Tag: Baltimore Ravens (Page 12 of 46)

      Hard to fault John Harbaugh for deciding against field goal vs. Steelers

      December 6, 2010 /
      BALTIMORE, MD - NOVEMBER 28: Head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens cheers on his team during the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at M&T Bank Stadium on November 28, 2010 in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens defeated the Buccaneers 17-10. (Photo by Larry French/Getty Images)

      Monday morning quarterbacks will bemoan John Harbaugh’s decision not to kick a potential game-tying field goal with less than a minute to play Sunday night in Baltimore. But given the situation, it’s hard to argue with his rationale.

      With less than a minute remaining in the game, the Ravens trailed the Steelers 13-10 and faced a fourth-and-2 from the Pittsburgh 31-yard line. Instead of attempting a 48-yard field goal, Harbaugh decided to go for it in order to give Billy Cundiff an easier attempt.

      But the decision backfired as Joe Flacco short-armed a pass to Ed Dickson along the sidelines and the Ravens were forced to turn the ball over on downs. Flacco had Dickson open, but he threw the ball off his back foot and didn’t get enough on the pass, which fell at the tight end’s feet.

      Following the game, this is what Harbaugh had to say about the decision:

      “It was just a tough wind up there,” Harbaugh said. “It was really outside of our range, as we designated going in. We felt like we had a better chance to get the first down.”

      Fourth-and-2 is a very manageable down-and-distance, so it’s hard to blame Harbaugh for deciding to go for it. In that instance, he felt as though converting the fourth down was a higher percentage play than Cundiff making a 48-yard field goal with swirling winds. And had Flacco not Chuck Knoblauch’d the throw, Harbaugh would have been right.

      The real crime for the Ravens came on a second-and-5 from their own 38-yard line when they were up 10-6 with roughly three minutes remaining in the game. On that play, Flacco either didn’t see or didn’t adjust the play to account for a blitzing Troy Polamalu, who stripped the Baltimore quarterback to help set up the Steelers’ go-ahead touchdown a few plays later.

      Some will argue that the Ravens shouldn’t have been throwing in that situation, but there’s nothing wrong with staying/being aggressive late in the game. But Flacco has to make an adjustment at the line so that Polamalu doesn’t get a free release. He came in unblocked and the outcome was disastrous for the Ravens, who missed a golden opportunity to sweep the Steelers and take sole possession in the AFC North.

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 12 COY power rankings

      December 5, 2010 /

      The coach of the year carousel continues to spin each week in this crazy NFL season….

      1. Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs—Bonus points if he runs up the score today against the Chiefs at home.

      2. Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis Rams—Yes, they are just 5-6 but that is good for a tie of first place in the NFC West. Say it out loud—the Rams could be playoff bound.

      3. Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles—Temporary setback against the Bears last week but in the driver’s seat for the NFC East crown.

      4. Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons—Tough win at home against the Packers keeps Smitty in the hunt.

      5. Lovie Smith, Chicago Bears—That mid-season swoon seemed to be an aberration rather than the rule, and Lovie has this bunch believing.

      6. Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay Bucs—Lost big to Pittsburgh and Baltimore, which knocks Raheem down from the top.

      7. (tie) Bill Belichick, New England Patriots and Rex Ryan, New York Jets—We’re going to leave these two tied until after they face each other on Monday night.

      8. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers—If Stevie Johnson hangs on to that OT pass, we’re probably knocking Tomlin off this list, fair or not.

      9. John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens—He knows this is the Ravens’ favorite time of year and expects to win in December.

      10. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants—Holding his team together through injuries, some mental lapses on the field and a tough schedule.

      External Sports, NFL

      Josh Freeman needs more help if the Bucs want to make playoffs

      November 28, 2010 /
      SAN FRANCISCO - NOVEMBER 21: Josh Freeman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in action against the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park on November 21, 2010 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

      Josh Freeman can beat bad teams by himself. He’s done it all year.

      But when the Bucs play good teams like the Falcons, Saints or their counterparts on Sunday, the Ravens, the second-year quarterback is going to need more help.

      In Tampa Bay’s 17-10 loss to Baltimore, Freeman completed just 17-of-37 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown. But those subpar numbers weren’t entirely his fault.

      The Bucs got a couple of good runs out of LeGarrette Blount and Carnell Williams, but they couldn’t move the ball with any consistency on the ground. Rookie receiver Mike Williams was targeted seven times, but he caught just two passes for 20 yards. And yes, Freeman misfired on plenty of passes, several on third down.

      The Bucs gained respect by hanging with the Ravens in Baltimore, but they already had people’s respect. Now what they want is to beat good teams and they just haven’t done that. They’re 7-4 and only two games back of the Falcons in the NFC South, but if they want to contend for a playoff spot (whether it be this year or next), they have to figure out ways to win tough games.

      They’ll get another shot next Sunday when they host the Falcons, who currently own the best record in the NFC.

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 6 MVP, COY and ROY Power Rankings

      October 24, 2010 /

      Every week we have different candidates here, because the 2010 NFL season has been wacky. And that’s okay, as it makes ranking MVP, Coach of the Year and Rookie of the Year candidates more fun. Anyway, here we go….

      MVP Power Rankings

      1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—Okay, so Philip Rivers and Kyle Orton have more yards per game, but they play for 2-4 teams. Manning’s Colts are 4-2, and check out these numbers through six games—1916 yards, 67.3 completion percentage, 319.3 yards per game, 13 touchdowns (leads NFL) and just 2 interceptions, for a QB rating of 103.4. As usual, Manning sort of defines what the term MVP is all about.

      2. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—I heard someone on NFL Network the other day call Matthews the “best defensive player in the NFL.” Not bad for a linebacker in his second year, who was selected after 25 other players in the 2009 draft. Anyway, Matthews has 9 sacks to lead the NFL, and 21 tackles through five games…and the Packers sorely missed him last Sunday in a loss to Miami when Matthews sat out with a hamstring injury.

      3. Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers—We’re leaving Antonio on here this week because he left the game against the Rams last Sunday with an ankle injury, leaving Philip Rivers without his favorite target. And then the Chargers lost the game. To the Rams. Gates only had 2 catches for 12 yards in that one, but on the season he still has 31 receptions for 490 yards and 7 TDs (which leads all tight ends and receivers).

      Honorable mention: Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles (thanks to Kevin Kolb’s performance last Sunday, Vick got bumped off the list); LaDainian Tomlinson, New York Jets; Brandon Lloyd, Denver Broncos; Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos; Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers; Osi Umenyiora, New York Giants; Arian Foster, Houston Texans

      Coach of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers—If you start the season without your star quarterback for four games, and have the likes of Charlie Batch, Dennis Dixon, and Byron Leftwich at the helm, coming out of that 2-2 would be a huge moral victory. Well, Tomlin came out of that stretch 3-1 and it could have been 4-0 if not for that last-gasp drive by Joe Flacco and the Ravens a few weeks ago. Of course, the D led by a healthy Troy Polamalu and hard-hitting-to-a-fault James Harrison, has helped, but let’s give Tomlin some huge and well-deserved props here.

      2. Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis Rams—Has anyone noticed that the Rams are 3-3, having already equaled their win total from 2008 and 2009 combined. And they’re giving up less than 19 points per game after allowing 27 per game last year—something that has much to do with the Rams’ defensive whiz of a coach.

      3. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants—How do you go from the scorching hot hot seat to a coach of the year nomination? Ask Tom Coughlin, who the New York media had being replaced by Bill Cowher a few weeks ago when they lost badly to the Colts, and then beat themselves badly in a loss the Titans at home. The Giants rallied around Coughlin and squashed the previously unbeaten Bears, then crushed the upstart Texans in Houston 34-10, before not allowing the dreaded trap game against Detroit ruin his team’s winning streak. So from 1-2 to 4-2, and tied with the Eagles for the division lead. That’s why Tom Coughlin is on here.

      Honorable mention: Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks; Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay Bucs; Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs; Rex Ryan, New York Jets; Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles

      Rookie of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Ndamukong Suh, Detroit Lions—Suh leads all NFL defensive tackles with 5 sacks, and he also has 21 tackles through six games, plus an interception—a pretty rare feat for a DT. Is there any doubt that this young big man is the real deal?

      2. Jahvid Best, Detroit Lions—Injury may have slowed Best down, but how about the fact that to go along with 249 rushing yards, Best has 31 catches for a league-high 285 receiving yards among running backs. That’s 534 all-purpose yards through six games.

      3. Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams—He’s way down the list of quarterbacks stat-wise, but Bradford is averaging 226 yards per game and has 7 TD passes. We’ll let the 8 picks slide for now, because let’s face it—the kid is helping to lead the Rams to respectability.

      Honorable mention: Max Hall, Arizona Cardinals; Rolando McClain, Oakland Raiders; Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys; Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati Bengals

      External Sports, NFL

      The Tom Brady-Deion Branch connection is back in New England

      October 17, 2010 /
      FOXBORO, MA - SEPTEMBER 26: Tom Brady of the New England Patriots directs the offensive line against the Buffalo Bills in the first half at Gillette Stadium on September 26, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

      Earlier in the week I noted that the acquisition of Deion Branch would certainly help the Patriots, but he “can’t do what Randy Moss can do on the field.”

      Not that I was wrong in writing that, but Branch certainly proved in the Patriots’ 23-20 overtime win over the Ravens on Sunday that he can still be effective in the right offense.

      Less than a week after he was acquired from Seattle for a mid-round pick, Branch caught nine passes for 98 yards and was targeted 12 times. He also caught passes of 23 and 10 yards in overtime to help New England kick a game-winning field goal after the two teams swapped possessions in the extra frame.

      Tom Brady wasn’t particularly sharp, but he was at his best with the game on the line. He completed 27-of-44 passes for 292 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, but he led the Patriots on scoring drives late in the fourth and again in overtime to pick up a huge win over a Baltimore team that waxed them in the playoffs last year.

      Without Moss, this is what you’re going to get out of Bill Belichick’s offense from here on out. They Pats will be balanced, they’re going to dink and dunk down the field and they’re going to take shots only when they present themselves. They won’t be the same high-scoring juggernaut they were three years ago when they went 16-0, but they beat a good Baltimore defense with this offensive approach on Sunday and at least for now, they showed that they don’t need Moss to be effective.

      External Sports, NFL

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