[News] Eisenberg: Ravens Can Prove They Have Their Swagger Back

[BR News]

The Ravens' stock has sunk a bit since they won the Super Bowl four years ago, but playing well against the New England Patriots in primetime could solidify Baltimore's recent surge.

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[The Greek]

good luck monday. i believe you guys can win this if you keep the penalties and turnovers in check. go ravens bills titans cards

[MaineRavenFan]

This will be THE statement game of the regular season for us...
That being said, I believe in our team and our coaches - they all know what they need to do to beat Brady and Belichick...
Flying the Black and Purple proudly up here in the northcountry,
I BELIEVE IN OUR BALTIMORE RAVENS - WE GOT THIS!!!

[CQ1]

Lets continue to build the Swagger....!
Lets destroy the death star of the nfl !
Go and GROW, Ravens!

[kbman]

I posted this last night at NFL.com under the Ravens-Patriots game discussion ...

On December 16, 2012 at around 3:00PM EST, Joe Flacco lay on the ground in Baltimore. There was blood trickling onto the Ravens goal line from a cut on Flacco's face. One of the cleats from the Bronco's Chris Harris had caught him as he dove, trying to prevent Harris from scoring on a 98 yard pick 6. Despite being partially blocked near the 50 yard line, Flacco had continued to chase Harris, and almost caught him. His chase was likely as much in frustration as in desperation.

The Ravens had entered December 9-2 and on a four game winning streak which included tough road wins in Pittsburgh and San Diego. They appeared to have their home game with the Steelers in hand when arch-nemesis James Harrison hit Flacco from the blind side and stripped the ball, leading to the deciding TD. This was followed by a close loss to the Redskins in Washington, and now a blowout loss in progress to the playoff-bound Broncos. The Ravens once-promising season appeared to be going down the tubes in a hurry.

And then a miracle happened.

OK, the miracle was a few weeks later, after the Ravens had rebounded against the defending world champion Giants to get into the playoffs, then defeated the wild card Colts at home. They were again playing the Broncos, this time in Denver, and it appeared that the Broncos had the game in hand. They were up 35-28 with under a minute left and the Ravens were facing 3rd and 3 at their own 30 yard line. That's when Flacco unleashed a pass that traveled 60 yards in the air to hit Jacoby Jones with the game tying TD. The Ravens went on to win the Super Bowl, and in the process Joe Flacco tied Joe Montana for the most post-season TD's without an interception.

Two years later in the divisional championship game, Flacco matched Brady TD for TD, twice taking 14 point leads in Foxboro. But the Ravens eventually fell victim to the Pats as their defensive secondary wasn't up to the task of covering the Patriots receivers.

This year is shaping up similarly to 2012. The Ravens started 3-0, but then went 0-for-October, losing four games in a row to the Raiders, Redskins, Giants, and (ugh) Jets. They were all close games, and there were serious injury problems throughout that time, but regardless of that, the Ravens entered November 3-4, lucky that the rest of the AFC North was faring just as badly or worse. Since then they have gone 4-1 with that one loss being to the Cowboys in Dallas. They have also gotten healthy. And if they can remain without significant injuries, their chances at taking it all again are far better than their 7-5 record might suggest.

After that loss to the Pats in the 2014 playoffs, the Ravens were predicted by many to win the SB in 2015. That was before a raft of injuries hit the team, eventually leaving half the opening day starters on IR, with other key injuries as well, including first round draft pick Brashad Perriman who never played a snap in 2015. Their season of frustration was made all the worse when, in the same game, Justin Forsett broke his arm and Joe Flacco went down with torn ACL and MCL in his left knee.

They finished 5-11, their first losing season under John Harbaugh. The one bright spot was that they DID get some nifty draft picks - picks which have paid off well. Perhaps the most important have been first round pick Ronnie Stanley at left guard, and fourth round pick Tavon Young at CB. Stanley has lived up to his hype as a quality offensive lineman, and the Ravens four game losing streak just happened to correspond to the four games Stanley missed due to injury. Meanwhile Young has played his way into the starting cornerback spot, winning the job from opening day starter Shareece Wright.

The Ravens defensive backfield also has PFF's top rated strong safety, Eric Weddle, and converted CB Ladarius Webb who is rapidly developing into a quality free safety. They are a far stronger unit than the one that Brady picked apart in the 2014 playoffs. Meanwhile, Flacco has better offensive weapons than he has ever enjoyed. Whereas his only deep threat in 2014 was Torrey Smith, he now has Mike Wallace, Brashad Perriman, and Chris Moore who can all burn down the field. He also has big-bodied tight end Darren Waller who has the speed of a wide receiver and the height to be able to go up high in the back of the endzone.

The Ravens also have two quality running backs in Terrence West and Kenneth Dixon. Dixon, another fourth round pick, has recovered from the knee injury that kept him from playing the first several games of the season, and is showing the kind of elusiveness that made him the Ravens top running back this preseason. Now that the offensive line has gotten healthy and learned to play as a unit, both the running game and the passing game have improved.

If the Pats want to win on Monday they had better be significantly better than they were in 2014, because the Ravens are.

[sibelius]

13 minutes ago, kbman said:

I posted this last night at NFL.com under the Ravens-Patriots game discussion ...

On December 16, 2012 at around 3:00PM EST, Joe Flacco lay on the ground in Baltimore. There was blood trickling onto the Ravens goal line from a cut on Flacco's face. One of the cleats from the Bronco's Chris Harris had caught him as he dove, trying to prevent Harris from scoring on a 98 yard pick 6. Despite being partially blocked near the 50 yard line, Flacco had continued to chase Harris, and almost caught him. His chase was likely as much in frustration as in desperation.

The Ravens had entered December 9-2 and on a four game winning streak which included tough road wins in Pittsburgh and San Diego. They appeared to have their home game with the Steelers in hand when arch-nemesis James Harrison hit Flacco from the blind side and stripped the ball, leading to the deciding TD. This was followed by a close loss to the Redskins in Washington, and now a blowout loss in progress to the playoff-bound Broncos. The Ravens once-promising season appeared to be going down the tubes in a hurry.

And then a miracle happened.

OK, the miracle was a few weeks later, after the Ravens had rebounded against the defending world champion Giants to get into the playoffs, then defeated the wild card Colts at home. They were again playing the Broncos, this time in Denver, and it appeared that the Broncos had the game in hand. They were up 35-28 with under a minute left and the Ravens were facing 3rd and 3 at their own 30 yard line. That's when Flacco unleashed a pass that traveled 60 yards in the air to hit Jacoby Jones with the game tying TD. The Ravens went on to win the Super Bowl, and in the process Joe Flacco tied Joe Montana for the most post-season TD's without an interception.

Two years later in the divisional championship game, Flacco matched Brady TD for TD, twice taking 14 point leads in Foxboro. But the Ravens eventually fell victim to the Pats as their defensive secondary wasn't up to the task of covering the Patriots receivers.

This year is shaping up similarly to 2012. The Ravens started 3-0, but then went 0-for-October, losing four games in a row to the Raiders, Redskins, Giants, and (ugh) Jets. They were all close games, and there were serious injury problems throughout that time, but regardless of that, the Ravens entered November 3-4, lucky that the rest of the AFC North was faring just as badly or worse. Since then they have gone 4-1 with that one loss being to the Cowboys in Dallas. They have also gotten healthy. And if they can remain without significant injuries, their chances at taking it all again are far better than their 7-5 record might suggest.

After that loss to the Pats in the 2014 playoffs, the Ravens were predicted by many to win the SB in 2015. That was before a raft of injuries hit the team, eventually leaving half the opening day starters on IR, with other key injuries as well, including first round draft pick Brashad Perriman who never played a snap in 2015. Their season of frustration was made all the worse when, in the same game, Justin Forsett broke his arm and Joe Flacco went down with torn ACL and MCL in his left knee.

They finished 5-11, their first losing season under John Harbaugh. The one bright spot was that they DID get some nifty draft picks - picks which have paid off well. Perhaps the most important have been first round pick Ronnie Stanley at left guard, and fourth round pick Tavon Young at CB. Stanley has lived up to his hype as a quality offensive lineman, and the Ravens four game losing streak just happened to correspond to the four games Stanley missed due to injury. Meanwhile Young has played his way into the starting cornerback spot, winning the job from opening day starter Shareece Wright.

The Ravens defensive backfield also has PFF's top rated strong safety, Eric Weddle, and converted CB Ladarius Webb who is rapidly developing into a quality free safety. They are a far stronger unit than the one that Brady picked apart in the 2014 playoffs. Meanwhile, Flacco has better offensive weapons than he has ever enjoyed. Whereas his only deep threat in 2014 was Torrey Smith, he now has Mike Wallace, Brashad Perriman, and Chris Moore who can all burn down the field. He also has big-bodied tight end Darren Waller who has the speed of a wide receiver and the height to be able to go up high in the back of the endzone.

The Ravens also have two quality running backs in Terrence West and Kenneth Dixon. Dixon, another fourth round pick, has recovered from the knee injury that kept him from playing the first several games of the season, and is showing the kind of elusiveness that made him the Ravens top running back this preseason. Now that the offensive line has gotten healthy and learned to play as a unit, both the running game and the passing game have improved.

If the Pats want to win on Monday they had better be significantly better than they were in 2014, because the Ravens are.

well done

[Molson Man]

I posted this last night at NFL.com under the Ravens-Patriots game discussion ...

On December 16, 2012 at around 3:00PM EST, Joe Flacco lay on the ground in Baltimore. There was blood trickling onto the Ravens goal line from a cut on Flacco's face. One of the cleats from the Bronco's Chris Harris had caught him as he dove, trying to prevent Harris from scoring on a 98 yard pick 6. Despite being partially blocked near the 50 yard line, Flacco had continued to chase Harris, and almost caught him. His chase was likely as much in frustration as in desperation.

The Ravens had entered December 9-2 and on a four game winning streak which included tough road wins in Pittsburgh and San Diego. They appeared to have their home game with the Steelers in hand when arch-nemesis James Harrison hit Flacco from the blind side and stripped the ball, leading to the deciding TD. This was followed by a close loss to the Redskins in Washington, and now a blowout loss in progress to the playoff-bound Broncos. The Ravens once-promising season appeared to be going down the tubes in a hurry.

And then a miracle happened.

OK, the miracle was a few weeks later, after the Ravens had rebounded against the defending world champion Giants to get into the playoffs, then defeated the wild card Colts at home. They were again playing the Broncos, this time in Denver, and it appeared that the Broncos had the game in hand. They were up 35-28 with under a minute left and the Ravens were facing 3rd and 3 at their own 30 yard line. That's when Flacco unleashed a pass that traveled 60 yards in the air to hit Jacoby Jones with the game tying TD. The Ravens went on to win the Super Bowl, and in the process Joe Flacco tied Joe Montana for the most post-season TD's without an interception.

Two years later in the divisional championship game, Flacco matched Brady TD for TD, twice taking 14 point leads in Foxboro. But the Ravens eventually fell victim to the Pats as their defensive secondary wasn't up to the task of covering the Patriots receivers.

This year is shaping up similarly to 2012. The Ravens started 3-0, but then went 0-for-October, losing four games in a row to the Raiders, Redskins, Giants, and (ugh) Jets. They were all close games, and there were serious injury problems throughout that time, but regardless of that, the Ravens entered November 3-4, lucky that the rest of the AFC North was faring just as badly or worse. Since then they have gone 4-1 with that one loss being to the Cowboys in Dallas. They have also gotten healthy. And if they can remain without significant injuries, their chances at taking it all again are far better than their 7-5 record might suggest.

After that loss to the Pats in the 2014 playoffs, the Ravens were predicted by many to win the SB in 2015. That was before a raft of injuries hit the team, eventually leaving half the opening day starters on IR, with other key injuries as well, including first round draft pick Brashad Perriman who never played a snap in 2015. Their season of frustration was made all the worse when, in the same game, Justin Forsett broke his arm and Joe Flacco went down with torn ACL and MCL in his left knee.

They finished 5-11, their first losing season under John Harbaugh. The one bright spot was that they DID get some nifty draft picks - picks which have paid off well. Perhaps the most important have been first round pick Ronnie Stanley at left guard, and fourth round pick Tavon Young at CB. Stanley has lived up to his hype as a quality offensive lineman, and the Ravens four game losing streak just happened to correspond to the four games Stanley missed due to injury. Meanwhile Young has played his way into the starting cornerback spot, winning the job from opening day starter Shareece Wright.

The Ravens defensive backfield also has PFF's top rated strong safety, Eric Weddle, and converted CB Ladarius Webb who is rapidly developing into a quality free safety. They are a far stronger unit than the one that Brady picked apart in the 2014 playoffs. Meanwhile, Flacco has better offensive weapons than he has ever enjoyed. Whereas his only deep threat in 2014 was Torrey Smith, he now has Mike Wallace, Brashad Perriman, and Chris Moore who can all burn down the field. He also has big-bodied tight end Darren Waller who has the speed of a wide receiver and the height to be able to go up high in the back of the endzone.

The Ravens also have two quality running backs in Terrence West and Kenneth Dixon. Dixon, another fourth round pick, has recovered from the knee injury that kept him from playing the first several games of the season, and is showing the kind of elusiveness that made him the Ravens top running back this preseason. Now that the offensive line has gotten healthy and learned to play as a unit, both the running game and the passing game have improved.

If the Pats want to win on Monday they had better be significantly better than they were in 2014, because the Ravens are.

All great except Ronnie Stanley is our left tackle not guard. It's all right there just need to put a run together, without burning ourselves out completely before the playoffs. Love the view points.

[BigUgly]

If the Ravens smack the Pats in the mouth on both sides of the ball (which I think they can do) and do so without killer penalties and turnovers (not as confident), they should win this game.

[btfan2]

It really is - Who wants it more. And discipline, the zebra's will be using any excuse to help the Pat's win. Don't help the helpers. ( I truly believe some day in the future some retired zebra will write a tell all and admit the Z's played favorites. Maybe even took bribes, there I said it!!)

[Purple Dawg 96]

2012 game Joe had to hit Pitta to get that ball rolling! All the Ravens swagger rest in Joe Flacco's arm! KEEP SLINGING THAT ROCK and good things will follow! The run will do so well but we need daggers and that's with a good steady dose of passes until they break and West and KD can finish them off! OOOUUU! LOL

[Ravensfansince03]

#1 Defense. Better than all other 31 teams!!

BALTIMORE RAVENS!

[Junior Jakes]

Is this the same article that he wrote before the Dallas game?

I want us to win but let's face it, we have not proven that we can win a big game on the road yet this year.

I'm hoping for the best but I really don't want to hear Wacko say that we should have beaten them like he did after the cowgirls game.

Swagger aside, we just need to play a really smart four quarters because we all know the patsies will and they don't beat themselves like we have had the tendency to do at times, so far.

The wise guys say we are a bigger underdog than the brownies this week so there must be a good reason for that kind of betting line.

[poescrows]

1 minute ago, Junior Jakes said:

Is this the same article that he wrote before the Dallas game?

I want us to win but let's face it, we have not proven that we can win a big game on the road yet this year.

I'm hoping for the best but I really don't want to hear Wacko say that we should have beaten them like he did after the cowgirls game.

Swagger aside, we just need to play a really smart four quarters because we all know the patsies will and they don't beat themselves like we have had the tendency to do at times, so far.

The wise guys say we are a bigger underdog than the brownies this week so there must be a good reason for that kind of betting line.
 

well, any QB thats interviewed after a loss, is gonna say "we shouldv'e won". whats he gonna say "we lost just as I expected"?

[verified]

i hope we dont try and play alex lewis, this isnt the game to have someone trying to knock the rust off, no unnessacy penalties

[bigcatfrank1]

The Ravens need to go on the road and win this game. FOr right now they could be at the healthiest and most fined tuned of the season. If they cannot win now, it would be unexpected that they may not manage a win in the playoffs against possibly teams running at even higher momentum. The Patriots are weakened by the loss of Gronk and Amendola, their lines are weak and they have trouble against the run. The Ravens need to expose them at their weaknessws, not the other way around. The Ravens weaknesses, while evident, really are much more subtle and have tended to be injury related. Its time to go back to back with a strong outing of all 3 teams playing at a top level. Do this and the Ravens come home with a win. Do this, they will be the better team than the Patriots on Monday night.

[KidNme]

I posted this last night at NFL.com under the Ravens-Patriots game discussion ...

On December 16, 2012 at around 3:00PM EST, Joe Flacco lay on the ground in Baltimore. There was blood trickling onto the Ravens goal line from a cut on Flacco's face. One of the cleats from the Bronco's Chris Harris had caught him as he dove, trying to prevent Harris from scoring on a 98 yard pick 6. Despite being partially blocked near the 50 yard line, Flacco had continued to chase Harris, and almost caught him. His chase was likely as much in frustration as in desperation.

The Ravens had entered December 9-2 and on a four game winning streak which included tough road wins in Pittsburgh and San Diego. They appeared to have their home game with the Steelers in hand when arch-nemesis James Harrison hit Flacco from the blind side and stripped the ball, leading to the deciding TD. This was followed by a close loss to the Redskins in Washington, and now a blowout loss in progress to the playoff-bound Broncos. The Ravens once-promising season appeared to be going down the tubes in a hurry.

And then a miracle happened.

OK, the miracle was a few weeks later, after the Ravens had rebounded against the defending world champion Giants to get into the playoffs, then defeated the wild card Colts at home. They were again playing the Broncos, this time in Denver, and it appeared that the Broncos had the game in hand. They were up 35-28 with under a minute left and the Ravens were facing 3rd and 3 at their own 30 yard line. That's when Flacco unleashed a pass that traveled 60 yards in the air to hit Jacoby Jones with the game tying TD. The Ravens went on to win the Super Bowl, and in the process Joe Flacco tied Joe Montana for the most post-season TD's without an interception.

Two years later in the divisional championship game, Flacco matched Brady TD for TD, twice taking 14 point leads in Foxboro. But the Ravens eventually fell victim to the Pats as their defensive secondary wasn't up to the task of covering the Patriots receivers.

This year is shaping up similarly to 2012. The Ravens started 3-0, but then went 0-for-October, losing four games in a row to the Raiders, Redskins, Giants, and (ugh) Jets. They were all close games, and there were serious injury problems throughout that time, but regardless of that, the Ravens entered November 3-4, lucky that the rest of the AFC North was faring just as badly or worse. Since then they have gone 4-1 with that one loss being to the Cowboys in Dallas. They have also gotten healthy. And if they can remain without significant injuries, their chances at taking it all again are far better than their 7-5 record might suggest.

After that loss to the Pats in the 2014 playoffs, the Ravens were predicted by many to win the SB in 2015. That was before a raft of injuries hit the team, eventually leaving half the opening day starters on IR, with other key injuries as well, including first round draft pick Brashad Perriman who never played a snap in 2015. Their season of frustration was made all the worse when, in the same game, Justin Forsett broke his arm and Joe Flacco went down with torn ACL and MCL in his left knee.

They finished 5-11, their first losing season under John Harbaugh. The one bright spot was that they DID get some nifty draft picks - picks which have paid off well. Perhaps the most important have been first round pick Ronnie Stanley at left guard, and fourth round pick Tavon Young at CB. Stanley has lived up to his hype as a quality offensive lineman, and the Ravens four game losing streak just happened to correspond to the four games Stanley missed due to injury. Meanwhile Young has played his way into the starting cornerback spot, winning the job from opening day starter Shareece Wright.

The Ravens defensive backfield also has PFF's top rated strong safety, Eric Weddle, and converted CB Ladarius Webb who is rapidly developing into a quality free safety. They are a far stronger unit than the one that Brady picked apart in the 2014 playoffs. Meanwhile, Flacco has better offensive weapons than he has ever enjoyed. Whereas his only deep threat in 2014 was Torrey Smith, he now has Mike Wallace, Brashad Perriman, and Chris Moore who can all burn down the field. He also has big-bodied tight end Darren Waller who has the speed of a wide receiver and the height to be able to go up high in the back of the endzone.

The Ravens also have two quality running backs in Terrence West and Kenneth Dixon. Dixon, another fourth round pick, has recovered from the knee injury that kept him from playing the first several games of the season, and is showing the kind of elusiveness that made him the Ravens top running back this preseason. Now that the offensive line has gotten healthy and learned to play as a unit, both the running game and the passing game have improved.

If the Pats want to win on Monday they had better be significantly better than they were in 2014, because the Ravens are.

Nice, KBman. Love the positive attitude!

[thegooddoc456]

I hate when Eisenberg prefaces his articles by trying to diminish the importance of a game. We're in a tight race for the playoffs, of course we need every win we can get. How can you say the Ravens would be fine by winning their next 3 games, like it's a given...are those teams going to roll over and hand us their lunch money because Eisenberg ordained it? This is not some see 'let's see how we stack up' game...we need this win more than NE does, and I hope we play like it. We don't have the cushion for moral victories, we need actual victories 'bruh'.

[Crusader]

Ravens are not only playing Tha Patriot players but the scoreboard keeper, ball handler, time keeper, referees, and the greatest sneaky rule bending coach in NFL history. I would feel more positive if Ravens had hard hitters because Ravens have not proven they can win on skill and tactics this year.

[sizzlingdoom]

i hope we dont try and play alex lewis, this isnt the game to have someone trying to knock the rust off, no unnessacy penalties

No way he'll play. I dont' think he'll get back in the starting lineup unless Vlad's play slips or he starts racking up penalties. I think he's playing better than Lewis was. Plus why put him back in if he's rusty and not fully healthy.

[EdTheMythicalOne]

The swagger this team used to have was on the shut down defense and the fact that it was good enough to carry a team through a season and to win a Super Bowl (Trent Dilfer season and the season where Matt Stover won five games for us).

The defense is back to being one of the best in the league, though it looks a bit different than before. They shut down the run, and at times they can shut down the pass, but they are vulnerable. Back in the heydey of Suggs, Boulware, Lewis, Reed, McAlister...there really was no safe place on the field.

[Rav'n Maniac]

We are getting hot at the right time. No team has gone into NE and played with more heart and had more success than the Ravens have during the Harbs/Flacco era. There is no team other than the Ravens that NE doesn't want to face in their house.

I have all the faith in the world that our guys will go up there and put on a show. The only team NE has beaten with a winning record this season outside their own division is the Steelers, without Roethlisberger playing.

[Crusader]

The swagger this team used to have was on the shut down defense and the fact that it was good enough to carry a team through a season and to win a Super Bowl (Trent Dilfer season and the season where Matt Stover won five games for us).

The defense is back to being one of the best in the league, though it looks a bit different than before. They shut down the run, and at times they can shut down the pass, but they are vulnerable. Back in the heydey of Suggs, Boulware, Lewis, Reed, McAlister...there really was no safe place on the field.

You forgot Jermain Lewis on special teams.

[slowboater]

"The wise guys say we are a bigger underdog than the brownies this week so there must be a good reason for that kind of betting line."
It's called public perception. Vegas want's a 50-50 split on the money so they make their 10% juice. As long as the Pat's look invincible, they will get points. They get 3 for being at home and 4 more for the way they are playing. If the Ravens had played like they did last week for a couple of more weeks, the line wouldn't be nearly what it is. I read somewhere, where the pundits were stating if the Ravens win, it will be by a small margin and if the Pats win it will be by 10 points..... Ravens need to play mistake free. They can win this game.

[KidNme]

My feelings are that we'll play a great game but not sure if we'll pull out the win. I know we "can" but NE always seems to pull something out of their collective hats near the end of games with us. I'll be floating around here on cloud nine if we beat those guys and I'm trying my hardest to not expect the win so I'm not too disappointed if we lose. I guess my main concern would be that we play a great game for 60 minutes with very few mistakes on the field or on the sidelines.
Everyone is going to have to be on top of everything, at all times and leave nothing to chance. The only thing I admire about Brady (and I shudder to say it) is that Tom has that fire and pulls things out of his butt if he thinks he's going to lose (Probably comes more from him being a brat). You couple that with probably the best coach in football (Another shudder!), in the homeless looking, hooded Bilichick and they're hard to beat. Sure would love to play them in our house for once though!

[Militant X 1]

I wouldn't call that "1" offensive performance against the Dolphins at home as the Ravens having their "swag" back!

Now, IF they can go into Foxboro and do the same thing to Brady and company in Gillette...in front of their fans....on PRIMETIME with the ENTIRE football world watching them and their looking good in the process?

Then ummm, yeah...to me the "swag" may be back!

[EdTheMythicalOne]

10 hours ago, Crusader said:

You forgot Jermain Lewis on special teams.

He was a weapon for sure, had his biggest run in the Superbowl against the Giants, but he wasn't a game in-game out every down player. Guys that are primarily special teams players I don't think have "swagger." Deion Sanders did, but he was also a shut-down cornerback, maybe one of the best cover corners to ever play the game. As good as Devin Hester is, I don't think he has swagger. He wasn't much of a defender before they tried to make him a receiver which he also is not.

Tucker has a personality but it is a tough sell for a kicker to have swagger...unless you are Sebastian Janikowski and you're almost the size of a DE and can kick the crud out of anybody that would mess with you.

[JamesA119]

I hate when Eisenberg prefaces his articles by trying to diminish the importance of a game. We're in a tight race for the playoffs, of course we need every win we can get. How can you say the Ravens would be fine by winning their next 3 games, like it's a given...are those teams going to roll over and hand us their lunch money because Eisenberg ordained it? This is not some see 'let's see how we stack up' game...we need this win more than NE does, and I hope we play like it. We don't have the cushion for moral victories, we need actual victories 'bruh'.

Agree!

[FloridalovesRavens]

  On 12/11/2016 at 8:30 AM, Crusader said:

You forgot Jermain Lewis on special teams.

He was a weapon for sure, had his biggest run in the Superbowl against the Giants, but he wasn't a game in-game out every down player. Guys that are primarily special teams players I don't think have "swagger." Deion Sanders did, but he was also a shut-down cornerback, maybe one of the best cover corners to ever play the game. As good as Devin Hester is, I don't think he has swagger. He wasn't much of a defender before they tried to make him a receiver which he also is not.

Tucker has a personality but it is a tough sell for a kicker to have swagger...unless you are Sebastian Janikowski and you're almost the size of a DE and can kick the crud out of anybody that would mess with you.

What is swagger? Just another word for show off in my book. The Ravens are what they are and that is alright with me. Go Ravens!

[FloridalovesRavens]

The swagger this team used to have was on the shut down defense and the fact that it was good enough to carry a team through a season and to win a Super Bowl (Trent Dilfer season and the season where Matt Stover won five games for us).

The defense is back to being one of the best in the league, though it looks a bit different than before. They shut down the run, and at times they can shut down the pass, but they are vulnerable. Back in the heydey of Suggs, Boulware, Lewis, Reed, McAlister...there really was no safe place on the field.

All teams are vulnerable at some point and that goes for the Pats as well. Don't think for one moment they aren't just a little bit worried about the outcome of this game. Hopefully we can show up like we did for the Dolphins game. If we can hold it together we will win.

[Crusader]

Question answered...... NO