Apologies on the fact that these thoughts aren’t quite as quick as usual… it’s been a long and interesting weekend, capped by a frustrating game to be sure.

Brief, but still here… and building on what Andrew said.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Baltimore Sun today published two articles, oddly similar to one another, about scrutiny of John Harbaugh’s conservative decision-making in the Ravens 23-20 loss to the Steelers on Monday. The first piece, from Jamison Hensley, seems a bit more like reporting the mood around town following the loss. The second piece, from Mike Preston, is simply picking for the sake of picking.

My question: why is Harbaugh taking any heat for the loss on Monday?

Read the rest of this entry »

It may not seem like much, but in discussing the game last night with some other ExtremeRavens staff, I had a bit of a revelation about this Ravens team. Perhaps it’s obvious, perhaps it’s just plain wrong… perhaps I’m bringing bad karma…

But here is how I see this season and our first three games so far - or rather, here’s what I think we’ve learned and can look forward to - and it can’t help but remind me of a team we saw here not too long ago.

Read the rest of this entry »

What a doozy of a game for the Ravens and Steelers tonight. I’m still wound up and still emotional about it all… it’s been just minutes since the final kick crossed over… So here’s what I see… Read the rest of this entry »

Phew…. what a game that was!!! The atmosphere in the stadium was electric throughout… the only lag coming in the mid-second quarter, but quickly rejuvenated by a stunning start to the 3rd. Here’s what I see right off the bat…

• Joe Flacco made a few mistakes… but he never lost his confidence and he rebounded by making some pretty impressive plays. Honestly, the second interception should hardly count against his record… it was a known risk going into the gadget play of that type. The first was just a bad pass. He appeared to miss some open receivers for big games, settling for lesser gains instead, but he still had the offense moving.

• Welcome back to Willis McGahee… it was a fine effort by Willis. But the standout was again Le’Ron McClain. The Browns, like the Bengals, simply did not know how to handle the big bowling ball of a mixed-back. My only wish is that we had seen more of Ray Rice. When he came in, especially with McClain in front, you could see the Browns hurting.
• Have to take a moment to think about Dawan Landry. So far all news has been good, but still a scary sight. His injury clearly shook this defense and inspired Ray Lewis… which deserves a bullet of his own.
• Ray was a MAD MAN in the 3rd quarter. Whatever happened in that lockerroom at halftime must have been special. The hit he put on Kellen Winslow set the tone for the second half… and you could see that Anderson, Winslow, and every other receiver on the Browns was worried about what Ray and that D would do.
• We might have an ‘aging secondary,’ but they showed their quick feet tonight. Reed and Rolle had nice little picks, not to mention McAlister’s. And the unit played well overall. No disrespect meant to the injured Landry, but this defense was something to see when Jim Leonhard got in the secondary…
• Leonhard also deserves some loving for his strong game as a returner. He was hurt by a few penalties on good returns, but he sure made believers out of a number of fans today with his returns. In the preseason he looked slow, especially compared to Yamon Figurs, but he seems to have figured something out since then.
• My only concern is Harbaugh’s use of Matt Stover. We simply can’t use him in the 45-50 range, unless absolutely necessary. This team has shown it’s ability to make some great 4th down conversions (a welcome surprise, really), but let’s not stretch Matt … as much as we love him.

Finally, we’ve got to take a minute and give some credit to this coaching staff again. Offensively, Cam Cameron had the Browns on their toes… even if it wasn’t always working. The unit is coming together. The running game is solid, the use of play-action is inspiring, and the misdirection is just plain pretty. Defensively, after a slow start Rex had these guys clicking on all cylinders again and executing a great game plan that neutralized a dangerous passing game. And overall, the team did what it will need to do each week… control the ball, control the clock, and give that defense the chance to make big plays.

Baltimore Ravens 28, Cleveland Browns 10.

It can be a difficult task deciding what kind of grade to give each position. Especially when the scoreboard seems to imply a rather close game. Yesterday’s game wasn’t that close however. While Sports Illustrated’s Michael Lombardi gives Flacco a ‘C’ and Harbaugh ‘B’, I gave them both higher grades.

Quarterback: B
Joe Flacco managed the game well, and played within himself. For a rookie starting in his first game, Flacco was cool, calm and collected through the game. All traits that have been missing from the Ravens offense for quite some time. He made a few rookie mistakes, and threw some balls just short. While his passer rating was in the low-60’s, he ran for a touchdown and was betrayed often by his receivers.

Running Backs: B+
The combination of Le’Ron McClain and Ray Rice made the abscene of veteran starter Willis McGahee a distant memory. Both backs ran hard and found holes. The contribution of Lorenzo Neal was also exciting to watch. This was an ‘A’ performance, but Rice coughed up the ball that resulted in a Bengals touchdown, and also dropped a pass.

Receivers: C
The receivers raked up a lot of rushing yards, but the constent drops were a major disappointment. Todd Heap dropped a few catchable passes, as the rookie QB took only a few shots down the field.

Offensive Line: A
Where did this line come from? The offensive line protected their quarterback, and gave him ample opportunity to make his reads and throw. They completly shut down any defensive attack the Bengals had and opened up running lanes for their running backs.

Defense: A
The Ravens shut down the high-powered offense of Cincinnati by playing smash mouth football. The defensive line dominated the Bengals’ running game, while linebackers reinforced the attack. The secondary held up so well, that Chad Johnson Ocho Cinco and TJ Houshmandzadeh were complete non-factors, sans one drive.

Special Teams: C
Yamon Figurs’ ran for a touchdown, but it was called by because of a penalty. A wasted effort that could have demoralized the Bengals for good. Matt Stover badly missed a 47-yard field goal. It wasn’t even close, but it was very ugly. The Bengals had better-than-normal field position throughout the game, and espesically in the first half. Better teams will make the Ravens pay for that kind of position.

Coaching: A
Reversing the reversing, and an even-handed attack of running the ball and throwing the ball, John Harbaugh, Cam Cameron and Rex Ryan managed a heck of a game.

How would you rank the Ravens?

First thoughts on the Ravens 17-10 win over the Bengals today, marking a fine start for rookie coach John Harbaugh and quarterback Joe Flacco.

• The defense has returned to form. Credit the return of Trevor Pryce, addition of Marques Douglas, or growth of whichever players… but the D did its job. I also like how Ryan worked Zbikowski and Leonhard into the mix throughout the game. Even though the Bengals offense was not perfectly healthy, neither was this defense. And facing a trio of All-Pros at QB and WR, this defense showed that it really can be the type of lockdown unit they need to be.

• Joe Flacco has shown tremendous growth in just a few games. He’s still not perfect, and neither is this offense - they weren’t even playing a good defense - but they were more than passable for a first try. Joe has poise. He can run the offense, he can stand in there and take a hit, and he knows how to look through his receivers and when to settle for a dump-off. For a rookie in his first start, his game management gets an A+, even if his overall performance is probably worth a B.

• Le’Ron McClain is worth every penny. As is Lorenzo Neal, for giving us the depth to hand the ball to McClain 19 times.

• John Harbaugh looked good, too. His clock management was a little questionable at times. But I liked that after every series, Harbaugh had words with players on his units - without being over anxious and without being negative.

• Overall, the Bengals are from the best team the Ravens are going to face this year. However, the Ravens showed us a lot. When was the last time you remember this offense being able to hold the ball for seven-plus minutes to run out the clock at game’s end? The Bengals never got that ‘one last chance’ to do their thing. It’s an old line, but it’s true: all this defense needs is a game management kind of unit on the other side. Sure, we’d all love to put up 30 points a game. But in most cases, 20 points and 40 minutes of possession will leave this defense in perfect shape.

The Associated Press reports that quarterback Kyle Boller was placed on injured reserve by the Baltimore Ravens on Wednesday, ending his season and perhaps his stay with the team. Boller, who was entering his sixth year in the NFL, all with Baltimore, is in the final year of his contract. The quarterback hurt his shoulder in Baltimore’s second preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings and has not played since. Coach John Harbaugh described the injury as either a torn labrum or other damage that would render Boller unable to play this year. Could this spell the end of Boller’s career in the NFL?

Bouman? Harrington? Simms? Bramlet? In the last five days, the Ravens have been trying out and trying to sign a handful of veteran quarterbacks in the hopes of adding depth to the teams, but despite published reports pointing fingers every different direction, the latest reports are saying that the team still has not signed any of the newbies…

But that doesn’t mean I’m scared to say something…

Read the rest of this entry »

If you love quarterback controversy, the Ravens continue to be the team to follow. Over the holiday weekend, the Ravens made news time and time again with quarterback chat.

Read the rest of this entry »