Guys think?

[berad]

I didn't know what "tied" meant so I went with "maybe".

I think the Patriots and Steelers will get more prestige because of their name. The Ravens, Bills, Raiders, and Chargers are all right on the cusp. I like flying under the radar.

[CHRISSY G69]

Tied as in; They are the team to beat but share the respect with other teams.

[berad]

Eh, I'd still give the nod to the Steelers/Pats. That's mostly media-driven, though... plus the type of comments I see perusing other teams' forums before games with them.

[RivenHale]

Are the Ravens CONSIDERED the team to beat, or ARE they the team to beat? They're never CONSIDERED it, seems like. At least not since 2006.

But I'd have to say ... yeah. If we aren't the only one, we're darned close.

[hawkprey]

Every week people are saying "the Pats are even better" so it always goes to them, but in actuality the Ravens are the much tougher opponent.

[tctony]

Ravens are the most complete team in the AFC.

Patriots are the best offensive team.

Steelers don't even belong in the discussion.

[shawn ny]

I would consider the ravens as "the team to beat" if we could solidify our O line...It also doesnt help that we got beat by the lowly titans.

[gabefergy]

[quote name='shawn ny' timestamp='1319073758' post='828856']
I would consider the ravens as "the team to beat" if we could solidify our O line...It also doesnt help that we got beat by the lowly titans.
[/quote]
I don't see how any other AFC team is better than us. The Pats lost to the Bills and barely squeaked past the Cowboys. Their defense is poor and while Brady is still exceptional he has hasn't exactly been mistake free.

[Gordo52]

Pats and Chargers havent faced a D as deadly as ours. And we can put up points like anyone.The only team Im scared of is the Packers. And I say that confidently.

[jaege]

One of the teams to beat. The Pats still carry a lot of prestige, even though their defense stinks.

[The King]

It's the Patriots and the Ravens right now, with the Chargers maybe in the conversation depending on how they do in the next month. The Pats offense under Tom Brady and Bill Belichick is a relentless and ultra-efficient monster. The defense is improving greatly. The Chargers are a well balanced team that needs to beat some quality opponents before it can be considered a top team.

The Steelers have exactly one convincing win this season against the Titans. Every other game has been a loss or a squeaker, including their week one beatdown by our Ravens.

[CalvinSmoke]

The Chargers are in the same bout as the Steelers. Squeeked past teams they are supposed to handle easily.

[Crabcakes&Football]

[quote name='The King' timestamp='1319077548' post='828889']
It's the Patriots and the Ravens right now, with the Chargers maybe in the conversation depending on how they do in the next month. The Pats offense under Tom Brady and Bill Belichick is a relentless and ultra-efficient monster. [b]The defense is improving greatly.[/b] The Chargers are a well balanced team that needs to beat some quality opponents before it can be considered a top team.

The Steelers have exactly one convincing win this season against the Titans. Every other game has been a loss or a squeaker, including their week one beatdown by our Ravens.
[/quote]

Or did the Cowboys offense have a bad game?

[jusraven]

The Pat defense is getting better and will continue to improve. The Ravens offense is a work in progress and will continue to improve. The unpredictable scenario is created by possible future injuries which is why the Ravens need to have the whole team involved as much as possible and not just starters.

[BmoreRavens732]

I think we are (the ravens) because we are more balanced...there offense is beast as is our defense...our offense is exsplosive and is very capable of putting points up against there poor defense. We did it in 09 in Both games and last season and there D is worse this year...so all in all I see our O putting points up all game while there's does to but our D is capable of getting more stops and frustrating Brady so I think we def are

[Radinho84]

i think we have the best defense this year. our offense is good enough to beat everyone ih they are asked for. so by that: we are the team to beat right now. if we win against the steelers week 9 all the media will notice that too...

[Twistidfunk]

Tied right now.

Seems like everyone is still gunning for the Pats. Everyone loves talking about the Raiders and Bills also.

Ravens are probably the only team with quality wins so far but I like being under the radar.

[Guest caraven]

I think our biggest opposition will be New England.They have a great offense but defense is still a little off.Even the Cowboys held them to very few points in that game.But Tom Brady is still the best QB of the last decade so you cant under estimate them.

[Ed_Reed20]

I'd say it remains to be seen. While the Ravens certainly stack up against any of the better teams in the AFC, no one has truly separated themselves from the pack like Green Bay has done in the NFC in my opinion.

[PWNEDbyDEANO]

[quote name='Ed_Reed20' timestamp='1319122507' post='829095']
I'd say it remains to be seen. While the Ravens certainly stack up against any of the better teams in the AFC, no one has truly separated themselves from the pack like Green Bay has done in the NFC in my opinion.
[/quote]

Agreed.

I would say we are just about level with the Pats as best team in the AFC but I think the Chargers could soon work their way into the discussion, starting with beating the Jets.

[TheRavenouseD2008]

just waiting for week 12s famouse line to come out of Tomlins mouth to destroy their season so we seperate ourselves easily

[Jamal]

I'd say we're pretty much tied with NE at the moment.

[ninpiggy]

I chose "yes, but tied with other teams" with the Patriots in mind.

[-Nevermore-]

I can't tell who is the team to the beat in the AFC. I honestly believe it's a three team race. Us, New England and San Diego. It'll be interesting to see how San Diego plays in New York on Sunday. If they can get a win I keep them in the top three, if they lose, well they drop out of the race. Even if they are 4-1, they've played a bunch of cupcakes and haven't looked impressive.

Then again, San Diego is usually 2-2 or 1-4 at this point in the season. So maybe they've finally learned. Too bad we don't play the Pats this year, but it'll be a ridiculous match-up in the AFC Title game when we fight it out if the season plays out how I see it.

[The King]

Maybe we've all gotten a little bit too used to having nobody talking about us, because it seems to me that everyone is talking about the Ravens right now. There isn't a sports writer in the USA who doesn't have Baltimore in their top 5 teams, and I can't think of any team in the AFC outside of the Patriots I've seen ranked above us. Everyone knows that the Ravens are here and that they are for real.

I don't believe in San Diego right now because they've seemed to struggle in games they should dominate and Phillip Rivers has not been his usual self. The next month is the key for them.

[Militant X 1]

we "could be" the team to beat in the AFC...IF...we get this offense clicking properly and on a more consistent basis.

~Mili

[arkinell]

yes the ravens are 4-1 and tied want part of the damm question

[George70]

I would say yes, definitely, mostly because some of the opposition seems to, from my vantage point, measure somewhat short. Yet we are still somewhat early on in the season so far, so we'll just see how things turn out.

[-Nevermore-]

[quote name='Militant X 1' timestamp='1319211864' post='829811']
we "could be" the team to beat in the AFC...IF...we get this offense clicking properly and on a more consistent basis.

~Mili
[/quote]

Seems like the story of our life with Flacco. Can the offense do anything in the playoffs consistently so our defense doesn't have to hold teams to less than 14 points.