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November 11, 2009

Looking ahead to the Browns game

The Ravens have lost four of their last five games, but face the reeling Browns in Cleveland on Monday night. Here is a look at the Browns.

Record: 1-7, fourth place in AFC North.

Week 9: Browns had a bye (they’re the third straight team the Ravens have played coming off an extra week’s rest). They lost to the Bears 30-6 in Week 8.

Last time: The Ravens pounded the Browns 34-3 at M&T Bank Stadium in Week 3, collecting four interceptions and allowing just 186 total yards. Derrick Mason put the finishing touches on the romp with a 72-yard touchdown catch-and-run.

What’s working: Obviously, not much. But if the Browns are competitive in any phase of the game, it’s special teams, where punter Dave Zastudil and kicker Phil Dawson rank among the best in the NFL.

What’s not: The organization is in turmoil from top to bottom. Former Ravens personnel man George Kokinis was fired during the bye week and first-year coach Eric Mangini is not expected to survive a 1-15 season. The quarterback situation has been handled badly and the team has no playmakers outside of Joshua Cribbs. This Browns team is actually worse than the 1999 expansion version.

Who’s hot: Outside linebacker Kamerion Wimbley has four sacks in the last five games.

Who’s not: Everybody else.

Who’s the quarterback? With former Ravens draft pick Derek Anderson putting up historically bad passing numbers (43 percent completions), the Browns named Brady Quinn the starter this week. Anderson completed 2 of 17 passes in the Browns’ only win (6-3 over Buffalo), but it wasn’t all his fault. The Browns’ intended receivers dropped nine passes that game, and seven more the next week against the Steelers. Quinn hasn’t started since Sept. 27 in Baltimore, when he was benched at halftime. It appears he will not get 70 percent of the team’s snaps, a contract incentive that would have given him $11 million over the rest of his deal.

Offensive stat: The Browns have scored just five offensive touchdowns this season. By comparison, the Saints have scored seven DEFENSIVE touchdowns.

Defensive stat: The Browns are giving up an average of 409 yards a game. Just what the Ravens’ offense needed.

Special teams threat: Cribbs, whose returns have tormented the Ravens, leads the NFL with a punt return average of 16.4 yards.

Monday night theme: Browns fans are planning to walk out of the stadium before kickoff to protest the performance of their team.

Posted by Ken Murray at 6:00 AM | | Comments (16)
        

Comments

While I believe the Ravens will prevail on Monday Night, they better not take the Browns lightly. Harbaugh needs to brush off Billick's "banshee" speech and make sure these guys are ready to play. A win keeps the faint playoff hopes alive with Indy and Pittsburgh closing out November. This game could be the classic trap game. Better have the Mighty Men ready, coach.

This is hysterical, sounds awfully similar to the WNST walkout at Camden Yards. The Browns have at least seen a winning record this millenium

Hi Ken,

I would like to see the Ravens experiment at the wide receiver position in this game by activating Justin Harper and starting Demetrius Williams. I would like to see more of Willis Magahee and L.J. Smith. Get Paul Kruger some third down snaps.


Ordinarily a second round pick like Kruger is not a developmental project. he should be playing unless the Ravens were wrong about his potential.

This game is just a practice game for next years players who are expected to still be with the Ravens..................There better be several changes made on this pathetic defense , starting with Landry (Mattison should go if he continues to start him)...........does anyone actually think we will beat the Colts and the Steelers this year , that alone is seven loses , they are playing for next years positions already , the honeymoon is over Harbaugh , will the real coaches please stand up , Bart Scott was right when he said Rex was the real coach last year..........................Mr. Biscoitti , your coaching staff is pitiful................

God, I hope something else is on Monday night. The Ravens/Browns game is a real snooze win or lose. Nothing good can come out of this game. We will either stay at the 13th ranked team in the NFL or fall to 19th with a loss. Yep "nothing good can come out of this game". We do have several of good games left this season that we can play spoiler. That's the best we have for rest of our season. A real disapointment. Oh there is planty of blame. Yes you can start with the refs and be right, but now we can see it is deeper than that. Coach Harbaugh was great; best turn round I've seen in my 56 years of watching and rooting for Baltimore sports. But he really taken a tumble lately. The rest of the season will be a test to see if he is for real or not.

Suggs is too fat and slow and that is why he is just handfighting with blockers. I also question his mental ability to figure it out when he sees different blocking schemes. Too much money ,maybe??? Landry is completely confused in his coverages. We need a pass rush to protect our corners. Quarterbacks are just sitting back and picking us apart.

Rich/Spy,

Nice to see some of us fans aren't drinking the Harbaugh Kool Aid. Again, love to have the guy as a neighbor, but this team has lost it's edge. He won with Billick/Ryan's guys and now that he is picking his personnel - Haushcka, Foxworth, LJ Smith, Mattision, et al, we are seeing his weaknesses. A lot of people have forgotten, that love him or hate him, Brian Billick put a trophy in our town's trophy case. He never produced a stellar offense, but not sure why he continues to feel the fan's ire while Harbaugh continues to put a bottom feeder special teams unit on the field and a defensive back field that couldn't stop Calvert Hall's passing game. This just in, Harbaugh's NFL career has been coaching these two units with the Eagles. The Ravens got caught off guard last offseason when Jason Garret turned them down. Now, it turns out maybe that wasn't the right move either, but we'll never know. When Garret turned them down, they scrambled and brought back Harbaugh, a guy Bischotti described as having a "thin resume". Again, I respect Steve for his business prowess, but football can not be run like a Temporary Employment agency. Let your football guys make football decisions, lest we become the Washington Redskins.

It's alarming how stupid the average person who posts here truly is. I think we should get Justin Harper into a game ha. Too bad he isn't even on the team.

Raven's special teams bad? Really. They are in the top 1/4 of the league in yard gained/yard allowed differential. Hauschka is a disaster, but I'm not exactly sure how that is Harbaugh's fault. Maybe one of the low IQ commenters here could explain that to me.

Hi Luke,

I said that would like to see the Ravens experiment and "activate" Justin Harper. He is on the practice squad and usually imitates the opposing teams best receiver in practice. He was one of the last cuts in camp and has a lot of potential. He is big, strong and fast and might be able to fight for the ball when it is in the air and take it away from the defensive backs, just like the other teams big, strong, fast receivers do the the smurfs we have at cornerback.

Changes have to be made immediately.
Offense:
Clayton, Mason, & Flacco should be working on pass plays (making one- handed catches), (passing & catching the ball on the receivers side, on which the defender isn't). (Catching the ball over the shoulder, on the run, at full speed).
Flacco selling the fake. (he's fooling nobody on the field. See Farve video)
Flacco must learn to get the ball out of his hands within 4-5 seconds or less, open receiver or not !! The O line can't hold 'em off that long, and WR can't get separation. (PRACTICE TECHNIQUE HARDER AND MORE OFTEN)

Lets go Ozzie !
Sign Larry Johnson and release McGahee and Haushka.
Let Landry know that he's playing himself off the roster like Foxworth & Washington.
Let Suggs know that he's playing himself onto the bench. (looks terrible)

Luke,

According to NFL.com Ravens stats on Special Teams:

#17 in NFL on Punt Returns
#15 in NFL in Kicking
#27 in NFL in Field Goals

Pretty bad in my book.

Special Teams Guru, No mention of Ozzie picking players only Harbaugh? Did harbaugh break rolle's and landry's neck too and decide to give all that money to ray and suggs so we couldn't keep a guy like Jim Leonard, the perfect complement to Ed and better punt returner than Carr? I doubt Leonard wasn't one of Harbaugh's guys? It's mid season and we are 4-4. Luckily we are still in it an the season starts again for the ravens Monday Night.

Please stay off the bandwagon and continue to beat your dog when things turn around.

Also where's all the hate for Flacco, Rice Cameron, o-line etc. Aren't they all Harbaugh's guys. They SUCKED against cincy and failed to keep the defense off the field. Looked alot like the great billick was calling plays from Fox studios! BTW, the terrible defense gave up 17 total points and our team was averaging 30 points a game.

Harbaugh definitely screwed up stover situation and the team is falling back to being penalty prone, maybe being too relaxed in second year, but other than that I still think he can pull us out of this thing and hope all real fans give him a chance.

If not head on up 95 and you can root for team run by guys with as much brains as us posters!

GO RAVENS take 2-3 in November and we are right back in the MIX!

I'm a Ravens fan, but I hope they lose to the Browns. Sounds crazy, but they need a real shake up. This goes for the player the coaches. Maybe the organization would perform better with their backs against the wall. Desperation might make heroes of them all.

Jamaltimore - so let me get this straight, it was Billick's fault that we had Boller, but it's Ozzie's fault that we have Haushcka, F. Washington, LJ Smith, D-coordinator Mattison, Walker. We let go of Scott because Ozzie couldn't get along with him? C-Mac couldn't get along with Ozzie? Funny, when things went south under Billick with Boller, Boller was "Billick's Guy", when things go bad under Harbaugh, it's Ozzie's fault?!?!

Looking ahead,staying on topic,what did the NFL see in this game as a Monday nighter?At least I'll get some things done around the homestead.Broadcasting this game for ESPN has to be covered by several different angles;none which I will mention. However,if the Ravens proceed to lay another rotten egg in the first half I will also be getting some nice sleep by halftime and some of us fans will be putting our playoff hopes to bed,as well.

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