Before this 2010 season ever began for the Baltimore Ravens, they lost Sergio Kindle, Jared Gaither, and Domonique Foxworth to injury.
While I understand that every team in the NFL could have a similar discussion of players they have lost to injury, it is worth taking a moment and thinking of how the loss of these players impacted the Ravens.
I think it would be hard to argue for anyone that the offensive-line has been better in 2010 than in 2009. Yanda has exceeded my expectations at RT, but he has not been as good as Oher was last year. (We will see if Yanda’s move back to RG sticks) Further to that, Oher at LT has been a drop from Gaither.
To be fair to the current group, the Ravens have allowed 32 sacks in 13 games, while in 2009 they allowed 36. That is a per game increase, but it is relatively insignificant. The biggest difference in my mind has been with the running game.
Rice averaged 5.3 yards per carry in 2009, that is down to 3.9 in 2010.
McGahee averaged 5 yards per carry in 2009, that is down to 3.5 in 2010.
McClain averaged 3.9 yards per carry in 2009, that is down to 2.6 in 2010.
The run-blocking is clearly not as good. Birk has probably regressed in the middle, but the loss of Gaither (and the move of Oher) is pretty clear. Maybe part of that is last year the Ravens could run to either side, and now the opposition knows Baltimore wants to run behind Oher?
I traded messages with Gaither last-week on Twitter. I responded to one of his messages saying, “Just worry about dominating training camp, 16 games, and getting to the Pro Bowl.” Gaither responded by stating, “Believe that. But don’t sell us (the Ravens) short at 16 games.” To me the best thing that can happen for both Gaither and the Ravens is that he comes back and is ready to perform. His return would help the entire line, and you could than decide if you want to move Oher back to the right-side.
Going to the other side of the ball, playing without the rookie Kindle drastically changed what the Ravens were looking to achieve. Baltimore is tied for 20th in the league with 24 sacks. Suggs has raised his game over the past 6 weeks and helped provide a pass-rush. Imagine how much more dynamic the defense could be with another rusher off the edge from the opposite side? In the game Monday night in Houston, the Ravens were up 28-7. The Texans got back into the game with a 7 minute and 30 second drive where they converted three 3rd downs, and two 4th downs. Part of the reason the Texans were able to sustain those drives, was because the Ravens were not getting to Schaub (and choosing to rush only 3). Some will point out that Kindle has never played a down in the NFL, and say I am reaching here. I think it is fair to state that we do not know how productive he would be, but I think it should be obvious that the pass rush would have been improved with him available as a weapon.
The Ravens pass defense is now ranked 14th after getting lit up a bit Monday. Overall though this unit has played pretty well. (Especially with the lack of a consistent pass rush) Certainly the Secondary has not been the issue that seemingly everyone was stating it would be going into this season. If Foxworth had stayed healthy, the Ravens may not have obtained Josh Wilson. In that regard, the loss of Foxworth is probably negligible. Still, I’m sure losing Foxworth has had some effect. He took over a leadership position in the Secondary last-year, initiating additional film-study which led to the improved play from that group in the 2nd-half of the season. Also, while nobody will ever confuse Foxworth as a punishing tackler, he has the cover skills to play man defense on most WR’s. If you have confidence in your CB’s to be on an island in 1×1 coverage, you are probably more likely to gamble with pressure from your Front 7.
Again, I know every team in this league has injuries, and that you could do a similar exercise for each of those teams. Just pointing out that the injuries to these three players have changed the complexion of the 2010 Ravens.
Owner
Chris Stoner founded Baltimore Sports and Life in 2009. He has appeared as a radio guest with 1090 WBAL, 105.7 The Fan, CBS 1300, Q1370, WOYK 1350, WKAV 1400, and WNST 1570. He has also been interviewed by The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and PressBox (TV). As Owner, his responsibilities include serving as the Managing Editor, Publicist, & Sales Director.