Ravens: Bringing out the best
The Denver Broncos aren't one of the top five teams in the NFL, so I'm not going to pass off today's game as some kind of final referendum on the quality of the Ravens, but it was an important victory for a variety of reasons.
First and foremost, it was a win that preserved the momentum and credibility that they carried out of Pittsburgh last week. But I thought going in -- and I said it in my most recent column -- that it was also important to dominate a decent team to reinforce the nationwide opinion that the Ravens are one of the top three games in the league.
Don't think you can argue that right now. They beat the Jets (who are getting similar props) and the Steelers on the road and they would have beaten the Bengals in Cincinnati if they could have held onto a couple of interceptions. Mind you, there are no invincible teams in the NFL. There really is tremendous parity. But the Ravens have made a big statement over the past two weeks and now we'll see if it will extend to New England next Sunday.
The only blemishes on this victory were the opening red zone snafu and the two deep passes to Brandon Lloyd that kept it from being a total blowout. Still, the only place it wasn't a blowout was on the scoreboard. The Broncos were overmatched.
The Patriots will be a tall order. They are the fourth likely playoff team (though the Bengals are no longer one) the Ravens will face on the road in six weeks. That's why this has been the toughest stretch of the season. Now, they can end up no worse than 4-2, which would be okay if they weren't already 4-1.
I know one thing. They won't be going into Foxboro scared. They dominated the Patriots at Gillette Stadium in last year's playoff game, and you could make the case that they are a much better team now than they were then.
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Comments
If the Ravens can't get any more pressure on Brady than they did on Orton, it could be a long day. The Patriots do have a passable running game, and Brady is a better passer.
On the other hand, NE's defense is a sieve.
If Flacco can stop with his Luke Scott impression, or rather continue it through and become more consistent like Scott finally did, this could turn into a real shootout. Should be a fun one.
Posted by: Roy | October 11, 2010 9:40 AM
Need new Orioles piece, no more Ravenzzzzzzz!
Posted by: Anonymous | October 11, 2010 10:55 AM
I really believe fans in this town only care about the results. Don't get me wrong being 4 and 1 after playing our tough schedule is great. However i still think Joe cool has a very long way to go before i am sold on him.Pete if his first receiver is covered he falls right back to the bad habit of holding the ball and throwing forced passes off his back foot. He still doesn't scan the field well enough to get the safety to bite the opposite way to where he is throwing. To me his fudementals have actually gotten worse instead of better. I don't understand it or then again maybe it's just me.
Posted by: blancione | October 11, 2010 2:55 PM
The Ravens have so many ways to hurt teams it's understandable if they are having an identity crisis. When they sort it out they will be outstanding.
I am confident in their chances heading north this weekend.
BTW Pete, I think F350 would have been a better analogy for Peyton Hillis....
Posted by: :Pathetic Fan | October 12, 2010 12:05 PM
Ditto blancione--Flacco can be a good game manager, but he panics too easily.
On the other hand, when he gets hot, he makes some great throws.
Anyway, the secret on Sunday will be to pound the ball and have a 60-40 run to pass ration; like 40 rushes and 20 passes.
That was the formula in January, and that will work this week.
Posted by: ambrose | October 13, 2010 8:55 PM