Week 1 saw the Ravens come away with an important win at home. The Ravens trotted out a number of new faces, and also returned a number of veterans who were making their first appearance since injury knocked them out of the 2015 season. Overall, the results were positive, and not just because of the win, but because of the individual performances. Free agent acquisitions Mike Wallace and Eric Weddle both made their presence felt on the field. Wallace showed off his speed catching a 66 yard TD from Joe Flacco, and Weddle did an excellent job orchestrating a new-look defense on the field. The Ravens also started two rookies on the left side of the offensive line for the first time in the team’s history and both players acquitted themselves well. Joe Flacco, Terrell Suggs, Justin Forsett and Dennis Pitta all made their returns from injury and each had significant contributions. We even saw a remarkable downfield catch by 2015 first round selection Breshad Perriman for his first career NFL reception. While there are a lot of positive takeaways from week 1, the most important question is can they can continue the success into week 2 and beyond?
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The Browns did not have very much success in their week 1 match-up against the Eagles in Philadelphia. Eagles rookie QB Carson Wentz carved up the Browns secondary, and the Browns’ offense could not get anything going against a stout Eagles defense with starting QB Robert Griffin III completing less than 50% of his passes for no TDs and an INT. Given Griffin’s struggles, the news this week of the Browns’ starting QB being placed on the IR with a shoulder injury may actually hurt the Ravens chances in week 2. Instead of Griffin, the Ravens defense will be tasked with slowing down back-up QB Josh McCown who we might remember torched the Ravens for 457 yards passing and 2 TDS in 2015. McCown has shown the ability to get the ball down the field, and he has some speedy and talented WRs to throw to in Terrell Pryor and rookie Corey Coleman. TE Gary Barnidge and RB Duke Johnson are also talented pass-catchers that the Ravens will have to account for.
I expect the Browns to implement a pass-heavy attack on offense to test the Ravens at all levels. Last season the Ravens D looked slow and ill-prepared to defend this type of approach, but if week 1 is an accurate measurement, the 2016 unit will match up far better against McCown this time around. ILB Zachary Orr made plays all over the field in his first career start and CB Shareece Wright was sensational both in coverage and in run defense. Eric Weddle and Lardarius Webb held down the back-end of the defense and limited any big play opportunities. The pass-rush showed up in week 1 as well, making Bills’ QB Tyrod Taylor uncomfortable all game long. It will be paramount for the Ravens defense to remain dynamic and aggressive in week 2 or the Browns may be able to find success in the passing game.
For the Ravens offensive attack, Flacco and the rest of the offense should be able to move the ball against a marginal Browns defensive unit. The Eagles were able to move the ball effectively on the ground and through the air, and hopefully Marc Trestman will take a more balanced approach in week 2 compared to week 1 vs the Bills. The good news is that the Browns defense is considerably weaker than the Bills D, and as long as the Ravens offense doesn’t become predictable, the talent gap should show up in the box-score. The offensive line should have a chance to rebound after a checkered performance in week 1. If the running game gets going, and the OL can keep Flacco clean the Ravens should be able to jump out to an early lead and hopefully never look back.
Overall, I think the Ravens have a great opportunity to start the season 2-0 against their division rival. Road games are almost never easy, but this is a game the Ravens should win.
My prediction is a Ravens win 27-10 over the Browns.
Ravens Analyst
Gabe is an avid fan of the NFL and Ravens football. He grew up in Westminster, MD, and attended college at Johns Hopkins University majoring in Biology. He earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of California, Los Angeles, and now works as a R&D Scientist developing Transplant Diagnostics assays. Gabe has appeared as a guest on 105.7 The Fan.