This is a year of division greatness and division lameness.

The Great: The AFC East, where, even on a four-game losing streak, the Bills are sill 5-5. The NFC East, where, thanks to a tie, every team is over the .500 mark and the Giants are 9-1. The NFC South, where the Falcons, Saints, Panthers and Bucs have been taking turns beating up on every other division out there.

The Lame: The AFC West, where the division leader couldn’t even handle the lowly Browns last week. The NFC West, where the Cardinals have as many wins as the other three teams combined.

The other three? Just what you’d expect. A little good. A little bad. Lots of fun to watch.

The rest of the rankings are below… Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve got to take a moment to comment, briefly, on something that’s been bugging me in the 24 hours since the Ravens loss to the Giants. This is an out-of-the-norm post for this blog.

Already today I’ve been greeted by numerous articles from local and national media outlets proclaiming “what do the Ravens do now?” and “what does this loss mean for the Ravens?” It’s as if the Ravens season has ended with their loss to the Giants. It’s as if all chances of making the playoffs have been squashed out.

But guess what? The loss wasn’t that surprising.

Even on Ravens-oriented sites, the Ravens were considered underdogs. ExtremeRavens has been experiencing server issues, so chat leading up to the game here was not possible. But I can bet you that if it were, you wouldn’t find anyone calling the game a cakewalk, a sure win, or anything else along those lines. In fact, for the first time all season, I even picked against the Ravens (that’s another story).

Look at the national and local media for a moment.  The Baltimore Sun’s eight sports writers all picked the Giants. Every single analyst on ESPN (both on the website and on Sunday Countdown) picked the Giants. Bill Simmons picked the Ravens… with the spread. He did not pick them flat out. I do not remember reading a single national voice that thought the Ravens would win on Sunday. Not one.

So why is this loss the end of the world?

It’s something that bothers me every year, in every sport. The #25 ranked team plays the #4 ranked team in College Basketball and loses. And suddenly that #25 ranked team is out of the rankings. But isn’t that what was expected?

Dear Baltimore Fans… Dear Football Writers… Dear Everyone…

The Ravens lost on Sunday. But somehow, they are still 6-4. They are still in the playoff hunt. In fact, the NFL believes so firmly that the Ravens still have a chance, they are going to let the Ravens play out the rest of the season. How merciful of them.

With every loss to a good opponent, the Ravens are learning. They are not a perfect team, but they are not an awful team either. Lucky for the Ravens, they have faced the two toughest teams in the league right now (the Giants and Titans) and they won’t have to face either again, unless they the playoffs become a reality.

So rather than spending this week doing our best impersonations of Chicken Little, why don’t we all settle back and actually discuss what this team can do and what they need to do as the season enters its final stretch? The sky is not falling, the season is not over. This team lost a game it was supposed to lose. It may not have been pretty, but to spin the old cliche, pretty doesn’t show up in the standings.

The players are going to get over it. The coaches are going to get over it. You didn’t see this team carry that loss against Indianapolis around for very long, did you? So let’s do our best to get over it ourselves, as fans and writers.

I’ll start: Joe Flacco has pretty well learned how to avoid making mistakes. He is a legitimate threat when he has the ball, both with his arm and his legs. He’s learned how to avoid sacks, make plays, and he is what brings our offense to life. Now we need everyone else on the offense to learn the same. They don’t have to make huge plays or become game-changers. But they do have to learn how to avoid mistakes themselves, especially against good opponents.

Your turn.

The loss was bad, how’s the report card?

Quarterback: B-

Joe Flacco avoided the pass rush all day, made a few impressive runs, and even made a few nice passes. His arm wasn’t quite as sharp was it could have been, though, with many of this throws landing behind their intended targets. The windy conditions seemed to limit Flacco and the entire offensive scheme; the Ravens never even tried to stretch the field. Flacco had two interceptions on the day, though he only deserves credit for one.

Running Backs: D+

How bad was the Ravens rushing attack? Joe Flacco’s 57 yard performance led the team. Similar to in Indianapolis, the Ravens running backs tried to run around the defense, instead of through it.  Willis McGahee was limited by injury again. Ray Rice stepped in and did a fair job, but even he looked scattered. The Ravens couldn’t get anything started on the ground - not that they could be expected to match the Giants 200+ yard performance.

Wide Receivers: D

Derrick Mason had 7 catches and 80 yards, but attempt at impersonating David Tyree may have cost the Ravens the game. Mark Clayton and Yamon Figurs were non-factors. Todd Heap made three catches for a total of 17 yards. This group continues to take the life out of the Ravens offense with dropped passes and poor routes.

Offensive Line: C-

The front five of the Ravens had their ups and downs, as did most units. In the passing game, they kept the rush off of Flacco for most of the game, allowing only one sack. That’s not to say Flacco never felt the pressure, but the line helped him manage it well. In the running game, the offensive line looked lost. No sealed corners. No running lanes. And worse? The unit was charged with five false starts.

Defensive Line: D+

The Ravens defensive line was handled all day by the Giants fron-five. They occasionally got pressure on Manning, but were pushed aside and pancaked time and time again in the running game.

Linebackers: D

Outside of Ray Lewis’ interception, the unit failed miserably. Lewis was mentioned more for missing tackles and overpursuing than he was for making tackles. Terrell Suggs and Bart Scott were never mentioed. Jarrett Johnson’s off-sides penalty negated an interception by Fabian Washington. The unit was out of position and looked out of place.

Defensive Backs: C

The Ravens secondary normally takes the brunt of the criticism in bad losses, but not today. The Ravens secondary was far from stellar, but at least they showed up. Eli Manning and his receiving corps didn’t  beat the Ravens today. Jim Leonhard deserves some credit for a game well-played and being the only Raven man enough to take on Brandon Jacobs face-to-face.

Special Teams: D+

Kick returns by Yamon Figurs were surprisingly strong, but hardly enough to save face for a bad season. Matt Stover had a kick blocked. Sam Koch was bothered by the wind. The unit didn’t necessarily hurt the Ravens effort, but they sure didn’t help either.

Coaching: C-

The coaching in this one is hard to read. To start with, the Ravens looked outmatched. That simply shouldn’t happen. The Giants knew every scheme Rex Ryan had and they came prepared. Offensively, Cam Cameron shut the Ravens down himself. At the same time, however, adjustments were clearly made at halftime and the Ravens looked like a new team. If not for a few mistakes specific to the players, not the coaches, I believe this team would have made things far more interesting. The biggest questions, though, have to be for John Harbaugh, who conceded defeat and truly shut the offense down in the 4th quarter. Running the ball is for eating clock, not saving it.

Here’s a peek at our Power Rankings for this week.

Behind a surprising offense and a four game win streak (second only to the undefeated Titans), the Ravens have moved all the way to fourth in the poll this week.

The Jets have found their way into the Top 10 for the first time this week. Their blowout of the Rams coupled with the Patriots victory over the Bills took the Jets into a tie for the lead of the AFC East. The Patriots, though, are lurking right behind them.

Finally, the Falcons found their way back into the mix this week. At 6-3, they are tied for second in their division with the Buccaneers. Matt Ryan is finding his groove and the Falcons look nothing like the team we expected to see this year…

Read our complete rankings from this week here.

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.

Friday afternoon that means just 48 hours til game time. Here’s how the ExtremeRavens staffers see the upcoming Ravens game against the Houston Texans…

Baltimore Ravens (5-3, W3) at Houston Texans (3-5, L1)

Danielle: Texans 17, Ravens 12. Houston has won three straight at home, and the Ravens (even with wins at Miami and Cleveland) still struggle on the road. Is Baltimore capable of winning this game? Absolutely. The result lies with the Texans’ backup quarterback, Sage Rosenfels, ability to exploit a pass defense that has been exposed in the past.

John: Ravens 23, Texans 17. Texans have won three straight at home. Rosenfels hits a big play to Andre Johnson, but also turns the ball over a few times which makes the difference in the game. The Ravens three-headed monster will carry them to fourth straight win.

Andrew: Ravens 31, Texans 14. The extremely talented Andre Johnson will get his numbers, but the Ravens will shut down the Texans run-game and will harass Sage Rosenfels all day. On offense, Jared Gaither will be able to keep his ACC-rival Mario Williams incheck while the Ravens continue to progress on offense.

Dan: Ravens 27, Texans 10. The Ravens are averaging more than 30 points per game over the last three games, including to games on the road. This week, against a young secondary and coming off a strong performance, Joe Flacco will really show off.

What’s your take?

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 »

Five quick facts and ideas to take into consideration as you set your line-up and check the waiver wire this week.

The Jaguars Can’t Run

For the last two years the Fred Taylor / Maurice Jones-Drew running tandem in Jacksonville was one of the most heralded in fantasy land. Taylor ran for over 1000 yards in 2006 and 2007, scoring five touchdowns each season. Jones-Drew averaged over 800 yards and 11 touchdowns in those two years as Taylor’s accomplice. This year, the story has changed.

No one’s sure why, but the entire system in Jacksonville has fallen off. At this point, it’s officially time to stop waiting for things to straighten out. Taylor is not worth owning anymore; you can find plenty of replacements on your waiver wire. Jones-Drew is worth holding on to, but only as a third running back. His complimentary receiving stats are all that make him interesting at this point.

Read the rest of this entry »

Well now… that was one doozy of a game.

The Ravens scored early, faltered often, scored late and some how pulled out a win - even if it wasn’t the strongest, most convincing victory in recent memory.

Here are some quick thoughts coming out of the game…

Game Balls: Offensive game ball goes to Ray Rice. 150 yards on 21 carries, including a huge run late in the game to set-up the go ahead score. Rice was strong throughout the game, even when it appeared the offense was having issues. He ran straight at blockers and only made moves when he had to. And boy, those moves were pretty. Standing in for Willis McGahee, you can’t say enough about Rice’s performance as a rookie.

Honorable Mention: Mark Clayton, welcome to the 2008 Baltimore Ravens offense. We’ve been waiting years to see this guy contribute in the way he did today. Cam Cameron and the Ravens finally seemed to figure out how to use Clayton in this offense: send him down field and challenge defensive backs to catch him. Sending Clayton downfield opened up the offense in other ways too - drawing linebackers out of the box and asking safeties to cheat. Read the rest of this entry »

The midway point of the season is upon us as the Ravens enter their eighth game of the season against the Browns - the first divisional rematch of the season for either team in 2008. Oh, how things have changed since that game win Week Three in Baltimore.

The Ravens enter at 4-3, riding their second two-game win streak of the season, and feeling good again. Not only are they winning, but the offense has shown signs of life against two weaker opponents.

Meanwhile, the Browns enter at 3-4, have won three of four games, including beating the defending champion New York Giants. The Browns reversed that 0-3 pretty quickly and confidence is running high in Cleveland these days. The big question is can the Browns keep up and truly return to the playoff-caliber team we saw last season?

As we look at this Week Nine match-up, here are two key player-to-player battles to keep an eye on…

Ravens Defense vs. Browns Offense

LB Terrell Suggs vs. QB Derek Anderson

The Ravens defense must not have liked getting embarassed by the Colts three weeks ago in Indianapolis. Since then, against two weaker offensive opponents, the Ravens defense has found its fire again, and the Dolphins and Raiders were the victims of all their built up rage.

Fronting the charge for this defense in both games, though, was not Super-Raven Ray Lewis. Instead, it was Lewis’ younger, pass-rushing protege Terrell Suggs that was really on top of his game and giving the defense its life.  Over the course of the season, Suggs has shown his strength not only as a Pro Bowl caliber player, but as a legitimate defensive leader. Read the rest of this entry »