If you want to talk about one-sided games, the Ravens-Bengals match-up today is a perfect place to start. The Ravens came out strong and never let the question of the “trap game” enter the picture. With the exception of one, late first half drive, the Bengals never even came close to changing the feel or tempo of the game.

Here are a few points to consider as we enjoy our celebration…

• The Ravens defense was at its very best once again. Jim Leonhard’s 4th quarter interception, the only forced turnover in the game, was a nice surprise to round things out. But the Ravens defense was strong all game long. While they were not creating turnovers or racking up a ton of sacks, the pressure on quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was evident all game. Fitzpatrick completed just two passes through the first 25 minutes of the game, with most of the incomplete attempts being knocked down and swatted by Ravens defenders at all levels.
• Le’Ron McClain was glad to take advantage of a battered Bengals defensive front. The best part about watching McClain is how happy he  looks going up the middle and dishing out as many hits as he takes. In my mind, McClain looks more and more like Jerome Bettis every week he gets to carry the ball. That’s not a bad thing. The biggest McClain worry, however, has to be the sudden development of some slick fingers. Rain contributed, but Le’Ron lost the ball a number of times today and that cannot happen against better opponents.
• Joe Flacco had perhaps his best game of his short career. Flacco, despite being sacked multiple times and feeling the pressure on a regular basis, was able to really show off his arm strength and his touch. Flacco had two touchdowns and nearly 300 yards passing while completing nearly 70% of his passes. Quite the day for the young gun, who mixed short and long throws together nicely. Flacco even found Todd Heap a few times, including one pass for a touchdown.
• No, I did not forget about Mark Clayton. Clayton had his second huge game of the season, but this game was certainly his biggest ever. Clayton not only corralled a few big catches, but threw for a touchdown as well. It was his one-handed 70-yard reception, though, that we will be watching and talking about for weeks. Cheers all around to Mr Clayton.
• Defensively, the Ravens effort was strong all game long. The unit appeared to lose focus in the winding moments of the first half, but still only allowed a field goal. There was no singular stand-out, but a few players deserve mention. Fabian Washington had Chad Johnson locked down most of the game. Bart Scott scored big in protecting the run. Jarrett Johnson and Haloti Ngata both had great games pressuring the entire Bengals line. And of course Jim Leonhard deserves a sentence all to himself for doing his best Ed Reed impersonation - it was spot on.
• The only downside for the Ravens today? Their offensive line struggled to protect Flacco throughout the game. Again, against stronger opponents, such mistakes will not be tolerable. Flacco survived on his own wits, but not by much. The other down side? The Browns were unable to upset the Colts, leaving the Ravens in a tight playoff battle. Perhaps the Pats can help the Ravens, though.
• Gameballs: Mark Clayton and Jim Leonhard.

More to come this week as there is plenty to discuss from Frank Walker’s benching to Willis McGahee’s disappearance… and yes, we can even talk special teams and coaching…

The Ravens dominated the Texans today, 41-13, for their fourth straight win and third straight win on the road. That should be the first thought… three road wins? We haven’t seen a team in Baltimore that can win on the road since 2000.

Joe Flacco made great progress as a QB today. With his favorite target going down early he was forced to find other options in the passing game, which lead to Todd Heap finally looking like his old self. Joe stretched the defense with multiple deep throws, one resulting is a TD to WR Yamon Figurs (Congrats to Yamon on his first career receiving TD). Joe has now thrown 6 TD passes in his last four games with no turnovers.

Willis McGahee looked healthy and ran hard the entire game. He went over the 100 yard mark for the second time this season and added two TD runs. And I must add, his new touchdown dance is hilarious.

The Ravens defense was solid through most of the game. The air defense still has some leaks, but they overcame the injuries and picked off Sage Rosenfels four times. Ray Lewis had two interceptions thanks to the great play of NT Haloti Ngata. The return of Samari Rolle was immediately apparent. When Frank Walker, a fomer starter, can be your nickel back, you’ve got some depth. Walker may not be a star, but being able to use him to help Fabian Washington and Rolle is a great advantage to this Ravens defense.

Ngata is probably the Ravens best defensive player. Haloti came up big when he picked off Sage Rosenfels at the goalline which ended a good drive by Houston, he has two interceptions this season (three for his career) which is more than all-pro safety Ed Reed! Ngata has disrupted the QB more times this season than I can count, which has lead to turnovers and missed opportunities for opposing offense. We’ve heard all season about Albert Haynesworth and Shaun Rogers, but there’s no #92 I’d want more on my team right now thatn Ngata.

New kick-off and long field goal specialist Steven Hauschka. If anyone remembers seeing this kid kick in college with NC State, you know the kind of leg he has. I’m going to steal a line I heard on the postgame radio show today, but bringing in Hauschka is bigger than just getting a new leg… it proves that John Harbaugh is learning and, more importantly, willing to learn. Poor special teams play (bad kick offs, bad coverage, refusing to try long field goals) already cost this team a few games (Pittsburgh, Tennessee) and almost cost them a win last week (Cleveland). Kudos to John for making a move.

And let’s just make an overall comment here… The Ravens have now scored 27, 29, 37 and 41 points in their last four games. A lot of help is coming from this defense, but let’s also give credit to an offense that is able to take advantage of a short field and take the points it is given. When was the last time you remember the Ravens scoring more than 25 points in four straight games? Or averaging 33 points per game in a stretch like that? We’re going to have to go look that up, but I can’t remember anytime. Even with those scores, this team is only averaging 21 points per game on the season… which tells you just how poor this offense was for those first five games. Now that the Ravens have both pieces clicking, it’s time for the rest of the league to watch out.

Welcome to Week Two in this 2008 NFL season… er… I mean… Week 10.

The Ravens head to Houston this week to take on the Texans in the game rescheduled from Week Two,  postponed after Hurricane Ike barreled into southeast Texas and damaged the Texans’ Reliant Stadium. The schedule changes brings together two teams in very different situations than eight weeks ago.

Early in the season, the Texans had high hopes. They were supposed to breakout and perhaps even challenge the elite of the AFC South - if not for a playoff position than at least for some standing in the division. Meanwhile, the Ravens were entering this year as a rebuilding process behind a rookie coach, rookie quarterback and aging defensive unit.

How things have changed.

Entering Week 10, the Ravens are now fighting for an AFC North division title and a playoff spot. Their five wins already equals their total from last season. The Texans have been on a rollercoaster of their own, though. Following an ugly 0-4 start,  the Texans had won three straight until last week’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

As we head into the weekend, here are two key match-ups to keep an eye on as the Ravens and Texans finally get to square off.

Texans Offense vs. Ravens Defense

WR Andre Johnson vs. Ravens Secondary

There are two undeniable facts here. First, that Andre Johnson is proving to be a beast and having a career year in 2008. Second, that the Ravens secondary continues to be the defense’s greatest weakness.

Such a combination - great receiver against weakened defensive backs - seems to always spell trouble for a team that relies heavily on the success of its defense.

Let’s start with Andre Johnson. Johnson entered the 2008 season as a good wide receiver, bordering on greatness, but oft limited by his own team’s ineptitude. Last season, Johnson truly broke out in an injury-shortened season. In just nine games he had more than 850 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. This year, Johnson has continued to the trend from last season. Already in just eight games he has 60 receptions, more than 800 yards, and three touchdowns.

And as if the Ravens needed more trouble from receivers, it’s worth noting that Johnson does his absolute best work at home in Reliant Stadium.  In four home games this season, Johnson has led the Texans to a 3-1 record by averaging more than 10 receptions and 148 yards per game. 148 yards in eight home games alone is enough to give Johnson an 1100-yard season. Read the rest of this entry »

Quarterback: B+
Joe Flacco continued his solid play against the Browns. He remained cool, calm and collected, even after the Ravens fell behind by two touchdowns. He showed nice touch on his throws and made some spectacular passes into tight coverage. There is still a bit of a learning curve (intentional grounding penalties, being one of them), but the rookie continues to make positive strides.

Offensive line: A
This unit was solid throughout the game. Flacco was well-protected throughout the game and had plenty of time to make his reads downfield. The line opened up holes for the most part, but softened up when it counted most.

Wide receivers: B+
Welcome to the offense Mark Clayton. The wide receiver notched his first touchdown in two seasons. Derrick Mason continues to be Flacco’s favorite receiver, snagging nine passes for 136 yards.

Running backs: A
Ray Rice continued to dominate among Baltimore’s running corps for the second week in a row. The rookie averaged just over seven yards per carry, and created running lanes of his own. Le’Ron McClain was solid in his performance, and added a touchdown that was setup by a beautiful Rice run.

Defense: B-
The defense did a solid job of stopping the run, but struggled a bit against the pass. If the Browns hadn’t insisted on running the ball against the best defense capable of stopping the run, the Fabian Washington and Frank Walker would have been in for a long and brutal day. If Braylon Edwards doesn’t drop that very catchable ball from Derek Anderson, the outcome of the game might have been different. Bart Scott led the team in tackles (10) and Terrell Suggs snagged a key interception and returned it for a touchdown that sealed the victory for the Ravens.

Special teams: C+
The Ravens were helped immensely by the Browns’ ineptness, which setup great field position for the Ravens for much of the first half. The special teams coverage continues to have ups and downs. In this game, they had both, and sometimes at the same time. For instance, Matt Stover punts a 62-yarder, which is pretty good for a 40-something. The bad news is that the Browns’ Josh Cribbs returned it 92 yards for a touchdown.

Following two devastating losses in consecutive weeks - in two games the Ravens certainly feel like they should have won - things get no easier as the team hits the road for five of its next six games. The first of these games is against the Colts, and no reference to where they used to play or how Baltimore fans feel about the game is necessary.

Lucky for the Ravens, the Colts might be one of the weaker teams they face in this dreaded six game stretch. At 2-2, the Colts have underperformed so far this season and were only able to squeak out a win against Houston last week thanks to an astonishing 21-point surge in the final four minutes of the game. Once able to score at will against opponents, the Colts’ offense appear to be missing something this year. All the weapons are there, but the functionality is not. Similarly, a strong defense from past seasons is struggling this year to contain the run.

Heading into Sunday, here are two key match-ups to keep an eye on … Read the rest of this entry »