Less than 48 hours to kick-off, here’s what ExtremeRavens.com’s staff thinks about the upcoming game…

Ken: Dolphins 24, Ravens 10. Cam Cameron’s offense struggles against his former team, and the strong offense of Miami does more than enough damage to leave the Ravens in sorry shape.

John: Ravens 34, Dolphins 7. Chad Pennington is not Peyton Manning and the Ravens D will remind him of that Sunday.

Dan: Ravens 23, Dolphins 20. First, yes, I realize that I have picked the Ravens in all the games this year, but my picks are made weekly and based a bit on the week before. As for this pick, the Dolphins offense will be shut down by the Ravens and we’ll be wanting to believe in the unit again.

More to come as we update… what’s your take?

It’s been a challenging three weeks for the Ravens, facing three solid teams - all with playoff expectations - and losing all three in difficult fashion. Each game has provided the Ravens with different challenges and new problems for not getting the ‘W,’ but none more so than the Indianapolis loss last week. The Ravens self-destructed against the Colts and lost just about every match-up.

Things will have to be very different in Miami for the Ravens to win against the Dolphins. Luckily, however, the Dolphins are a very different team from the Colts.

Here are two key match-ups to watch heading into Sunday.

Dolphins’ Offense vs. Ravens’ Defense

Dolphins Head Coach Tony Sparano vs. Ravens’ Defensive Coordinator Rex Ryan

Who’s tricks are trickier? Read the rest of this entry »

It’s still midweek, so we’ve got time to take one more quick look back at the Ravens loss to the Colts on Sunday. But it’s definitely time to start looking forward to the next game, in Miami, against a Dolphins team that can’t quite decide how good they are (kind of like the Ravens).

The Ravens lost on Sunday. Most of you know that despite the fact that you didn’t watch much beyond the first quarter of the game. They lost pretty bad. In looking back at some of the pre-game analysis on this site and others I am still disappointed by the fact that the Ravens lost every important match-up in the game. The Colts running game and passing game were both successful against the Ravens defense, and the Colts defense was extremely successful against both Baltimore units. Even the individual match-ups were one-sided.

Last week I wrote about what I thought would be two of the biggest match-ups in determining the game’s outcome. The first was Le’Ron McClain against a small Colts defensive front; the second was the Ravens secondary against Marvin Harrison.

To recap: the Ravens blew it on both fronts.

Read the rest of this entry »

The NFL is sending it’s #1 announcing team to Indy this weekend to call the Ravens-Colts match-up, and we’re going to try and follow suit with our very best predictions of the game right now.

It’s going to be a tough match-up, but one Baltimore fans should be familiar with: the unstoppable force vs. the immovable object. This year, though, the unstoppable force that is the Colts offense has been a little shakier than normal…

Here’s how we see it:

Ken: Colts 28, Ravens 13. Following tradition, the Ravens’ defense finds itself struggling along with the offense against Manning and the Colts.

John: Ravens 17, Colts 12. Ken’s tradition tanks, and a new one begins. Ravens pound the ball the way they did against Cinncinatti.

Danielle: Colts 23, Ravens 13. Preseason I predicted 5 wins for the Ravens this season and they’ve already found two of them… nothing more, nothing less from this team this year.

Andrew: Colts 27, Ravens 13. The Ravens will not be able to generate a consistent pass rush on Peyton Manning. With time to throw, Manning should have no problem dissecting a beaten-up Ravens secondary. The Colts will jump to a quick lead which will cause the Ravens to abandon the running game. The Ravens simply do not have the passing attack to play from behind, and will turn the ball over trying to do so.

Dan: Ravens 24, Colts 10. I almost wrote the same score with the names switched… it could go either way. But I think the Ravens offense breaks out this week. If the Texans could score 27, there has to be some hope for us, right?

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 »

The Ravens lost another close game to another good opponent. Having lost 2 in a row and now sitting at 2-0, their season is on the brink…

Quarterback: D+
Flacco seemed disconnected from the rest of the offense. While he never got flustered, and never got sacked, he was unable to help the offense in any meaningful way on most drives. His turnovers were costly. The question is whether he was being held back or is still having trouble seeing the field. Read the rest of this entry »

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 »

It’s that time again… lay your football expertise and reputation on the line… The Titans are coming to Baltimore with the same old coach, but a lot of new faces, and trying to continue their strong start to 5-0. Meanwhile, the Ravens are trying to rebound from a tough road loss to the Steelers, and hold onto their momentum from the first quarter of the season…

Here’s what our staff has to say… more updates as more picks come in…

Andrew: Titans 20, Ravens 13. This game presents a very difficult matchup for the Ravens on multiple levels. The Titans defense is very good, and quite simply, I don’t think the Ravens will be able to generate enough offense to win. The Ravens defense will play a strong game, but will ultimately break on a big play or two which will decide the game.

Ken: Ravens 16, Titans 13. It’s going to be a clash of the defensive juggernauts in Baltimore, but don’t expect a Chris Berman-esque 4-2 score. Both teams will struggle to move the ball, but both will also find themselves with great field position once or twice thanks to turnovers. The Ravens squeak it out on Matt Stover’s leg.

Dan: Ravens 17, Titans 12. Kerry Collins remembers just how punishing the Ravens defense can be, especially without much help from his receivers.  He’s going to feel it again this weekend. The Ravens will use a steady dose of running to control the clock and, defensively, they’ll handle LenDale White and rookie Chris Johnson.

What do you think?

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 »