And here’s our first WTF signing. The Redskins were set at 2 spots on their 3 man defensive line with Stephen Bowen and Barry Cofield and were expecting Jarvis Jenkins to step up and take the 3^rd starting job. Jenkins was a 2^nd round pick in 2011 and impressed in training camp before tearing his ACL before the season. He probably would have been the starter in 2011 had he not gotten hurt and he was expected to start in 2012 as his recovery went well.

That would leave Adam Carriker as the odd man out. Carriker started at that 3^rd spot in 2011 and was pretty bad, ranking 30^th of 32 eligible 3-4 defensive ends on ProFootballFocus, so it would make sense that he’d be the odd man out. Apparently “odd man out” means “give him 20 million over 4 with 7 million guaranteed” to Daniel Snyder.

Grade: F

 

 

 

 

2010 Record: 6-10

Draft Position: 10

2010 Season Recap: Click Here

Offseason Needs: Click Here

Free Agents/Team Transactions: Click Here

Draft Grades: Click Here

Key Offseason Moves: Signed OJ Atogwe

Redskins Blogger: Anthony Brown

 

2010 Posts 

Is Washington the Joker for Jacksonville?, Donovan McNabb’s Worst Nightmare, How many more wins for the Redskins this year?, Redskins-Titans Preview, Couples Counseling: Can McNabb-Shanahan be fixed?, Redskins-Lions Preview, Redskins Preview, Packers/Redskins Preview, Redskins/Eagles Preview

 

 

2nd round 3rd round 

 

64. Indianapolis Colts- NT Alameda Ta’amu (Washington)

Chuck Pagano is trying to rebuild the Colts in the model of the Ravens, meaning big and physical, especially on defense. However, they don’t have a defensive player over 310 pounds. They desperately need a big, run stuffing nose tackle. Ta’amu fits the bill at 340 pounds.

65. St. Louis Rams- WR Mohamed Sanu (Rutgers)

The Rams receiving corps is so barren that they could use two picks on wide receivers, especially since Stephen Hill is so raw.

66. Minnesota Vikings- CB Casey Hayward (Vanderbilt)

This is why the Vikings passed on Morris Claiborne in the first round. This is a deep cornerback class and, besides, they run a cover 2 system which doesn’t put as much value on the cornerback position. Casey Hayward is an ideal fit for their system.

67. Cleveland Browns- WR Chris Givens (Wake Forest)

The Browns will have to take a wide receiver at some point. They wanted Kendall Wright at 22, but he didn’t make it there. Chris Givens is a similar player, albeit inferior. However, he’d be a nice compliment to Greg Little.

68. Tampa Bay Buccaneers- DT Brandon Thompson (Clemson)

This is a pure value pick as Thompson should have gone in the 2^nd round, but I couldn’t fit him. They could use more depth at defensive tackle even after signing Amobi Okoye, who is only on a one year deal.

69. Washington Redskins- OT Jeff Allen (Georgia)

I’ve said it 3 times before, but of the last 19 teams to take a quarterback in the first round, 15 took an offensive player with their next pick. They have some questions on the offensive line.  Left tackle Trent Williams is one failed drug test away from a season long suspension. Right tackle Jammal Brown hasn’t been the same since a major hip injury. Meanwhile, left guard Kory Lichtensteiger will be coming off a major knee injury next season. Jeff Allen is a versatile offensive lineman who can provide depth at 4 spots on their offensive line. Most likely, he’ll have to step into the starting lineup at some point.

70. Jacksonville Jaguars- CB Josh Norman (Coastal Carolina)

The Jaguars will take a cornerback at some point fairly early in the draft. Their top 3 cornerbacks will all be coming off of injuries in 2012 and all 3 of those players will all be in contract years. The Jaguars love small school kids and they’ve shown interest in Josh Norman.

71. Buffalo Bills- WR Greg Childs (Arkansas)

The Bills were seemingly in on every free agent wide receiver, but came up empty handed. Buddy Nix, who is really open with these types of things, mentioned added a big bodied receiver as a need of his. At 6-3, Childs would fit the ball.

 

72. Miami Dolphins- TE Ladarius Green (Louisiana-Lafayette)

Joe Philbin had Jermichael Finley in Green Bay. Ladarius Green could remind him of him. Anthony Fasano is a solid blocker at tight end, but nothing more. Green and Orson Charles are options here, but they worked out Green so they could take him over Charles, whose off the field issues might scare them away.

73. Miami Dolphins- DE Ronnell Lewis (Oklahoma)

The Dolphins are planning to, in some form, play a 4-3 defense next year, at least a hybrid. Koa Misi was the other rush linebacker opposite Cameron Wake in their 3-4, but he’s too small to be a down lineman in a 4-3. Lewis could be a bookend opposite Wake and would also upgrade Misi in a 3-4 at rush linebacker. Misi’s not too small for that position. He just offers no pass rush.

74. Kansas City Chiefs- QB Brock Osweiler (Arizona State)

I like the fit with the Chiefs and Brock Osweiler at some point. Matt Cassel is the type of guy who can get you into the playoffs, but he’s probably not a guy you can win the Super Bowl with. Brock Osweiler has huge upside, but he’s so raw. He declared a year early and could have been a first rounder in 2013. However, he’ll have all the time he needs in Kansas City behind Cassel and maybe he’ll emerge as a long term, franchise quarterback.

75. Seattle Seahawks- CB Ron Brooks (LSU)

Again, I have no idea what the Seahawks are going to do. However, I wanted to put Ron Brooks, a rising prospect, in the first 3 rounds somewhere and the Seahawks have worked him out. You can never have enough cornerbacks, especially since Walter Thurmond and Marcus Trufant can’t stay healthy.

76. Houston Texans- TE Orson Charles (Georgia)

The Texans love tight ends, but they’ll be moving James Casey full time to fullback and Joel Dreesen, who played more than almost any backup tight end in the league last year, signed in Denver. They could use another tight end behind Owen Daniels to at least compete with Garrett Graham, a 2010 4^th round pick who hasn’t done much yet.

77. New York Jets- S Brandon Taylor (LSU)

As a Patriots fan, I love watching Eric Smith try to cover Rob Gronkowski twice a year. Both LaRon Landry and Jim Leonhard are injury prone so it’s possible Smith could have to start for them again next year if they don’t address the position through the draft. That’s what they do here.

78. San Diego Chargers- RB LaMichael James (Oregon)

They need a backup for Ryan Matthews with Mike Tolbert signing in Carolina. Besides, you know Philip Rivers would like getting another player like Darren Sproles, who he really missed after he signed in New Orleans last offseason.

79. Chicago Bears- DT Billy Winn (Boise State)

More help up front for the Bears on defense. Yes, their offensive line is a need, but don’t try to tell them that. Offensive coordinator Mike Tice is a former offensive line coach and he’ll think he can coach up the guys they already have. Why else would they pass on both Riley Reiff and David DeCastro in the first? Winn adds depth at defensive tackle to replace the departed Anthony Adams and Amobi Okoye.

 

80. Arizona Cardinals- OT Mitchell Schwartz (California)

The Cardinals didn’t address their offensive line in the first round, but they’ll almost have to in the 3^rd round. Adam Snyder and Levi Brown are not very good at right and left tackle respectively and Snyder can also play guard. Schwartz will probably start the season as a 3^rd tackle, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he ended up in the starting lineup before the season is over.

81. Dallas Cowboys- WR TY Hilton (Florida International)

Dez Bryant and Miles Austin both have their share of recurring injury problems and they need a 3^rd receiver anyway with Laurent Robinson signing in Jacksonville. TY Hilton is someone they’ve had a private workout with.

82. Tennessee Titans- DT Mike Martin (Michigan)

I mentioned the 5 positions the Titans would probably be focusing on in the first few rounds earlier. They’ve already added a wide receiver and a linebacker. Here they grab a defensive tackle to go with Jurell Casey and Karl Klug. Martin is someone they worked out privately.

83. Cincinnati Bengals- RB Isaiah Pead (Cincinnati)

Both BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Bernard Scott averaged fewer than 4 yards per carry last season. They need another back in the mix.

84. Atlanta Falcons- C Ben Jones (Georgia)

Jones is a local product the Falcons have shown a lot of interest in. They need one more interior lineman, at least. Harvey Dahl is gone and they never adequately replaced him. Meanwhile, Todd McClure is getting up in age and just on a one year deal. Ben Jones can play center or guard, depending on what they decide to do with Joe Hawley.

85. Detroit Lions- RB Chris Polk (Washington)

They’ve used high picks on running backs 3 of the last 4 years. Kevin Smith went in the 3^rd round in 2008. Jahvid Best went in the 1^st in 2010. Mikel Leshoure was a 2^nd rounder last year. However, none of those guys can stay healthy. They love drafting best available and take Polk here to hopefully ensure they don’t have to use Maurice Morris down the stretch again.

86. Pittsburgh Steelers- NT Akiem Hicks (Regina)

Another young defensive player for the Steelers’ front 7. Casey Hampton will be a 35 year old free agent next offseason and right now he has a torn ACL that could sideline him for the start of the season. Mel Kiper mentioned Akiem Hicks as a potential small school 3^rd round pick (with Josh Norman and Justin Bethel).

 

87. Denver Broncos- RB Robert Turbin (Utah State)

John Fox loves being able to turn to multiple backs. However, with Willis McGahee getting up in age and Knowshon Moreno being unreliable health wise, he doesn’t have the capability to do that right now. He’ll probably find another back sometime in the draft.

88. Philadelphia Eagles- OT Donald Stephenson (Oklahoma)

The Eagles signed Demetress Bell to replace Jason Peters, who tore his Achilles. However, what happens if Bell, who has missed at least half the season with injuries in 3 of his 4 years as a pro, gets hurt? The Eagles will probably spend a pick on an insurance option in the mid rounds.

89. New Orleans Saints- WR Marvin McNutt (Iowa)

After losing Robert Meachem this offseason, there is a need for depth at wide receiver. Devery Henderson will be a first time full time starter next season. McNutt is a 4^th receiver and insurance in case Henderson struggles. That will allow them to keep the injury prone Lance Moore in the slot.

90. Green Bay Packers- CB Dwight Bentley (Louisiana-Lafayette)

Charles Woodson is still a good player, but he’s 36 in October. Someday he’ll either see his abilities decline or he’ll retire. The Packers need to be prepared for that day. Besides, another cornerback certainly couldn’t hurt the 2^nd worst yardage defense of all time.

91. Baltimore Ravens- WR Juron Criner (Arizona)

Anquan Boldin turns 32 in October and could be a cap casualty next offseason. Torrey Smith is a promising young receiver, but they need a Boldin type possession receiver to compliment him. Tandon Doss, their 2011 4^th round pick, is an option, but they’ll probably add another receiver at some point if they value fits.

92. San Francisco 49ers- CB Jayron Hosley (Virginia Tech)

Carlos Rogers will be 31 by the start of the season. It’s always possible his strong 2011 season was a fluke. He hadn’t done anything nearly as good before that. They’ll probably add another cornerback through the draft with so few needs. Hosley will fall because of a failed drug test at The Combine, but the 49ers have taken chances on Randy Moss and Perrish Cox this offseason so he could end up with them.

93. Cincinnati Bengals- WR Marvin Jones (California)

The Bengals will be looking for a compliment to AJ Green through the draft after losing both Andre Caldwell and Jerome Simpson this offseason.

94. New York Giants- G James Brown (Troy)

I’m very surprised the Giants didn’t take an offensive lineman at 32 with so many available. Maybe they’ll take a versatile one like James Brown here at 94.

95. Oakland Raiders- DE Cam Johnson (Virginia)

The Raiders lost Kamerion Wimbley this offseason. Cam Johnson is a different type of player, but he can probably play some of Wimbley’s old snaps as a nickel rusher on 3^rd downs.

 

 

Red Bryant is a good run stuffer, ranking 12^th against the run by ProFootballFocus among 4-3 ends, but he only has 2 career sacks over 4 seasons so 35 million over 5 years with 14.5 million guaranteed seems too rich. Earlier this week it sounded like he was going to get a deal similar to Brandon Mebane, who got 25 million over 5 years and 9 million guaranteed last offseason. That seems like a more fair deal. The Seahawks overpaid for a guy whose inability to get after the quarterback had him ranked 48^th among 4-3 defensive ends by ProFootballFocus.

Grade: C

 

 

Ray McDonald is not even a starter for the 49ers. He’s a depth 3^rd down lineman who only has 5 sacks in his 4-year career. Apparently pass rushing specialists who can’t get to the quarterback are worth 20 million over 5 years with 7 million guaranteed.

Grade: F

 

 

It’ll be interesting to see how Ray Edwards does without the Williams wall and Jared Allen next to him. Edwards has 16.5 sacks in the last two seasons, 20.5 if you include the 4 he had in just 2 playoff games in 2009. However, I don’t think he’s a #1 defensive end on a good pass rushing team. The good thing for Atlanta is, they didn’t pay him like he was one. This deal is worth 30 million over 5 years with just 11 million guaranteed. That’s a very cheap rate for a passing rushing #2 end who will line up across from John Abraham.

He’s also only 26 still and there’s a chance he continues to improve even without all the help he had in Minnesota and becomes a legitimate 10+ sack end, which will make this deal look like a bargain. Hard to believe the Panthers gave Charles Johnson 72 million over 6 years with 30 million guaranteed and the Falcons only gave Edwards 30 million over 5 with 11 million guaranteed.

Grade: A

 

By Derek Arnold

Former University of Maryland Terrapin Josh Wilson was the hero in Houston, saving the Ravens from what would have arguably been the worst collapse in an important game in the team’s fifteen year history.  The Ravens blew a 28-7 lead, and were up by 15 entering the game’s final period.  However, as has been their M.O. this season, no lead was safe…

Two ESPN graphics detailing the Ravens’ fourth quarter collapses looked to be prescient and incredibly accurate as the Texans scored a touchdown and a 2-point conversion with just 21 seconds remaining in regulation to force the extra period.  With the way the Ravens defense played over the final quarter, overtime looked to be just a formality in what was to be another Ravens’ collapse and Texans’ come-back win.

Luckily, Josh Wilson stepped up to preserve the win for the good guys.

Let’s dive into this one a bit…

No blowout

With 14:30 to go in the third quarter, this game looked to finally be the complete dominant game that Ravens fans have been waiting for all season.  The offense had already put up 21 points, and touchdowns on two of their final three possessions of the half.  The defense had held the Texans’ high-powered attack to just a single score, a touchdown on a hurry-up drive to end the second quarter.  And kick returner David Reed set the franchise record for longest kickoff return with his 103-yard touchdown to start the second half.  Life was good in Purple Paradise.

Slowly but surely though, the wheels came off.  Again.

Letting them back in it

In fact, Reed’s kick return touchdown may have been a bit of a blessing and a curse.  Instead of a two-score game, the Houston Texans suddenly found themselves trailing by a full three touchdowns.  With any minute hopes of postseason play – and likely, their coach’s job – fading before their eyes, they developed a “nothing to lose” mentality.  They were forced to throw the ball, and be aggressive.  And with weapons like Houston has – wide receiver Andre Johnson, running back Arian Foster, tight end Owen Daniels – they are very capable of putting up points in bunches, which is just what they did.

On the ensuing possession after the kick return, Houston faced 4th-and-3 at the Ravens’ 41.  In a 21-7 game, they probably punt there.  Trailing 28-7 though, they were forced to go for it.  They converted, and seven plays later a Neil Rackers field goal made the score 28-10.

Then came the wonderful Cam Cameron “playing from ahead” offense

The Ravens next offensive play was a Ray Rice run for no gain.  After that, a nine-yard sack of Joe Flacco.  Two plays, and the drive was effectively over, as they faced a 3rd-and-19 at their own 13-yard line.  A 12-yard pass to Rice would be the Ravens’ final play of the quarter until he ran for 4 yards on the period’s last play.

In the entire third quarter, the Ravens offense ran 4 plays (not including the punt) for 7 yards.

Still, they led 28-13, so things were looking alright.

Defense gassed

Although they were on the field for about 13 minutes in the third quarter, the Ravens’ defense gave up only two field goals.  However, all that time on the field would result in some cumulative fatigue.  As a result, those third quarter field goals turned into fourth quarter touchdowns for Houston.

The offense again sputtered, picking up just two first downs before giving the ball back to the Texans. Five minutes and fifteen plays later, the score was 28-20.

The Ravens’ defense was struggling, and obviously needed a break before being sent back out on the field.

Then things really got weird.

More odd clock management

Last year, Ravens fans were frustrated with the way John Harbaugh and Joe Flacco managed timeouts and the clock in the final minutes of halves and games.  The Ravens’ two-minute drill was terribly ineffective in 2009, and many of us felt that just from having played Madden for a few years,  we better understood how to manipulate the game clock to our advantage than the Ravens did.

Obviously, that’s ridiculous.  But so is the way Harbaugh used…and continues to use…timeouts.

For whatever reason, those situations have been more rare in 2010 – the Ravens haven’t had too many occasions where they’ve had to run a two-minute drill and put up points. The first Pittsburgh game comes to mind, but that’s about it.

However, the Ravens’ coaches’ questionable decision-making with regards to clock management have reared their ugly head in other areas.  Last week, it was Cam Cameron’s decision to pass the ball on 2nd-and-5 in the game’s final minutes, resulting in Troy Polamalu’s sack-fumble and a Steelers win.  Last night, a similar situation presented itself.

The Ravens led 28-20 with 2:58 remaining in the game, and faced a 3rd down and 2 at the Texans’ 44-yard line.  Houston had just burned their final timeout of the half.  A first down here would seal the game for the Ravens.  However, failing that, just keeping the clock running would be the next best thing – a 1-yard run would result in a 4th down, but the Ravens could have taken the clock down to about 2:10, and then either used a timeout or taken a 5-yard delay of game penalty, punted, and pinned the Texans deep with two minutes to drive the length of the field, and – at best – a single stop of the clock from the two-minute warning.

Ravens Nation was screaming – RUN THE BALL.

Did Cam run the ball? Of course not. Incomplete pass, clock stops, and now Houston takes possession with 2:42 to go.  They would go 95 yards and score with, again, 21 seconds left.  The Ravens could have taken 40 seconds off the clock by running on 3rd-and-2.  You do the math.

When asked after the game about the decision to pass, John Harbaugh responded with some nonsense about “not thinking about the clock there,” and that “we wanted the first down.”  Really coach, NOT thinking about the clock at all? Your biggest ally at that point in the game?  Yeah, that’s not asinine or anything.

And did the rules change? You can’t get a first down by running?

“It’s all Cam’s fault,” is still a popular mantra in Baltimore today, even with the Ravens’ win.

Taking them with you?

As odd as the decision to run the ball on 3rd-and-2 was, the coaches’ use of timeouts down the stretch was even stranger.  As mentioned, the defense was GASSED.  They had nothing left.

Greg Mattison is being criticized today for his 3-man rush late in the game today.  There is some merit to that, however, there are other circumstances to examine.  It’s widely understood that the most exhausting thing to do in football is rush the passer.  Matt Schaub threw 62 passes in the game, the great majority of which were in the second half.  The Ravens didn’t have anybody with enough energy to blitz.  This was never more painfully obvious than when, with 1:07 to go, Schaub scrambled for eight yards to the Ravens’ 35.  On the play, Jarret Johnson was giving chase, but Schaub – who runs something like a 5.5 40 – looked like Mike Vick running from the tired J.J.

The defense had nothing left.  What the team did have left was timeouts.  Two of them, to be exact.  Twice in the final minute the Texans stopped the clock – once by running out of bounds and once with a spike.  Two opportunities for the Ravens to use a timeout and give their defense a breather while not “helping the Texans out” at all by stopping the clock.  They chose not to, for whatever reason.

I’m shocked that one of the players – especially an Ed Reed or Ray Lewis – didn’t look around at their exhausted teammates and say “f this, coach,” and take a timeout on their own accord.

Now, with 21 seconds remaining, the score is 28-26.  A stop on the two-point conversion try can still win the game.  With 21 seconds, any dreams of having time after the kickoff to move down the field and get into field goal range are out of the question.  These timeouts can do absolutely no good after this play. You can’t take them with you into overtime.

WHY NOT CALL A TIMEOUT AND REGROUP FOR THE 2-POINT TRY? YOU CAN STILL WIN THE GAME HERE!

This decision still boggles my mind.

The real hero

With all due respect to Wilson, perhaps the real hero of the game is Cory Redding.  Redding stood at midfield before the overtime period, and correctly guessed “tails” on the coin flip.  Had the Ravens lost the toss, I have no doubt that we would be talking about an 8-5 team today.  The utterly pooped Ravens’ defense was not going to go back out there and stop Houston, not without at least a small break.

Tails gave them that break.

With a chance to go win the game, the offense of course failed again.  They did at least pick up a first down and hold the ball for three minutes.  Apparently, that was all the defense needed.

In the two plays that they were on the field in OT, the Ravens got great pressure with four rushers on Schaub.  It was Haloti Ngata harassing him in his own end zone that caused the errant pass from Schaub that ended the game.

Thanks for the drops

This recap is getting a bit too lengthy, so I’ll cut it short and save some other observations (terrible O-line play, great special teams) for a later post.  However, any analysis of this game can’t ignore the fact that the Texans started the game unable to catch a cold.

Texans’ receivers dropped five or six passes in the first half, which went a huge way in allowing the Ravens to build the 21 point lead that, in the end, they needed every bit of.

Thanks for being terrible at catching, Texans.

Now the Ravens come back home to face the Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints, who are finally getting healthy and seem to be hitting their stride as the season comes to a close.

Fun fun.

http://www.bmorebirdsnest.com/

Go back to Ravens Fan Spot 

 

By Derek Arnold 

Did we just witness the maturation of Joe Flacco as an NFL quarterback?

That’s what many of the talking sports heads in the media are saying this morning – that Joe, by virtue of his game winning touchdown drive during the final minute of yesterday’s win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, has now vaulted into the upper echelon of professional signal callers.

Indeed, it was a thing of beauty.  Flacco and the Ravens offense went 40 yards on just four plays in 36 seconds of game clock.  On the drive, they never faced a 3rd down situation.  Hell, the only faced a single second down, and even that was just second-and-one.  There wasn’t even the drama of a third-and-long or fourth-and-game situation as Joe faced down the beast that has been his nemesis since he entered the league, Dick LeBeau’s stifling Steeler defense, and came out on top.

On the play, T.J. Houshmandzadeh ran a great route, faking to the sideline as Flacco pump-faked, before turning towards the end zone and potential victory.  When he got there, a win was indeed waiting for him, in the form of a gorgeous pass that he ran under and hauled in, in the process sending all those rabid Steeler fans home from Heinz Field using their terrible towels to wipe away their copious tears.

Joe was finally able to do what Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers have been doing to the Ravens for years – breaking their hearts with a last-second drive to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.  That it happened at Heinz Field, which has for so long been a house of horrors for B’More, makes it all the more satisfying.  It was the Ravens’ first victory in Pittsburgh since 2006, and it not only served to keep their hated rivals from starting the season at 4-0 and with a commanding lead in the AFC North, but it catapulted them to first place in the division and gave them an early tiebreaker over the Steelers.

The game had, to that point, been the prototypical Ravens/Steelers match that we’ve come to expect stomach ulcers from each and every time these two clash heads.  The Steelers took an early lead on a Rashard Mendenhall run at the goalline, and the Ravens responded with a Willis McGahee touchdown run of their own.  From that point on, midway through the second quarter, no more than four points would separate the teams at any point during the game.  The Ravens led by a score of 10-7 at halftime, and by the same margin after the third quarter came to a close.

It felt all too familiar.  Leading after the second and third quarters means absolutely nothing, and far too many times we’ve seen Pittsburgh dominate the final quarter and make the plays down the stretch to eke out a win.  And when Mendenhall scored his second touchdown with just over seven minutes remaining, it seemed the game was taking a twist we’ve all seen far too many times before.  Taking a 14-10 lead had Pittsburgh and their fans, with that defense playing at home, feeling comfortable.  A bit too comfortable, as it turned out.

The Ravens took possession and went 65 yards on 10 plays on the ensuing drive…problem was, they needed 67 yards.  Third-and-goal and fourth-and-goal from the Pittsburgh 2-yard line both resulted in incomplete passes, and AGAIN it looked like the Steelers would survive.

They were too conservative on their ensuing possession though, afraid to let Charlie Batch take any chances that might result in a turnover.  Aided by a penalty, the Steelers went three-and-out, and Daniel Sepulveda punted from the back of his own end zone.  Another penalty, this one during the punt, moved the ball to the Pitt 40 yard-line for Flacco’s penultimate drive.  A drive that Ravens fans will be remembering fondly for many years to come.

For the first time in the Flacco-Harbaugh era, the Ravens won at Heinz Field.  And you couldn’t write a more perfect script of how it came to pass.

Give credit to Todd Heap and Ray Rice on that final play as well.  Both picked up Steelers’ blitzers from Flacco’s blind side, Heap coming all the way across the formation to stonewall Troy Polamalu.

The Ravens defense had another strong day, holding Rashard Mendenhall to just 79 yards on 25 carries, an average of just 3.16.  His longest carry on the day was 11 yards, lending credence to the theory that last week’s gashing by Cleveland’s Peyton Hillis was more a matter of effort than ability.  The run defense is fine.

As for the secondary, they were again fairly untested, but held up well.  Charlie Batch took his shots down the field, but connected on only one, a deep ball down the right sideline to Antwaan Randle El that set up the Steelers’ first score.  He tried Mike Wallace deep several times in the fourth quarter, only to be foiled each time by cornerback Lardarius Webb, who had a spectacular game.  On one, Wallace got both hands on the ball in the end zone before Webb stripped it out and nearly came away with the interception himself.

Still, some interceptions would be nice to see from this group at some point soon (even if Haloti Ngata is about to destroy you if you catch it…FABIAN!)

Speaking of Ngata, he was a beast Sunday, racking up a game-high 8 solo tackles, and team-high 11 total.  He made all of Heinz Field hold their breath, and all Ravens fans exclaim an “ooooooooh” when he planted Mendenhall about 3 feet deep into the turf on one short run.  Ngata also registered a sack, as did Terrell Suggs, who played a strong game despite drawing double teams for most of the day.  Suggs’ sack was big because it pushed the Steelers back on a long field goal attempt from Jeff Reed, and the kick ended up clanging off the right upright.

“Skippy,” as he is known in Pittsburgh, deserves special mention here.  Thank you, Jeff Reed, for going out and getting hammered Saturday night, or whatever else you did to make you forget how to kick inside your own stadium.  Reed missed two field goals Sunday, both going towards the open end of Heinz Field, which continues to prove impossible to master.  The swirling winds on that side of the field also pushed an early Billy Cundiff attempt wide right.

It was also nice to see the Steelers being the ones beating themselves for most of the day as well, as opposed to it being the Ravens as we’re used to witnessing.  While the penalties were fairly even throughout most of the game, in the end the tally was 7 for 52 yards for the Ravens, and 11 for 88 for Pittsburgh.  Three of Pittsburgh’s came in the final 5:03 though, making them extra costly.  Some Steelers fans are complaining about the refs this morning, so to them I’ll just say this – doesn’t feel so good when your team is on the short end, does it?

The other argument from yinzers and yinzer-wannabes alike will be this: “We didn’t have Ben.”

Well, that’s true.  But Ben doesn’t play defense.  TROY was out there. So were James, and Lamarr (both of whom were held extremely quiet by the Ravens’ offensive line all day).

“But the game wouldn’t have been that close if BEN was there.”

Fact: Roethlisberger has played in 4 of the 6 Ravens/Steelers games in the Harbugh-Flacco era.

Fact: ONE of those games was decided by more than four points.  Stop assuming that it would have been a blowout if #7 was on the field.  History doesn’t back that up.

Anyway, it was an awesome, awesome win for our Ravens, and it sets them up wonderfully moving forward. 

http://www.bmorebirdsnest.com/ 

 

By Derek Arnold 

Some people get all pumped up at the prospect of another hard-hitting, close-fought, drag out brawl between these two hated division rivals.  These people bask in the mutual hatred shared by the two fanbases, drinking in every last ounce of disdain as kickoff approaches. 

Usually, I’m one of those people.  For some reason this time feels a little different, though.

I can sense a few reasons for this.

One, two of the marquee guys on the teams won’t be participating Sunday, as the Steelers are without Ben Roethlisberger, and the Ravens without Ed Reed.

Second, it’s still very early in the season, so the stakes don’t seem quite as high as normal.

Mostly though, it probably has something to do with the classic psychological evaluation of people that states that we are more upset by negative outcomes than we are made joyous by positive ones.  That is, if you lost $1000, you’d be more angry/sad than you would be happy if you found that same $1000.

That’s how Ravens/Steelers feels this week.  The prospect of losing to Pittsburgh (again…Harbaugh/Flacco are a dismal 1-4 so far against them) is more vomit-inducing to me than a win over them is exciting.  This is in no small part due, I’m sure, to the fact that the Steelers are playing with house money at this point.  Even the most optimistic Steeler fan would have told you that they would be ecstatic to be 3-1 to start the season, and that the team should be more than satisfied with a 2-2 record out of the gates while their franchise quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, served his suspension.  Now, they face the very real prospect of going a ridiculous 4-0 to start 2010.  The only thing standing in the way of that outcome is, of course, our Baltimore Ravens.

Should the Ravens win this game, it will be as much a relief as a reason to celebrate.  Going up against a team that is on what amounts to their fourth-string quarterback is a situation from which any true contender should emerge victorious much more often than not.  As for your nearest yinzer-wannabe, sure they’ll come back with “yeah, but we didn’t have BEN.”  While a fair point, the fact of the matter will be that the teams will sport equal 3-1 records, and “game on” moving forward.

Lose, and all hell breaks loose.  The Ravens will find themselves in a two-game hole in the AFC North after only four weeks of football.  At 1-2 in the division, their best case scenario would be to end the year at 4-2 against AFCN opponents – hardly a lock to win the division crown.  The Steelers would have put together a 4-0 record with basically a high school offense.  And the aforementioned towel wavers?  Don’t think we will ever hear the end of it, should Charlie freaking Batch figure out a way to do enough Sunday to lead his team to a victory over the “powerful” Ravens’ defense.

Doesn’t that latter scenario sound fun?  See what I mean now about a loss being more “bad” than a win is “good?”

Anyway, all that said, how do I feel about the game itself?

Uneasy, at best.

We all know that when the Steelers and Ravens match up, you can pretty much throw the stats and records out the window.  However, this year, one stat that is too glaring to completely omit is that of the Ravens having the 22nd-ranked rushing defense in the league.  Add to that Pittsburgh’s #3 rushing attack, and the potential for the Steelers to have more success on the ground against the Ravens than they have in nearly a decade seems all too real…on paper, anyway.

In reality, the Ravens defense hasn’t been all THAT bad.  Ladainian Tomlinson ripped off a couple 21-yard scampers in Week 1 that padded his stats, but was otherwise fairly well contained.  Shonn Green did nothing in the same game.  In Week 2, Cedric Benson, who destroyed the Ravens in 2009, was bottled up nicely.  And yes, Peyton Hillis ran wild last week, but again, most of his yards came on a few big runs, and also against Greg Mattison’s “passing situation” sub packages.  The now departed Trevor Pryce was a big part of those sub packages that couldn’t stop Hillis, but he seems to have no problem trashing his former teammates, guys he was lining up with not even a week ago.  Apparently the #1 clause of any New York Jets contract reads “must be a jerk at all times.”

The Ravens will be better against the run in Pittsburgh.  They’ll get Terrence “Mount” Cody suited up for his first NFL action, and that, along with the need for redemption for a prideful unit, will be enough to keep Rashard Mendenhall from getting anything significant going.

With task #1 accomplished, they can focus on Charlie Batch.  Batch threw three touchdowns last week in Tampa, but two of those should have been interceptions.  Along with the one pick he did throw, that would be a nice 1 TD/3 INT day.  Batch will make mistakes Sunday.  However, if potential interceptions clang off defenders hands the way they did for him last week, or the way they did for Ravens’ defenders in Week 2 in Cincinnati, it will be another nail biter down-to-the-wire type game at the convergence of the three rivers.  Double up on the stick-em, Zibby.

On offense, the Ravens will have to play their best game of the season to date.  And they’ll have to get off the bus ready to play.  In the three games so far, the Ravens’ BEST first offensive play has been Ray Rice for 3 yards (twice).  The other first play was the sack-fumble in New York.  The SECOND offensive play last week should have resulted in six points the other way.  The Pittsburgh crowd will be amped, and the defense will be champing at the bit to make Joe Flacco’s life a living hell.  This lackadaisical, dazed, slow-start business has to stop.  It’s been a disturbing characteristic of the Ravens’ offense for far too long now, and if it rears its ugly head again in Pittsburgh this week, the way that defense is playing, things could get very ugly very quickly.

If you see the Ravens’ offense moseying up to the line of scrimmage with 6-8 seconds on the play clock, and by the time they put the requisite man in motion, Flacco is snapping the ball at or near 0, so the Steelers can time their jumps off the ball…you might as well just turn the T.V. off, because they don’t stand a chance.

Cam Cameron needs to get the plays in quickly, Joe needs to relay them efficiently, and the team needs to be lined up and ready to go with 10 or more seconds on the play clock.  At that point, Flacco has to be able to survey the Pittsburgh defense, attempt a pre-snap read, and make the necessary adjustments.

Eight men in the box? Audible out of that running play.

Big puffy-black-haired “troll” looking dude bouncing around like an idiot on the left side of the line? Slide the protection left and send the right side receiver deep against man coverage.

In short, Joe Flacco and Cam Cameron need to ENGAGE in the chess match that Dick LeBeau and the Steelers’ defense are playing, instead of simply letting them flip the board over, kick sand in their faces, and shove rooks up their noses (you’ll excuse my mixed metaphors).

Against Pittsburgh’s defense, the pre-snap battles are nearly as important as the post-snap ones, and Flacco needs to start winning the former much more often to give his team any chance to succeed in the latter.

After the snap, the Ravens have the personnel to move the ball against the Steelers.  Ray Rice had over 150 total yards in both matches last year, and looks to have bounced back from his injury against the Browns to be ready to play.  Anquan Boldin caught 8 balls for 84 yards in his last game against Pittsburgh, Super Bowl XLIV.  Todd Heap had 2 TD grabs in the Steel City last season.  Derrick Mason had seven catches in each game in 2009.  T.J. Houshmandzadeh has had plenty of experience and success working against the Steelers’ secondary.  And new tight ends Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta present new, unknown variables for Pittsburgh to account for.

It’s not 7-on-7, though.  The onus, as it always does against Pittsburgh, will fall on the offensive line’s ability to keep Flacco upright, and his ability to get the ball out quickly.  Take a sack if necessary Joe, but don’t force the ball into coverage, and don’t get stripped in the pocket.  The Steelers’ defense thrives on the sack/fumble.

(An aside: Ravens fans are all too familiar with the names James Harrison and Lamar Woodley, but keep an eye out for Lawrence Timmons this time as well – he was the one that damn near killed Mason over the middle in the 2008 home game. He’s having a very strong season in the early going.)

Of those aforementioned five games against Pittsburgh in the Harbaugh/Flacco era, only one was decided by more than four points (three, three, four, three, and nine).  The simple fact is, the Steelers have made the plays down the stretch to win those ballgames, while the Ravens have repeatedly shot themselves in the foot.

Picking up boneheaded penalties to rob themselves of precious field position or take points off the board.

Dropping wide open passes in the end zone.

Failing to wrap up the quarterback for a sack despite getting both hands on him, letting him instead escape and make a big play.

These are the kinds of things that have doomed the Ravens time and again in this rivalry match.

Until they get them corrected, the results will continue, I’m afraid, to be the same.

Playing smart, disciplined, mistake-free football will go a long way to seeing the Ravens emerge from Heinz Field as the victors.  On top of that, they must take advantage of the errors made by Batch, and not let speedster Mike Wallace get open down the field. That type of execution, combined with the absence of noted Raven-killers Santonio Holmes and Roethlisberger (a single Holmes touchdown ended up being the difference in 3 of the last four Ravens losses) should be enough to put them over the top.

http://www.bmorebirdsnest.com/ 

 

By Derek Arnold 

My season preview will be a bit different than most you may read.  Instead of breaking down things as a whole, I’ll just take a glance at the schedule and give a few quick thoughts about each game, followed by a (completely unscientific) guess on what the Ravens’ chances are in that particular game.  You can rest assured that my weekly game previews will go into much deeper detail and (attempted) analysis.  I like to give the following disclaimer for this post:

Of course, all of these predictions are based on rosters, teams, etc., as they stand today. Injuries, suspensions, and whatever else could easily drastically change my feeling about any or all of the games. This is for fun more than anything else, so don’t go calling your bookie on my recommendations.

Week 1- @ New York Jets

The Jets’ first game at the New Meadowlands Stadium, in front of the big lights of Monday Night Football. Rex Ryan has been anything but shy about proclaiming his team to be Super Bowl-bound, and the Jets have taken over for the Ravens as the most swagger-ific team in the NFL. One problem – the Jets haven’t won anything since six months before Neil Armstrong was walking on the moon. I have confidence in the Ravens to come out and knock the Jets down a peg early.

Chance of Victory: 65%

Week 2 – @ Cincinnati

The Ravens’ early run of road games vs. 2009 playoff teams continues with a trip to the Jungle. They were beat handily here in 2009, much worse than the 17-7 score would indicate. Carson Palmer has a bevy of weapons to throw to, between Ochocinco, T.O., and Jermaine Gresham, but it was Cedric Benson who gave the Ravens’ defense fits last year, putting up over 100 yards in both contests. The Ravens have the offensive firepower to keep up with the Bengals, but if they don’t stop the run better this time around, I’m afraid the results will be eerily similar 

Chance of Victory: 40%

Week 3 – vs. Cleveland

With some luck (and good execution), the Ravens won’t return home to Baltimore for the first time in over a month with a winless record. It could happen though. And, even if it doesn’t, Ray and the boys will be eager to take out some frustrations on the Brownies. After back-to-back road games against what are likely to be playoff contenders, Cleveland is going to look mighty cupcake-ish. Jake Delhomme looked good this preseason, but the interception master should have no problem finding purple jerseys, regardless of the fact that #20 still won’t be on the field. Baltimore whooped up on the Browns 34-3 in this matchup last year, and I don’t see this one being much different.

Chance of Victory: 85%

Week 4 – @ Pittsburgh

Thanks to Ben Roethlisberger taking girls to his hotel/bathroom, the Ravens will again get to face Pittsburgh without their star QB, just as they did in the first meeting last year. This game presents the Ravens’ best chance to get their first win in the city of bridges since 2006 that they’re likely to see for a while. Even those who are bullish about the Steelers’ chances without Ben in the first four games concede that they will lose to the Ravens. Joe Flacco ALMOST won in Pittsburgh in his first game there in 2008. Then he nearly pulled off the upset in the 2008 AFC Championship, before throwing a late interception. In 2009, were it not for a terrible drop in the end zone by Derrick Mason, he would have likely secured his first road victory against Pittsburgh. This is the time he finally gets over the hump.

Chance of Victory: 70%

Week 5 – vs. Denver

The Ravens get Josh McDaniels’ crew at M&T Bank Stadium for the second straight season. Last year, the Broncos came to B’More 6-0. After a 30-7 beatdown courtesy of the purple and black, Denver went on to finish the season at just 8-8; new coach, same ol’ Denver collapse. What’s changed for the Broncos? Well, they lost their best player on each side of the ball – Brandon Marshall on offense and Elvis Dumervil on defense. A similar fate awaits the horseheads in Charm City this year.

Chance of Victory – 80%

Week 6 – @ Patriots

After going to Foxboro and slapping the Patriots around in the Wild-Card round of the 2009 Playoffs, the Ravens should have no reservations about winning football games in the land of chowdah and horrible, grating accents. While I don’t see the Pats falling to third in the AFC East as some are predicting, I’m not nearly as nervous about this game as I was about the 2009 version. Bill Belichick’s defense has more questions at secondary than even the Ravens do this year, and with Joe Flacco’s arsenal of weapons, its safe to say he’ll be in for a much better day statistically than he put up in January – but the result should be the same.

Chance of Victory – 60%

Week 7 – vs. Bills

The last time the Bills came to Baltimore was the 2006 season finale on New Year’s Eve, a game I personally have great memories of. In 2007, the Ravens visited Ralph Wilson Stadium and lost an ugly game under the direction of the Billick/Boller combination. This will be Buffalo’s first time seeing the John Harbaugh Ravens, and the Ravens’ first seeing the Chan Gailey Bills. Buffalo was 6-10 last season, but three of those wins came on the road. Looking at this game now in early September, it seems safe to pencil it in as a win, but with the Ravens finishing up a first tough “half” of the season and Buffalo coming off their bye week…I’ll just say this game worries me more than it probably should.

Chance of Victory – 70%

Week 9 – vs. Dolphins

The Ravens get their bye week to prepare for the Miami Dolphins, a popular pick to challenge the Jets and Patriots for the AFC East crown in 2010. John Harbaugh’s team had Miami’s number in 2008, beating them twice in their own house. The 2010 version of the Dolphins has some significant differences though, most notably a different Chad at quarterback. Henne took over for Pennington last year, starting 13 games and throwing for nearly 3000 yards. He gets a shiny new toy this year in the aforementioned Brandon Marshall, but there is a reason I chose the above picture of Ed Reed that I did. “Twenty” should definitely (fingers crossed) be back on the field for the Ravens after the bye (if not earlier), and it won’t matter which guy named Chad is putting the ball up in B’More that day – Reed will be receiving.

Chance of Victory – 75%

Week 10 – @ Falcons

Matty “Ice” Ryan and the Falcons are looking to bounce back after missing the playoffs despite a 9-7 record in 2009. It will be a matchup of 2008 First-Round Draft Pick quarterbacks and third year head coaches. If this game were in B’More, I’d feel a lot better about it, but going down to the ATL to play inside the Georgia Dome in early November doesn’t sound appealing at all. The Ravens will have their hands full with Ryan, Michael Turner, and Roddy White, and, though Flacco is indeed a better QB than Ryan, our purple and black will likely have a tough time in this one.

Chance of Victory – 40%

Week 11 – @ Carolina

The Panthers are moving to Matt Moore at QB after jettisoning Jake Delhomme to the Cleveland Browns. Unless he is awful for the first 10 weeks, or gets injured, there is little chance rookie Jimmy Clausen will be lining up against the Ravens. Carolina also lost Julius Peppers, and their defense will likely be their undoing in 2010 as a result, considering their still-potent rushing attack of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. I see Flacco having a field day down in Charlotte, while the largely one-dimensional Panthers attack struggles to keep up.

Chance of Victory – 70%

Week 12 – vs. Tampa Bay

The only worry here is that the Ravens look past the Bucs to the Week 13 matchup against Pittsburgh. Tampa has always struggled mightily in cold weather, and November 28 in Baltimore has the potential to be plenty chilly. On top of that, the Bucs were just 3-13 in 2009, and didn’t do much to improve their roster this offseason. Entering the season, their top two wideouts are Ronnie Brown (9 receptions in 2009) and rookie Mike Williams. Tight end Kellan Winslow could be effective, but he just had his fifth knee surgery this offseason (not to mention he has awesome memories of playing in Baltimore). Ravens win in a laugher.

Chance of Victory: 80% (+1% for every 2 degrees under 50 F at game time)

Week 13 – vs. Pittsburgh

The Steelers will have Baby Ben back by this point – let’s remember though, Ben has still won only once in Baltimore (though it seems like a far more frequent occurence). He may have the Steelers back in the thick of contention by this time, and even if he doesn’t, this game is always tense and tightly contested. The Ravens will hopefully be looking for their first season sweep of Yinz from Donton since 2006, while Pittsburgh will be chasing just their second victory in Charm City since 2002 (the other, of course, coming in 2008). This game gets my heartbeat above baseline already, just thinking about it nearly three full months ahead of time. I need a drink…

Chance of Victory – 60%

Week 14 – @ Texans

Prognosticators are calling for big things from Houston this year – but what else is new? It seems like every year is supposed to be the year the Texans finally get into the postseason, but every year they are sitting at home watching the playoffs just like we fans are. This is a tough matchup for the Ravens. Like most teams, they don’t have anyone who can cover Andre Johnson 1-on-1, and running back Arian Foster looks primed for a big year. In 2008, the Ravens went into Houston and smacked the Texans around 41-13, but Sage “Helicopter” Rosenfels was at QB for the Texans that day, and their defense made big strides in going from 22nd overall in 2008 to 13th in 2009. This could be a key late-season matchup for both teams, who hope to be jockeying for Playoff position.

Chance of Victory – 50%

Week 15 – vs. Saints

The Ravens play the Saints for the first time since spaking them 35-22 in the Superdome in 2006. Obviously, both teams have gone through huge changes since then, but the most significant is the Lombardi Trophy that now lives in the Big Easy. If you watched the Saints play the Vikings the other night, you saw how much they like to spread out opposing defenses, and we have to hope the Ravens’ secondary is at near-full strength going into this game, or it could be a very long night. The weather could be an ally for the Ravens in this game as well, a la the 2007 Patriots game here in B’More. Mother nature could ground the Saints’ air attack more effectively than any opposing defense, should she choose to cooperate. Like Ray said, the Saints are the Champs until proven otherwise.

Chance of Victory – 40%

Week 16 – @ Browns

The Ravens had a tough time in Cleveland last year, grinding out a 16-0 victory that was far from pretty. The Browns beat Pittsburgh at home last year, in a game where the weather was again the great equalizer. Cleveland will likely again be in spoiler mode at this point, happy to be a bump in the road for the hated Ravens as they try to secure their postseason status. Late season road games are never a gimme (see Oakland 2009 Week 17), and Ravens players and fans alike would be wise to not look past Cleveland here.

Chance of Victory – 70%

Week 17 – vs. Bengals

The NFL scheduled this game with the hope that it will be a huge division-deciding type game in the AFC North. For that to materialize though, both these teams will have to live up to their lofty preseason expectations, something neither of them has been able to do with much regularity in recent memory. Lots of things have to go right for Cincy and the Ravens over the next four months for this game to live up to the billing. Let’s pretend for now that they do, though, and that this does end up being the game to crown the 2010 AFC North champs. The Ravens will have to avoid the type of late-game collapse that resulted in a Bengals win at M&T Bank Stadium in 2009, and do so in a playoff-type atmosphere. The hope here, though, is that everything goes right for the purple and black in 2010, and wrong for Cincy (and the Squealers and Brownstains), and the Ravens are resting their starters by Week 17.

Chance of victory – 70% 

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