Ravens Win, Top Power Rankings

So normally I scoff at power rankings. At the end of the regular season it's about who wins the most games, not what some experts think. And at the end of the playoffs it's still about who won. Screw the odds makers and expert picks. Power rankings are basically something for people to talk about during the week between football games. Oh, ESPN says they're the best, whatever. In college football the rankings only matter because the BCS is worthless and ridiculous. But in the NFL they are completely and totally pointless. Except for this week.

This week I'm taking the chance to tell everyone that the Ravens are ranked No. 1 by ESPN and Yahoo! I don't care that it's two weeks into the season. I don't care that the Ravens can't seem to stop the pass. Right now there are impartial experts out there saying the Ravens are the best in league. And I like that. So whatever, I'll shelf my basic belief that the rankings are worthless for a week. (They are worthless.) But they do serve as a reason to bring up the Ravens and gloat about them.

The Ravens beat the Chargers, another AFC perennial powerhouse, 31-26 on Sunday. The game was exhilarating to watch with one of the best hits I've seen Ray Ray make in a long time. It was timely, hard and a game winner. Say what you will about Ray Lewis loosing a step or piling on but this hit was nasty.

This year's team is determined to win. Whether through the air or with a stifling defense. Yes, they have to improve against the pass. But the gains they've made on their own offense are startling. Watch out this week when the Browns come to town for a divisional match-up. The Browns look to under preform against everyone this season. Even the Bengals have already beaten what was supposed to be a good team, the Packers. Next week the Ravens will look to improve their play and wash away any doubt that they are a team to be reckoned with.

The thing I believe most contributed to the Ravens topping the rankings this week is the emergence of Joe Flacco as a legitimate passing threat. Two games into the season and I heard him being called the best deep passer in the NFL on ESPN a few days ago. Ok, so I guess that was one week into the season. Regardless, not since the one great season with McNair have the Ravens had a legitimate threat at quarterback. That year they won 13 games. Last year, with a rookie, they went to the AFC Championship game. This year it looks like the pieces are coming together and great things should be expected of this team.

On that note, GO RAVENS, and here's Lewis's hit on Sproles:



Photo: ESPN/AP/Denis Poroy

Ravenous Defense

The Ravens were in top form today when they routed Miami 27-9. It seemed like every time Miami started to get something going the Ravens defense put a stop to it. Chad Pennington had a league low 7 interceptions during the regular season. He had 4 in this game. This was a game where everything went right for the Ravens and everything went wrong for the Dolphins. I mean, they're kicker even missed the extra point after their only touchdown of the day.

I feel a little bad for the Dolphins, but not too bad. While it was good to see Pennington show the Jets that they shouldn't have given up on him for another old gunslinger this season, it was even better to see the Ravens control this game and move onto the next round against Tennessee. I'm still a little in shock. I knew this game was winnable. That's not it. It's that the Ravens are in the playoffs at all. I spent the whole season trying not to get my hopes up. Just waiting for the inexperience to rear its ugly head. Waiting for the magic to end.

And now here we are. The Ravens are headed to the second round of the playoffs. They are playing some of their best football of the year. Ed Reed who started out the season with serious nerve damage to his neck had two interceptions today. One of several two interception games this season. And our inexperience rookie quarterback who didn't even get one vote for rookie of the year is doing the most important thing, he's not making mistakes. Sure his numbers weren't great today, but that's not what matters. Joe Flacco did give Miami a chance to come back in the game. And he topped that off with a rushing touchdown to seal the Dolphins' fate. He just played solid mistake free football.

I think the game next week will be much harder than today. But Tennessee is beatable. One big play or a different call and Baltimore could have won when they faced the Titans in the regular season. But this isn't the same Ravens team. This a team with a much more mature quarterback and a defense that is looking unstoppable. It's going to be a tough game. But not impossible.

I congratulated one of my friends on the Eagles win after the game today. His response...see you on Super Sunday. It's a little too early to start hoping for that. But man did the Ravens play great football today.

Flacco for President

For years, Ravens' fans have watched our beloved defense win games and haven't complained too much. But this weekend we saw something different. The offense actually came from behind and won the game. When the Ravens were down 27-13 in the third quarter I thought it was over. Yeah, I was ready to call it quits and go take a nap. But I hung on and something wonderful happened. We cam from behind and won. The Ravens scored 24 unanswered points in the second half.

There have been many games over the years where the Ravens have scored 24 points over the course of several games. So this is a big change for us loyal fans. All of a sudden, we're not out of the game when down. All of a sudden, we can come from behind. This is a huge change. And its something to get excited about. Games will be more fun to watch because everyone loves offense. People will have more reasons to cheer. And Baltimore will have a much better chance to not only have a winning record but make the playoffs.

Ladies and gentlemen, it looks like we have found a franchise quarterback. He has a cannon for an arm, can run if need by, and even has pretty good hands for any of those crazy trick plays. I doubted him in the beginning. I didn't think he was ready. But it goes to show that a level head, poise and steep learning curve can count for more than experience. Experience doesn't hurt. With every game he gets better and better. And that has to have something to do with experience, but I guess it could also be comfort within the system.

Flacco now has my full vote of confidence as a starter. And if there are any fans still not behind him, I think you should take another look at his accomplishments. He has no interceptions in the last three games while having four passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown. He's not afraid to take risks and throw the long ball to spread the field. He stays calm in a crisis and can orchestrate a come from behind win on the road. He even runs a no huddle offense with only minor snafus.

So as a Ravens fans, I think I've found change I can believe in.

Good Day for Ray Ray and the Rays

This was a great sports weekend for me. But since I already addressed the total madness that is the Maryland football team, I'll limit this post to the events of Sunday Funday. It was a really good day for the Ravens. In a game that they needed to win to keep the faith for this season, the whole team stepped up and played solid football. Also, the Tampa Bay Rays restored hope to all the perennial cellar dwellers by holding off another Boston comeback to go from last in the division to ALCS winners in one season. Thank you for that.

The Ravens had to win this game. They had lost three in a row and were beginning to look like the team everyone thought they were going to be this season. Hell, I couldn't even bring myself to write about last weeks game. It was just too painful. But after throwing just one touchdown and seven interceptions this season, Flacco came back with a solid performance with a TD and no interceptions. He seemed to still be confident even after a being picked apart last week. I met another Ravens fan at the bar yesterday while watching the game who said he lived in the same building as Flacco. He told me that after last weeks game, him and his wife wanted to get a cardboard cutout of Troy Smith and put it in from of Flacco's door as if he were knocking. I think this is hysterical. But after Sunday's game, Flacco really doesn't deserve it. Oh well, I'll take a win and a solid showing over a good prank almost any day.

What was really great about the Miami game though was the Ravens' defense. They managed to contain Miami's wildcat offense that had wreaked havoc on other teams. They were also responsible for a TD that helped the Ravens put Miami away for good. The Ravens scored 27 points and could not have done it without the brilliant play of the defense. The Ravens are known for having their defense carry them. And this game was a good sign that defense will continue to shoulder some of the weight as Joe Flacco continues to improve into the future of this football team. With every game he should be able to rely less and less on the defense, but as long as they are contributing, it takes some of the pressure off of him and lets him play and mature without the whole weight of the team on his shoulders.

With the Ravens playing the lackluster Raiders next week at home, they should be able to garner an above .500 record. The Raiders star rookie, Darren McFadden will have to contend against a defense that has not allowed a 100 yd rusher in 25 straight games. The best in the league. And while the team managed to earn its second win against the Jets on Sunday. They'll have a very different team to contend with this coming Sunday. Let's hope the Ravens step up to the task and continue to shut teams down and win.

The other great story on Sunday was the Tampa Bay Rays managing to keep Boston at bay and win the ALCS. Matt Garza got the MVP for pitching two solid games. Last night he continued to throw strikes and get players out even after pitching the magic number of 100 pitches. This makes me question the seemingly widely held belief that pitchers should be taken out after 100 pitches. Every pitcher has his own limit and if he's in a groove or 'settled in' and doing well, why bring in someone new. Will pitching an extra 15-20 pitches make it that much harder to recover and be able to pitch again four days later? I am asking this sincerely as I really don't know anything about pitching and how much it tires you out.

I was worried after the Rays blew game 5 in the last few innings and then couldn't seem to get their act together for game 6. But those scrappy Rays came out ready to play yesterday and even after going down by one run in the first inning never gave up hope. They fought back, held on, and managed to strand Red Sox base runner after base runner. Every time a Red Sox player came up to bat, I thought this was it, this was the batter that was going to swing the momentum back to Boston, this is the one thats going to end it. But that never happened. Even after errors and a bunch of pitchers. Tampa hung on for all 27 outs.

After the last batter grounded out, the team rushed the pitcher. There was giant mound of celebrating Rays. I was actually worried that the pitcher, Price, would get hurt. Afterwards he said he couldn't breathe at the bottom of the pile, but wouldn't change it for the world. I love the way the team celebrates. The players were soaked before they even got the ALCS Champ trophy. Their Rayhawks were dripping. This is a team that really treasures the victory and appreciates how far its come. They are a team that gives hope to all the other losing disheartened teams out there.

It'll be great to see two new teams in the World Series. I know the Phillies are not a new team but they haven't been in a World Series in 15 years. So they're not the teams we've seen in the playoffs year in and year out for the last few years. And the Rays have never been in a playoffs before, let alone a World Series. I'm still deciding who I really want to root for. But I think I'll be happy either way. Wednesday should be fun.

Nevermind, Fall Just Brings New Pain

A few days ago I was reeling in the amazingness that was the Maryland comeback win, even though it was incredibly hard to watch, and rattling on about how all the fall sports happening somehow manage to make me forget or at least ease the pain of being an Orioles fan in September. I must have been setting myself up for heartbreak. And last night it happened. The Ravens lost 23-20 in overtime to the Steelers after dominating the first half of the game. Thus, the dull constant heartache caused by the end of the Orioles season was replaced by the stabbing heartache of losing a totally winnable game in OT.

So I started to think about some of the different types of losses and which is really harder? Watching a blowout is terrible, but at the same time, you usually see them coming. Or at least had an idea that the team was out of your league. It's like getting rejected by the young Brad Pitt look alike. It stings, but you saw it coming. And it's not that hard to get over. A blow out you didn't see coming is harder to accept. Just ask those any Georgia fan after getting routed by Alabama this weekend. Yeah, they came back in the second half to make it not completely embarrassing but still, they were predicted number one in the preseason, and were down 31-0 at halftime, at home, during a blackout. That stings. But at the same time, you know whats happening pretty quickly. Well before the end of the game you've sunk into despair and can start stages of grief.

But overtime losses have to be the most cruel. The Ravens weren't supposed to win this game. They have a rookie coach and a rookie quarterback, at his first road start, on a Monday night. They had only beaten the Bengals and the Browns, two of the worst teams in football, and were playing against a Steelers team that may have lost to the Eagles but are still ranked pretty high and were expected to run away with the AFC North this season. Which is why when Flacco looked poised, even after multiple sacks; when the defense forced Pittsburgh to kick two field goals instead of touchdowns; when Roethlisberger and the offense were being booed by the Pittsburgh fans; and when our offense managed to score a touchdown; I believed we could win. The hope started to grow. I thought we had a chance before the game, I was pretty sure it would be close, but after the first half I really thought we could win.

Then there were those 15 seconds in the third quarter where the Steelers scored two touchdowns. And my hope was dashed. But all of a sudden the score was tied again. And the teams were headed into overtime. Now, NFL overtime rules are possibly the worst in any sport. So much of it depends on the coin toss. Which is why when the Ravens won the toss I was excited. To be fair I was also excited that they won by calling tails because I always call tails. Hope was once again blooming. All we had to do was get into field goal range and we could win. And Matt Stover is one of the most reliable kickers in the NFL. I started to believe it could happen. We were going to upset the Steelers on Monday night with a rookie.

But then the Ravens screwed up the kickoff return and just kind of stalled. They couldn't stop the Steelers and as I was hoping for a wide right, I saw number one in our divison slip away.

That roller coaster of emotions is why overtime losses are so hard. You have hope, its gone, wait no, there's still a chance, nevermind, oh yes, maybe, maybe, it could happen.....NNNNOOOO!!!!! Overtime losses are like that on again off again relationship. Its good and you think it could work, but then somethings wrong and you part ways, only to realize it was good and maybe you too should try again. In the end you go back and forth a lot but end up there's just a lot of heartbreak. You tell people you learned something from the relationship, and maybe you did, but that doesn't make the heartache any less.

So in true heartbreak fashion, here's what I learned from the overtime loss. Flacco has a lot of potential and really could be our starter of the future. But he is still a rookie and I can't just go fall in love with him because he was nice on the first few dates. The Ravens are more for real than they looked in the preseason, but I can't start planning the wedding a.k.a the playoff run this early in the season, theres still tough times ahead, like the entire NFC East and 15 straight games. Mostly I'm hoping that this overtime loss isn't the first in a series of heartbreaks this season. Because I still haven't learned not to get overly emotionally invested in these games and in this season.

Wacko for Flacco!

The Ravens' first game of the season has come and gone. And compared to last years season opener this game was a 180 degree turn around. Instead of a hyped up season full of unmet expectations, we had the our expectations exceeded. A rookie quarterback flung into the starting role who didn't make any mistakes. Compare that to a year ago with a veteran quarterback who had 6 turnovers in the first half. Last year was a season of injuries and underachieving, of aging quarterbacks and asking too much from the team. This year is different. This year has a new feel. This is a year where everyone seems to be fighting for a starting job. The preseason has come and gone but the starting line up is still very malleable.

First, there's the quarterback situation. Flacco earned himself another start next week by playing with poise on the field. He did throw an interception. He did not give up a fumble. And he managed to avoid getting sacked. This had a lot to do with the offensive line which didn't seem to be missing future Hall of Famer Jonathan Ogden all that much. The offensive line is young and inexperienced, but they played like veterans, protecting Flacco in the pocket and allowing him to barely be rushed. It was an inspiring performance, even if it was against the Bungles...I mean Bengals.

The defense led by Ray Lewis was stellar. Carson Palmer got knocked around like a rag doll. And they really only let up one field goal, partially because of a questionable pass interference call on Chris McAlister. (The first one, not the second one) The only touchdown the Bengals score was off a fumble by rookie running back Ray Rice. But he played a solid game otherwise, tearing up the Bengals defense, so the mistake is easily forgiven by the fans.

The Ravens looked all around surprisingly good. A lot of credit for that has to go to the Bengals being terrible, but they were terrible last year and creamed us in the season opener, so I'm going to focus on the positive. John Harbaugh's philosophy of working hard in the preseason must have paid off. Because these Ravens came out looking to dominate and to work together. This was a team that respected and wanted to protect the quarterback. And he returned the favor by throwing a hard block on Mark Clayton's double reverse touchdown play. The team really seemed to be looking out for each other.

And as an added bonus, many of the defenders who's starts seemed questionable were able to play and avoid any further injury. Ed Reed and Chris McAlister both played well, even with the penalties on McAlister. And the defense didn't have to score points for the team to win. The offense actually scored the points. Making this season seem promising all of a sudden. (Last year no one scored points and two seasons ago the defense scored most of the points.)

Now, we still have a tough schedule and things that worked Sunday can't be expected every week. A double reverse is almost never heard of, and while cool, I doubt its going to be a regular play. Also, Flacco's rush for a touchdown was longer than any rush in college, so I'm not ready to believe he's about to become a running quarterback. But the way the team played and the way Flacco managed to stay cool under pressure and improvise when needed wins my vote of confidence. I'm ready to watch next weeks Houston game and believe from the beginning that we can win.

GO RAVENS!!!!!

Ravens Preview

The Ravens' season starts today so I thought I'd spout out a some general observations and a final record prediction. I think one of the main reasons people write sports blogs besides sports obsessions and wasting time from their real lives of being lawyers is to have proof that they predicted something, in the off chance they are actually right. I don't think I'm likely to get many predictions right so if I do I want to be able to cite when it happened so I'm not accused of changing my story. And screw it, if I'm wrong, maybe I'll just come back and edit this post. It's not like many people read this anyway.

This Raven's season is not looking to promising. Yes, we do have some promising young players that might play a huge part eventually, but they are being thrust into starting positions right away. Let's start with the obvious, Joe Flacco. He is a rookie quarterback out of Delaware, not the biggest football powerhouse. And while he has consistently improved during the preseason, he still doesn't seem quite ready for the big time yet. But with Troy Smith still recovering from possibly the worst case of tonsilitis ever, he got the starting nod. The other promising rookie with a lot of promise is Ray Rice, a running back from Rutgers. Rutgers has been improving its football name recently and he had a lot of yards during college. If Willis McGahee isn't ready to play then Rice will be in there. He's a little guy at only 5'8 so I'm rooting for him to do well. Short people have to support each other.

Other than our "exciting" young prospects, the team has been plagued with injury, and its not even the regular season yet. This does not bode well. Ed Reed, apparently was able to practice without his red jersey, which means he has been cleared for hitting in practice and says he would like to play in the season opener. We'll find out in a few hours. Overall, I'd like Reed healthy in the long run, even if does mean missing the first game of the season. And Chris McAlister had a full practice this week, which means he will also be able to start. So things are looking up a bit for our defense.

John Harbaugh has managed to earn the respect and inspire confidence from the team as the coach. Hopefully this will translate into a better attitude that brings about more wins. We'll soon see if he can face up to the hard schedule this year. Ravens play the AFC South, which sent three teams to the playoffs last year, and the NFC East, which also sent three teams to the playoffs. And of course we play our division twice, and even though the AFC North is not a powerhouse this year, division games are always a little more intense. But maybe we can manage to beat Miami this year.

This preview is pretty short because I don't want to dwell on the negative and there really is not too much positive. I do want to give a quick shout out to Matt Stover, the most reliable person on the Ravens offense. He is entering his 18th season as the starting kicker for this franchise. (He is the only holdover from the Browns) He has been outstanding in his time with the team, and here's hoping he has another great season.

I'm hoping that the new coach John Harbaugh does well in his first season, that Flacco shines and that Smith recovers quickly just in case. I'm hoping that this team will overcome injury and find its form from two years ago. I'm hoping that we win more games than we did last year.

All that being said, I think we'll wind up with the same record as last year, 5-11. I'm hoping I'm wrong.