Ravens’ weakness may become strength: Baltimore Ravens 2010 season preview
Traditionally, when we talk about the Baltimore Ravens, the general consensus has always been their defence carries them while the offence is dull and prevents them from contending. That may all change this year.
The Ravens have finally appeared to gain a potent offence capable of lessening the dependence on the defence to put them into the discussion of Super Bowl contenders. The team made several key acquisitions and many of their home-grown players are ready to take the next step.
That offence will rely on whether Joe Flacco experiences a breakout year. Flacco showed he’s a legitimate quarterback last year, but he has to continue to grow this year. Anything short of excellent drops the Ravens from a discussion of contenders. Flacco has shown he’s patient, smart and throws a beautiful long ball. His arsenal of weapons is also much improved.
Anquan Boldin was the prized acquisition at receiver. Boldin is versatile and physical. He can run the deep routes, but he’s also willing to go up the middle. His tenacity and poise make him an excellent catch-and-run receiver.
The Ravens also added Donte Stallworth who must prove that he’s a bona fide receiver. He hasn’t played a game in over a year and he has been injury-prone and very inconsistent. To round out their corps, the Ravens have Mark Clayton and Derrick Mason. Mason was considering retirement, but came back because he felt the Ravens had a shot at the Super Bowl. Clayton is quick but really inconsistent.
Tight end Todd Heap also provides a good dump off option for Flacco. He has great hands and can run the underneath routes.
The Ravens running game is still expected to be a strong staple of this offence. Ray Rice will be the feature back without question. He has fantastic vision and is so strong going up against defenders. He also can be a weapon in the passing game.
Rice also has a fantastic lead-blocker in Le’Ron McClain. He’s a two-time Pro Bowler and can take his share of carries along with the punishing Willis McGahee who’s built for short-yardage situations.
Centre Matt Birk leads the offensive line. Birk is a player to build around and provides excellent leadership. Guards Ben Grubbs and Chris Chester both bring their own features. Grubbs is a spectacular pass-protector while Chester is a great run-blocker. At tackle, Michael Oher and Jared Gaither are primed to play up to their potential. That would make this line perhaps the best offensive line in all of football.
The Ravens best feature, for as long as the franchise has existed, is their defence. The defence has been led the past 14 seasons by one man, middle linebacker Ray Lewis. The future hall-of-famer brings out the best in all his teammates and while his own production may be in decline, the intangibles he brings just seem to keep this scary defence going strong after all these years.
Baltimore’s front line is what makes their defence dominant. Nose tackle Kelly Gregg has great balance and lateral agility. At the ends, Haloti Ngata is a beast who commands double teams. Corey Redding, Trevor Pryce and Terrence Cody will all share snaps on the other end making this a deep front line.
The linebackers are in the spotlight. Led by Lewis, Tavaris Gooden, Dannell Ellerbe and Jameel McClain will share snaps on the inside. On the outside, Terrell Suggs and Jarrett Johnson are both capable veterans. Suggs sheds blocks easily and is perhaps the best run-stopping linebacker in the league. Johnson has many tools; he can stop the run, play the pass and is very fast in pursuing the quarterback.
The secondary is a question not concerning talent, but health. Ball hawk safety Ed Reed is on the Physically Unable to Perform list and no timetable is set for his return. He likely won’t play for a good part of the season. Dwan Landry will be a key in run support, while Ken Hamlin will fill in for Reed. Hamlin is a good tackler, but is inconsistent in coverage.
At cornerback, the Ravens have some more questions. Fabian Washington is coming off a torn ACL and the team is hoping his quickness won’t be affected. The team will turn to Chris Carr on the other end as Lardarius Webb suffered a torn ACL himself, and almost certainly won’t be 100 per cent this year.
On special teams, Shayne Graham should easily win the kicking job. Many teams passed on Graham in free agency due to him missing two easy field goals in the Bengals playoff loss last year. However throughout his career, Graham has been an accurate kicker. Punter Sam Koch has a powerful leg, while the steady Chris Carr will carry return duties or possibly share them with rookie David Reed.
The Ravens have their share of injuries but are still stacked with talent. This is also the year the offence may actually surpass the defence. The problem is they now face the pressure of being Super Bowl favourites, unlike the last couple of seasons when they were seen as wild card contenders. All the pieces are in place for them to go for the crown, but of course in this quarterback-driven league, they’ll only get there if Flacco is among the league’s best this year.
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