Ravens Roundtable

Not just opposing QB's target the Ravens' secondary

2010-09-13T05:27:00.000-07:00

Whenever the Ravens have been analyzed as a potential Super Bowl contender by the national media, the secondary has come under fire for potentially holding the team back from success.

From afar, the skepticism by media personalities such as Peter King and Marshall Faulk, among others, makes sense. After all, what they see from the outside is a secondary that gave up big plays a year ago and has lost starters Ed Reed and Dominique Foxworth from a year ago. They also have two cornerbacks coming back from ACL injuries.

However, a closer examination would reveal that this secondary did not perform nearly as poorly as observers would have you believe, and they have improved in quality and talent across the board.

Let's start with the misconception that the back end was consistently a problem spot in '09. The reality is that the secondary did give up big pass plays during the first half of the season, specifically through the Minnesota game. A closer look would show that after the bye week, Greg Mattison made some changes with the coverages and the defensive backs got better with their technique.

The proof of this improvement came from better play by Foxworth and Chris Carr. Both players gave up fewer plays downfield. Taking it a step further, in the last 12 games of the season, including the playoffs, the defense did not give up 300 yards to an opposing quarterback. In that stretch they faced Peyton Manning (twice), Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, Carson Palmer, and Tom Brady.

Now, after the injuries to Fabian Washington and Lardarius Webb, the Ravens were down to Chris Carr as a starter and Frank Walker as the primary nickleback. Yet, they still survived thanks to marked improvement from the deep coverage of the safeties. With Reed out of the lineup for four games, the defense as a whole gave up fewer home runs in the passing game. The safeties stayed true to their landmarks.

Even with the loss of Reed and Foxworth, the group is clearly deeper than the year before. Carr -- who was arguably the most improved player from the beginning of the year to the end -- may remain a starter alongside Washington, but only until Webb is up to speed. The addition of Josh Wilson gives the team another proven starter as well, so Carr may eventually fall to his intended spot as a dimeback -- the spot that Frank Walker and Corey Ivy occupied a year ago.

In fact, even Cary Williams would be a much better fit than Walker and Ivy in that role, and he is fifth on the depth chart. At safety, the return of Haruki Nakamura could be the sleeper addition of the season. Nakamura brings flashes of the game-changing ability that Reed boasts. He looks healthy and closes on the ball in a hurry.

Along with Tom Zbikowski and Dawan Landry, this group should be better in deep support than people realize. All three players have good closing speed and more importantly, they have played with tremendous discipline throughout the preseason. In the event that the young guys take a step backward, the team does have veteran Ken Hamlin as insurance.

The secondary will be better than people expect.

The bigger question mark remains the Baltimore pass rush.

New York/New Jersey...is that even a place?

2010-05-28T06:38:00.000-07:00

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced this week that the new Giants/Jets stadium would host the Super Bowl in 2014 in New York/New Jersey.

Just for fun I Googled "New York New Jersey" and here's what came up: a little arrow pointing to Manhattan. The place read, "New York, NY (near New Jersey)." When I Google "Meadowlands Sports Complex," it points me to the actual place in New Jersey where the Giants and Jets play.

My point? Stop throwing "New York" in the title just to make it sound good. This kind of branding drives me nuts. And yes, I threw a hissy fit like a two-year-old when the Anaheim Angels changed their name to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim." Give me a freaking break.

But on to the larger sports biz issue here and that's the fact that we're going to have our first cold weather Super Bowl in decades. This winter I posted a FF poll asking if we should have a cold weather Super Bowl and the resounding response was "yes!!" So ask and ye shall (eventually) receive.

Depending on the teams, weather could play an important factor in the game. But it'll also play an important factor on who comes to the Super Bowl. Tampa Bay, Fla. and New Orleans make for great vacation spots in the dead of winter for anyone -- football fan or not. But take away a nice break from the winter cold (global warming aside) and you'll likely get a different fan base in the Meadowlands for this one.

For one, it'll allow the more hard core football fans a chance at the tickets if they can afford it. I wouldn't worry about a lack of demand here either -- cold weather or not, the Super Bowl always sells out. Depending on how sales are going, ticket prices may drop in the weeks leading up but there won't be an empty seat in the house come kickoff time.

So what could more traditional football fans mean for the 2014 Super Bowl? Potentially less ancilliary spending, according to ESPN's Peter Keating. For one, the Meadowland is NOT IN NEW YORK, as I subtly noted above, so it folks want to round out their experience with a Broadway show, they'll have to hoof it into the city. For the heartier folk, that may not be an issue. But for cold weather ninnys like myself or for those who have traditionally gone to the Super Bowl just to go, that may be too daunting a task to be worth it.

Of course on the bright side the new stadium will finally get a naming rights sponsor as companies will want to hurry to slap their name on the side of a stadium that will be featured in one of the most-watched events of the year. But for the local economy that doesn't make much of a difference.

Finally, I have to give the NFL major props for having the guts to bring the Super Bowl to a cold weather environment. It's a big risk -- it's sure to be one of the top talking points and will be part of the fabric of the game either way you slice it.

Either way, it'll make the game more interesting (as if it needs that) and I hope the gamble pays off. Mostly because if a Super Bowl could work in New Jersey, than one would certainly work in Baltimore, Green Bay, Foxborough and other cities deserving of hosting a Super Bowl.

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her web site, Farmer's Field to read more about the business of sports.

Here's how you pick the host city for the Super Bowl

2010-05-27T06:55:00.000-07:00

Let’s get back to the real NFL.

The team with best record gets the Super Bowl.

The NY 2014 announcement has opened the door to allow the league to come full circle from its roots. This will eliminate any concern about teams throwing games at the end of the year and allow the NFL to concentrate on more important stuff like helping the older vets.

Can you imagine the vibe in a city awarded the Super Bowl for the first time?

The cool thing is no one will know what city will host until the results of the championship games are in.

It’s time the NFL does things the right way.

Photo by Kevin Moore.

YOU DON'T KNOW JACK

2010-05-26T04:47:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhh…..it’s that time of year again!

What time is that, you ask? Time to break out the grill?

Nope!

Time to head downy oshin hun?

No, not that either.

It’s the time of year that makes me laugh and cringe all at the same time….the time of year when the NFL draft is over and camp and preseason are yet so far away….time for all those football player wannabes and “experts” to troll every imaginable football forum and voice their “expert” opinions on everything from trade values to player injuries and everything in between.

The comments on these forums are indeed entertaining but always leave me thinking, “what in the hell do they know??!!” What?? What the media reports? Whatever PC gibberish is contained in team statements? Puh-LEASE people! I hate to burst your “I know everything about all injuries, what players think and feel and how much gas they have left in the tank” bubbles….but the fact of the matter is, you don’t really know jack.

In making this statement, I am of course assuming that you, unlike me, have no connection to these athletes other than being a fan, attending games and garnering all of your “knowledge” from the good ole internet.

I am new to the blogging shtick ….so let me tell you a little about myself and how I really do know what y’all pretend to know.

First, let me say, I’m not here to rip you for being an armchair quarterback. I’m not even going to laugh about you turning internet speculation into absolute fact. No, I, friends, am here to help you – to give you a glimpse of the player…not from on the field or even inside the locker room, but from inside their lives.

You see, they have let me in – into their families and their worlds and trust, me it is not anything close to what you have imagined, speculated on or have become an “expert” about.

Occasionally, I’ll convey to a certain athlete what people are blogging and commenting on. Not only do they look at me like I have two heads, but most laugh hysterically. They don’t get upset at what’s written about them, their families, their attitudes or their injuries….because it’s so far from the truth that it’s a joke.

Tell Willis McGahee that he doesn’t care and he will explode with laughter. Why? Because that is so far gone from reality. The truth is, McGahee has more “care” about football, the community and his teammates in his pinky finger than many of us have within our entire being.

Tell Brian Westbrook he has no gas left in the tank. HA! Really? You know because you’re with him every day, right? You see him at the gym during the off season while you are doing your offseason training.

Tell Ed Reed or Ray Lewis that they are too old. Tell them you “KNOW” this to be a fact because the statistics you love to regurgitate from the internet say so.

I have seen fan emails where fans will actually tell a player what they should or should not do.

Really?!

And yet, rather than making it big as a NFL player or coach or ESPN analyst, there you sit, behind your keyboard with those big cyber muscles.

Friends, before you decide to preach your opinions as if they are facts, argue with friends or on message boards as if any of you REALLY know, please remember it’s just for entertainment.

It’s not a competition of who “knows” more than the next person because what I KNOW is that most of you really KNOW NOTHING AT ALL!

Is lingerie football just good marketing?

2010-05-21T03:18:00.000-07:00

I can’t help it, I’ve got to chime in on this one. There’s been a lot of chatter over the airwaves, in print and around the water cooler about the Baltimore Charm, the city’s new lingerie football team that held auditions this month.

The basic question is, is women playing football in their underwear exploitation? Or is it just good marketing? The Charm will be the newest team in the 10-team Lingerie Football League, which has teams like the Dallas Desire and the San Diego Seduction. The league bills itself as “true fantasy football.”

Gotta give them credit for just putting it out there — league organizers know what sells tickets.

And it seems as if the women trying out for the squad are perfectly willing to buy into this image. After all they know the deal going in and no one’s forcing them to strip down to their undies and run around like Pamela Anderson did for Baywatch in the 1990s. (It should be noted that the women do wear pads … but they’re neatly positioned so as not to take away from the main attraction.)

So if the players are OK with it, should we be making a fuss? After all, it’s been pointed out that women’s beach volleyball players are just as scantily clad — and they’re on NBC on a regular basis (not to mention the Pro Beach East Women’s Volleyball Tournament held May 15 at the Preakness Infield Fest).

But there is a difference. In beach volleyball, two-piece bathing suits are the uniform. And it’s the same for the men (although some do cheat by wearing sleeveless t-shirts with their shorts, but you get my point). Here, the difference in uniforms is almost the whole point. The league’s coaches and organizers may say fans are drawn in by the lingerie at first but come back for the football, but just one look at the league’s homepage and it’s clear what this is about.

But again, I wonder — should we care? An interesting note is that this league says it is profitable. Would it still be profitable if it was just women playing football? Maybe that’s a question for the Independent Women’s Football League, which I’ll note, I’d never heard of until five minutes ago when I did a Google search.

If women want to make some extra money running around playing football in their underwear, and if people want to buy tickets to watch, should we stand in judgment? Or should we applaud them for finding a business model and a marketing angle that seems to be working?

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her web site, Farmer's Field to read more about the business of sports.

Being Mel Kiper

2010-04-22T03:10:00.000-07:00

When NFL draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. began working with ESPN back in 1984, neither one remotely resembled the powerhouses they are today.

Just a few years prior, in 1981, Kiper made his draft report public, punching it out on a typewriter and selling 550 copies. Meanwhile, ESPN was still a fledgling sports network, just five years old.

“The NFL wasn’t king of all sports back in those days,” said Kiper, 49. “They were doing the draft on a Tuesday morning. Now the draft has become a huge event with television coverage on every pick and it’s broadcast at night so people can watch.”

As much as the draft’s popularity has grown, so has Kiper’s Baldwin-based business, Mel Kiper Enterprises Inc. Over the last three decades, Kiper has become the face of a massive draft empire complete with radio shows, television appearances, Web sites and publications.

But with popularity comes competition.

It started in 1979, when a then-19-year-old Mel Kiper typed up his first draft report and mailed copies to about 150 agents, scouts and team personnel. Kiper would spend hours on the phone with coaches and convinced his father to install a satellite dish in the backyard of their Dundalk home so he could watch college football games from all across the country.

He repeated the effort the following year, and with the help of Mel Kiper Sr., founded Mel Kiper Enterprises in 1981 and began charging for his service.

Over the years Kiper has added a draft preview report, free agency review sheet and a draft review report to his publications. Many say his early relationship with ESPN gave him the exposure he needed to grow his brand while monopolizing the industry.
“For a long time Mel was it — he was the professor,” said Steve Dresner, a producer for ESPN in the late 1980s who now works for the NFL Network.

And during that time, Kiper’s recognition as the go-to draft analyst blossomed as the NFL draft grew into one of the most anticipated football events of the year.

“Years ago in the industry, once the Pro Bowl was done, you would not really need to pay attention to the NFL much before training camp because the draft was one of those ‘ho hum’ things,” Dresner said. “[Now it’s] one of the most-talked about, made-for-TV events other than the Super Bowl.”

Kiper Sr. helped manage the business and died in 1988, shortly before Mel started dating Kim. After their marriage in 1989, Kim stepped in to run Kiper Enterprises.
“During the 1989 draft, right after we got married, there was a running joke that they were betting on how long we would stay married,” Mel Kiper said. “The over-under was 1½ years, and everyone was taking the under.”

Under Kim Kiper’s direction, Kiper Enterprises launched a Web site, computerized its customer database and streamlined production. Whereas Mel is the face — and hair — of the business, Kim is the one who has brought it into the 21st century.

“He was still on the typewriter the year we met,” said Kim Kiper, 45. “And he just started e-mailing four years ago.”

Kiper’s print publications range from $9 for the free-agency sheet to $27.95 for the draft report. Kim said she now fills about 10,000 orders every year.

While the first 10 years were about streamlining the business, the last 10 have been about adapting to new technology.

“The Internet came along, and just like any print media, [it] cut into our database because you could get everything for free,” she said. “I did see a change at that point in time.”

This year she added PDFs, allowing people to download reports off the Web site for a few dollars off the print price.

“I really feel like that’s going to be the wave of the future,” she said.
And largely because of the Internet, Kiper Enterprises also had to face something else new: competition.

“The Internet has been bigger than anything else,” said David Cope, a former marketing director for the Baltimore Ravens and Washington Redskins who is now senior vice president of business development for Major League Soccer’s D.C. United. “It disseminates information so quickly to so many people it’s allowed people to become closer to the NFL and to learn more about players and teams.”

With easier access to statistics, the growing popularity of college football on television and the ability to publish online, it’s become easier in the last decade to be the next Mel Kiper. The NFL Network’s Mike Mayock, CBS Sportsline’s Rob Rang, Fox Sports’ Chris Steuber are just a few of the competing network’s draft gurus. Even ESPN has brought on Todd McShay as an additional analyst.

MORE HERE

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her Web site, http://www.farmersfieldonline.com to read more about the business of sports.

Pryce pays price, takes pay cut to secure roster spot

2010-04-22T02:38:00.000-07:00

Midway through the 2009 season, DE Trevor Pryce was removed from the starting line-up and saw his playing time cut. Now, it appears that Pryce’s salary has been cut too.

NFLPA records indicate that the Ravens and Pryce have recently agreed to a reduction in Pryce’s scheduled base salary of $4.5M. Pryce is now slated to make only $2M in base salary for 2010. It is likely that Pryce agreed to the reduced salary in order to remain with the team.

Had there been a Salary Cap in 2010, Pryce most certainly would have been released in early March. However, without a Salary Cap, Pryce, who will turn 35 in August, was able to remain with the club, but his sizeable base salary still made his roster spot vulnerable. Now, it appears that Pryce will remain with the club at a more favorable salary for the role that he is expected to fill.

Despite the reduced playing time in 2009, Pryce thrived in the role of a situational pass rusher and still led the team with 6.5 sacks. It is a role that Pryce is expected to again fill in 2010 and it is likely that the reduction in his base salary is offset with incentives that would allow Pryce to recoup part if not all, of the $2.5M that he has given up if he meets certain statistical milestones.

UNCAPPED YEAR RULES LIKELY HINDERING RAVENS’ ATTEMPTS TO EXTEND NGATA

2010-04-19T22:53:00.000-07:00

Reaching an agreement on a long term contract with DT Haloti Ngata is one of the Ravens’ stated goals for the offseason, but any deal for Ngata is going to be sizeable and deals like that can often be difficult to reach. But as it turns out, inking Ngata to a long term deal presents hurdles outside of the collective control of the Ravens and the former Oregon Duck’s agent.

Why?

Blame it on the Uncapped Year.

The CBA Rules as they relate to the uncapped year contain a provision that is going to make it difficult for the Ravens to give Ngata the contract extension that he deserves.

One of the Uncapped Year rules is the 30% Rule which places a limit on contracts renegotiated and/or extended during the Uncapped Year. Basically, a contract that was signed during a Capped Year (for Ngata, 2006) can be renegotiated and extended during the Uncapped Year, but only if the player’s “salary” increases annually by no more than 30% of his 2009 “salary.”

For the purposes of the 30% Rule, “salary” is basically base salary plus option bonus prorations.

Ngata’s 2009 salary was a little under $2.4M, so that means that the most Ngata could make (signing bonus excluded) is as follows:

2010: $3.12M
2011: 3.84M
2012: 4.56M
2013: 5.28M
2014: $6M
2015: $6.72M

While those numbers are certainly nothing to sneeze at, they only total just over $29.5M, and usually you would expect higher base salaries for the kind of deal that Ngata will command.

So, in order to balance that out, the Ravens would have to give Ngata a huge, upfront signing bonus because signing bonus money is not considered as part of the 30% calculation.

The Ravens have always preferred to split bonus money into a signing bonus in year one and an option bonus in year two (and sometimes a little in year three, as well). But, in Ngata’s case the 30% Rule would force the club to give one upfront signing bonus of $35-40M to balance out the relatively modest base salaries shown above.

The Ravens would probably not be that adverse to giving a huge bonus to Ngata – he’s certainly not someone the team would have to worry about with regard to off-field issues – but it’s also an issue of just how much money the Ravens can spend at this point in real world dollars and cents.

Already this offseason, the Ravens have paid a $23M option bonus to Terrell Suggs and have also paid close to $22M in other bonuses to Domonique Foxworth, Ray Lewis, Anquan Boldin, Michael Oher, Derrick Mason and Corey Redding. That’s a total of $45M in bonus money paid to just 7 players. As a point of reference, the Ravens spent $112M on their total payroll (all salaries and bonuses) in 2009.

With the possibility of a work stoppage in 2011, it remains to be seen if the Ravens even have the necessary cash flow to take on another bonus – especially one of that magnitude.

That said this dilemma is not unique to the Ravens.

Several other teams are also facing this same problem with players like Chris Johnson, Nick Mangold and Kevin Kolb. Like Ngata those players are still playing under their rookie deals at very modest “salaries”, thus making it difficult to reach viable contract terms given the handcuffs of the 30% Rule.

While there may be a yet-to-be-disclosed, creative way to get around the 30% Rule, for all of those players – Ngata included – it may end up being the case that they will have to wait until the offseason to get their contract extensions.

Leave Overtime Alone!

2010-03-23T07:14:00.000-07:00

One thing you can say for baseball, the game is basically the same as it was 100 years ago.

The fundamental rules are the same, and the nature of playing the game is more or less the same now as when Mickey Mantle was hitting monster home-runs.

Football, on the other hand, has gone through many major changes in the nature of play, and even with the game’s rules.

Every off-season, the competition committee develops a proposal of rule changes. Some of the changes are minor (whether players can have hair coming out of their helmet) while others have a huge impact on the game (elimination of the “force out rule”). Some of these changes are understandable, even good (I'm perfectly fine with the rule that says you can't lay out a defenseless player who has no chance of making a play, like Ryan Clark did to Wes Welker in 2008 (below) while some of them, like the skirt, er, Brady rule, are just embarrassing.

This year, the competition is seriously considering a change in the rules governing overtime in the NFL, amidst complaints, mostly from the controversy-mongers at ESPN, that the current system is “unfair.”

In 1941, the league adopted a “sudden-death” rule for overtime play in the playoffs. In 1955 this was extended to pre-season games, and finally to all games in 1974. Up until 1994, teams that won the coin toss to open overtime were victorious roughly 50% of the time. Then, the NFL moved kickoffs from the 35 yard line to the 30, a move that benefited offenses by providing more opportunities for kickoff returns and better field position, and the frequency at which teams winning the flip won the game shot up to nearly 60%.

Because of that, some fans and commentators have routinely complained that the rule allows for the game to end without one team ever getting an offensive possession, especially when a star quarterback fails to get on the field in overtime.

The catalyst for the current round of complaining is last season's NFC Championship game, in which Graham Hartley and the Saints won the game on a field goal on the first possession of overtime, preventing everyone's favorite tractor riding prima donna Brett Favre from having a chance to engineer a magical overtime victory to send his team to the Super Bowl.

Never mind that it was an interception of a bone-headed Favre pass at the end of regulation that sent the game to overtime, as opposed to giving Minnesota a chance to win without overtime.

And that is my biggest problem with arguments that the sudden-death rule isn't “fair.”

On one hand, there are numerous chances to make a play in regulation that could make overtime irrelevant altogether. If you don't want to face the possibility that you may lose the overtime coin-flip and then the game without getting your offense on the field, don't let yourself be put in that position.

On the other hand, there's more to football than offense.

It would be one thing if we were talking about a sudden-death rule in baseball, where the fielding team is unable to score runs, and so the home team really would be put at an unfair disadvantage by such a rule. But in football, not only do you have three aspects to a game working together, you have the ability to score on any one of them. Not only can you lose without ever getting your offense on the field, you can win that way too! In fact, it happened just this year, when Arizona's Karlos Dansby returned an Aaron Rodgers fumble for a touchdown to win their Wild Card playoff game.

I understand that not everyone agrees with me on this question, and I also understand that some people simply think some other way of doing things would be more fun to watch.

That's fine, I can't tell you what entertains you.

But the incessant arguments about “fairness” strike me as bunk. And while I'm certain there are plenty of fans who honestly believe that, when it comes to ESPN and the NFL, I strongly suspect the issue isn't fairness so much as it is looking for even more ways to skew the rules to privileged offenses, star quarterbacks in particular.

After all, if the offense has such an unfair advantage, why not roll back the recent rule changes that favor offense, to make the game more fair to defenses at all times?

That no one in the NFL ivory tower is proposing anything like that, or moving kickoffs back to the 35 yard line, makes me deeply suspicious that they're simply trying to make the game fair for everyone.

We get enough Brett Favre and Peyton Manning as it is.

If the NFL wants us to see even more of their poster children, let them film another commercial.

In the meantime, I'll take my overtime just the way it is, thank you very much.

Uncertainty after Boldin and Mason

2010-03-13T07:02:00.000-08:00

By now we've all talked about the Boldin signing over and over.

And, yes, Derrick Mason is coming back for another two years.

So, what's next?

Before Boldin, the biggest news of the off-season had been the Ravens' signing of WR Donte Stallworth. I thought this was a very good value signing, and still do after the other moves made at the position. However, it's worth being realistic about just what you're getting with Stallworth.

Outside of his rookie season and 2005, he has been an inconsistent player at best. In those other 4 seasons, he's averaged 36 catches, 711 yards, and 4 touchdowns. Now, those are pretty good numbers for a 3rd WR, especially when you consider the blazing speed Stallworth brings to the table. If he's on the field, he's going to have plenty of chances to run by the opposing defense and make some big plays, but that's a very big if. Stallworth's injury report reads like a who's-who of things you don't want to see for a receiver, from hamstrings to quadriceps.

After Stallworth, we're left with the all too familiar Mark Clayton. Clayton's report reads a lot like Stallworth's; a first-round pick who pretty much flopped, a guy with speed who's always battling a nagging hamstring injury, and someone you can't necessarily count on to make a play when you need him to.

Will the addition of Boldin and Stallworth help Clayton on the field, or is what we've seen for the past five seasons all we're ever going to get from the former Sooner?

And then there's Demetrius Williams. We've all heard how high on him Ozzie was last year, and we've also heard about how much time he's spent in John Harbaugh's doghouse. He's also someone who battles the nagging injuries, and reportedly has “practice issues.”

Still, he's a fairly tall, fairly speedy guy who showed some flashes of having big play ability last year. Is it time to give up on Williams, or to see what he can do with two pass catching beasts around him?

Considering players who were on the team last year but are currently UFA's, I thought Kelley Washington was under-utilized last season. He's not going to carry anyone's passing game on his shoulders, but he's a big, strong, wideout who can make some plays over the middle, and emerged as a credible 3rd down weapon for a while last season. He's also a very good special teams player, which makes him more useful than a 4th or 5th receiver who can't cover kicks.

If the Ravens aren't content with the guys they currently have on the roster, other options are dwindling. The free agent market is thinning, with the biggest target left being T.O. But do the Ravens really need a big, relatively slow, possession receiver with a tendency to drop balls? There's always the draft, but do you really want to spend a 1st round pick on a receiver at this point, given that you just traded a 3rd and a 4th round pick for one, and considering the track record of 1st round receivers?

And who would realistically be available when the Ravens pick? Dez Bryant's stock is falling as more and more people question his work ethic and commitment, but is a talent like that really going to fall that far? I suppose it's very possible Arrelious Benn will be available, but is he likely to be a better pick than a TE, CB, or pass rusher?

Obviously a lot of this depends on the larger plan Ozzie has for the roster, and what the scouts are saying about the various potential draft picks.

But if it were up to you, what would you do?

What would you most like to address with the first draft pick?

Would you try to add more help at WR, either in the draft or free agency, or do you feel good about the players currently on the roster?

And who do you see adding the most production after Boldin and Mason?

Big Ben, Big Problems

2010-03-13T06:33:00.000-08:00

If ESPN gets their way the Ravens will be playing their #1 rival to kick off Monday Night Football for the 2010 season. This will be completely different than last season when we didn’t play the Steelers for the first time until the end of November.

I love the sound of this. It would be a great way to start off the season. (As long as we win, of course)

However, rumor has it that this all depends on what happens with Ben Roethlisberger’s current legal issues.

Who wants to showcase a team who is led by a man who has been accused of sexual assault TWICE in less than a year?

Let us indulge ourselves and peek a little further into this situation.

As hardcore Ravens fans, we all share the same passion for our team as well as a passion for hating the Steelers. Don’t deny that anytime you see someone repping for our biggest enemy in the football world that you can’t think of anything but wanting to burn the Steelers hat, shirt, coat, tie, scarf, or whatever it may be to ashes.

While we’re being honest here (and with all due respect to the alleged victim), let’s not deny that we were a little happy inside to hear of Mr. Roethlisberger’s sexual assault allegations. We all know he was accused of the same crime last year. This time it seems a bit fishier. Ben’s attorney, Ed Garland (who was Ray Lewis’ attorney over 10 years ago in a murder case) isn’t agreeing to let Georgia Police acquire a DNA sample as requested nor is he stating when Ben will have his next interview.

Whether the allegations are true or false, the Steelers organization isn’t very happy with these Roethlisberger’s shenanigans. Over the next 5 years the organization is schedule to pay Big Ben up to $54 Million. If indicted, the NFL will most likely suspend him indefinitely. (i.e. Michael Vick being indicted on dog fighting charges)

Could we be seeing the beginning of the end for one of the most loved AND hated players in the NFL?

We shall see my friends.

Whatever the outcome, when we play the Steelers no matter what week in the season it may be; we all know it will be a challenge as it always is, and I cannot wait to see our team this upcoming season given all the great changes we have made thus far during the off season.

Baltimore Ravens 2010 Compensatory Picks

2010-03-09T13:57:00.000-08:00

Fans should temper hopes for additional picks

With the net loss of one draft pick in the Anquan Boldin trade and the disclosure that the Ravens 7th round pick is headed to Tampa Bay to complete the 2008 trade for Marques Douglas (which was first reported here over 2 weeks ago), many fans are looking for the Ravens to acquire a few more draft picks when the league announces the Compensatory draft picks at the end of the month.

In fact, some fans seem to be expecting the team to receive multiple, high Compensatory picks when the announcement is made. Recently, this hope has been fueled by some in the Baltimore media, who are reporting that the Ravens should expect “at least one” Compensatory pick.

Those hopes and expectations are based on last year’s loss of premium free agents like Bart Scott and Jason Brown. However, under the Compensatory Draft pick rules, when a team signs as many qualifying UFAs as it loses – as the Ravens did - the best the team can receive is one 7th round Compensatory pick. The Ravens will be awarded that one 7th round pick, if the team’s losses are deemed to be sufficiently greater than what they signed.

This type of Comp Pick is referred to as a “net value” Comp Pick.

The 4 qualifying UFAs lost by the Ravens were Bart Scott, Jason Brown, Jim Leonhard and Kyle Boller. The 4 qualifying UFAs signed by the Ravens were Domonique Foxworth, Matt Birk, Chris Carr and LJ Smith. The Ravens also lost Marques Douglas, but since he was released by the team, he does not count as a loss for Comp Pick purposes (since they willingly gave him up).

Certainly the Ravens lost more in value than what they signed, but it remains to seen whether or not those losses are great enough (this actual measurement has never been disclosed) under the Comp Pick rules to warrant the granting of a “net value” 7th round pick.

For the purposes of determining the “sufficiency” of the losses over the gains, the formula looks at the average yearly value of the contracts signed by the UFAs. Using those figures, the total of the yearly averages for the players lost by the Ravens is $19M (Scott, $8M; Brown, $7.5M; Leonhard, $2M; Boller, $1.5M) versus $15M for those signed (Foxworth, $7M; Birk, $4M; Carr, $2.5M; LJ Smith, $1.5M). So, in the end, it’s really not that great of a difference and probably not enough to get them a 7th round “net value” Comp Pick..

To further this point, from 2005 to 2009, only 6 teams that signed as many UFAs as they lost (Ariz, 2009; St. Louis, 2008; Cincinnati, 2007: and Washington, Seattle and Buffalo, 2006) received “net value” Comp picks - and each team received only the one 7th round pick. Based on this it appears that the criteria for a “net value” pick is quite stringent.

One other variable could also come into play - there are only 32 Comp Picks awarded and a “net value” Comp Pick will only be awarded if the 32 Comp pick slots have not already been filled. In most years, there still is enough room for the league to award “net value” picks.

This year, however, at least as far as the Ravens are concerned, it may not matter either way.

Visit Ravens24x7.com for more Ravens coverage.

Photo by Sabina Moran.

Marques Douglas deal to cost Ravens in 2010 Draft

2010-02-23T06:43:00.000-08:00

It has been suggested that the 2010 NFL draft pool is one of the deepest and best in recent history - perhaps even the best ever. That is great news for the Ravens, one of the best drafting teams in the league. However, they will have to use their draft picks wisely because they will have one less draft pick on April 24th.

In the Fall of 2008, reacting to a season ending injury to DE Dwan Edwards, the Ravens acquired DE Marques Douglas from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a 2009 7th round draft pick and a conditional 2010 draft pick. When the Ravens released Douglas last February, it was assumed that the conditional draft pick would go away, but Ravens 24x7 has learned that the Ravens no longer have their 7th round pick this year. Whatever the conditions attached to the 2010 draft pick were, the conditions were met and the Buccaneers are now in possession of the Ravens’ pick.

So, at present, the Ravens have 6 draft picks – one in each of the first 6 rounds.

Many fans are expecting the Ravens to receive multiple, high Compensatory Draft picks when they are announced in late March. This hope is based on last year’s loss of premium free agents like Bart Scott and Jason Brown. However, under the Compensatory Draft pick rules, when a team signs as many qualifying UFAs as it loses – like the Ravens - the most the team can receive is one 7th round pick. The Ravens will be awarded that one 7th round pick, if the team’s losses are deemed to be sufficiently greater than what they signed. This type of Comp Pick is referred to as a “net value” Comp Pick.

The 4 qualifying UFAs lost by the Ravens were Bart Scott, Jason Brown, Jim Leonhard and Kyle Boller. The 4 qualifying UFAs signed by the Ravens were Domonique Foxworth, Matt Birk, Chris Carr and LJ Smith. The Ravens also lost Marques Douglas, but since he was released by the team, he does not count as a loss for Comp Pick purposes (since they willingly gave him up).

Certainly the Ravens lost more in value than what they signed, but it remains to be seen whether it is enough under the Comp Pick rules (this actual measurement has never been disclosed). One other variable also comes into play - there are only 32 Comp picks awarded and a “net value” Comp Pick will only be awarded if the 32 Comp pick slots have not already been filled.

So, if the Ravens are awarded a Comp Pick, they will be able to replace the 7th rounder sent to Tampa Bay (albeit, at the very bottom of the 7th round as opposed to the 25th pick of the round).

What this means for the Ravens is that they don’t have a lot of draft picks to work with. This lack of ammunition means that they are probably more likely to look to move down in the draft than move up. Over the last few years, we have seen the Ravens use low round draft picks to move up in the 1st round of the draft in order to secure a player that the covet (Ngata, Flacco, Oher). This year that would mean one less draft pick available to be used in a draft that is expected to be very strong from top to bottom. Given how devoted to the draft the team has always been, it would seem that they’d be likely to look for an opportunity to drop down a couple of picks – on the theory that they aren’t really losing out on talent – while picking up an extra pick to use on some of the other talent in the draft.

The lack of draft picks also may impact the Ravens desire to make trades for established veterans or sign players to RFA offer sheets, although they do seem committed to taking whatever actions are necessary to secure the missing pieces.

Phins Follies with Joey Porter

2010-02-19T07:43:00.000-08:00

The Miami Dolphins were forced to void the release of LB Joey Porter last week because it violated the Salary Cap rules. Porter has been pretty much telling everyone who will listen, that he wants out of Miami and generally making a nuisance of himself (not a great surprise) so the Dolphins apparently were more than willing to accommodate his wishes. What someone in the Dolphins’ Front Office failed to remember – or didn’t know – is that the “league year” runs from March to February, so for the NFL’s purposes, we are still in 2009 as of this writing.

Consequently, all of the dead money caused by Porter’s release would count in 2009 and the Dolphins didn’t have enough remaining 2009 Cap space to take on that amount. As such, the Dolphins were forced to admit their error and void Porter’s release, thereby reinstating him to their roster (at least until March 5th, when they can release him for good).

Now, Porter has lost the advantage of essentially being one of the only decent FAs presently on the market, and will have to wait and become a FA on March 5th (along with all of the other UFAs).

Couldn’t have happened to a better guy………

The impact of an uncapped season: Salary Cap Q&A

2010-02-12T06:02:00.000-08:00

It’s the offseason and until the 2010 season begins the focus will be open augmenting the Ravens’ roster through free agency, trades and the draft. There’s also the huge issue of the collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) and the upcoming “uncapped season.” With that in mind, I asked 24x7’s capologist Brian McFarland to answer a few questions…

Tony Lombardi: To start with Brian, let’s hone in on the CBA. Why in your opinion is the league at this crossroad and why can’t the players and owners get it together and reach a reasonable compromise for the benefit of a multi-billion dollar industry?

Brian McFarland: For the owners, it became pretty obvious, pretty quickly, that the deal they had agreed to in 2006 had given too much of the pie to the players. The Salary Cap increased from around $85M in 2005 to $130M in 2009. It likely would have been $140M this year. That’s a major increase over a short period of time.

Part of the reason for such a huge increase was that the teams could simply not keep up with the Cap. The CBA contains a provision (separate from the Salary Cap) that set a minimum league-wide amount to be spent on players. If and when that minimum was not met, it increases the Salary Cap for the following year (over and above the set yearly increase). So, basically, the owners contend that, even with normal spending habits, the amount to be spent on players was just too much.

That led the owners to exercise the opt-out provision of the CBA in May of 2008. The subsequent downturn of the economy has only served to worsen the problem – at least according to the owners.

TL: DeMaurice Smith recently said when asked about the possibility of a 2011 lockout that on the scale of 1 to 10, a 14. The owners seem to have solidarity and are willing to enter an uncapped season. Both are putting on their best poker face. Which do you feel has the better hand?

Brian: I’d say the owners clearly have the most leverage here. The uncapped year rules that are in place make an uncapped year anything but a boon for the players, so the owners aren’t afraid to go “uncapped”. Plus, the owners have apparently already been planning their finances to protect themselves for a possible strike or lockout in 2011. The television deals, in fact, will continue to be paid - even if there is no football being played.

On the other hand, the players have found out that the uncapped year will not be the spending free for all that they had been lead to believe. In fact, the rules are so limiting that there will probably be very little player movement in 2010.

TL: Might some potential free agents suffer as a result of the uncapped season and if so could their interests undermine the union’s solidarity?

Brian: Absolutely! Over 200 players who would have otherwise been Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs) will now be just Restricted Free Agents (RFAs), thereby still largely under control of their present teams. For many of those players, it means the loss of a huge contract and continued exposure to the possibility of injury that could ruin their chance at their big payday.

Whether that’s enough to get the NFLPA to be more willing to agree to concessions, remains to be seen. At least at this point, the NFLPA really has no choice but to talk tough and not be willing to compromise. They got a great deal in 2006, but if they just buckle under and give back those gains, the Union will be viewed as weak and unable to protect the players in the future. As such, I wouldn’t expect a quick resolution. In fact, the only real leverage the players have is to force the owners to impose a lockout and hope that that will swing public sentiment in favor of the players.

TL: Some have questioned whether or not the owners are on the same page because big market teams like the Cowboys and Redskins prefer not to share the rewards of their own marketing efforts with other less entrepreneurial owners. Talk about that issue and what remedies might satisfy all owners.

Brian: The owners appear to be pretty unified at this point. In 2006, they seemed to be a bit more divided, but it appears that all of the owners feel that the deal negotiated back then was a bad deal for them and now they need to correct it.

Whether that resolve will last remains to be seen, but it certainly appears that they are comfortable with, and prepared for, a labor stoppage.

Revenue sharing will never go away, it’s what makes the NFL different from every other professional league and allows every team to have a shot at the playoffs. It certainly is understandable, though, that some owners – those who go out and do everything they can to maximize their revenue – are not particularly happy with their brethren, who do not do so.

I’m sure there will be some tweaks to the owners’ revenue sharing arrangement, but it won’t likely be anything that will change the competitive balance of the league.

TL: The owners have incorporated safeguards in the CBA to prevent free spending by the Jerry Joneses and Dan Snyders of the NFL world. One of those safeguards affects playoff teams and one such team is the Ravens. Being among the Final Eight teams, the Ravens must deal with certain restrictions as it pertains to free agents. What are those restrictions?

Brian: The Ravens, as one of the 4 teams that lost in the Divisional Round, are subject to the Final 8 Plan and are limited as to the types, and quantity, of Free Agents they can sign, but not as much as some members of the media have portrayed.

The Ravens are allowed to sign the following Free Agents:

They may re-sign their own Free Agents;

They may sign players released by other teams (known as “Street Free Agents”);

They may sign RFAs to offer sheets;

They may sign one (1) UFA to a big-money deal (with a 1st year “salary” of approx. $5.5M);

They may sign any number of UFAs to minor deals (with 1st year salaries of less than approx. $3.7M);

With regard to signing an additional big-money UFA or a middle range UFA (i.e. one with a 1st year salary between $3.7M and $5.5M), the Ravens can only sign any such UFA if they have already lost a UFA making the same salary.

TL: OK, so the Final Eight Plan does not prohibit the Ravens from signing a top UFA like Julius Peppers?

Brian: No, it does not – they can sign one top UFA, if they are so inclined.
For whatever reason, there seems to be a lot of confusion about this. The Final 8 Plan rules do not prohibit them from signing one UFA to a top of the market deal. The “you have to lose one to sign one provision” does not apply to the first of such players, nor does it apply to the signing of lesser UFAs.

With regard to Julius Peppers specifically, he is presently slated to be a UFA. Early reports are that the Panthers are not going to use the Franchise Tag on Peppers, but I have my doubts. I just can’t see how the Panthers can let a player of that caliber get away without attempting to trade him first.

However, if the Panthers do decline to use the Franchise Tag, the Ravens are allowed to sign Peppers to a long term deal. However, if they did sign Peppers, they would not be able to sign another big-money UFA, unless they lost one of equal value. Given the pending UFAs for the Ravens – Derrick Mason, Kelley Washington, David Tyree, LJ Smith, Justin Bannan, Dwan Edwards, Frank Walker, Corey Ivy – it is unlikely that the loss of any of them would allow the Ravens to sign an additional UFA. As such, the Ravens will only be able to sign one top of the market UFA.

TL: What if the Ravens opt to trade for a player like Anquan Boldin but Boldin wants a new deal before agreeing to the trade. Do the Final Eight rules affect this type of transaction?

Brian: The Final 8 Plan does limit trades for the final 8 teams, but the provision is a bit ambiguous, so it remains to be seen how limiting it is? It could either prohibit a Final 8 team from (1) trading for a 2010 UFA in a “sign-and-trade” scenario, whereby the player signs with another team and then is traded to a Final 8 team or (2) trading for a player, who, if a 2010 UFA, would be prohibited from signing with the team because of the Final 8 rules.

If it’s the later, then trading for a guy like Boldin becomes problematic since he is in the final year of his contract and the Final 8 category that he falls under prohibits his contract from being renegotiated for one year. That would essentially mean a one-year rental, with Boldin (assuming a new CBA at some point) being a UFA before the Ravens could sign him to a new deal. This provision would also apply to trading for a RFA for less than the RFA tender he received. For example, if the Broncos place the 1st and 3rd round RFA tender on WR Brandon Marshall, but were willing to trade him for less, a trade to the Ravens (or any other Final 8 team) become problematic, because Marshall would be traded under his one-year RFA tender and, like Boldin, would not be able to receive the long term contract he has been seeking.

So, for the Ravens sake, hopefully the trade prohibition is only in place to restrict “sign-and-trade” scenarios.

TL: So it sounds like to me that it will be easier for non-playoff teams to improve through free agency and potentially trades…

Brian: Absolutely, those teams are not subject to any of the Final 8 restrictions, but with so few UFAs and with teams having the ability to use an additional Transitional Tag, there will be far less players available. For the most part, free agency is going to be a non-event this year (or at least, far less active than in the past).

TL: How might the look of contracts change with the other CBA safeguards designed to curb free spending?

Brian: The structure of a contract is limited by two different 30% limitations. The first limits the increase of the yearly “salary” (to include base salary, roster bonus, and option bonus prorations) a player receives to be no more than 30% of the player’s 1st year salary. This provision began last year and was aimed at prohibiting teams from crafting a contract that would contain small amounts in capped years and large amounts in an uncapped year.

The other 30% limitation has the same aim and applies specifically to a contract entered into in an uncapped year and prohibits a player’s salary from decreasing by more than 30% from one year to the next. This second 30% limitation is specifically in place to prohibit teams from signing players in an uncapped year to a contract that pays the player a huge salary (again, to include base salary, roster bonus, and option bonus prorations) in the Uncapped Year, but then smaller amounts after that (on the assumption that a Salary Cap would return in subsequent years).

This limitation would not prohibit the use of a sizeable signing bonus in an uncapped year, but, assuming a CBA extension in the future and the resumption of the Salary Cap, any bonus given would likely be subject to proration when the Cap returns, so teams would not be able to have to all count in the Uncapped Year.

TL: Ozzie Newsome said he expects there to be a larger number of street free agents as a result of the uncapped season. For everyone’s benefit what does that mean and why do you think Ozzie feels this way?

Brian: A Street Free Agent is a player who has been released by another team. As a Final 8 team, the Ravens are not prohibited from signing Street Free Agents and have had some pretty good success over the years when signing players who have been released by their prior teams (for example, Rod Woodson, Shannon Sharpe, Samari Rolle, Derrick Mason, Trevor Pryce).

Ozzie is anticipating that a lot of teams will use the Uncapped Year as a tool to rid themselves of costly contracts of players who are no longer (for whatever reason) living up to their contract. For the Ravens, that could include players like Willis McGahee and Trevor Pryce.

TL: During the State of the Ravens press conference Ozzie also mentioned that the uncapped year might be a good time to extend contracts. Why?

Brian: Two reasons really:

With the lack of free agents available, teams may look to their own roster and spend their budget on extending players already on the team. Also, players, who because of the Uncapped Year are RFAs instead of UFAs, might be more willing to sign an extension instead of having to wait another year to be a UFA. Plus, if there is a lockout next year, it would be nice to get a sizeable bonus now to help lessen the blow of not getting paid next year during a labor stoppage.

There is no Salary Cap to limit the number of contracts that a team could negotiate. One caution here though is that the team still has to be mindful that a Salary Cap is likely to come back at some point and, depending on the team’s spending, the team can’t put itself in a bind when they overspend now and have to pay the piper later when the Cap returns.

TL: Ed Reed is contemplating retirement. Wouldn’t it be best if his retirement happens in 2010 strictly from a cap perspective since it will be an uncapped season?

Brian: Yes, in an uncapped year, there is worry about dead money hitting the Cap. This past year, the Ravens carried close to $20M in dead money against the Cap for players (McNair, Ogden, McAlister, Douglas) who were no longer on the team. That was Salary Cap space that they could not spend on other players. In an uncapped year, there is no dead money to worry about.

TL: Might the competitive balance in the league be upset by the fact that there will be no spending floor in the uncapped season?

Brian: It would allow teams like Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Buffalo, St. Louis and Cincinnati to pay as little to players as they’d like. That certainly could have an adverse effect and could lead to really awful football in some cities.

TL: If there is no floor, does that mean that minimum salaries are a thing of the past?

Brian: No minimum salaries are still in place, it’s just that teams could, conceivably, sign 53 players to veteran minimum deals.

TL: How might a rookie cap help the league going forward with or without a salary cap?

Brian: The guaranteed money that top 10 picks are now getting is just ridiculous and it takes away Salary Cap space that would otherwise likely be paid to veterans. The NFLPA has said it won’t discuss a rookie cap, but there have been plenty of players who have commented on how it’s needed given the crazy contracts that top 10 picks are getting.

It seems pretty well understood that there will be a true rookie salary cap in place as part of the new CBA.

Note: If you have any salary cap questions not addressed here, post the question below and we'll get it answered in a follow up to this blog post. Thanks, TL

WMAR outsourcing sports to PressBox

2010-02-04T10:18:00.000-08:00

After months without a sportscaster of its own, Baltimore’s WMAR has turned to a local sports media company to produce sports segments on its nightly television newscasts — a move some say is a financial win for both companies but a potential loss for viewers.

PressBox, a Baltimore company with a monthly newspaper, a Web site, and weekly television and radio shows, started producing the script and voiceover for WMAR’s sportscasts more than a week ago and plans to officially announce the new relationship Monday.

A handful of PressBox writers — including company founder Stan “The Fan” Charles and managing editor Kevin Heitz — serve as the nightly voice of the sportscast. A 90-second voiceover of highlights and news is recorded and sent to WMAR, where the video is later edited in and aired during the 11 p.m. newscast.

The look and feel is similar to watching ESPN News, said John Coulson, managing partner for PressBox.

“It’s less expensive for them but produced at a higher level than a sports department with two people in it,” he said. “So they’re able to control costs, and we grow because we get so many eyeballs on the 11 p.m. news at night.”

More here...

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her Web site, http://www.farmersfieldonline.com to read more about the business of sports.

Bisciotti doesn't think Ravens will be hurt by un-capped season

2010-02-04T07:33:00.000-08:00

Facing the uncertainty of a non-salary-capped season, Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said the team’s business is in good health and he is looking forward to the challenges next year will bring.

At the team’s season-ending news conference, Bisciotti said the team is prepared financially for a non-salary capped season in 2010 as the National Football League’s players and owners are still trying to hammer out a new collective bargaining agreement. The current agreement expires after the 2010 season.

According to the current agreement, if a new CBA is not reached by this March, the salary cap system will not be in place for 2010. It’s a scenario Bisciotti said many owners have been preparing for and assume will happen.

And the Ravens are in a position to spend money, he said.

“It’s not going to hurt us that much,” he said. “We’ve got a budget we’re going to spend up to and we’re going to spend as much as most teams, if not all of them.”

In 2009, the salary cap was about $127 million per team. But an uncapped season will not be the spending free-for-all that some fans may by expecting because the number of free agents available — players whose contracts have expired and can sign with another franchise — will be limited. In the event of an uncapped season, the number of seasons required to become an unrestricted free agent goes from four to six.

That affects about 10 players on the Ravens roster, including defensive lineman Haloti Ngata and safety Dawan Landry, who were drafted in 2006, Bisciotti said.

Another handcuff on the Ravens in an uncapped year is the restriction on the final eight teams in the playoffs from signing free agents. The rule allows the final eight teams to sign an unrestricted free agent only if it loses one of its own unrestricted free agents to another team.

“I’m looking forward to the constraints,” Bisciotti said. “If there’s any constraints, to me, that makes your decision that much more important.”

That could mean cutting an unrestricted free agent loose, said team General Manager Ozzie Newsome.

“This is an uncapped year — there will be some real good players that are going to get cut,” he said.

MORE HERE

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her Web site, http://www.farmersfieldonline.com to read more about the business of sports.

Super Sunday should be especially super for advertisers

2010-01-27T08:59:00.000-08:00

Well, despite the fact that the team from one of the top television markets in the U.S. didn’t make the Super Bowl (ahem, New York Jets), television nuts are still predicting that this year could be the most-watched game in history.

I’m rooting for ABP – Anybody But Peyton.

Industry research firm IBISWorld is predicting a record-breaking 100 million viewers will tune in to the big game, an increase of 1.1 percent from last year’s 98.7 million viewers. That, by the way, was the largest audience ever for the Super Bowl.

In its prediction, IBISWorld cites the poor economy, which is causing consumers to turn to cheaper forms of entertainment, and the hoopla surrounding the game – Super Bowl parties, half time show and commercials (the number of 30-second spots has increased from 55 in 2007 to 62 in 2010).

Just a little side note: “most-watched” isn’t that phenomenal when you think about it. The U.S. population is growing every year so almost by default the audience numbers will grow. What’s really impressive is a high rating, meaning the percentage of households with a television.

And guess who’s got the record for that one? That’s right, my good ol' San Francisco 49ers when they defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI on Jan. 24, 1982 in front of 49.1 percent of U.S. television households. Now that’s a captive audience.

Sorry. Just had to point that out.

Anyway, if I’m reading the tea leaves right, it seems like this upcoming Super Bowl has a shot at not only having the most viewers but having one of the highest ratings ever…maybe even the highest-rated since NBC drew 46 percent of households for Dallas Cowboys-Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 28, 1996.

NFL television ratings this year have bumped up in general. But when you look at the playoffs the picture is even more clear: Jets-Colts averaged 46.9 million viewers, the best for the AFC final in 24 years, peaking at 54 million.

Meanwhile Vikings and Saints averaged an insane 57.9 million viewers. (And may I point out that’s the highest figure for an NFC championship game since "The Catch" by San Francisco's Dwight Clark beat the Dallas Cowboys in 1982. That audience peaked at 65.2 million. OK, now I’m really done. I swear.)

And with the story lines of Peyton Manning (have the Colts replaced the Cowboys as "America's Team?") versus the Ain'ts-turned-Saints the drama could be high two Sundays from now. I think this Super Bowl has what it takes to give advertisers the most bang for their buck than they've gotten in quite a while.

Unless of course the Saints turn it over three times in the first half and the Colts get anything greater than a 14-point lead....then you'll hear the resounding click of remotes everywhere as they tune into ESPN to watch the PBA tour.

Liz Farmer covers sports business for The Daily Record in Baltimore. You can also visit her at her Web site, http://www.farmersfieldonline.com to read more about the business of sports.

Oher inks new multi-year deal but not with Ravens

2010-01-22T03:28:00.000-08:00

The face of Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Michael Oher will be coming to a billboard near you this summer as the rookie player has signed his first major endorsement deal.

AirTran Airways has reached a multi-year agreement with Oher, who finished second in the running for The Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. The terms of the deal, announced Tuesday by AirTran, were not disclosed.

“AirTran is very involved in the communities we serve, and to partner with someone like Michael Oher, who’s such an inspiration on and off the field, is a match made in heaven,” said AirTran spokesman Christopher White.

Oher joins teammate Todd Heap on the AirTran roster, which includes quarterbacks Matt Ryan and Donovan McNabb; NBA All-Star Dwight Howard and racecar driver Danica Patrick. Heap signed with AirTran in August 2008.

The deal is an unusual score for a lineman, said Susan Goodell, senior director of Baltimore marketing firm Warschawski. Normally the faces on billboards are ball handlers like quarterbacks, receivers or running backs.

“But if you’re looking at it locally, the Ravens tend to buck the trend,” she said. “Baltimore sort of appreciates the ‘hard work in the trenches’ mentality.”

More here...

Rich do not get richer in NFL: Final 8 teams will struggle to improve via free agency

2010-01-19T04:33:00.000-08:00

Now that the Ravens’ season is over and the offseason is officially upon us, the Ravens surprising victory in New England in the wildcard round of the playoffs did come with one significant drawback. Because next season is slated to be “uncapped”, the Ravens are now subject to the Final 8 Plan which limits the types of free agent transactions that the team may pursue.

Mindful of what an “uncapped” season might look like, and the potential damage that it could do to the league’s competitive balance (i.e. parity), the NFL Players Association and the league owners decided to create a specific set of rules that would act as a safeguard against teams going hog wild when no longer constrained by a salary cap. These rules found in the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (“ CBA”), aim to limit free spending clubs and allow the lower revenue teams to remain competitive.

One of those measures is the “Final Eight Plan”, which sets out to limit what the best 8 teams can spend, and when they can spend, on Unrestricted Free Agents (“UFAs”). Contained in Article XXI of the CBA, the Final Eight Plan places limits on those teams advancing to the Divisional Round of this year’s playoffs and then further restrictions on the 4 teams that advance to the Conference Championship games.

Since the Ravens advanced to the Divisional Round, they reached the final 8 and are now subject to the following limitations:

The team may sign only one “middle range” UFA, whose first year salary is in the $5-6M range, and an unlimited number of UFAs whose first year salary is in the $3-4M range or less. Those ranges are approximate and will be indexed based on the increases in league’s total revenue since 2006; and

The team may not sign a higher priced UFA, or any additional “middle range” UFAs, unless the team has lost a UFA that makes a similar first year salary. The requirements for the similar nature of the UFA lost and signed are that (1) the first year’s salary of the player signed (base salary, roster bonus, signing bonus proration) does not exceed that called for in the new contract of the player lost, (2) all future years’ salaries of the newly signed UFA do not annually increase by more than 30% of the player’s first year salary and (3) the contract cannot be renegotiated to raise the player’s compensation until at least one year after it’s signed.

The team may not trade for a player who they would have been otherwise unable to sign based on the above prohibitions.

The Final 8 Plan does not limit the team from signing the following types of free agents:

They may re-sign an unlimited number of their own UFAs;

Any free agent who has been released by his prior club. These FAs are often commonly referred to as “Street Free Agents”; and

A Restricted Free Agent (RFA). The team may sign an unlimited number of RFAs to offer sheets because there will be draft pick compensation owed if the player’s current team does not match the Ravens’ offer sheet and allows the player to sign with the Ravens.

These limitations are in place if the 2010 season remains “uncapped” as it is now set to be. If the NFL owners and the NFLPA find a way to reach an agreement on a new CBA before March, then these prohibitions will most likely go away.

What will change in the NFL with an "uncapped season?"

2010-01-19T04:25:00.000-08:00

NEW RULE – SIX YEARS OF SERVICE TIME TO REACH FREE AGENCY: A player will not become an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) until after he completes his 6th “accrued season” in the league.

OLD RULE: In the past, a player with 3 years of accrued service would become a Restricted Free Agent (RFA) and a player with 4 years of service time would become a UFA.

RAMIFICATIONS: A longer period of time before players can reach unrestricted free agency means a lot less players being available as Free Agents in 2010. Players with 4 or 5 years of accrued service will only be RFAs and subject to their present teams being able to maintain contractual rights over them via a RFA tender (and the right to match any offer sheet signed with another team or receive draft pick compensation.)

NEW RULE – ADDITIONAL TRANSITIONAL TAG: In 2010, each team will have an additional Transitional Tag to use.

OLD RULE: Under the old rule, a team could use either its Franchise Tag or its Transition Tag, but not both.

RAMIFICATIONS: In 2010, a team can use 2 Tags, one of which must be a Transition Tag. So, teams will have the ability to use a Franchise Tag and a Transition Tag or 2 Transition Tags.

Again, this will mean that there will be less Free Agents hitting the market, as teams will have the ability to keep more of their own players off the market. Plus, with 2010 being uncapped, teams may be more likely – and willing – to pay the pricey Franchise tenders, since there is no Salary Cap to limit expenditures.

NOTE: The Transition Tag wage is the average of the top 10 players at the player's position. The tagged player is free to negotiate with any other team. Although the original team is not entitled to any form of compensation from the new team, the original teams does maintain the Right of First Refusal. For all intents and purposes a Transition Player is like a Restricted Free Agent with the lowest tender offer.

NEW RULE – THE FINAL EIGHT PLAN: This new set of rules limits the Free Agent activity of the 8 teams that reach the Divisional Round of the playoffs in 2009.
OLD RULE: There were no such limitations.

RAMIFICATIONS: More limits on what teams – the good teams – can do in Free Agency. This rule, in theory, is in place to keep “the rich from getting richer” and is aimed at prohibiting a good team from buying a championship.

Teams in the AFC and NFC Championship games can only sign a UFA after they have lost a FA of their own. They are allowed to sign players released by other teams and re-sign their own FAs.

The other 4 teams in the Final 8 have the same prohibition, but can also sign some FAs based on certain salary restrictions. These restrictions basically are aimed at keeping them from signing top tier FAs.

NEW RULE – NO LEAGUE MINIMUM SALARY: There will be no league minimum amount that a team must spend on player salaries.

OLD RULE: Since the advent of the Salary Cap, not only has there been a maximum that a team can spend, but there has always been a minimum that teams must spend.

RAMIFICATIONS: While many often think the “uncapped year” is going to be a wild spending free-for-all, it is also possible that some teams may spend less than in the past.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens v. Colts, Divisional Playoff Game

2010-01-17T11:51:00.000-08:00

If last night's playoff game was not an indictment of the Ravens’ passing attack and the screaming need to upgrade the receiving corps, I don't know what is. Everyone was in on the football dropping act. Pivotal drops by Le'Ron McClain and Ray Rice cost the offense the chance to gain first downs. In the case of McClain's drop, it may have meant blowing the chance to score a touchdown. Demetrius Williams also dropped two critical passes, and on the sideline route, he appeared to have been a step late coming out of his break.

This is a patchwork group that performed well in some instances over the last two seasons. However, it is now time for the front office to step up and upgrade a unit that must be better for the franchise to get over the hump.

It will be interesting to see if Ozzie Newsome finally makes a bold move to nab a true go-to wideout -- a big, physical, and explosive player who commands bracket coverage and secures the ball in the clutch. Those players don't grow on trees, but there should be some possibilities in the offseason. It is up to Newsome and the rest of the front office to surround their young quarterback with a set of receivers he can rely on.

If they need a better example of what that move would mean for Flacco's development, they should look at the team that they just lost to, and the teams -- such as New England and Pittsburgh -- that they continue to chase.

According to the letter of the law, Lewis' hit was helmet-to-helmet. However, the competition committee needs to evaluate the purpose of that rule and how it is to be interpreted on the field. Lewis made an attempt to dislodge the ball as Collie had it in his hands. If Collie hadn't caught the ball, Lewis' shot would have been cheap and reckless. However, there weren't too many other ways for Lewis to hit Collie in a way that would have prevented the rookie receiver from completing the catch. If a hit like that is applied to a player who has the ball in his hands, the defender should get more of the benefit, as applying a blow to separate a receiver from the ball is part of the game. Unless of course the league moves to two-hand touch.

And let me clarify that a defender should get the benefit as long as he does not lead with the crown of his helmet --- which Lewis did not do, instead leading with his forearm and shoulder.

Just as his receivers couldn't catch a cold last night, Cam Cameron also dropped the ball in preparing the game plan against the Colts. It is simply unconscionable that he could not come up with a better sequence of play calls, especially on first down. Given that the rush offense produced little on first down, the Ravens were consistently behind the eight-ball in the down-and-distance battle. Going forward, this coaching staff has to get a better handle on how to attack an Indy defense that resembles the 2000 Baltimore Ravens every time they line up to play.

For all of Cameron's intricate and creative concepts, none of that comes out during the postseason.

It is interesting that the team that had all of the pressure made the more daring moves. The Colts went for it on a key fourth down play that led to their first touchdown. They also decided to go for a touchdown try with seven seconds to go in the first half, instead of kicking the sure field goal. The Colts cashed in on both plays.

What makes Ed Reed so great is also what hinders him at times. He plays with an air of confidence and is a playmaker through and through. His first interception of Manning was a play that only he could make -- baiting arguably the best quarterback in NFL history into throwing to a spot that wasn't as open as he thought. Reed did a masterful job of timing his jump to the ball. However, Reed's ball security was careless and it has been throughout his career. Even last Sunday against New England, Reed used one hand to control the ball before he lateraled it to safety Dawan Landry. Give credit to Pierre Garcon for making a phenomenal play. However, if the ball was secured better and in Reed's left arm, Garcon doesn't strip the ball away. Reed has been careless in the past because his sole focus is to score; however, he never learned from those mishaps and with him on the field, there is always a chance that he'll blow a play just as easily as he'll make one.

Here are a couple of quick thoughts about the offseason:

1) If the coaching staff continues to run a 3-4 scheme, they need to take a hard look at the outside linebacker position. The success of the 3-4 pass rush is predicated on the edge rushers. Without consistent pressure from those players, the defense is not nearly as effective.

2) Joe Flacco must develop the ability to throw the ball over the middle. Whether it was Flacco's inability to see the field, or the receivers not creating separation, the middle was rarely pierced. That can't happen if this offense is to improve. The passing game has to be more multi-dimensional, and Flacco has to be able to attack all three levels of the defense.

3) As good as Heap was down the stretch for the offense, the team should add another pass-catcher to the fold. They should keep Heap, as he has value as a blocker and veteran presence, but only at a reduced cost.

4) The team needs a new long snapper. No ifs, ands, or buts.

Player Spotlight

The entire secondary deserves recognition for playing so well against the vaunted Indianapolis attack. It is a group that was maligned by the press all week long. Chris Carr in particular was impressive as the slot defender and that may be his niche role for this defense. This is a secondary that played exceptionally well following the bye week and held its own a lot better than observers would have you believe. With the return of corner Lardarius Webb and safety Haruki Nakamura to the lineup, along with another key addition at cornerback, this unit has the chance to be a strength on defense.

GAMEPLAN: How the Ravens can advance to the AFC Championship

2010-01-15T16:22:00.000-08:00

Offense

1) Run deception: The play-action passing game is wide open for the Ravens on first down. Whether they are able to execute is a different story.

Thanks to the attention that the Baltimore rushing attack has garnered over the week, the Indianapolis defenders will have their eyes in the backfield. At times this season, they have bitten up field to defend the run. However, they also have the speed to recover and break on the ball if the pass is delivered late.

Joe Flacco’s timing will need to be impeccable when he turns his head to throw the ball.

Moreover, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron will have to sharply window-dress. In other words, the run-action has to mirror the down-and-pull running game that the Ravens have used so often on first down since the Detroit game.

However, this time, the pulling guard – whether it is Ben Grubbs or Marshal Yanda – will fly off-tackle to pick up the outside rusher, while fullback Le’Ron McClain will stay in front of Flacco to block or leak out as a dump-off option.

This first down play-action attack should be in play consistently, especially on the first couple of offensive series.

2) Chip blocking scheme: In the first matchup, the Baltimore tackles did a nice job of keeping edge rushers Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis at bay. They had some help, though.

Tight end Todd Heap and the backs were instrumental as chip blockers. Instead of staying in the tackle box, they made an initial hit and then released into their patterns.

The strategy worked well because the chip blocks slowed and redirected Freeney and Mathis, allowing the tackles to steer the ends away from Flacco.

Freeney and Mathis will adjust their pass-rushing technique to split the blocks. The chip blockers will probably have to stay in the backfield longer to protect the edge, and overall, the coordination between these blockers and the tackles will have to be in sync to contain the rushers.

3) Power football in the red zone: The Ravens cannot go 0-4 in the red zone as they did against Indianapolis nearly two months ago.

Since that game, the Ravens have improved dramatically in the red area. The offense has scored a touchdown nearly 55% of the time in the last seven games.

The biggest change has come from the rush offense, which has been unstoppable in short-yardage situations. The interior line play has improved, and the addition of Chris Chester and Haloti Ngata as extra blockers has created more of a push up front.

Cameron will rely on his re-mastered ground game to get the job done in the red zone. The big boys will have to win the battle against the speedy Indianapolis front, and overall, the offense has to finish drives.

Defense

1) Safety movement: Just as the cornerbacks will go back-and-forth between playing press and off coverage, the safeties will also vary their looks to keep Peyton Manning off-balance.

The safeties will have to adeptly time their movement after the ball is snapped. There is no point in the safeties moving to different landmarks before the snap, as Manning is quick to check to a different play to exploit the look.

Safeties Ed Reed and Dawan Landry will have to show Manning a look before the snap –single safety, high/low, Cover 2, zero coverage – and shift out of and into another coverage as Manning is dropping back to throw the ball.

2) Three safety package: Speaking of safety play, the Ravens will also need to feature Tom Zbikowski in a prominent way through its dime defense.

With three safeties on the field, the defense will have better flexibility to defend the Indy spread offense in passing situations.

When the Colts spread the field, they usually use a four-receiver look with tight end Dallas Clark as the flex player who operates from the slot or out wide. Clark is the player that Zbikowski should be primarily responsible for, while the other safeties are in deep support spots to help the corners over the top.

In addition, with Zbikowski on the field, the defense will have a better run defender on the field to help defend the run against Indy, when the Colts try to run the ball in obvious passing situations.

3) Edge rush: Simply put, it is nearly impossible to effectively pressure Manning. The four-time MVP has a quick release and his offensive line is a coordinated outfit.

However, when Manning has been rushed, pressure came from the outside. Opposing edge rushers did a good job of defeating blocks and got to Manning.

These moments have been rare, but they occurred because there are times when Manning will drop back too far. In those instances, Manning has the uncanny ability to throw the ball off his back foot when pressure is in his face.

It will be critical for the Baltimore outside rushers to catch Manning when he tries to buy some time by moving back or outside of the pocket.

In addition, the edge rushers should rush more often as stand-up defenders so they have better timing and a better angle to Manning’s launch pad.

One-on-One Matchup to Watch: Jared Gaither versus Dwight Freeney: There is a chance that Gaither could miss this pivotal showdown. The blindside blocker is dealing with an ankle injury that has limited him since the Green Bay game. Gaither did a good job of staying outside against Freeney in the last matchup. As a result, Freeney was often pushed inside and unable to turn the corner. The young blocker will have to maintain his outside leverage against Freeney, who uses the dip move to evade the hands of an opposing tackle.

History suggests Colts will fail in playoffs after tossing games

2010-01-15T09:41:00.000-08:00

Back to the Recent Future

Last week was one of those weeks when history repeated itself. The Ravens demolition of the Patriots was comparable in many ways to the Houston Oilers easy win over the favored Patriots in the 1978 playoffs in Foxboro, right down to the rushing statistics.

But that was last week…

This week we can turn the clocks back about 4 years to January 15, 2006, when the Wild Card Steelers visited the Colts in the 2005 playoffs to draw a comparison.

And frankly the parallels to this contest surpass even those chronicled in last week’s article linking the Ravens/Patriots Wild Card Game to the Patriots’ memorable battle with the Oilers in ’78.

2009

Everyone knows the Colts story this year. Despite some scares along the way threatening their unblemished record, Indianapolis jumped out to a 14-0 record relying as always on future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning’s arm to lead the way.

The Colts for all of their dominance during the 2009 season are still more known for not going for the flawless 16-0 season. While battling the Jets in a close week fifteen game head coach Jim Caldwell decided to rest his starters in the second half. The result, the Jets scored 19 unanswered points for a 29-15 victory.

But what a lot people missed was the fact they also rushed for over 200 yards.

The next week in the snow the Colts did not even show up in 30-7 loss to the Bills and consequently they enter the playoffs on a 2 game losing streak. For all intents and purposes instead of playing to win, the Colts went on a short sabbatical.

Today the Colts appear to be a team as flat as any I have ever seen entering the playoffs eerily similar to the 2005 rendition of the Indianapolis Colts.

2005 Colts

Tony Dungy coached the 2005 Colts to a 13-0 record to start the season. The Colts were a well balanced team, Manning threw for 28 scores, wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne combined for 165 receptions, 2652 yards, and 25 touchdowns, TE Dallas Clark added 37 receptions with 4 scores. Rolling double coverage was not an option for opponents.

The rushing attack was represented well by Edgerrin James who rushed for 1,506 yards and 13 scores. Manning’s key though was throwing off of play action, and James running the Colts patented stretch running play. When everything was clicking for them this was one of the best offensive teams in NFL history.

Then came week 14, coach Dungy made it clear that while winning all of their games and matching the 1972 Dolphins and 1948 Browns would be nice, staying healthy for the playoffs was more important. The Colts’ players backed their coach in the press, but privately they wanted to make history.

When San Diego came to visit the Colts during week 14, Dungy planned to play his starters against the Chargers but word leaked out that regardless of the outcome, he was resting players their last 2 regular season games.

The team’s focus drifted from the Chargers to resting players the next couple of weeks. Predictably the Colts played flat and fell behind early. Despite a late rally the Chargers won 26-17.

The Colts mailed in a 28-13 road loss to the Seahawks the next week and did finish with a 17-13 win over the lowly Cardinals behind back up quarterback Jim Sorgi.

The Colts were the number one seed in the playoffs but they had lost momentum. A visit from sixth seeded Pittsburgh awaited the Colts in the AFC playoffs.

2005 Steelers

Rookie Ben Roethlisberger took over for the injured Tommy Maddox in a week 2 loss in Baltimore in 2004 and never relinquished the starting position. Roethlisberger went 14-1 as a starter but lost in the 2004 AFC Championship 41-27 in Pittsburgh to Tom Brady and the Patriots.

In 2005 the Steelers had to fight the entire year to make the playoffs. Roethlisberger was an average quarterback his second year throwing for 17 scores with nine interceptions. Willie Parker had taken over the starting running back spot from veteran and fan favorite Jerome Bettis. They had to beat the 5-10 Lions in Pittsburgh to make the playoffs as a sixth seed the last game of the regular season. The Steelers won 35-21, but the game was closer than the score indicated.

Pittsburgh traveled to meet division rival and the third seeded Bengals in the Wild Card round. Pro Bowl quarterback Carson Palmer completed a sixty six yard pass on the Bengals’ second play from scrimmage but was knocked out of the game with a knee injury by right defensive end Kimmo von Oelhoffen’s controversial hit. Jon Kitna replaced Palmer and built a 10 point lead.

After that it was all Steelers as they scored 24 unanswered points while taking advantage of three Bengals’ turnovers. The 31-17 victory sent the Steelers to Indianapolis in a divisional playoff contest.

January 15, 2006

The thought in on every fan’s mind was, “Were the Colts ready to play?”

Did resting Manning, Harrison, Wayne, and James the previous 2 weeks of the regular season and having a week off make the Colts rusty or make them well rested for the surging Steelers.

The answer would come right away.

Roethlisberger drove the Steelers 84 yards on their first possession, completing six consecutive passes for 76 yards. The drive ended with a Roethlisberger to Antwaan Randle El six yard scoring pass.

Later in the period Roethlisberger drove the Steelers to another score, his forty five yard completion to Hines Ward was the highlight of their second scoring drive which was punctuated by a Roethlisberger to TE Heath Miller 7 yard scoring pass. The first period ended, Steelers 14-0.

The Colts were rusty to say the least.

Manning moved the Colts into scoring position the second quarter but could manage just a Mike Vanderjagt field goal. The half ended with a 14-3 Steelers advantage.

In the third period a Steelers’ sack deep in Colt territory and a 20 yard Randle El punt return put the Steelers back in scoring position. Bettis would score the only points of the quarter on a one yard run. The nervous Colts crowd saw their season slipping away as Pittsburgh led 21-3 heading into the 4th period of play.

The flat Colts finally woke up and struck pay dirt with a 50 yard scoring pass from Manning to Clark. With just under 14 minutes left the Colts had closed the gap to 21-10. Pittsburgh took the kickoff and drove the ball but was eventually forced to punt but the drive drained the clock down to 6:03 left in the game.

Manning went to work completing long passes to Harrison and Wayne. James would punch the ball in for a score and Manning would hit Wayne for a 2 point conversion, pulling the Colts to 21-18.

The Steelers could not move the ball and punted back to the Colts but with just over a minute left, Manning was sacked on fourth and 16 at the Colts’ 2 yard line. The Steelers took over on downs and had the game seemingly won. Roethlisberger though could not just take a knee because the Colts had all of their timeouts, so the Steelers attempted to run the ball.

Jerome Bettis would attempt to put the game away when he took a Roethlisberger handoff but Colt linebacker Gary Brackett knocked the ball loose, defensive back Nick Harper picked up the ball and raced towards the Pittsburgh goal line. Roethlisberger though saved the game at the Colt 40 when he spun around and grabbed Harper’s ankle bringing him down.

Manning would drive the Colts to the Steelers 29 yard line.

Vanderjagt who had not missed a field goal all year at the RCA Dome would attempt to send the game into overtime. By now the rusty Colts had the momentum, something that took them the entire game to capture. It appeared that they would have the upper hand as the game moved into overtime.

Unfortunately for Indianapolis, Vanderjagt missed the tying kick badly wide right.

The Steelers would become the first sixth seed to beat a one seed in the expanded NFL playoffs. Not only that, they went on to win the Super Bowl.

The Colts should have learned a valuable lesson here. Momentum is something you do not play around with. As we said last week, throw out past records and pay attention to recent intangibles when it comes to the playoffs. The Colts lost the momentum they created in the 2005 regular season and could not get it all the way back. The fast start by the Steelers was their key to victory and it forced Manning to abandon his play action.

The Colts had just 14 rushing attempts in the game yet averaged 29 rushes during the 2005 regular season. The Steelers took advantage of that and pulled out a victory.

Can the Ravens do the same Saturday night?

It appears that Jim Caldwell and Bill Polian have paid little attention to their plight in the 2005 playoffs by the way they handled the end of their 2009 regular season.

Will the Ravens be able to take advantage of what seems to be a similar situation and pull off another road upset in the AFC playoffs?

We will find out soon enough…

RAVENS REPORT CARD: Ravens 33, Patriots 14

2010-01-12T05:31:00.000-08:00

REARVIEW WINDOW

BALTIMORE RAVENS 33, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 14
JANUARY 10, 2010

Ravens march on Foxboro, ambush Patriots

The last time a group from Massachusetts was hit this hard by an angry mob of Baltimoreans it was 1861. American history students know about the opening salvo of the Civil War, when Baltimoreans rained bricks down on the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment as they tried to make their way down Pratt Street on their way to Washington.

After watching the Baltimore Ravens ambush the New England Patriots 33-14 in the opening round of the NFL playoffs, football historians may mark the event as the telltale blow in another Ravens run to the Super Bowl. Did their dominating performance in Foxboro send notice to the league? Are the Ravens legitimate contenders for capturing bookend Super Bowl crowns this decade?

While this question may be premature, it’s hard to imagine a more dominating performance by the Ravens, particularly given the Patriots’ mystique — a well-earned reputation that had included a run of home playoff wins stretching back thirty years and an unblemished 5-0 record all-time against the Ravens.

By winning, the Ravens have assembled some nice streaks of their own, including now 3-0 all-time in wild-card road games and six, road-playoff wins altogether this decade to tie them with the Cowboys for most in any decade.

How did the Ravens manage such a convincing win against such a vaunted opponent?

The first key to victory: Running the ball effectively and keeping it out of Tom Brady’s hands. Check.

Seventeen seconds into the game, Ray Rice took a handoff to the left side, cut back right behind Marshal Yanda’s combination block, spotted safety Brandon Merriweather converging from fifteen yards off the ball, cut left, and then raced Merriweather to the end zone for the second longest run in NFL playoff history.

Afterwards, when asked what he was thinking during the run, Rice quipped, ““I’m thinking if I get to the one I’m coming out.”

Indeed, the way the Ravens offensive line dominated, it was only a matter of which running back would get the touchdowns. In the end, Rice got his two, and Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain managed one apiece.

The second key: pressure Brady. Check.

The Ravens sacked Brady three times. But that’s hardly the full story. He was pestered all day, forced to check down many throws for short or even negative yardage, and finished with a 55% completion rate and 154 yards. He coughed up three interceptions and a fumble.

The third key: shut down Moss. Check.

The book on Moss is if you limit him early, he pouts and folds like a tent. Moss had no catches in the first half, and didn’t exactly appear enthused as the game wore on. In the second half, with the Ravens playing conservatively and conceding the short routes, Moss still only grabbed five balls for 48 yards.

And finally, avoid Penalties. Check.

The Ravens finished with a season-low three penalties for 15 yards. And none of the three were of the critical variety that erased long gains on special teams or touchdown conversions.

These keys were obvious before the game ever started. So obvious that Patriots genius head coach Bill Belichick certainly prepared his team for what the Ravens would bring. After all, he earned his reputation as a master of taking away what opponents most want to execute. And yet the Ravens were able to assert their will even when the Patriots knew what was coming.

The most striking example of this was the final sequence of the first half. The Patriots’ offense finally had gained some momentum, driving down to the Ravens 32 yard line, but were penalized ten yards on a Randy Moss interference call, forcing them to punt down to the Ravens four as the two-minute warning loomed.

With timeouts to burn the Patriots defense merely needed to stop the Ravens at their own end, get the ball back, and let Tom Brady drive for a heroic touchdown that would have tightened the halftime score to 24-14 Ravens.

But that’s not how it played out. Despite the Patriots stacking the line to stop the run, the Ravens inserted Haloti Ngata and Chris Chester into the game as extra blockers and pounded-out two first-downs before Joe Flacco took a knee to end the half. Flacco’s counterpart, his boyhood idol, Tom Brady could only hang his head as he rode out the half on the Patriots’ bench.

It was that kind of day for the boys from Massachusetts, after the Ravens seized the early momentum and never let up. Here are the individual marks.

Quarterback: C-

Ten attempts, four completions, thirty-four yards; no touchdowns, one interception, passer rating: 10. Have uglier stats ever accompanied such a convincing playoff win? Those were Joe Flacco’s numbers against the Patriots. Rather than dwell on Flacco’s injuries, Ravens fans might want to dwell on the fact this team didn’t need a strong performance from him to secure a win. He didn’t attempt his first pass until 8:24 into the game, and it was a bad throw that should have been picked. He also made a bad read on a throw to Todd Heap, missing cornerback Lee Bodden dropping down on Heap. And another long throw to Demetrius Williams was thrown into coverage rather than leading his receiver. After overthrowing Mark Clayton he came right back to him and Clayton snared it for an important catch late the game. He was in his comfort zone zinging a slant to Derrick Mason for a first down and on a finesse throw to McGahee near the goal line. Flacco, despite hip problems, did show decent mobility on two runs in the red zone.

Running Backs: A

Ray Rice’s opening touchdown run set the tone and showcased better speed than many observers expect from the diminutive back. But it was his running on the interior that demonstrated Rice’s true value. He constantly found small openings and tacked on extra yardage by cutting and weaving and running through defenders. It earned him a better than seven yards per carry average on 22 attempts. Not to be outdone, Willis McGahee added 62 yards on 20 carries. Two notable plays were a fierce cutback in the Patriots secondary that put Brandon Merriweather on his seat, and his escape from a run blitz on the Patriots goal line. Le’Ron McClain should be credited with some devastating blocks, showing that he can be the dominant blocking fullback they need him to be in the playoffs.

Wide Receivers: C

With just ten passes out of 62 offensive plays, it’s difficult to evaluate the receivers. Demetrius Williams could have helped his quarterback by holding onto a long ball thrown over the middle on a third and two play in the second quarter. At the start of the fourth quarter Mark Clayton was inches shy of leaping to make a catch in the red zone on a ball thrown too high. Flacco came right back to him one player later with another high throw, which Clayton was able to rise and snare for a first down at the Patriots sixteen. It was an incredible catch, very nearly at the exact spot in Gillette Stadium where Clayton had dropped a much easier and more critical fourth down throw in week four that allowed the Patriots to escape with a win. It was somewhat of a redemption catch for Clayton and this time it contributed to the team’s final scoring drive, to put the game well out of reach.

Tight Ends: C

Todd Heap was thrown to once with no catches after being asked to spend most of the day blocking for his running backs. He did a fine job in that capacity, but was the cause for concern when he was rolled up on in the back in the game’s waning moments, causing him to hobble off the field. The Ravens also used Chris Chester and Haloti Ngata as blocking tight ends with plus results.

Tackles: A-

Both Michael Oher and Jared Gaither provided ample pass protection—particularly on the aforementioned Clayton catch—but the story of the game was run blocking. The two tackles were often asked to block one-on-one, helmet-on-a-helmet, and they consistently pushed defenders off the line and stayed engaged on their blocks as the backs picked their way downfield. Oher stood out as he destroyed Ben Jarvis-Green one-on-one to allow McGahee to slip past for a nine-yard gain. The rookie was caught once illegally blocking four yards downfield on a pass play.

Interior Line: A+

Marshal Yanda had the game of a lifetime and may have been the game’s most valuable player. On the game’s first play, he turned in on Vince Wilfork, doubling him with Matt Birk to push the rotund nose tackle down the line, and then Yanda quickly spun and kicked out on Gary Guyton to make the key block that cleared Ray Rice’s opening into the secondary. Again and again Yanda pulled left to make crucial lead blocks, knocking Guyton and Myron Pryor backwards. Matt Birk frustrated Wilfork all day long. Although the big man led the team with 13 tackles, it was a drop in the bucket considering the Ravens ran the ball 46 times (excluding Flacco’s 6 attempts), nearly always inside the tackles.

Cornerbacks: A

The makeshift crew of Domonique Foxworth, Frank Walker and Chris Carr soared above expectations to shut down the Patriots’ passing attack. Foxworth and Carr were notable for their fast closing speed and sure tackling, particularly on the slot man, Julian Edelman and running back Kevin Faulk. They teamed with the safeties to press Moss early and completely take him out of the game, and then later as the Ravens backed off the pressure they were effective in keeping plays in front of them and preserving the lead. Frank Walker was one of the stars of the game as well. He showcased two big hits; one rocked Sam Aiken, bouncing him hard to the turf for an incompletion. The other hit on Ben Watson knocked the ball into Dawan Landry’s hands for an interception. Walker also stepped in front of Aiken on an off target pass that he nearly intercepted. He played tight coverage without attracting any penalties, whereas Foxworth was flagged once for wandering past the line of scrimmage at the snap, and Chris Carr was flagged for illegal contact once to bail out Brady.

Safeties: A

Ed Reed was tackling harder and more effectively than at any time this season. He read Brady and came across field to nearly snag an interception on third down pass intended for Aiken; Dawan Landry was also in position for a pick on the throw. At the end of the first quarter Reed picked off another pass intended for Aiken and returned it 25 yards before lateraling it to Landry for another 25 yards, which set up a Billy Cundiff field goal and the 24-0 Ravens lead. Landry’s interception off the Walker deflection was key in that it came when the Patriots were moving the ball. Landry did drop what should have been an interception near the goal line. The two safeties combined for 11 tackles.

Linebackers: A

This was a game where the Ravens defensive stars asserted themselves. In addition to Reed, Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs stood out. After Ray Rice shocked the Patriots with a touchdown run on the opening play, Suggs very nearly matched the feat on the Patriots’ second possession by stepping in front of a bubble screen pass intended for Edelman that could have easily resulted in another touchdown had he grabbed the ball out of the air. But one play later Suggs beat tackle Matt Light off the edge to strip Brady and recover the ball himself, setting up the Ravens second score. Ray Lewis was a monster. Taking advantage of a new gut-blitz scheme, on the very next Patriots series he was on top of Brady immediately for another Ravens sack, literally running over Lawrence Maroney to get to Brady. He also got other hits on Brady as the ball was released, assuring the Patriots QB would not find a rhythm all day. Lewis patrolled the middle of the field with a vengeance and recorded a game-high 13 tackles. Not to be outdone, Jarret Johnson played outstanding run technique and also was able to pressure Brady to force one of the interceptions and multiple early throws.

Defensive Line: A

The Patriots used four running backs on 18 carries, but managed just 3.6 yards a carry for 64 yards on the day. The Ravens rotation of Haloti Ngata, Trevor Pryce, Kelly Gregg and Justin Bannan were too much for the Patriots offensive line. They also kept steady pressure up the middle on passing attempts. Unheralded Dwan Edwards was also very solid with 7 tackles, 1 sack and a QB hurry.

Special Teams: C

The Ravens coverage units were shaky. On one 42-yard return Prescott Burgess, Corey Ivy, Cary Washburn all missed tackles. More poor tackling allowed a 28 yard punt return by Edelman. Chris Carr and Tom Zbikowski collided on a short punt, which caused a Ravens’ turnover that the Patriots quickly turned into a touchdown. Zbikowski did do a nice job of returning a short line-drive kick thirty yards to allow the Ravens to start the fourth quarter at midfield. Edgar Jones did a nice job getting off a block for an early kick coverage tackle. And Chris Carr had one strong, 34-yard punt return. Chris Hanson left most of his punts short and unreturnable, however. Billy Cundiff was perfect on two field goal tries under thirty yards.

Coaching: B

Two years ago the NFL changed its rules and allowed teams that win the opening coin flip to defer getting the ball to start the second half. When asked about it at the time, Bill Belichick said, “I think there are some advantages to deferring but we have played in an awful lot of games where, when we win the toss, we take the ball and we have done well in a lot of those games as well. I don’t know if there is anything to getting the ball and having first crack at it or giving it up and having that first possession in the second half.”

Belichick may want to rethink that. His decision to keep Brady on the bench to start the game allowed the Ravens to strike first and take the crowd out of the game. It also left them fielding kicks in the bright sun during the first quarter. It was an interesting decision.

One of the biggest mistakes by the Ravens was the muffed punt that was recovered by the Patriots’ Kyle Arrington at the Ravens 16 to set up their first score. Arrington had possession of the ball and a knee down before going out of bounds, but then lost control of the ball as he hit the ground. The obvious question is why the Ravens did not challenge the call. However, the answer may not be all that obvious. Fans must remember that the visiting team is not necessarily fed the same replays they see on CBS, rather the coaches upstairs are limited by the replay feed provided by the home team’s stadium management. It’s a league-wide inequity that needs to be fixed. After the game coach John Harbaugh commented that, "we didn’t have it…. Our coaches upstairs told me they saw the punt hit Zbikowski a couple of times on replay but they never saw enough to alert me to make a challenge."

Greg Mattison should be applauded for the masterful game plan to pressure and shut down the Pats. Cam Cameron gets kudos for sticking with the running game. There was some confusion, though, getting the proper players on the field at times; the deep throw to Williams was under the shadow of confusion at the snap count. There were curious calls for short kick offs. And it may be fair to question why the starters were on the field in the fourth quarter, especially after Heap hobbled off.

Officiating: C+

Gene Steratore’s crew should credited with allowing the players to play and not calling a lot of penalties. They were on course for a very fine game until late in the third quarter when some curious events took place, all favoring the trailing Patriots. They declined calling a facemask penalty on Vince Wilfork at the 12 as he reached out and grabbed Ray Rice running past him. Cary Washburn was clearly held on kick coverage, with a flag, while Dwan Edwards was very noticeably corralled around the neck by Logan Mankins as he converged on Brady. Neither were called, although perhaps it was fitting in a game with few calls. However, a very late illegal contact call on Chris Carr bailed out Brady when it should never have been called in this type of game. The spotting of the ball short of the marker after Joe Flacco extended his arm for a first down was atrocious until the Ravens challenged it. It was hard to understand why the Patriots were credited with recovering the muffed punt as the ball squirted out of Arrington’s hands on the sideline. And the ruling that McGahee did not cross the goal for a two point conversion was cowardly.

Broadcast: A

Jim Nance and Phil Simms did another nice job in covering the contest. Before the game they listed their keys: Ray Rice v. Fred Taylor; the Ravens’ questionable pass rush getting pressure on Tom Brady; and Julian Edelman stepping in for Wes Welker. That turned out to be a good set up for the game. Simms’ reaction to the shocking start by the Ravens was perfect: shock. He never pumped up Belichick and Brady to manufacture false drama around a Patriots comeback that never came. Rather, what we got was a pure, honest reaction to what was happening on the field, blemishes and all.

Don’t expect the same when Dan Dierdorf steps to the mic on Saturday in Indianapolis. Regardless of the game, expect constant praise for Peyton Manning. It will be up to the Ravens to keep the momentum going and shut up the critics if they expect to make it back to the AFC Championship.

That means beating a Colts team that was 14-0 before gearing back and coasting to a finish 14-2 that included a Wild Card Week bye. By the time the game kicks off Saturday it will have been a month since the Colts recorded a win, when they squeaked by the Jaguars 35-31 on December 17.

We’ve seen the Colts rest starters at the end of the regular season before. In fact, in six playoff runs, the Colts chose to play their starters all the way through Week Seventeen just once. That was 2007, the year of their only Super Bowl crown.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens @ Patriots (Wild Card)

2010-01-12T04:23:00.000-08:00

The key to Ray Rice's haymaker 83-yard TD run was the superb blocking from the line. Specifically, the demolition of nose guard Vince Wilfork was a sight to behold and set the tone for the rest of the game. On the block, center Matt Birk was able to stretch Wilfork laterally and clear him from the middle. Meanwhile, guard Marshal Yanda helped Birk by getting an initial shove before he peeled and located Gary Guyton at the second level. Once Yanda locked up his man, there was enough room for Rice to bounce inside, and then bounce outside, before kicking into overdrive to finish the play.

Here are two more thoughts about the run that will be remembered for years:

1) For the most part, the Patriots had good gap discipline. However, the Baltimore blockers engulfed all comers, as there were only three New England defenders who weren't engaged.

2) Rice displayed tremendous patience to allow the blocks to develop before accelerating through the crease. He followed his mantra of "slow to, fast through."

Flacco's lackluster performance is much ado about nothing. It was crystal clear that he wasn't healthy, and was visibly limping before the game. With a gimpy leg, Flacco wasn't able to follow through on his throws. Moreover, with an inexplicable lead of 24-0 to start the game, and the offensive linemen and other blockers showing that they were in the zone, Cam Cameron rightly rode his big men to control the game.

Now, there is no question that the Ravens won't be able to get away with that low of an output from Flacco against Indianapolis. However, because he didn't take any hits and basically had the day off, Flacco should be physically ready to throw 20 times or more on Saturday night.

No one seemed more miffed about Flacco's numbers than Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino during the CBS post-game show. He was quickly rebuffed by Bill Cowher, who pointed out the circumstance of protecting a big lead by pounding the ball. Clearly, Marino needed someone to guide him through this concept, as he rarely had a big lead to protect during his postseason experiences in Miami. Moreover, even if Marino did play with a big lead, he never had a running game to turn to in order to salvage the outcome. This is also not the first time that a quarterback has completed less than 10 passes in a playoff game for the winning team. The Ravens did this before with Trent Dilfer, who completed just five passes against Tennessee in '01. Oh and by the way Dan, another Dolphin threw for only 34 yards back on December 30, 1973 during a playoff victory over Oakland. His name – Bob Griese.

The Ravens' safeties were as good as they have been at any point in the season. They stayed true to their assignments, and adeptly converged on the ball. Due to their protection of the corners over the top, the corners were free to jump the underneath routes and limit the New England receivers on outside routes.

Give a lot of credit to Greg Mattison, who recognized that the defense had to attack Brady up the gut to disrupt his rhythm. In the first matchup, the Ravens did a good job of applying outside pressure, but it rarely got home -- Brady routinely stepped up to avoid the rush. This time, Brady had nowhere to go. From a schematic standpoint, New England fanned its protection wide to protect the edges, leaving more space for the center and guards to slide. That strategy backfired, and the Ravens had a field day crashing through the A gaps.

Another reason for the success of the pass rush stemmed from the improved timing and disguise of the blitzes, which has been off at times during the season. Ray Lewis pointed out after the game that the defense worked on their timing during the week, and that "you can't show your hand too early." The Ravens will need to continue to protect their hand against No.18 in the divisional round.

As good as Mattison's strategy was toward the end of the game-- when he decided to back off and play more coverage to protect the lead -- his four-man rush was too vanilla. There were no stunts, and no twists to test the blocking coordination of the New England line. The rushers needed help to get pressure through scheme. When he reviews the tape, Mattison will see that his guys weren't able to win the one-on-one matchups, and they haven't been able to all season.

Player Spotlight

Domonique Foxworth hadn't played up to his potential until the second half of the season. From a physical standpoint, Foxworth is fast enough, and fluid enough to turn and run with any receiver in the league. He proved it on Sunday in a big game, on the big stage, against one of the all-time great players. He did a fine job of shadowing Randy Moss and gave up nothing downfield. Foxworth also closed fast on short routes, and he tackled well in the open field.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens @ Raiders

2010-01-05T03:49:00.000-08:00

The Raiders were repeatedly able to expose the middle of the field against the Baltimore linebackers. The backers bit on Charlie Frye's play-action fakes, even though the Raiders didn't run the ball well. In the case of Ray Lewis, he had a tough time recovering after taking a step or two forward. He doesn't have the speed to break on the ball as he used to.

Greg Mattison had a tough time adjusting to Oakland's spread attack. The Raiders used a lot of three-wide sets to create matchup problems. Given that there was little use of nickel and dime packages, safety Dawan Landry had to defend a receiver one-on-one on at least three occasions. That can't happen.

Why did Willis McGahee have such a dominant performance against the Raiders? He had instant success. Whenever McGahee has touched the ball early in other games, he's been shut down. McGahee has received a lot of first half touches this season, so to think that there was an emphasis to get him the ball more is a stretch. McGahee simply ran the ball well and was the hot hand. If he proves himself on his first two or three carries against New England, he'll receive a lot of carries. (Ironically, it was New England that stuffed the former Hurricane after he got off to such a hot start in the first three games of the season.)

Some of the biggest plays of an NFL game are often the least flashy. On a pivotal 3rd-and-1 defensive stop in the third quarter, the Baltimore front seven was able to stuff the run. The key to that stop was linebacker Terrell Suggs, who shot the gap and took out the lead guard and the fullback, clearing the way for Ray Lewis and company to clean up Michael Bush in the backfield for a two yard loss. By diving and selling out on the play, Suggs also forced Bush to slow down so the rest of the defense could rally for the tackle. That play was an example of outstanding team defense against the run.

Despite being long in the tooth, Trevor Pryce remains one of the best at splitting an interior double team. His slap/rip move -- when he grabs the arm of the opposing guard -- is tough for a lineman to ward off. Once he establishes the move, it acts as a hook and enables Pryce to steer the guard backward creating an opening in the B gap before the left tackle slides over.

The Ravens finished the game by calling two well-designed plays on defense and offense. On the final stop by the defense on 3rd-and-11, Dawan Landry showed blitz off of the weakside, only to drop, and the true overload blitz came from the strong side. Ray Lewis created enough pressure from the edge to hurry JaMarcus Russell's delivery, resulting in an incompletion.

On offense, the Ravens needed a blitz-buster play to convert the final third down. They spread the field and ran a draw. McGahee's 36-yard gain put the game on ice before the two-minute warning.

Much has been made by the local media about the Ravens' inability to beat a good quarterback. While the club is just 1-7 against Phillip Rivers, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre, Carson Palmer, Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger, it wasn't as if all of these quarterbacks ripped apart the defense, especially after the bye week. Over the final 10 games of the season, the defense faced Palmer, Manning, Rodgers, and Roethlisberger. Those quarterbacks combined to throw 6 TDs and 5 INTs; averaged 261.25 yards passing; and their offenses scored an average of 21 points. None of these quarterbacks made the definitive play to win the game. In fact, it was their defenses that stepped up against the Baltimore offense and forced timely turnovers to win those games.

Player Spotlight

Chris Carr has been a nice surprise at the cornerback position. Since taking over for Lardarius Webb, Carr has played physically against the run and has displayed good ball skills in coverage. Against the Raiders, he made a couple of impressive tackles in the open field.

Ravens and their fans need to give up the crying game

2010-01-01T11:08:00.000-08:00

Yep, it's all the referee's fault.

That's all I've been hearing since Sunday.

They are purposely screwing the Ravens. I totally agree! There is no doubt all of the suits at the NFL offices in New York get together in a room, under the Code of Silence and have secret meetings on how to screw the Ravens. A Wizard of Oz type video of former commissioner Paul Tagliabue comes up on the wall during the meeting and he bellows, "We have to make sure the Ravens get no calls what-so-ever! And we need to throw a flag on them every chance we get! This will teach them not to build that museum I told them to build!

HAHAHA!!!!!!'

Yep, it was the refs who made Haloti Ngata make that stupid late hit.Yep, it was the refs who made Ravens tackle Oniel Cousins smack LaMarr Woodley after the play was over.Yep, it was the refs who held Kelley Washington at gunpoint and told him to hold.Yep, it was the refs who, at the last minute, spun around the Steelers player so Terrell Suggs could hit him in the back.

No, the league office doesn't send out "Screw the Ravens over" e-mails to their refs every week. But I will say this, all of the bitching and moaning the Ravens have done about the officials over the last few years does have an effect. Think about it, no matter how impartial you're supposed to be, if someone disrespects your job performance in public, do you think you could treat them fair?

Would you be surprised if some officials did call the close ones against the Ravens?

Nobody likes a whiner and the Ravens look and sound like whiners.

So, if the Ravens do get jobbed by the refs, they only have themselves to blame. And if they do believe the officials are out to get them I've got a great idea.....don't commit any penalties!!!!!

How about playing smart football? That way, the refs have a tougher time screwing you over.To be honest, I'm little disappointed in Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. He did a good job cleaning up this mess last season but it's back again this year. There is a difference in playing aggressive and playing stupid. The Ravens cross that line way too much.

And when the Ravens have complained about the officials what did Harbaugh do? Did he pour water on the fire? Nope, he threw lighter fluid on it. And then he blabs about "Mighty Men" and "Playing with Heart" like it’s the sequel to "Gladiator". Harbaugh needs to step up and say, "The referee's didn't beat us, we beat ourselves."

If a player blasts the officials, you need to fine him.

The bottom line is that in the big games this year the Ravens wet the bed over and over again...sort of like my two year old. Until they start playing smart and not like they showed up for the game on the short, yellow bus, they will continue to be a notch below the elite franchises in the game.

Dumb & Dumber Part II: Starring the Baltimore Ravens

2009-12-30T05:17:00.000-08:00

Now starring in "Dumb and Dumber 2"....Haloti Ngata, Terrell Suggs, Kelly Washington, Oniel Cousins and Frank Walker!!!!!

Wow, the Ravens took it to the Steelers. The O-Line punished the Steelers in the run game to the tune of 175 yards. Ray Rice ran for 141 himself. Baltimore dominated two quarters of this game....AND LOST! That's what happens when you have two touchdowns called back because of penalties and another TD pass perfectly thrown into the end zone hit your best receiver in the face mask.

The Ravens should have scored at least 30 points if not 34. They had a chance to sweep the mediocre Steelers and clinch a play-off berth. The sad part is they outplayed Pittsburgh and lost! But once again, stupid penalties screwed them over and did them in.

It's not just the fact it was over 100 yards in penalties, it's when they commit them and how idiotic those penalties are. Let’s review…

1. Terrell Suggs blocking in the back penalty that took Domonique Foxworth's
interception return for a touchdown off the board

Blocking in the back wasn't a penalty that the NFL just came up with. I know Terrell Suggs plays defense so you're not asked to throw a block that much but can't you see the guy's back? It does look different from his front. It's great to be aggressive and play "Like a Mad Dog" but you've got to play with your brain too. If all you see is the player's back.....don't block him! Plain and simple! And please don't give me that "In the heat of battle" garbage. You see players all of the time pull up on a block when someone turns their back.

2. Kelley Washington's holding call that brought back Willis McGhee's touchdown
run

Yep, Washington was about 5-10 yards away from the play. Yep, the ref didn't have to call it but Washington was holding! Again, you don't grab two handfuls of a guy's jerseyl...hello? If Washington doesn't grab, there is no chance for the official to throw a flag. I know, I know, EVERYBODY DOES IT! But if you're a team that really thinks the refs are out to get them then don't do anything they can call. So it's really simple...don't grab!

3. The Tom Zbikowski interception late in the 4th quarter was called back because Frank Walker was called for defensive holding

You know, it almost seemed like Frank Walker was trying NOT to hold for once. He got tangled up with the Pittsburgh receiver and the official threw the flag. Frank got that flag because of his reputation as one of the most penalized defensive backs in the NFL. It's easy, if you do something over and over again, you'll always be accused of it, whether you do it again or not. You think if Tiger Woods is seen with a chick and then tells us they are just friends we'll say "Sure, Tiger, whatever you say, wink, wink!".

By the way, I am curious to know if Ben Roethlisberger was out of the pocket when the flag was thrown on Walker. If he was, I don't believe that should be a penalty.

Haloti Ngata and Oniel Cousins should've been benched by head coach John Harbaugh after they both committed asinine personal foul penalties. I don't care how good you are or how much the team needs you, when you do stupid stuff like Ngata and Cousins did, you need to grab some pine bud! And what makes it worse is that Ngata, after costing his team 15 yards of field position, was seen laughing on the sidelines. What was going through his mind? "My brain-fart just cost my team great field position, HA! HA! HA!"

As for the Derrick Mason trying to catch the ball with his face in the end zone.....you have to catch that ball, flat out. I know that physical errors are part of the game, but not at that point. When Mason dropped that TD pass you could feel the air go out of the Ravens. That's the second time this year a wide receiver has dropped a critical pass that helped lose a game. No, the Ravens don't need any help at wide receiver, not at all!

Thank God the Ravens play the Raiders this week. We know they can beat crappy teams.

Too bad the Ravens can't play Detroit and Chicago in the play-offs.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens v. Steelers

2009-12-29T06:24:00.000-08:00

The reason that the Ravens continue to have to discipline problems that other, elite teams don't experience is due to the coddling from the coaches. Repeat offenders continue to garner playing time, despite committing selfish and reckless penalties. Both Oniel Cousins and Haloti Ngata should have been benched for at least a set of downs. In the case of Ngata, it is the third time this season that he committed a significant late hit.

The play of Ray Rice was exceptional against perhaps the top run defense in football. Despite encountering a front seven that maintains its gap integrity, Rice grinded out yardage and pushed the pile. Rice proved that he can run with power in-between the tackles. His ability to move bodies has been questionable, but he erased those doubts against the Steelers.

Despite dealing with a slew of injuries, the secondary had a standout performance. Aside from giving up a 45-yard stop route, the defensive backs limited the big plays. They were also able to essentially cut Ben Roethlisberger's yardage total from a week ago in half.

Given that the Ravens had virtually no depth on the back end, they mostly stayed in a nickel package. Therefore, linebacker Dannell Ellerbe was on the field against the Steelers' spread offense. Ellerbe struggled in pass coverage and the team is lucky that he wasn't picked on more. As good as Ellerbe is as a downhill defender, he lacks the footwork to keep pace in the open field. Going forward, either the team needs a healthy Tavares Gooden to take over Ellerbe's reps in passing situations, or they need to play a dime defense. If the Ravens make the playoffs, they will probably face the New England Patriots -- a team that boasts the same type of passing attack as the Steelers.

Ngata did a great job of running through the block of Rashard Mendenhall to get to Roethlisberger. He looked like a runaway freight train that could not be stopped.

Once again, Matt Katula had a poor snap that really hurt the kicking game. Why head coach John Harbaugh decided to play Katula -- who has had tendinitis in his elbow -- is a mystery. Katula has struggled to snap accurately since the second Cleveland game. Moreover, if he played hurt during that stretch because of the elbow injury, it is inexcusable that Harbaugh didn't push for a new snapper sooner.

Player Spotlight

Kelly Gregg struggled at the beginning of the season. He looked a step slow, and didn't have the lateral movement that made him such a special player before he had microfracture surgery. However, Gregg is playing his best football of the season at the right time. His backside pursuit was a key to controlling the Pittsburgh running game. Gregg was also an active pass rusher.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens v. Bears

2009-12-23T00:58:00.001-08:00

- Flacco threw the ball with terrific touch and timing. It was nice to see him fit the ball into tight spots downfield.

- For the first time all season, all three backs were on the field at the same time. Ray Rice and Le'Ron McClain were flanked in a bunch set; Willis McGahee was the lone back. Following the snap, Rice motioned and received an end-around handoff after Flacco's play-fake to McGahee. The play resulted in a 28 yard gain for Rice.

- The Bears loaded the box on early downs to take away the run. Cam Cameron did a nice job of exploiting that look through the play-action passing game. Specifically, the offense passed on first down from heavy run sets -- even unbalanced formations -- in which tight end Todd Heap was isolated on the strong side. Flacco's run-action worked well, and he took advantage of the single safety looks that the Bears gave him.

- The Ravens were also able to establish the slant route a few times. Given the ability of the receivers to go over the middle, and Flacco's ability to complete the throw on time, the slant should be in play more often.

- Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison used an interesting formation on a third down play in the first quarter. The front consisted of five linebackers and one lineman (Trevor Pryce). The five backers stayed in a two-point stance, while Pryce had his hand in the dirt. The look confused the Chicago offensive line, and rushers came free to flush Jay Cutler out of the pocket. However, Cutler was able to scamper for a first down.

- Matt Katula continues to hamper the kicking game. His snaps have been inconsistent all season. Give credit to holder Sam Koch, who has been able to snag those low and high snaps.

- With the loss of cornerback Lardarius Webb, the defense will likely take a step back. The onus will be on the offense to continue its strong play against Pittsburgh and Oakland. The offense has established a better rhythm and the play-calling has been more aggressive. The inclusion of receiver Demetrius Williams has made a big difference, especially for the vertical game. The return of Heap as a threat has been equally important. With those two targets to turn to, along with Derrick Mason and Ray Rice, Flacco will be able to strike all three layers of the defense -- underneath, over the middle, and downfield.

Player Spotlight

Heap had a vintage performance against Chicago. He consistently gained separation from linebackers and was a factor downfield. Heap's ability to be a bigger part of the passing game, and a lesser part of the blocking game, will play a key role in maintaining the aerial balance that the offense displayed against Detroit and Chicago.

Bring back the Lions!

2009-12-16T05:25:00.000-08:00

Wow! I thought the Browns were bad but hell, they're the 1985 Bears compared to the pathetic Lions. Talk about a confidence booster! Maybe the Orioles can play the Lions Opening Day.

If the Ravens run the table and make the playoffs I think they should vote to give the whole Lions team a playoff share.....o.k....at least Lions Daunte Culpepper.The Ravens needed this one like Tiger Woods needed a madam. The Ravens flat out made the Lions quit in the 3rd quarter. That's why Detroit coach Jim Schwartz called time out to scream and spit all over his defense. He saw them quitting and it made him sick.

You could hear the Lions players on the sideline, "But coach, we don't want to play anymore..it's the cold and flu season!"

The Ravens needed to physically manhandle a team. It didn't matter if it was Detroit or Jerry's Kids, Baltimore needed a confidence builder. To run the ball the way they did was a great sign. To see Demetrius Williams make a deep catch was a great sign. Not to see any pass interference penalties was a good thing and the way the offensive line dominated was a good sign.

The players and coaches have to feel good about themselves going into the three biggest games of the season. And the schedule sets up great for the Ravens. They struggle against good quarterbacks and good passing offenses. Not only do they play three teams with losing records, but only one of those squads have a real passing game.

The Bears have a QB who throws it to the defense as much as he does the offense. The Raiders #1 pick from a few years ago, QB JaMarcus Russell, is so bad he's been benched for some guy named Gradkowski. And Gradkowski has been better! The season will come down to the game in Pittsburgh, where they have a real quarterback and a real passing game.

Now if the Ravens could only substitute the Steelers with the Lions.....

UNDER THE SCOPE: Lions v. Ravens

2009-12-15T02:58:00.000-08:00

Michael Oher and Ben Grubbs executed the combination block to perfection against Detroit. On two of Ray Rice's deep gashes, Oher blocked down while Grubbs pulled around the left edge and cut off the second level defender. Their timing was so precise that Rice gained five yards without being touched. Once Rice got to the second level, he already had a full head of steam and was not going to be denied.

Speaking of Grubbs, that was perhaps his best game of the season. He bounced back nicely after a miserable performance against Green Bay. Grubbs not only pulled off the left side, but he was also a puller on strong-side runs.

The front seven had a tough time containing Kevin Smith, who did a nice job of finding the backside alleys. Contain from the perimeter defenders has to be better in those situations. In particular, Terrell Suggs was too far inside on a few of those plays, as he attempted to play down the line to stop Smith on the front side.

On the Lions' best drive of the game in the second quarter, the defense gave up three critical third down conversions.

During the first conversion, Daunte Culpepper hit receiver Dennis Northcutt over the middle while three pass-rushers bluffed the blitz and hovered near the line to occupy the offensive line. That ploy didn't work, and those three defenders stood around without a purpose.

Fast forward to the next third down conversion, when Culpepper was able to scramble off the right edge and get past linebacker Dannell Ellerbe. Instead of selling his body to bring down Culpepper, Ellerbe continued to chase, but he did not have the angle to stop the quarterback before he got to the sticks.

Finally, Culpepper completed another pass to Northcutt over the middle for a 19-yard gain on 3rd-and-15. The pass rush was non-existent, as Culpepper had all day to find his target.

Not enough credit is given to Todd Heap's ability to block in the running game. He provided some excellent seal blocks, driving his man laterally and giving enough space for the backs to dash through the line.

Derrick Mason made two incredible plays that epitomize what type of player he is. The slant catch that resulted in a 62-yard touchdown was about being tough and aware. And his hustle to wall off the lone defender away from Rice on the following touchdown was a sight to behold.

Player Spotlight

Linebacker Antwan Barnes made an impact as a third-down pass rush specialist. Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison did a nice job of using Barnes as an inside and outside rusher. There was one play in which Barnes lined up on the nose. He is a dangerous inside rusher because he is compact and explodes out of his stance. Despite the effort, Barnes still had trouble tackling to finish the play. In addition, Barnes needs to incorporate more moves to be a complete rusher. If he improves in those two areas, he has the chance to be disruptive every week.

Photo by Sabina Moran

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens v. Packers

2009-12-09T13:02:00.000-08:00

It has gotten to the point that the coaching staff needs to consider benching or fining players who consistently commit the same penalties, specifically, the unsportsmanlike penalties that Derrick Mason received in two different games this season, costing the team substantial field position.

Mason is a terrific player, but he cannot keep his emotions in check. Therefore, he needs to be assessed some form of disciplinary action. His outburst led to a critical penalty, creating a shorter field for the Green Bay offense to work with. Moreover, as the stupid penalties go, they simply cannot be tolerated anymore. And that includes any late hit penalties in which players jump on a pile.

Aside from Lardarius Webb' timely kickoff return in the fourth quarter, the special teams was awful on Monday Night. Poor punting from Sam Koch; bad kickoff coverage on the opening kick, setting up a field goal chance for Green Bay; and poor squib kicks that were uncalled for given the potential loss in field position.

Going forward, the coaching staff needs to find a way to incorporate Kelley Washington and Demetrius Williams into the offensive plan. The duo showed up in the absence of Mark Clayton. Williams showed an ability to gain separation downfield. Right now, the offense lacks the ability to hit on vertical routes as they did a year ago, and that has to change in this last quarter of the season.

The pass rush was non-existent yet again against an offensive line that has wilted against other opponents. Schematically, the problems remain the same. There is little deception and too much early declaration before the snap. These blitzes are poorly timed. For example, in a key third down pass play, the slot defenders showed blitz well before the snap, allowing Aaron Rodgers plenty of time to check to a slant route to exploit the look. What happened to the twisting pre-snap movement that the defense used to show?

Up front, the only lineman who can defeat a block is Trevor Pryce. The others are unable to use their hands to disengage. In particular, Haloti Ngata has been a disappointment. He was projected to take the next step and become a better rusher. He has been invisible and unable to provide a push.

The lack of pass rush is a major problem that the front office must fix in the offseason. Even when Terrell Suggs was in the lineup, the rush was mediocre. This defense has not been able to generate consistent pressure since the 2006 season. Overall, either the philosophy of running a 3-4 will need to change, or the three-man has to be tweaked to feature more athletic ends who are able to split gaps and gain penetration.

For some odd reason, the media continues to insist that there is no way that an AFC team can earn a wildcard spot with a 9-7 record. At this point Jacksonville holds the No.6 seed, and they already have five losses. With games remaining against Miami, Indianapolis and New England, the Jaguars could very well lose two more games to get to seven losses. The teams behind the Jaguars-- including Baltimore --all have six losses. So which of these teams will definitely win ten games?

Granted, the Ravens don't deserve to make the playoffs, but their competition hasn't been very impressive either. Depending on tiebreaker scenarios, even with seven losses, there is a chance that Baltimore gets in.

Player Spotlight

The nod goes to Tom Zbikowski, who made no visible mental errors last night. The second-year player did a nice job of staying true to his landmark all night long. Even when Rodgers tested Zbikowski using play-action, he didn't take the bait. The two touchdown plays that Zbikowski missed on were physical mistakes. He was simply outmatched in those situations against Jermichael Finley.

Kruger no longer a bust?

2009-12-05T09:16:00.000-08:00

“Well, Kruger’s not a bust anymore!”

That's all I've been hearing about Ravens rookie linebacker Paul Kruger after he picked off Steelers QB Dennis Dixon to set up the game-winning field goal in overtime Monday night.

My question is...."How the hell can you be a bust when you haven't even played a full season?????"Hey, the fact that Kruger has spent most of the year standing on the sidelines wearing Under Armour gear is not a good thing but that doesn't make him a bust. If Kruger doesn't become a starter and a major contributor in the next couple of years, then you can call him a bust. He's not Patrick Johnson, Dan Cody or Yamon Figurs...yet.

And the flip side is that the interception, no matter how big it was, doesn't make him a great pick either. He's made ONE PLAY in his career and has been active for less than half of the team’s games. I don't think he's quite ready for the Ravens Ring of Honor.

Again, eleven games don't make you a great pick or an awful pick.

I loved the decision Ravens head coach John Harbaugh made by going for it on 4th and 5 late in the four quarter. Yeah, he could've punted and hoped the defense held like the old days but he was aggressive and went for it. I would've said it was the right call if they would've made it or not. Your entire season is basically on the line and sooner or later you're gonna have to start putting games in the hands of your young, franchise quarterback. Flacco got the ball to Ray Rice and he took off for 45 yards and a first down.

I've been disappointed in Harbaugh this year. He seems indecisive on the sidelines and it looks like he has backed down on the discipline he brought to this team last year. The large number of stupid penalties in 2009 makes you want to look over at the sideline to see if Brian Billick is still coaching the team. And don't get me started with his desire to run off kicker Matt Stover and replace him with an unproven guy who has never had to do it in the clutch.

Maybe Harbaugh had a long talk with his offensive and defensive coordinators the last few weeks. Maybe he told defensive coordinator Greg Mattison to blitz more and maybe he reminded Cam Cameron there were more skill players on the field than Ray Rice and Derrick Mason.

The team still has a shot at a Wild Card spot.

Let's see how Harbaugh handles the last five games.

Photo by Sabina Moran

Ravens' Gooden a liability

2009-11-24T03:58:00.000-08:00

Tavares Gooden continues to be a liability for the defense. He played soft against the run, and repeatedly blew his coverage assignment of tight end Tom Santi. On a Joseph Addai gain that went for six yards off of the right sideline, Gooden had a chance to limit the gain. Instead of selling his body to take away Addai's lane, Gooden kept moving laterally and was blocked just enough for Addai to turn the corner. Moreover, when the coaches and players review the film, they'll have fun going over a play in which Pierre Garcon carried Gooden for extra yards on a slip screen. At this point, Dannell Ellerbe is the better player, and he should be on the field more often.

Photo by Sabina Moran

Ravens need to reel Reed in

2009-11-24T03:54:00.000-08:00

Watching Ed Reed try to lateral the ball at in an inopportune time has become a tired practice. It is clear that he (and the entire team for that matter) has no concept of situational football. In the NFL, 17 seconds is an eternity. Reed should have known what the goal was at that point in the game. Instead, he acted selfishly, and tried to make a play that wasn't there. Many will stick up for Reed -- who had his most impactful game of the season -- and say that he was merely trying to make a play to win the game. BS! He and his defensive teammates have played the lateral game in Baltimore for years. They lead the league in lateral attempts that go nowhere. Perhaps it will take Steve Bisciotti himself to sit down with Reed and Ray Lewis, to point out that if they want to ever win a championship, they have to stop playing so recklessly and trust their teammates to win. Until then, the collective group of players that currently comprise the roster will never be more than an average or slightly above-average team.

Oops, the Ravens did it again!

2009-11-24T03:50:00.001-08:00

The Colts did it again. They grabbed the early lead and went on to win the contest from that point on. Granted, this was a closer affair than it has been over the years. However, the end result was still the same. The Colts started fast, the Ravens chipped away, but in the end it wasn’t enough.

If the Colts weren't too busy fumbling the game away, the game could have been out of reach sooner. This coaching staff has to understand that to beat the Colts, or any elite team for that matter, the offense has to be aggressive and score touchdowns. Nothing symbolized this one-sided aspect of the matchup more than Baltimore's first drive of the second half. The offense had a chance to continue to press the Indianapolis defense after it scored a field goal from its two-minute attack to close the first half. Instead, the offense worked out of its base set, ran the ball on first and second down, and were unable to convert the third-and-long attempt. Three-and-out! The offense had a chance to reset the tempo and they blew it!

Sloppy win over wretched Browns is barely a win at all

2009-11-19T08:26:00.000-08:00

Man, that game was hard to sit through, sort of like watching The Golden Girls skinny-dipping for three hours. WOW!

I don’t know what was worse….watching the Ravens-Browns game or getting my prostate checked. It was 0-0 at half-time!!! Against THE BROWNS! Please, spare me the “A Win’s a Win” manure, if the Ravens play like they did Monday night against Indy, they might have to institute the “mercy” rule.

Besides the one touchdown drive, the Ravens offense was pretty bad all night. The defense pitched a shut-out but that was like Jeremy Guthrie pitching a shut-out against the Maryland School for the Blind. The Ravens defense is awesome…..as long as the other team doesn’t throw the ball downfield! The Browns offense made Brian Billick’s offense look like the 49ers of the 80’s. I think I might take Kyle Boller over Brady Quinn! No, seriously, I’m sober….for a change.

Oh and someone tell Quinn when he throws a deep pass that the stands are out of bounds. I think he hit a beer vendor in the head with one of those passes.

The Browns stink so bad they ought to add air fresheners to their uniforms…and the Ravens barely beat them. Coach John Harbaugh better get his “Mighty Men’ together and bust some skulls, or they’ll be watching the play-offs on my couch with me.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens @ Browns

2009-11-17T21:14:00.000-08:00

The Ravens dealt with a steady barrage of injuries last night. Terrell Suggs had an MRI to determine the extent of a knee injury he suffered against the Browns. Early indications are that Suggs will miss a month or so. Haruki Nakamura broke his ankle and will be out for the season. His loss will hurt, considering that he was a part of the dime package that featured a three safety rotation. Going into next season, the team has to determine what Nakamura's long term role will be with the team. He has shown plenty of flashes to be worthy of a starting job, yet wasn't able to pry the job away from a struggling Dawan Landry.

If Suggs is to miss an extended amount of time, Paul Kruger will continue to take his place in the lineup. Kruger made some mistakes -- including an offsides penalty and not maintaining contain on a Josh Cribbs end-around run -- but also looked athletic in coverage situations. Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison may need to use Kruger and linebacker Jameel McClain in tandem in obvious pass-rushing situations to compensate for the loss of Suggs. Tavares Gooden was also knocked out of the game.

For the second time this season Gooden suffered a concussion, which is never a good sign. Moreover, Gooden has been hampered by other nagging injuries since entering the league. Even when Gooden has been healthy and able to play, he has been undisciplined with his gap technique.

Speaking of Kruger, he looped around two different times up the middle, freeing Ray Lewis on one of those plays for a sack in the second half. The cross fire blitz was well designed, and should be a bigger part of the pressure package, especially on early downs.

The Ravens officially don't have a kicker. This is a franchise that hasn't had to worry about its placekicking situation for more than a decade. Now they have to hope that they can catch lightning in a bottle. Without a reliable kicker, there is virtually no chance that this team will be anything more than .500 club. Playoff contenders have accurate kickers. There have been too many teams in NFL history that have missed the postseason show due to missed kicks, and the Ravens appear to be headed in the same direction.

The offense continued to struggle in short-yardage conversion situations. The interior line has lost its ability to generate a push in these situations, despite Ron Jaworski's inability to notice. (Jaworski consistently clamored for the power run when the Ravens faced third-and-short.) Specifically, Ben Grubbs had his lunch handed to him, and has struggled all season to control penetration. To add to the lack of power running, the best runs that the backs were able to produce came off tackle and out of the shotgun set. At this point, unless the interior blocking improves dramatically, the team's best option is to run out of single back formations.

On the touchdown that Ray Rice scored, he ran the ball to the strong side, behind an outstanding pull block by Grubbs. Moreover, Rice also ran behind three receivers lined up in a trips set. That was a timely play call, and nice use of personnel in that situation.

Give credit to Cam Cameron. While the offense started slowly for another week in a row, one can't blame him for putting together a predictable game plan. He started the first couple of drives using different formations, including an unbalanced front and an empty set. He also did a nice job of mixing up the pass/run ratio. The players just didn't execute well.

Player Spotlight

Dawan Landry played his best game of the season. The interception return for a touchdown came at the perfect time, and was a result of staying in his spot. Landry also tackled well in support of the run. The much maligned strong safety will need to play just as well the rest of the season.

No need to panic Ravens' fans, unless...

2009-11-16T14:49:00.000-08:00

So the Ravens are 4-4 at the half-way point of 2009. Not exactly where anyone thought they would be....especially them. Thank God the playoffs don't start in November!

Alright, let's look at the schedule for the 2nd half. For the Ravens to make the playoffs they most likely will have to win 10 games. The first thing you need to do is to start rooting for these teams:

The Cincinnati Bengals: They are 7-2 and have beat the Ravens twice so they own the head-to-head tie breaker. If you're a Ravens fan you want the Bengals to win the division, you lose the Wild Card battle to them.

The New England Patriots: Again, they own the head-to-head tie-breaker on you so you want them to win their division.

Root for the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers to end up with the same record as Baltimore. The Ravens own the head-to-head tie-breaker over the Broncos and the Chargers.

Root for the Steelers, Jets, Dolphins, Jaguars and Texans to lose. Obviously, we want the Steelers to lose twice to the Ravens!

Now, onto the schedule…

I know looking ahead at the schedule is like looking at your girlfriend’s mother to see what she'll look like when she gets older. You know, "S" happens. Injuries can change a season. But, let's just look at the 2nd half schedule with what we know.

It seems like the Ravens have 4 gimmies on the schedule....Cleveland, Detroit, Oakland and Chicago. The first three stink and the Bears play in Baltimore. The Bears are 1-4 on the road. These four "teams" are 8-27. THE RAVENS HAVE TO WIN THESE FOUR GAMES!!!!!

The other four games include two with the Steelers, and one with the Colts and the Packers. Obviously, Pittsburgh beat the Ravens three times last year but all three could've gone either way. Peyton Manning has torched the Ravens in the past when their secondary was decent, now it's awful, so this one could get ugly if the Ravens don't find a way to pressure Manning....or find a way for him have an "accident" on the way to the stadium.

The Ravens could go to Green Bay and punk the Packers or they could go there and get rolled. The Packers might have more different personalities than the Ravens. Are they the team that beat Dallas at home or the squad who blew a big lead and lost to winless Tampa?

So if the Ravens win the four gimmie games that means they only have to split the other four to have the magical ten wins that will probably get them into the playoffs in an AFC that doesn't look as good at it has been in recent years.I repeat, no reason to panic....unless the Ravens lose in Cleveland....then they don't deserve to make the playoffs.

The Browns might not be able to beat Maryland.I think the Ravens could turn the ball over 10 times and still win. So, 4-4 is not great but the schedule doesn't look real tough.

But if the Ravens continue to play the way they've been since starting off 3-0 it really won't matter.

Cleveland damned by the curse of Art Modell?

2009-11-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

The Baltimore Sun’s Jamison Hensley wrote an intriguing article on Wednesday laying the blame for the Browns' woes on the "Curse of Art Modell." It was an interesting piece and, regardless of how you view curses and other paranormal phenomena, one can't argue with the factual points that Jamison made.

Almost from Day One, the new Browns have subjected their fans to an unending roster list of woes, starting with well-meaning but misguided ownership, inept general managers (Dwight Clarke), hapless head coaches (Chris Palmer, Butch Davis, Romeo Crennel), dreadful draft choices (Tim Couch, Courtney Brown), and injury-prone free agents (LeCharles Bentley & Joe Jurevicius). Two former Ravens front office men, Phil Savage and George Kokinis, both good personnel guys, have been chewed up and spit out from the wood chipper that is the Cleveland Browns.

The only thing that Cleveland has rewarded their fans with is a brand new stadium in which they can suffer their fall weekend torture in comfort. Uh, make that relative comfort. It is Cleveland, after all.

I have an insider’s view on all this because my former Baltimore-based company sent me to work at a NE Ohio facility back in the early 90's. I returned to the Cleveland area periodically until 2001. So, I got to know the city and the fans pretty well. I willingly admit that I became a Browns fan back in those early days. In fact, I was driving on I-480 back to Cleveland-Hopkins airport to fly home the day the news broke on the radio that the Browns were moving to Baltimore. I almost hit a jersey barrier.

Curse or no, the ironic part is that Art Modell would be the LAST person in the world to curse or wish ill will to the fans and city of Cleveland. It truly pained him to leave Northeast Ohio. His contributions to the NFL are well known and are justifiably legend. He was a civic leader and a generous supporter and donor to the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic. His teams played in a hell hole of a stadium (believe me, I’ve been there for baseball and football games) that was built for the 1932 Olympics that went to Los Angeles.

I'll never forget the pained look, the grimace on Art's face when Parris Glendenning held that gloating news conference announcing the team's arrival. He really didn't want to be here.

I have felt the Browns' fans vitriol as well....almost to the day of the moving announcement, and for several years afterward, it was immediately directed at me, the "Baltimore guy." The Ravens winning the Super Bowl only 5 years after leaving has only increased their outrage at all things Baltimore.

As an old Colt season ticket holder who witnessed the decline of the Colts through the Irsay regime, I, of course, hated Bob the Red-Faced Owner for moving the club, Jack Kent Cooke for trying to keep a team out of Baltimore, and Paul Tagliabue for being his willing accomplice.

But you know what? We got the Ravens, Jack Kent Cooke is dead, and the Skins passed out of the family and into infinitely worse hands – but that’s a blog for another day. Finally, the arrogant Tags is out of football. My pain and hate has long passed. I just wish more Baltimore Colt fans could find the same release.

Cleveland fans really need to do the same thing, too. But I guess it’s hard when your team uniformly stinks thanks to clueless ownership.

Jamison Hensley thinks that once Art Modell is voted into the Hall of Fame, all this will pass. I think, for various reasons, not the least being the lobbying of a certain vociferous Cleveland sportswriter, that Art will never smell the HOF while he's alive. And that's unfortunate.

And so the curse will continue.

Prediction:

Who are these guys? Win 3, lose 3, win 1, lose 1. Looking alternately like world beaters against the Broncos and totally lost against the Bengals, I honestly have no idea what Raven team will show up Monday night against what is arguably the worst team in the NFL. I bet ESPN is ruing the day they put this turkey on their schedule.

The best part of the game may be right before the kickoff when Browns fans are reportedly going to stage a protest walkout.

Monday night the Ravens should come out and completely obliterate the Browns. Eric the Fat has lost the locker room as well as the fan base, and their squad is little better than expansion team quality.

Anything less than a 3 touchdown win is completely unacceptable.

If the Ravens don't dominate, it will say to me that this team and its season are now lost to mediocrity. Then we can paraphrase Dennis Greene and say "The Ravens aren’t what we thought they were."

But, eternal optimist that I am........

Ravens 34 Joshua Cribbs 7

NFL SALARY CAP:Would it be better if 2010 was capped or uncapped

2009-11-12T03:13:00.000-08:00

CAPPED OR UNCAPPED?

Heading into 2010, the big question for the Baltimore Ravens isn’t how much Cap space they will have, but whether it will even matter or not? As it now stands, there will be no Salary Cap in 2010 and teams will be able to sign and re-sign players for as much as they want. However, the owners and the NFL Players’ Association, mindful of the free-for-all that could accompany an Uncapped year, wrote safeguards into the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement to protect against that.

So, when looking ahead to 2010, the question is capped or uncapped?

UNCAPPED

If 2010 is uncapped, it will create both advantages and disadvantages for the Ravens. The biggest advantage for the Ravens would be the ability to jettison unwanted contracts without any adverse Salary Cap consequences. For players like Willis McGahee, Kelly Gregg, Todd Heap, Chris Carr and Domonique Foxworth, this could possibly spell the end of their Ravens careers. Also, given the concerns about his health, it’s not inconceivable that it would allow the Ravens to part ways with Ed Reed or, at least, lessen the blow from his retirement.

An Uncapped year would also allow the Ravens to hold onto a number of players who would otherwise be scheduled to become Unrestricted Free Agents (UFAs). In the past, with a Salary Cap, players would become UFAs after playing for 4 years, but under the Uncapped Year rules, players must complete 6 years before becoming UFAs. As such, players like Mark Clayton, Sam Koch, Chris Chester, Dwan Edwards, Dawan Landry, Fabian Washington, Adam Terry, Quinn Sypniewski and Demetrius Williams would not be UFAs in 2010 and could, at least initially, be retained by tendering a RFA tender offer to them. This would ensure the Ravens would retain the player’s rights or receive draft pick compensation if the player signs an Offer Sheet with another team.

However, this will also be a disadvantage to the Ravens because it would also mean that players from other teams who might interest the Ravens would also not be UFAs either. For instance, there are several prominent WRs – Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin and Brandon Marshall – who have 4 years of service time and would otherwise be UFAs in 2010, but won’t be if the Uncapped Year becomes a reality.

The biggest advantage the Uncapped year would give the Ravens is that it would allow them to sign contract extensions with some of their own players for as much as they would like. For players like Haloti Ngata, Sam Koch, Jared Gaither and Ben Grubbs, this could prove to be a windfall. But, with that said, teams will still need to be mindful that a Salary Cap is likely to come back at some point, so any contract signed would need to be structured so as to not cause any overly adverse future Cap implications.

The last Uncapped year rule that might impact the Ravens is the so-called “Final Eight Plan” that limits what teams who make the Divisional round of the playoffs (the final 8 teams) in 2009 can do in free agency in 2010. This limitation basically prohibits the “good” teams from signing a free agent until they’ve lost one.

For a more detailed description of the Uncapped Year rules……

For more on CAPPED years and the answer to which is better click here

After losing 4 of 5, where do the Ravens go from here?

2009-11-12T02:34:00.000-08:00

Alright, it took a couple of days for the stink of that Bengals loss to get out of my nose, so now we can focus on the 2nd half of 2009. I say bring back Matt Stover and all will be fine!....Alright, we know that you've got a better chance of getting a loan from Antoine Walker than you do of seeing Matt Stover back in Ravens gear.So, realistically, here's what I'd like to see the Ravens do in the 2nd half of the season:

BLITZ!!!!! I repeat, B-L-I-T-Z!!! I've never been a defensive coordinator in the NFL, college, high school, Pop Warner or even flag football....and I even know they Ravens don't have the personnel to run a straight up 4-3 defense that doesn't blitz. I think we all see there was a reason Rex Ryan did all of that crazy blitzing, BECAUSE HE HAD TOO! Rex knew there was no way in hell his defense could get any consistent pass rush with just his D-Line. C'mon coach Mattison, playing a vanilla, straight up defense with this group of players is like trying to make Terrell Suggs a Chippendale! Blitz Greg, please.

I think at this point it's time to give rookie corner Lardarius Webb a start. I mean, you have nothing to lose at this point. He more than held his own against Chad 85 last Sunday and he can't be any worse than Fabian Washington. Webb looks like he's aggressive and has the ability to make some plays.

I think Ray Rice is a heck of a running back BUT I'd like to see the return of the three-headed monster. If you want to start Rice and give him most of the carries that's great but I'd also find a way to get Willis McGhee and LeRon McClain some touches also. I believe rotating those three will give the opposing defense different looks and wear them down by the 4th quarter. Also, I think all of us are stoked by the development of QB Joe Flacco but I'd like to see the Ravens get back to pounding teams with the running game more often. I don't think Flacco is ready to be Peyton Manning yet. He still needs help from a punishing ground game.

I know Dawan Landry had a hideous neck injury. So I guess thinking he'd be back to the player he was before the injury was asking too much. He's a shell of what he used to be. If he continues to struggle I think the time will come to play either Haruki Nakamura or Tom Zbikowski. You can't have a safety who doesn't want to come up and hit anyone. It's sort of like having a QB who is scared to put his hands under the center's butt.

I want to see how Coach John Harbaugh handles the second half. I know things look bleak, but plenty of 4-4 teams have made the play-offs. It'll be interesting to see how Harbaugh steers the ship through the adversity of not reaching the pre-season expectations so far....especially after starting 3-0.

Finally...HOW MUCH DOES DE/LB PAUL KRUGER SUCK IN PRACTICE? I mean, with all of the struggles the Ravens have had getting pressure on the quarterback, you'd think they would find a way to get Kruger on the field. But he's inactive every week! I don't want to hear that "He can't play special teams" crap either. If the Ravens thought Kruger could help their anemic pash rush, he'd be playing on Sunday. He must really be showing zip in practice.

That's some of the stuff I'd like to see...how about you?

Drop me an e-mail: baltimoresportsonline@gmail.com

I'd like to hear your thoughts.

Is this what "Play Like a Raven" means?

2009-11-11T18:25:00.000-08:00

Wow! That's really all I can say. Sunday's beat down at the hands of the Cincinnati Bengals is shocking to me. It's like when I found out a big fat guy wearing a red suit didn't really come down my chimney bringing free swag.

Seriously, I sat stunned for three hours as the Ravens were beaten up by the Bengals FOR THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR. I'll admit, I didn't see that coming. I thought the reason that Cincy physically dominated the Ravens the first time was that Baltimore took them lightly.

I really believed the Ravens would go into Cincinnati and punk the Bengals. This time, after seeing the latest can of whip-ass brought out by Marvin Lewis’ troops, I think the Bengals are just a better team than the Ravens in 2009.

This team has issues. How can you come off of your best win of the season, where you gave Denver a wedgie for three hours, and you play flat, unmotivated football in your biggest game of the year? What does that say about the guys in that locker room? What does that say about the coaching staff’s ability to get these guys focused and geeked up to play?

I mean, your O-Line and D-Line gets whipped, your QB plays like he hung out the night before bongin' with Tim Lincecum, your secondary stinks like Limburger cheese, your wide receivers can't get open, you have no pass rush, the kicker misses another big field goal and your offense scores a whole seven points.

I thought Brian Billick was back!Cincinnati held the ball for 40 minutes, that's almost three quarters. The game was lost in the first three possessions. While the Bengals were marching down the field like it was Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, scoring 17 points, the Ravens were punting. You can bitch about the officials all you want but the Bengals flat out took it to the Ravens. And that's the bottom line!

You have to really scratch your head after this one. The Ravens had a chance to throw themselves back in the AFC North hunt and it looked like they were about as interested as Elton John at the Playboy Mansion.

"Play Like a Raven?"

How about "Play Like a Bengal!"

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens @ Bengals

2009-11-10T06:18:00.000-08:00

One thing is clear, there is an indisputable blueprint for defending Joe Flacco: Take away the outside routes and force him to throw in the middle of the field. Until Flacco can make defenses pay by firing the ball accurately throw tight windows, he can expect the same look. Flacco also needs to do a better job recognizing and adjusting to the blitz. The Bengals waited until right before the ball was snapped to send an outside blitzer, and that delayed move clearly made a difference. Denver had some success using the same strategy a week ago.

Someone left a gap wide open on Benson's biggest gain, which set up the first Cincinnati touchdown and the tone for the game. Aside from that play, the defensive front was stout. But the damage was already done. Overall, it's not so much alarming that the defense has given up three 100-yard rushing days -- two of which came against the same player, which hasn't happened since 1997, when the defense wore a "kick me" sign. It is that this front has given up four gains covering 20 yards or more. In the Minnesota game, Peterson gained 84 yards on two carries alone. Two carries. In the past, it would be a fluke if this front over-pursued, or lost its gap integrity. Now, it's a weekly occurrence.

This team has completely lost its ability to run the ball in-between the tackles, and that has to change. The interior line play has been spotty at best. They give up penetration and don't get the push that they used to. The running game as a whole is not where it should be given the stable of backs and the type of line that the front office built. Last season, one of the big reasons for the club turnaround was due to a renewed ability to dominate on the ground. The Ravens buried teams. Now, the Bengals have become the undertakers. In two contests, Benson carried the ball a whopping 64 times.

It was disturbing to read so many postgame quotes from players claiming that they had "no sense of urgency" and came out "flat" at the beginning of the game. That setback can be directly attributed to the coaching staff. There is no way that this team should have been "flat" going against a division opponent, on the road, in a must-win situation. That's not to say that they still wouldn't have gotten slapped around as they did yesterday. However, perhaps if this team played with any level of aggression from the start, they wouldn't have been ambushed so quickly.

To add to the coaching woes, Marvin Lewis owns this coaching staff. It was almost as if the Baltimore staff reused the same game plan for offense and defense. Meanwhile, Lewis and his staff actually made adjustments, despite dominating between the lines in the first matchup. To date, Lewis' defenses have made the Baltimore offenses look bad. Aside from a hiccup last season, he has had a tremendous feel for what the offense wants to do, ever since he left the club. Maybe good guy Marv has a mole at the palace in Owings Mills.

As has been a routine scenario, Ray Lewis ducked reporters following the bludgeoning in Cincinnati. It's amazing how often he is able to make time for the media when the team does well, but is a ghost when the team fails. While Lewis emphasizes his role as a leader, he hasn't proven it in these key situations. Being a leader means you stand up and face the music, no matter what the outcome.

Player Spotlight

Lardarius Webb earns time in the spotlight for a second time this season. Most impressive was Webb's tackling and overall physical demeanor. On a key tackle of Cedric Benson on the perimeter, Webb knocked Benson off his feet. This is nothing new, as Webb displayed that ability to hit in training camp and during the preseason. If there was a clear bright spot from the debacle in the Queen City, it is that Webb has the chance to become a prime-time player.

Photo by Sabina Moran

Can there really be "MUST" wins in early November?

2009-11-08T08:34:00.000-08:00

Let's get something out of the way....there are NO must-win games in November!

Well, except maybe today in Cincinnati.

If the Ravens lose to the Bengals they will be 4-4 while Cincy improves to 6-2. Not only will the Ravens be two games behind the Bengals but they would have lost twice to Cincinnati this year. So the Bengals would have the tie-breaker over the Ravens.

Basically, if the Ravens lose today, they'd probably be playing for a Wild Card spot the rest of the year.I think the Ravens will go into Cincy and beat the Bengals.

Let's face it, the Ravens didn't take the Bengals seriously in their first meeting in Baltimore. They thought they'd just throw their purple jock straps on the field and Cincinnati would wet themselves in fear. Well, it didn't work that way. So now the Ravens are faced with HAVING to go into Cincy and win. They need this "W" worse than the Bengals. The Ravens need this win more than Kirstie Alley needs a Dunkin Donuts. If they lose they’re tied with the Ravens at 5-3.

Let's be honest, if you ask talent people in the NFL they'd tell you the Ravens are a better team than the Bengals. If the Ravens stay with the same type of aggressive game plan they used on defense against Denver they will win. They need to get pressure on QB Carson Palmer, not an easy thing to do. Palmer will take shots down the field, something the dumb Broncos didn't do. The Ravens can't let the Bengals wide-outs make plays downfield.

I'd be stunned if RB Cedric Benson had another big day against the Baltimore run "D". Something tells me Benson gets hit more than a Tom Cable assistant coach. The Ravens passing game should have their way with the bad Bengals pass defense.....especially given the fact that Cincinnati doesn't have one if the best pass rushers in the league, Antwan Odom, whose out for the year. I have a feeling the Ravens offensive line will have a big day.This game will tell us a lot about the Ravens.

If they win it could be the start of a roll.

If they lose they'll be fighting for a play-off spot for the rest of the year.

I think they win.....23-14.

Under the Scope: Ravens v. Broncos

2009-11-03T07:05:00.000-08:00

Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison has taken a beating in this column for weeks, but he deserves kudos for the game plan he put together against Denver. Clearly, the extra week of film session paid off. Not only were the Ravens aggressive on defense, but they were also deceptive -- components that were missing during the three-game losing streak. Jarret Johnson and Terrell Suggs got back to operating from a two-point stance as opposed to having their hands in the dirt. Their presnap movement confused the Denver offensive line. Additionally, both players switched sides and bluffed the blitz.

* Other Mattison adjustments: He used all of his defensive linemen. This is the deepest unit of the defense, so it makes sense for all of the linemen to receive snaps, depending on the situation.

The pass-rush was anything but vanilla. There was a sprinkle of cross blitzes, overloads, and fakes. On one play, Trevor Pryce and Chris Carr showed blitz, only to drop into coverage. And one more note. Given that the safeties stuck to their assignments, they were in position to converge on any pass thrown within their zip code. While a lot of observers will note that Kyle Orton didn't throw it deep, the Denver quarterback stated that the safeties stayed back and compelled him to throw underneath. It'll be interesting to see if they can stay disciplined the rest of the way.

* It was clear that defensive coordinator Mike Nolan took a page out of Marvin Lewis' game plan against the Ravens. For the most part, he kept his safeties back, and relied on his front seven to apply pressure. Like Lewis, Nolan didn't want to give up the big play against a Joe Flacco led offense. However, the one time when there was an opportunity against single coverage, Flacco made a perfect throw to defeat it. On that play, the Denver safeties appeared to be out of position. Flacco deserves credit for not forcing the issue downfield, and playing a better game against a similar defensive look that he struggled against three weeks ago.

* Speaking of the Bengals, they were able to prevent Derrick Mason from catching a single pass by rolling coverage to his side. After that game, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron took the blame for Mason's inaction, and vowed that something like that would not happen again. Since then, Cameron shifted Mason over to the split end position in certain situations. By switching sides against Minnesota and Denver, Mason has tangled against the No.2 cornerback. The payoff came on Mason's aforementioned touchdown catch against Andre Goodman.

* The defensive backs had not hit that hard all season. They were active in run support, and their ability to tackle made a huge difference, especially in containing the edges.

* This team still commits too many mistakes in critical situations. While the personal foul penalty that Michael Oher committed may have been ticky tacky, it was still a legitimate call. Oher pushed the defensive lineman after the play was dead. That stupid mistake essentially erased a touchdown possibility. Moreover, the Broncos gained a psychological win by holding the Ravens to a field goal to stay within striking distance. If Lardarius Webb doesn't score on the kickoff return to start the second half, changing the complexion of the game, Oher's mistake could have come back to haunt the team.

Player Spotlight

Dannell Ellerbe received most of the snaps at the inside linebacker spot. Ellerbe's presence made a difference, especially at the line-of-scrimmage. He did a nice job of taking on blocks, and he was not hesitant to throw his body around to free up other defenders. Given Ellerbe's size, raw power, and explosion, he is a perfect in the box player, and the right guy to handle some of the blitzing and run support tasks that Bart Scott had a year ago.

Is Ravens DC Greg Mattison in over his head?

2009-10-31T03:59:00.000-07:00

I know that Greg Mattison has only been the defensive coordinator for less than half a season. I know that it takes time for a new coordinator and his players to get on the same page sometimes.

I know defensive coordinator Mattison served one year as the Ravens linebacker coach so he was familiar with the defense before he became coordinator. I also know that Mattison was the defensive coordinator at Florida when they won the National Championship. I also realize that Mattison was the D-coordinator at Michigan. You don't have to tell me that Mattison has been in coaching for almost as long as I've been alive, but I have a couple of questions.....

Was Mattison qualified to become a defensive coordinator in the NFL after coaching in the league only one year as a linebackers coach?

Was he promoted because his close, personal relationship with head coach John Harbaugh and his dad clouded Harbaugh's judgment?

Let's face it, being the defensive coordinator in college isn't quite the same as being a defensive coordinator in the NFL. It's like going from driving an AMC Pacer to cruising in a BMW. In college, talent is important. You recruit better players, you win....bottom line. And it's sure not tough to recruit talented players to Florida. I think the pitch would go something like this....

"Alright young man, take a walk on campus with me. Son, if you come to Florida you'll get a chance to play for championships, you'll get a chance to play in the NFL, you'll get a chance to hook up with hotties like that one in the Daisy Dukes!"

In the NFL it's different. Every team has players. The talent level is a lot closer, except in Cleveland....sorry, I couldn't resist. You've got to be able to scheme, create chaos to cause mismatches that are in your favor. The coordinator is much more important. I'm stupid and I know that much.

So maybe Mattison is in over his head. There are no Vanderbilt's on the NFL schedule....except Cleveland. It isn't as easy as just "Lining up and going after them!".

I hope I'm wrong but it had to be said, right?

BLUE PRINT TO WIN: Ravens v. Broncos

2009-10-30T17:35:00.000-07:00

Offense

1) Fast break offense: In the past two contests, the Ravens started slowly and were unable to establish an early rhythm. They can’t afford to do that again against a Broncos team that feeds off of staying close in every game. The offense will have to play aggressively and look to strike early to establish a lead. The key has to be to force Denver to play from behind; a position that the Broncos have not been in.

Moreover, in this case, the best defense could be the Baltimore offense. If the offense is able to hang a lead of 14-0 or 17-3 in the first half, the Denver offense will have to alternate their style of ball control, and look to score quickly through the air. It’s not that the Broncos aren’t capable of coming back – and obviously the Baltimore defense has been very accommodating as of late. However, the Broncos haven’t proven it this season.

This is a game in which offensive coordinator Cam Cameron has to dip into the bag of tricks he left behind last season. Against an aggressive Denver attack, he should dial up a trick play to catch the defense over-pursuing. The mindset should be to play fast and hit on a couple of big plays to set the tone for the game.

2) Check Weapon X: Safety Brian Dawkins has arguably been one of the top offseason acquisitions. For years, the former Philadelphia Eagle made huge defensive stops as a blitzer and run support defender. He has brought that same impact to the Broncos, instilling a level of toughness and attitude to its pass rush and run defense.

Dawkins has been successful because he has impeccable timing. He does a great job of disguising his movement before the snap prior to attacking the line as the ball is snapped.

It remains to be seen if Dawkins will actually play, as he missed most of the San Diego game with a hamstring injury, and has been limited in practice during the week. Still, Dawkins is an intense competitor so it would be a surprise if he missed this game.

Joe Flacco will have to account for Dawkins at all times, especially because he protects the side that cornerback Andre Goodman plays on. When Dawkins blitzes, Flacco will need to throw deep to Goodman’s side. While Goodman is a solid player, he is no Champ Bailey and will be targeted. In addition, the backs will need to do a good job of picking up Dawkins when he comes free off the edge.

3) Blindside return: The offense has lacked its equilibrium since left tackle Jared Gaither injured his neck against the New England Patriots. Since that point, the offense played inconsistently. At times they were explosive, and at other times they were unable to sustain drives. Without Gaither, Cameron called a more conservative game, stressing protection and quick drops. In addition, the power rushing attack went away when Gaither left the lineup.

Now that Gaither is slated to return, the offense should return to being a balanced outfit. Cameron can run more unbalanced formations, using Marshall Yanda as the sixth lineman. The power game has to be reintegrated to the offense, especially against a speedy, yet undersized Denver front.

In addition, in pass protection situations, the front five should be better equipped to deal with the blitz. Look for the long ball to be in play against a Denver defense that plays a lot of zero coverage.

Defense

1) Blitz and Press: Josh McDaniels’ fingerprints are all over his offense. As he did in New England, McDaniels uses a variation of spread formations to keep a defense guessing. The Broncos will often operate from a single back or empty set in third down passing situations. However, unlike the powerhouse Patriots, this Denver passing attack rarely goes deep. It is a quick-hitting, short passing game run by quarterback Kyle Orton.
In defending the Broncos, the defense will need to play aggressively. To throw off the timing of Denver’s rhythm passing attack, the corners will need to jam the receivers at the line-of-scrimmage.

To complement the press coverage, the blitz should be in play, especially when the Broncos set up in an empty formation. Against a very good Denver offensive line that consistently handles its one-on-one matchups, defensive coordinator Greg Mattison should bring six defenders – one more defender than the front five can block – from different spots and angles.

2) Control the YAC: One of the biggest problems that the defense has dealt with is minimizing big plays. The Ravens have given up 25 plays covering 20 yards or more, and a six passes of 40 yards or longer. What has been especially disturbing is how easily receivers have turned shorter pass completions of 15 or 20 yards into 40 or 50 yard gains. That is unacceptable.

Against the Broncos, the secondary will have to play with better discipline and tackling technique to prevent the pass catchers from springing big plays. In particular, the safeties must stay true to their landmarks. If they don’t, and are influenced out of position, receivers will run unfettered downfield. Moreover, if the defensive backs don’t tackle well, the Denver receivers, led by Brandon Marshall, have the ability to extend plays in the open field.

3) Defending the tight ends: What makes the Denver offense so tough to deal with is its versatility. Orton has a bevy of targets to turn to in the passing game, including two talented pass-catching tight ends. Daniel Graham controls the short area, while Tony Scheffler has the speed and athleticism to flex out and burn teams downfield.

The task of checking these two players will fall on the linebackers and the safeties. They will need to hold up in man coverage and do a better job than they did two weeks ago against Visanthe Shiancoe.

One-on-One Matchup to Watch: Elvis Dumervil versus Jared Gaither: The aforementioned Gaither will have a huge litmus test against the leading sack man in the league. Dumervil has an explosive first step, and keeps his pads low. Moreover, Dumervil has incorporated an effective spin move to his repertoire. Gaither has a long wingspan, and he will need to force the smaller rush end to run wide.

Ravens Mattison needs to play to team's strengths

2009-10-29T02:49:00.000-07:00

So, it's the bye week....time to chill out, relax, take a break....UNLESS YOUR RAVENS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR GREG MATTISON!!!!!!

Greg has some serious work to do. The vaunted Ravens defense looks about as intimidating as "Paul Blart, Mall Cop." Mattison has some issues to tackle and some of it is his own doing.First of all, I don't understand why Mattison is trying to play a straight up 4-3 defense with little blitzing when he doesn't have the personnel for it.

The Ravens only have one good pass rushing defensive lineman type, Terrell Suggs and these days it looks like Martha Stewart's in better shape than Suggs right now. Did Mattison think that all of a sudden Trevor Pryce was going to be 25 years old again? Did he think Haloti Ngata and Kelly Gregg were all of a sudden going to become pass rushers?Pryce is in his 30's and Ngata and Gregg are in the line-up to stop the run and occupy blockers for Ray Lewis. The other D-linemen aren't real pass rushers either. They won't let rookie Paul Kruger get on the field because he can't play special teams....don't start me on that one!

So, there is NO WAY IN HELL you're going to be able to get any type of pass rush just sending four guys. The personnel Mattison has are guys who are tailored to play a multiple 3-4 defense with lots of blitzing. The strength of this defense is the linebackers! A good defensive coordinator builds his defensive system to what his players do best, what they're comfortable with. The Ravens defensive players rolling with a straight up 4-3 defense is like having Jessica Simpson being the president of MENSA.

Sometimes coaches crack me up. They try to make football rocket science. All you have to do is find out what your players do best and build your defense to those abilities. Don't try to make your players do things they aren't capable of doing just because it's what "You Believe In."Hey Greg, you have a bunch of guys who were brought in to play a multiple 3-4 blitz heavy defense. The defense is linebacker strong. PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTH!!!!!

Geez, is it really that tough?

Ravens got the wrong Ute?

2009-10-27T06:57:00.000-07:00

Could the Ravens brain-trust have committed an egregious offense in Round 2 of dis year’s NFL Draft? The team selected Paul Kruger, a high-motor 6’4” 260 pound DEFENSIVE end from Utah with the 57th pick. Don’t know him? Well maybe that’s because he has suited up for only 1 game in 2009. One game!

To make matters worse with a mere 4 picks later at No. 61, the Miami Dolphins selected a different Ute, 6’4” 214 pound cornerback Sean Smith.

This “running Ute” has started all 5 games for the Dolphins and has logged 9 tackles and 6 passes DEE-fensed. Those numbers compare favorably to the Ravens starting corners.

Imagine dat!

Is it possible dat deese two Utes were not scouted properly by the Ravens’ higher-ups?

Through 6 games, Fabian Washington has logged more tackles with 20, but only 3 passes defensed while Domonique Foxworth has recorded 13 tackles and 6 passes defensed. Given the current circumstances and the condemning acts perpetrated by the Ravens’ secondary, one can only imagine how having a BIG, FAST and PHYSICAL corner like the former Ute Smith, a rookie starter for a team on the rise for dat matter, could have impacted the results of deese last 3 games!

Don't pin Ravens' defensive woes on Mattison

2009-10-27T06:09:00.000-07:00

I read TL’s recent column regarding Greg Mattison and I too am having a difficult time comprehending why the defense has fallen off so much from last year. However, I do not blame Greg Mattison at all for the slide.

TL questioned whether the personnel have taken a significant hit. I would answer that question with a resounding “yes”. I think the issues are a lot more about personnel than about coaching and here’s why:

· Kelly Gregg and Dawan Landry both missed much of last year. Justin Bannan, Brandon McKinney and Jim Leonhard performed at solid levels as replacements. No one would argue that both Gregg and Landry have significantly underperformed so far this year. In fact, the few reps that McKinney received against the Vikings came during a time in the game when the Ravens were able to reasonably contain Adrian Peterson. Numerically, these 2 players returning from 2008 injuries count as 18% (2/11) of the 2009 defense that is different than last year.

· On the defensive line (other than the aforementioned Gregg), it has been rumored that Haloti Ngata isn’t exactly 100% and his play while good at times yet not been spectacular nor even as consistent like we expected. Pryce is a much lesser force and he can’t be effective unless they lower his number of reps. Does anybody think that Terrell Suggs has earned his $63 million contract? 31 tackles, 2.5 sacks and 1 forced fumble in 6 games say to me that he has not earned it. The defensive line was supposed to be an impenetrable force, but instead it has been average most of the time.

· Bart Scott has not been missed as much as some would lead you to believe – The Sun’s Mike Preston comes to mind. Tavares Gooden is developing nicely while Dannell Ellerbe shows promise. If you look at Bart’s stats from last year, they don’t overwhelm you. He had 82 tackles, which is a solid number, but only 1.5 sacks. He has no sacks so far this year.

· The biggest difference is in the secondary. Last year the starting corners for most of the year were Samari Rolle and Fabian Washington. Like Gregg and Landry, Washington’s play has regressed rather dramatically and Domonique Foxworth while a decent player is clearly not a shutdown corner. I wouldn’t rate Rolle a shutdown corner either at this point in his career but he played like one in 2008. Everybody loves to pick on Frank Walker, but truth be told, he’s the team’s only corner with a physical presence. If he doesn’t see the field in the Chargers game, the Ravens record would sit at 2-4 today. Chris Carr has done little on defense to help this team win. No one wants to say it, but Ed Reed is as much responsible for all of the big plays given up in the secondary as anyone, as he refuses to stay disciplined and to assist the corners in coverage. Between Landry and Reed, quality play at safety is non-existent at worst and spotty at best. The team lacks a “thumper” at the position that can take over the middle of the field. Landry used to be that guy, but since his neck injury he hasn’t been the same. Opposing receivers, especially tight ends can cause major headaches for this team.

So, as I see it the problems are with the personnel and not the coaching. How quickly Ravens fans forget the 2007 defense (coached by Rex Ryan) that was so banged up with injured players that they were forced to play soft defenses and still gave up big plays. Did anyone in Baltimore blame Rex for this? I don’t think so.

Mattison has a major problem on his hands, and I don’t admire his conundrum. For the Ravens to have any chance at success with this group, they’re going to have to play the style opposite of “organized chaos”. Those days are gone. Not because Rex Ryan’s gone, but because the personnel dictates the change. When you have weaknesses in the secondary, you have to play cover 2 and give up some yards on the ground. When you blitz the good quarterbacks, you better get there or they’ll kill you. We’ve seen some of that in the last 3 games.

The good news for the Ravens is that they can afford to play a more conservative style of defense, because they finally have an offense that is capable of scoring points and winning games.

Mattison’s job for the last 10 games is difficult, yet straightforward. Solve the problem of giving up the big plays’ which is no easy task with the team’s personnel. If he can fix that, the Ravens will be successful.

Decent defense and good offense equals a balanced team.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens @ Vikings

2009-10-20T07:18:00.000-07:00

Ray Lewis made some incredible tackles despite having to take on blockers. There were at least two instances in the game when Lewis found a way to bring down Adrian Peterson while fighting the fullback. On the Vikings' final touchdown drive, Lewis made two direct hits on Peterson to prevent him from piercing the goal line. Unfortunately for Lewis, he doesn't play on the back end, and was unable to prevent the third down completion to a wide open Visanthe Shiancoe.

Terrell Suggs was surprisingly tentative when he had to take on blocks. His inability to hold the edge really cost the defense on Peterson's 58-yard jaunt.

The time has come for the defensive coaches to bench Dawan Landry. The once promising strong safety has fallen off in a big way. He bit upfield on the long completion to Sidney Rice to seal the game. That wasn't the only time he fell for the play-fake. On the touchdown to Shiancoe that pushed the lead to 27-10, Landry watched the tight end run right by him as he had his eyes in the backfield. Right now, Landry has a big red target on his back. Favre repeatedly threw in his direction. If Landry had better technique, he would have been able to close quickly and negate a couple of those big strikes.

Ed Reed has made his fair share of mistakes as well. In particular, Reed was out of position on a long strike to Rice from the slot, which led to a quick Minnesota field goal, pushing the lead to 20-10. On the play, Reed followed Brett Favre's eyes and chased a flat route, towards the right sideline. This isn't the first time this season that Reed ran to a spot he had no business being in. It's time that Reed stopped jumping underneath routes and stayed true to his landmark.

On Ray Rice's first touchdown run, he used a wicked stiff arm to break free from E.J. Henderson's tackle attempt. While Rice has been elusive in the open field this season, it was his power and ability to break through tackles that was especially impressive against Minnesota. With Rice, the offense has a player who can score any time he touches the ball.

Many will point to the Ravens' mystifying plan to run the ball out of power sets in the first half as a big reason for the loss. One has to wonder why Harbaugh and Cam Cameron placed a special emphasis on pounding the ball against a defense that is so stout. Granted, the thought to continue incorporating the running game was proper. The Ravens needed to sustain some balance on offense against a defense that strives to make offenses one-dimensional so they can tee off on the quarterback. However, why not run the ball out of the spread formation from the onset? The draw was effective, and should have been in play from the shotgun set. Instead, the offense generated nothing on first and second down power runs, and they had too many third-and-long conversion situations in the first half. Once Cameron decided to use more single back looks with Rice as the primary ball carrier, the offense took off, but not in enough time.

The four-man pass rush is as vanilla as the inside of an ice cream sandwich. There are no stunts, no twists, and no switches. The rushers come straight up the field and are counted on to win their matchups. There was one positive though and that was the push that Haloti Ngata was able to get against Minnesota. He was able to work through a couple of double-teams and hurry Favre.

Player Spotlight

Lardarius Webb has quickly emerged as a force on special teams. He has been outstanding as a gunner and a kick returner. On the day, Webb gained 165 yards, and helped to swing the field position battle midway through the second quarter. Webb was also involved as a blitzer from the slot. The rookie from Nicholls State should receive more playing time as the nickel. He is not afraid to mix it up and he has the speed to play on the outside.

Ravens @ Vikings: Preview and Key Matchup

2009-10-17T02:56:00.000-07:00

Offense

1) Attack the linebackers: The trio of Minnesota backers is as good a group against the run as there is in the league. They have great gap integrity, tackle well, and pursue from sideline-to-sideline. However, they are not as strong in pass coverage.
This is a group that has given up big plays against tight ends. Specifically, Vernon Davis and Jermichael Finley put together two of the bigger performances by tight ends this season.

The Ravens will need the same type of effort from Todd Heap. Heap will have to work out of multiple spots along the line, and stretch his routes downfield. He will need to force the backers out of the box and into the open field, where they lack the quickness to keep up.

2) Single back set: Against Minnesota, opponents often give up on running the ball before halftime. The Vikings pride themselves on being able to stuff offenses on first down, forcing them to convert in third-and-long situations. That is when the front seven is able to tee off against the quarterback.
Although it is tough to move the ball on the ground against the Vikings, Baltimore will have to stay balanced. The best bet for the offense will be to run the ball from the spread formation, when the Vikings anticipate pass.

This is a Ray Rice game all the way. The second-year player has developed into an effective spread formation back. He does a nice job of staying patient before a gap opens, and then once it does, he accelerates through it. The offense will need Rice’s ability to quickly squirt through fast-closing gaps, especially off the edges, where the Vikings may be vulnerable in obvious passing situations.

3) Throw away from Winfield: There are few shutdown cornerbacks in the NFL. Antoine Winfield is among the small fraternity of defenders who can man up any receiver without help from a safety. Winfield is perhaps the toughest press corner in the league. He rarely gets beaten at the line. In addition, Winfield is known for baiting quarterbacks into making mistakes. He will sometimes play off of a receiver so the quarterback thinks there is a clean throwing lane, only to be in position to jump the underneath route.

Given that the Bengals did such a great job of taking away Derrick Mason a week ago, expect Winfield to draw the assignment and be counted on to shut down the veteran receiver. Offensive coordinator Cam Cameron will try to move Mason around so he is a part of the passing game, but overall, the Vikings will do whatever they can to take him out of the offense. Like the Bengals, the Vikings will take their chances with other receivers making plays in the passing game.
The Ravens will need to orient their attack away from Winfield’s side, even if that means not involving Mason. Offenses have been able to throw against corners Cedric Griffin and Benny Sapp, and the Ravens will need to get the same level of production from their receivers.

Defense

1) Seven in the box: With future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre on the field, defenses have had a dilemma all season. Do they commit eight defenders in the box to stop Adrian Peterson and take their chances against Favre? Or do they account for Favre’s passing ability and keep their safeties back?

Most defenses have opted to slow down Peterson, hoping that Favre would self-destruct as a passer. However, that plan has backfired and Favre has torched the single safety looks he has faced.

The Ravens have always used a seven-man front to stop the run. They rarely commit a safety in the box to help against the run. They are able to use this approach because the front seven defenders do such a good job of stacking and shedding blocks, so they are able to hit the ball carrier before he gets to the second level.

Baltimore will not use a consistent eight-man front to defend Peterson because they have enough respect for what Favre can do. They will try to stuff the run with their front seven just as they have done against every other top notch rushing attack.

2) First down defense: The key for the Baltimore defense will be its ability to limit the Minnesota offense on first down. By keeping the Vikings in check on first down, the defense will face an easier challenge on third down, when Peterson is generally out of the game.

How the front seven plays against Peterson on first down will dictate how often Favre has to throw the ball on third down. If the Ravens are solid against Peterson on first down, holding him to an average of 3.0 yards per carry, Favre will have to make plays with his arm to keep drives alive.

3) Zone defense: Facing more single safety coverage, Favre has been able to complete passes to his receivers on the outside. Once he’s been able to get the ball to his receivers, they have been able to gain yards after contact.

The Ravens have struggled to defend in man-to-man situations. Given Favre’s ability to defeat single coverage, and the playmaking ability of the Minnesota receivers once they’re in open space, this game could call for more use of zone defense to slow down the passing attack. The goal should be to turn Minnesota into a check down offense that has to methodically move the ball, as opposed to hitting on a few big plays. Moreover, if Favre is forced to throw against tighter zone coverage, he will be more prone to make a mistake.

One-on-One Matchup to Watch: Ben Grubbs versus Kevin Williams: Williams is recognized for his run-stuffing ability, but he is equally effective as a pass rusher. Williams is a three-down player who is quick out of his stance and uses his hands well. He is one of the most explosive gap-splitters in the league. Grubbs has developed into a better pass blocker, although he still struggles with his technique. He will have to match Williams’ speed and counter his pass rush moves to keep him out of the backfield.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Ravens v. Bengals

2009-10-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

It almost seemed as though the team entered a time machine and went back to 2007. Now that this team has gone back to committing a slew of penalties, one has to wonder how legitimate a contender it will be. The very best teams don't commit a high number of penalties. Fixing the penalty problem was one of John Harbaugh's biggest accomplishments a year ago. He has to figure out a way to get this team to play cleaner the balance of the season.

Although the scoreboard won't show it, this was as bad as the defense has looked in years. The interior push from the defensive line was non-existent. Carson Palmer was easily able to step up in the pocket to avoid the outside rush. The tackling was subpar in certain situations, including on Benson's 28-yard touchdown run. Overall, the defense was shoved around, punched in the mouth, and gave up big plays in critical moments.

Give credit to Marvin Lewis and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer for changing their strategy from a year ago. Last season, their defense was burned for big plays when they blitzed. This time around, they used zone coverage to take away the big play potential of the receivers. Moreover, the pass-rush consisted of just four and five defenders. Against an offense missing its left tackle, they were able to get a steady rush and keep the back end protected.

There really is no excuse for Willis McGahee's inactivity on Sunday. This offense could have used McGahee, especially on first down, when it opted to throw the ball underneath for minimal gains. By having such poor productivity on first down, the offense sagged on third down, converting just three times all day. With McGahee and McClain not being a part of the offense in the last two games, the rush offense has lost its power. This was a power-rushing team that pushed defenses around and controlled the clock. Those elements of the offense have fallen by the wayside.

It may be time for John Harbaugh to have a serious chat with defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. The first year defensive coordinator seems to have no handle on using his personnel. Moreover, this is a unit that has lost its ability to confuse offenses. The blitz scheme is easily discernible. When they don't blitz, the front four doesn't have the ability to win its one-on-one matchups up front. On the back end, it appears that defenders are frequently out of position. When they are in position, they don't get their hands up. From a technique standpoint, this defense has a taken a step backward.

Player Spotlight

Tavares Gooden looked healthy for the first time since the first game of the season. Overall, Gooden showed nice speed and pursuit, although he was not always consistent. He was able to shoot a gap and bring down Cedric Benson on a critical third-down stop on the final defensive drive. The positive is that Gooden will improve. The game should slow down for the second year linebacker. At this point, the defense needs someone to step up and be a playmaker. Gooden has the physical tools to be that guy.

Ravens News & Notes from a Fan's Perspective

2009-10-07T17:08:00.000-07:00

Stop Complaining!

Everybody! Stop it! OK, OK, we got a couple of bad calls, and a few of the ball spots were questionable. Some members of the national sports media, notably Tony Dungy, said at least one of the personal fouls called against the Ravens was “ticky-tacky.” So what? The personal fouls didn’t cost the Ravens the ball game. Neither did Mark Clayton’s drop at the 8 yard line.

Heck, if Mark Clayton makes that catch, it doesn’t guarantee victory. All it guarantees is that the Ravens have 1st and goal at the 8 with 28 seconds left. We may have scored. We may have not. Let’s face it - the Ravens were not exactly masters of the Red Zone on Sunday. We lost the game for a variety of factors.

· We lost the game because the Ravens ran the ball only 17 times when, clearly, the ground game was working.

· We lost the game because Leron McClain was not in the game for two crucial short yard plays on 4th down and never saw the ball the entire game.

· We lost the game because of poor tackling, questionable play calling, and some bonehead penalties.

· We lost the game because, at crucial moments, the defensive backfield got lost in space.

And finally,

· We lost the game because Tom Brady made the plays he had to make, when he had to make them, and the Ravens didn’t.

What I Liked

Except for their post-game whining, the Ravens have nothing to be ashamed about. They hung in against what many NFL analysts consider to be the Team of the Decade, and at one of the toughest venues for a visiting team. Joe Flacco continues to progress and impress, in spite of having what for him was a sub-Flaccoesque day, throwing for only 258 yards and 2 TDs. The front 4 produced strong pressure and the defense had 3 sacks against the Patriots. Unlike previous visits to Gillette Stadium, the Ravens never gave up and were in the game to the very end.

What I didn’t Like

If the Ravens had somehow pulled that game out in the closing seconds, the fans would have been delirious, the national media glowing, and their Number 1 ranking in several polls intact. But…..it would only have wallpapered over two glaring holes in this Ravens squad; a defensive backfield that’s fast enough to run with anybody but can’t seem to cover a tortoise, and continuing poor performance by the return teams.

Why, oh why, did we ever let Jim Leonard skip town?

The Whining. Harbaugh has to put a stop to this. I’m having a flashback to the Brian Billick teams that were great at pointing fingers at everyone but themselves.

NEWS & NOTES AT THE QUARTER POLE:

Lucky Birds

Ray Lewis and Ed Reed weren’t fined by the NFL for their post game zebra-induced outburst. I’m surprised. Maybe, just maybe, the League actually looked at the tapes the Ravens sent to Park Avenue and said. “Uh, ….Yeah.”

Updated Leaders for the 1st Pick in 2010: So many to choose from, but so many are worthy of 0-16:

1. St. Louis – I feel really sorry for Kyle Boller. 2. Cleveland - They can add Jimmy Clausen to their stable of quarterbacks. 3. Kansas City – Todd Haley left the Cardinals for this? 4. Tampa Bay – Should be renamed the Bay of Pigs. 5. Carolina - Only because they’ve played 3 games. Their number will go up next week.

Updated Endangered Head Coach List:

These candidates are all termination-worthy: Wade Philips is number one for sure, then Jim Zorn (Hello Sherman Lewis), followed by Eric Mangini; Buffalo’s Dick Jauron is closing fast and may not even last the season. John Fox in Carolina looks to be Dead Man Walking, Raheem Morris is turning out to be a huge Glazer mistake, and an oldie but a goodie - Jeff Fisher (only kidding about Fisher, but he is 0-4).

Don’t Mess with ‘Bron

Braylon Edwards takes his bully act to the Big Apple. Rex Ryan won’t care who Edwards punches out next as long as it isn’t Mark Sanchez. ‘Bray’ plays for a new contract on a playoff contending team. LeBron can even the score next year when he joins the Brooklyn Nets. A steal, a veritable steal for the Jets.

THIS WEEK

Now that the Ravens’ aura of invincibility has been shot down like a U-2 spy plane, Harbaugh and the coaching staff can focus on what remains to be fixed. Let’s start with Special Teams. Chris Carr has that deer in the headlights look as a returner. It’s time to try the fearless Lardarius Webb. Unfortunately there are no quick fixes for the secondary, unless you’re talking about massive does of HGH.

This week the newly minted (and almost 4-0) Cincinnati Bengals pay a visit to the Purple Vault and they’re not your mother’s Bungles. The defense is better, Carson Palmer is back and healthy, and Chad Ochenta y Cinco is already twittering Domonique Foxworth and Fabian Washington.

The early line is Ravens, anywhere from -8.5 to -9.5. That’s a little too rich for me. The Bengals will put up some points but, luckily, they don’t have a Wes Welker to torture the Ravens secondary.

Ravens 28, Bengals 24

Ravens @ Patriots: Under The Scope

2009-10-06T12:39:00.000-07:00

- In the face of a heavy blitz, Flacco's footwork within the pocket was impressive. He has come a long way from the beginning of last season, when he looked to run outside to avoid the edge rush. Through training camp, the coaches drilled Flacco with situations in which he had to find the lane to step through within the tackle box. Those sessions have clearly paid off. Now, Flacco has transformed into a pocket magician. He feels the rush, steps up, and finds the passing lane. In particular, the touchdown completion to Derrick Mason was an illustration of Flacco's improved pocket awareness. With Derrick Burgess bearing down from the right side, Flacco stepped up, and to his left to get rid of the ball. It only took that slight movement for him to buy enough time to release the ball. The scary aspect of Flacco's pocket presence is that it will only get better.

- There were a couple of times when the defense used a three-man rush on third down. The rush was pretty effective in these situations, especially in the red zone. The three-man rush worked on a key defensive stand in the first quarter because the linebackers faked the inside blitz, baiting the interior linemen to choke up. Once that happened, the tackles were locked one-on-one against the ends, and Trevor Pryce was able to win his matchup.

- Speaking of fake blitzes, there were very few of those on Sunday. This blitz scheme is deliberate and predictable. Defenders will show and come. There is virtually no pre-snap disguise. On Sunday, the blitz was only effective in spots when the offensive line did not adjust to the overload. When it did, the rush was either picked up or Brady got rid of the ball before it hit home. The design of these plays has to be better.

- One of the bigger points in the game came in the middle of the second quarter, as the Patriots were able to extend their lead to 10 points.

Following the Patriots first touchdown score, the Ravens came out and moved the ball to the New England 38-yard line. Flacco then attempted a deep play-action strike to Derrick Mason. Following that failed attempt, he threw two more incompletions. The drive stalled. The offense failed to gain yardage despite optimal field position. Had they gained even five more yards, they would have had a chance to attempt a field goal to tie the ball game. These three pass attempts came right after halfback Ray Rice gashed the Patriots off the left side of the line.

It is understandable that Cam Cameron wanted to take his shots at some point in the game, but that was not the time to do it. The offense had rhythm using a balanced attack, and he should have stuck with it.

Player Spotlight

The spotlight falls on two defensive players. Dannell Ellerbe finally saw some action following a stellar training camp. The rookie linebacker's whiff of Laurence Maroney on an open field tackle will be remembered most. However, aside from that miscue, he played a good game, especially against the run. Ellerbe is a downhill player who is violent and willing to blow things up. His raw explosion is something to behold. On one play, Ellerbe had a free run at Brady. Laurence Maroney did a nice job of stepping in front of him, but Ellerbe made his mark by jolting him and driving him backward.

Meanwhile, Dawan Landry continues to take a step back. This was easily his worst game of the season. Landry made two huge mistakes that cost the defense on two of the Patriots' touchdown drives. For whatever reason, he looked back at the quarterback and stopped running with Ben Watson on a key 35-yard completion down the middle. On the touchdown run, Landry took a poor angle to Sammy Morris and missed the tackle. That is a stop that Landry would have made in the past. Overall, Landry has looked lost. He needs to pick up the pace.

Under the Scope: Looking back upon Ravens v. Browns

2009-09-29T01:55:00.000-07:00

- So how exactly does an offense rip off runs off tackle without resistance? Well, the opponent was the Cleveland Browns. When the Browns blitzed up the middle, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron attacked the edges. Moreover, the Browns gap discipline was atrocious. There was no outside contain and no backside pursuit.

Great blocking also played a factor. On two of McGahee's long gashes, including the 15-yard touchdown run off the left side, the coordination and timing of the blockers was superb. In particular, Chris Chester made two key blocks in space to spring McGahee. On McGahee's 34-yard gain, Chester made a tremendous open field cut block, providing McGahee the room to cut back up the middle and toward the left sideline. Right now, Chester is playing as well as any guard in the NFL.

- With the addition of L.J. Smith to the offensive arsenal, it will be interesting to see how many times Cameron uses the two tight end formation. At this point, it would be hard to justify substituting Le'Ron McClain for Smith, if the offense operated from more of a single back set. McClain is a three-way player who can block, run and catch the ball, and he can line up at multiple spots. He has been particularly valuable as a safety valve for Flacco to turn to when no one else is open. One would be hard pressed to find a fullback who is as complete.

- Given the star power that the defense has, it is easy to overlook how valuable Jarret Johnson is. As a run defender, there may not be a more physical player willing to do the dirty work at the point of impact. On one defensive stop, Johnson shot a gap to crash through one block, scraped, and then attempted to take on a second block. He played with abandon despite having a shoulder injury. Now that is impressive.

- It was interesting to see Terrell Suggs at defensive tackle when the defense was in a nickel set. Consequently, the Browns ran the ball right at that undersized front and produced a 17-yard gain -- one of the few bright moments all day.

This is not the first time that Suggs has rushed from an inside position. He also came on a couple of inside blitzes against San Diego, in which he rushed from a two-point stance.

- Right now, the defense has no ability to generate pressure through its four-man rush. Greg Mattison used some different looks, including more 4-3, with Dwan Edwards and Justin Bannan receiving reps at defensive tackle. However, this strategy did not work.
The biggest concern is Mattison's rotation. Near the end of the third quarter, he had Edwards and Pryce on the line along with Suggs and Haloti Ngata. Now, Edwards had a nice ball game and was quite disruptive at times. In addition, he probably received more playing time on third down because Johnson was limited. However, he should not be a regular part the speed rush package. Against better lines, he will be gobbled up.
Pryce would be better served rushing from an inside position, which he did on third-down when Rex Ryan was the defensive coordinator.

This is a woeful third-down pass rush package and it needs to be altered. For whatever reason, Mattison has three of his best pass rushers on the bench in these situations: Antwan Barnes, Jameel McClain and Paul Kruger. In the case of Kruger, he has not even been active. If Mattison wants to get pressure without blitzing, he will need to get more from his four-man rush in obvious passing situations.

Player Spotlight

Last season, the offense did not have a viable No.3 receiver. No longer is that a concern with Kelley Washington in the lineup. Antics aside, Washington is a big, physical target who is not afraid to go over the middle. Against Cleveland, Washington also did a nice job of gaining YAC. It is clear that he is at his best when he puts his head down and runs through a tackler.

UNDER THE SCOPE: Observations from Ravens win over Chargers

2009-09-21T16:08:00.000-07:00

In his first meaningful action of the season, Lardarius Webb made a couple of key plays on special teams. In particular, he showed great timing and body control when he kept a end zone bound punt in play which was downed at the 1-yard line in the first quarter. Webb is a potential playmaker for the special teams unit.

Where was Jameel McClain? He barely sniffed the field. The team used Brendon Ayanbadejo instead, hoping that he would bring better technique in the coverage game against the Chargers. While Ayanbadejo is better at dropping and flipping his hips than McClain, his diagnosis of a play takes too long, and he does not tackle well.

On one play in the second half, the special teams ace was driven for five more yards by a San Diego receiver up the right sideline. Ayanbadejo is an impact special teams player, and he should stay in that role. McClain played well in relief of Tavares Gooden a week ago and he needs to be on the field, especially in pass rushing situations. An adjustment needs to be made to the rotation.

Although Ray Lewis' spectacular gap-shooting stop of Darren Sproles on 4th-and-2 will be remembered the most, the future Hall of Fame linebacker also made one other notable tackle earlier in the game.

With the Chargers in the red zone, Lewis took a direct angle to Sproles from the middle of the field. If Lewis didn't bring down Sproles on second-and-goal, he would have easily scored, as he had open space off the right edge. For Lewis to track down Sproles when Sproles had the edge was amazing. The game tape of that tackle could be used by coaches as an example for how to take a perfect angle in pursuit.

One more note about the final play of the game. It is utterly baffling that Norv Turner not only chose to run the ball in that situation, but that he also opted to line up in a jumbo formation. Without a receiver on the field, the defense was able to key in on Gates and Sproles, who were the only viable targets in that type of situation. And in the case of Sproles, if he did get a handoff, there was no way he was going to run the ball up the gut to earn two tough yards. Hence, the call was for the runner to bounce it off tackle. Turner will have to answer for that decision if the Chargers get off to a slow start this season.

The reason that Vincent Jackson had so many opportunities against single coverage is because the safeties were too locked in on Antonio Gates. By converging the inside coverage onto Gates, the safeties were not in position to help over the top against Jackson. That coverage design was exploited time and time again by quarterback Phillip Rivers. While Gates was to be accounted for, he should not have drawn that much attention. A single defender -- preferably a nickel back-- should have been assigned to Gates, and the safeties should have had deep coverage responsibility.

Cam Cameron called two plays that I've never seen before. One was the touchdown pass to Kelley Washington. Washington came free downfield off of a fake bubble screen underneath. The play was especially nifty because Washington sold a block before he ran the post route. The second play that stood out was a double fake move by Flacco, when he faked a handoff and a pitch, only to keep the ball and throw an out completion to Ray Rice. Normally the tailback will receive the pitch after the quarterback fakes the handoff to a fullback -- and the play is always a run. Not this time.

Player Spotlight

Willis McGahee ran with purpose against San Diego. He was always a solid inside runner, because of his body lean and ability to push forward. However, against the Chargers, McGahee displayed great patience before surging forward. In the past, McGahee lacked that patience. It was nice to see McGahee display power and run the ball downhill as he did. He only bounced it off tackle when the San Diego defense took away the inside lanes. For McGahee, this was easily one of his best performances.

Ravens v. Chiefs: What to build on, what to fix

2009-09-15T04:37:00.000-07:00

Random Observations

The pass rush is a concern, but give some credit to Kansas City. Todd Haley did a nice job of using heavy formations to protect his young line. The Chiefs used a combination of two and three tight end packages, and in general, strayed from spreading it out. By packing it in, the Chiefs were prepared to pick up the blitz.

This strategy compelled defensive coordinator Greg Mattison to use more of a four-man rush. For Mattison, the concern is that his four-man rush did not consistently get the job done. It will have to improve against San Diego.

Ray Rice's 22-yard run off of a right side pitch showcased the runner's explosiveness. Rice was able to maintain his balance and get "skinny" when he approached the open crease before exploding through. If Rice had taken a wider cut, the cornerback, who came downhill in pursuit, would have been able to make a tackle attempt. The corner took the proper angle to Rice. However, Rice erased the angle in a hurry and turned what would have been a modest gain into a big play.

The offensive line was the catalyst for what the offense was able to accomplish. It stayed on the field for 85 snaps, and had few major breakdowns, aside from a couple of costly holding penalties. It kept Flacco clean and opened holes in the running game. The game ball should have gone to that unit.

The offensive coaching staff has to like the carry distribution that the backs received. Rice carried the ball 19 times; McGahee carried it 10 times; McClain carried it six times. Now, that number will fluctuate, depending on the defense that the team will face. But overall, the offense maximized those 35 rush attempts.

Player Spotlight

The spotlight is on Chris Carr, in a negative way. The veteran return specialist was brought in to stabilize the return game, but through the preseason and the first regular season game, he has not impressed. In particular, Carr does not have the shiftiness and change of direction to be an effective punt returner. His decision-making is also questionable.

At one point, he signaled for a fair catch at the 9-yard line with plenty of space in front of him. If Carr doesn't get his act together as a punt returner, the team will need to insert rookie Lardarius Webb into that spot. Carr's job as a kick returner should remain intact. He hasn't made much of an impact in that area either, but he is a better straight-line runner and he has a strong track record. He will do well.

Photo by Sabina Moran.

Baltimore Ravens: Battle Plans v. Kansas City Chiefs

2009-09-12T04:18:00.000-07:00

Offense

1) Identifying the Outside Rusher: With a new defensive coordinator in place, the Kansas City Chiefs will shift from a static 4-3 front, to a shape-shifting 3-4 base formation. The Chiefs will look to apply more pressure from this scheme to improve upon a dreadful output of 10 sacks in 2008.

The key to applying greater pressure will come from the play of the two rush ends. Kansas City added veteran Mike Vrabel in the offseason to pair with Tamba Hali, who is now a stand-up linebacker. The two backers will take turns rushing from a three-point stance and a two-point stance. And in certain situations, the two defenders will fake the rush and drop into coverage.

It will be up to quarterback Joe Flacco to locate the ends and figure out if they are rushing or dropping. While Vrabel and Hali need to be accounted for, neither player warrants being double teamed – tackles Jared Gaither and Michael Oher have to secure the edges without help.

2) Up the Gut: If a 3-4 defense is to be solid against the run, it needs strong play from its nose tackle. For Kansas City, this means that Tank Tyler will need to fit the bill as the man in the middle. While Tyler is a squat and powerful player, this is his first time handling the nose guard position, so he may struggle to play with consistent technique. In turn, the backers behind Tyler are also making a switch to starting roles on the inside. Demario Williams is a former weakside linebacker; Corey Mays has been a backup and special teams performer.

The Ravens will need to test this green interior triangle through baptism by fire. When the team runs the ball, it should be in-between the tackles. Center Matt Birk will need to block Tyler one-on-one, freeing the guards to run right at Williams and Mays at the second level. If the line is able to handle its blocking assignments, there should be some gaping holes for the backs to dash through.

3) No Need to Huddle: Offensive coordinator Cam Cameron will use the no-huddle attack in certain situations to force a defense to stay in its base and create favorable matchups. If the offense opens up in a three-wide set, and catches the Chiefs in its base 3-4 alignment, the Kansas City backers will have a tough time matching up in coverage situations.

Specifically, if tight end Todd Heap is flexed to the slot, one of the outside backers will have to slide over, which would free up Ray Rice. The emerging tailback will have space to operate on out routes and circle routes underneath.

Defense

1) Defending the Slot: When creating a game plan to stymie a Todd Haley led offense, a defensive coordinator must prepare for the unexpected. The Kansas City head coach is a master tactician – he will elect to throw on first down and run in obvious passing situations. Moreover, as an offensive coordinator for Arizona, Haley used three-wide formations to force a defense to substitute its base personnel. Of course, under Haley’s watch, the Cardinals boasted Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin.

Kansas City does not come close to matching the Cardinals’ talent at the receiver position, but expect Haley to continue to run a variation of the spread. And the receiver he will lean on to dictate matchups is Dwayne Bowe.

Like he did with Fitzgerald, Haley will line Bowe up all over the field, including in the slot. Bowe operated from the slot during the preseason. He is a strong, and able to break free from press coverage.

Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison must find the right combination of defenders to handle Bowe on the inside. At the moment, the nickel position is in flux. The nickel could be safety Haruki Nakamura, rookie Lardarius Webb or veteran Frank Walker, or all three in rotation.

No matter who lines up across from Bowe, it will be a tough challenge and a potential matchup headache.

2) Compressing the Pocket: The Baltimore blitzkrieg will be in play on Sunday afternoon. The defense is licking its chops at the prospect of facing a potentially gimpy quarterback, and an offensive line that was a sieve in the preseason.

Still, the defense will need to play with discipline. In facing Matt Cassel, blitzers must be prepared for a quarterback who will try to run through gaps in the pocket. If Cassel is healthy, he has the ability to make plays out of the pocket.

The game plan should be to keep Cassel contained within a collapsing pocket. The ends will need to take diagonal angles when they come off the edges, instead of rushing straight upfield. By taking these angles, the ends will block Cassel from stepping through the left and right voids inside the pocket.

3) Beware Jamaal Charles: Nearly three years ago, the Baltimore defense prepared to stuff a giant in Larry Johnson. At the time, Johnson was one of the dominant power rushers in the game. Now, Johnson is a shell of his former self. While he is still the main cog in the running game, he will not run the ball 30-to-35 times as he did in ‘06. Instead, Johnson will be off the field in obvious passing situations, and Charles will take his place.

Charles is an explosive back with the ability to turn the corner. He brings the big play potential that Johnson does not possess at this point in his career.

The backers will need to account for Charles as an inside runner and a pass-catcher from the shotgun set.

One-on-One Matchup to Watch: Branden Albert versus Terrell Suggs: Albert is a talented player, but he will have a tremendous challenge when he faces Suggs. Despite missing most of training camp, the seventh-year rush end was in midseason form against the Atlanta Falcons, in the preseason finale. Suggs has active hands and constantly strives to disengage blocks. Albert is a converted guard who is surprisingly nimble. He has the power and athleticism to anchor in the running game, but he is still honing his pass-blocking technique, and that is a concern against a seasoned player like Suggs.