Ravens fall to .500; The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Needing a win to pull even with the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC North, the Ravens could only muster 7 points, as losing to fall to 4-4 overall.

I had been calling today’s game basically a must-win for the better part of a month. With the lost, the Ravens realistically have to finish 6-2 in their 8 last-games to have a chance at the post-season.

When I look at the remaining schedule, I see wins at Cleveland, and Oakland, along with wins over Detroit and Chicago at home. If the Ravens win those 4 games, and go 2-2 in their other four-games vs. Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and on the road vs. Green Bay, and Pittsburgh; they might have a chance.

What I think is fair to say, is that the Ravens ability to win the AFC North was probably eliminated today in Cincinnati.

The Good:

1) It is quite the struggle to find any good from today. I can give the Ravens some credit for showing some pride as they were down 17-0 in the 2nd-quarter, and found a way to possibly make a game of it.

2) I thought Webb played well in place of an injured Fabian Washington.

3) The Ravens needed to win today, but I think they made the right decision in benching Ngata. Cedric Benson hit Baltimore for another 117 yards today (albeit on 34 carries), but I think that is just the way it goes. If Ngata had played today, and was further hurt, that would have been almost as bad as suffering a defeat. He had played in every-game of his career prior to today. If he came out of the lineup, that was a good indication that he did not feel capable of helping.

4) Ed Reed’s strip of Chad Johnson was a big-play.

5) It was good to see Suggs record a sack today, and that has to happen more often. The fact that he can play the run (did miss several tackles today), and is improved in pass-defense, are good things. However, Suggs will always earn his living as a pass-rusher. To have played 8 games, and for him to have 3.5 sacks is not acceptable. Perhaps he can go on a run these last 8 games, and finish with the 10-12 sacks he should be capable of producing.

The Bad:

1) The Ravens lost the time of possession battle 40mts to 20mts today.

2) Rice, McGahee, and McClain combined for 17 carries in the home-loss to Cincinnati. In the loss today, Rice, Flacco, Mason, and McClain combined for 17 carries. Down 17-0 with 2 and 1/2 minutes left in the 2nd-quarter, there was no reason why the Ravens had to abandon the run.

3) The Ravens defense forced 6 punts or turnovers on downs in a row, and the the Ravens offense managed to put-up just 7 points on the board. In two-games against the Bengals, the Ravens offense scored a total of 14 points.

4) The Ravens had 7 penalties for 80 yards.

4a) I thought Gaither would make a difference, he did with two costly penalties. To be fair to him, the 2nd penalty seemed very touchy. Rookie RT Michael Oher appeared to be jumping on nearly every play.

5) Flacco was sacked 4 times, and had 2 picks. He could have easily been picked at-least 2 more times. He was throwing dying quails all day, and seemingly missing the pass-rush straight at him. He seemed to be trying to force the ball at different times, as opposed to taking what the defense was giving him.

5a) The interception of Flacco at the start of the 2nd-half was poor play-calling and decision making. You had just played an entire 1/2 where the offense hardly had the ball. You have a 2nd and 4 yards to go situation on your own 49, and you attempt to force the ball down the field. Cincinnati would punt on their next series, but did hold the ball for 4 mts.

6) It was good that Ed Reed had that strip of Johnson, because otherwise he had a horrible game. He missed at-least 4 tackles, as he was clearly playing ‘o-lay’ defense. It seemed rather apparent today, that Reed was going out of his way to avoid physical contact.

7) II think it was the right decision to bench Ngata today, but you needed the backups – McKinney, Edwards, Bannan, and Talavou – to step-up today, and they did not. I saw Edwards helping some as a pass-rusher, and I saw Bannan and Harbaugh yelling at-each other on sideline, but I did not see McKinney or Talavou play. If they did, they accomplished little. If they did not play, I question why the Ravens were not rotating more bodies in and out of the action.

The Ugly:

1) Hauschka missing another crucial FG was ugly. Yes, it was not a 10 point FG, and was not the reason the Ravens lost – but that is besides the point. It was Hauschka’s first crucial FG attempt since the Minnesota loss, and he failed. Combine that with his average kickoffs, and you have to question the decision to keep him over Stover. Our point in the summer was that this was a Baltimore team with post-season expectations. If Hauschka missed a kick that mattered, it would be too late to correct. For this to be the 8th game of the season, and for Hauschka to have two crucial misses on the board, is tough to take.

2) The Ravens were 1-10 on 3rd down, while the Bengals were 8 for 18.

3) Playing without Antwan Odom, the Bengals still had 4 sacks. Part of that has to do with the Ravens abandoning the run.

4) Trying to avenge a home loss within the division, with 1st-place on the line, the Ravens allowed two 10+ play, 4 and 1/2 minute drives to start the game. Do not blame the refs, do not make excuses. That is a perfect representation that you were beat physically (and perhaps mentally) by a better team. Playing a team with Carson Palmer at QB, and with those weapons at WR, the Ravens CB’s played well enough. You just can not win in the NFL, if you do not have a consistent pass-rush.

Up-Next:

The Ravens go to Cleveland before closing November against Indianapolis, Pittsburgh. Obviously Baltimore has to take care of business against the Browns first. If they do, then you can begin to discuss those other games.