Right Off Russell

We said at the beginning of the season that it would be possible for the Ravens to improve on last year and still have a worse record this year. Let’s face it, last years version of the Ravens was flawed much like this one. The Ravens were able to take some steps toward becoming a more complete offensive team, but surprisingly the defense has taken a major step backwards despite playing better at the end of this season. The Ravens have played a tougher schedule this season and have not caught near the number of breaks they as they did last season, that being said they did what they needed to do to get into the playoffs.

This game turned out to be what I expected. Oakland is a tougher opponent than it’s record indicates. They are strong against the pass, weak against the run, and inconsistent on offense. Well, that’s exactly what we saw on Sunday.

Joe Flacco had a miserable day. He was 11 for 19 for a whopping 102 yards passing and 0 TDs. While some say he avoided the big mistake, he did get sacked 4 times. This wasn’t exactly all Flacco’s fault. The pass blocking was weak at times and the receivers failed to create separation.

The running attack more than compensated for the passing performance. Willis McGahee showed his stuff as he ran for a 167 yards on 16 carries and 3 TDs. Ray Rice complemented that effort with 70 yards on 14 carries. Obviously the play of the game was Willis Breaking through the line, bitch-slapping Hiram Eugene, and scampering for 77 yards.

I thought the defense played well but not great on Sunday. In the 1st half, they game up 2 significant drives. To be fair, one of those drives was extended but a sketchy pass interference call. In the 2nd half, it’s hard to know how much of the defensive production was due to the defense versus the entering of Jamarcus Russell. Russell made those key mistakes- a huge pick in the 3rd Quarter and fumble in the 4th. Kudos to the Ravens for getting to the QB for 3 Qbs and numerous knockdowns.

Then there was the special teams play. Wow. I am starting to wonder how much of Houshka’s struggles early in the season were due to his performance. Watching Matt Katula snap was not pretty. While I would have like to seen Cundiff still make one of those kicks, it would be asking a lot based on those snaps. Any sort of timing went out the window as Koch consistently had to reach all over the place to catch Katula’s attempts. Special Teams’ Coach Jerry Rosburg has a ton of work to do. The Ravens will need that kicking game to have any hope to advance in the playoffs.