2012 Baltimore Ravens Preview

2012 Baltimore Ravens

I am simply Wacco about the Baltimore Ravens this year. I am not going to say how far they will or will not advance in the playoffs, but they will be there, and hopefully will make some noise. After all, Joe Flacco pulled an Eli this summer and said he was an elite quarterback. Shouldn’t we just hand them the Lombardi Trophy? I love Ray Rice and think he can have a repeat performance of what he did last year. He’s paid, he’s happy, and now he’s simply hungry for a championship. And this defense feels like they might have one big run left in them. After all, if there was one person I would want in my foxhole, it would probably be Ray Lewis. He is a leader of men, and will have this team ready to play. The one major concern is basketball superstar Terrell Suggs and his torn up knee. Either way, this team looks primed for a huge year, and they are determined after the disappointment against the Patriots. It remains to be seen, however, if this team has it in them to take the next step.

Offense

For the past few years, the Baltimore offense has run, literally, through Ray Rice. He may be a little guy, but he is strong, physical, and tough. Rice is like a boulder rolling downhill when he gets a head of steam. He had over 2,000 yards from scrimmage by himself last year, and I expect more of the same. Joe Flacco also looks ready to continue to mature. He has Anquan Boldin (still arguably the toughest dude in all the NFL; he’s a bad man, with a great name) as a security blanket, along with Ed Dickson at tight end. However, I think the star of the passing game will be Torrey Smith, a speedster who had flashes of stardom last year. At best, he could have the kind of year Mike Wallace had a couple of years ago with the Steelers, with at least one deep bomb a game. At worst, he’s still a deadly weapon on the outside that could run by anyone but he drops passes and underproduces. If he and Flacco are on the same page this year...points can be scored in bunches, to put it lightly.

Defense

When you think of the Baltimore Ravens, what is the first thing that comes to your head? That’s right, your friend who was choking on a piece of chicken while watching the Ravens simultaneously choke away the AFC Championship a ferocious defense! This D has studs all around it, anchored by Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Haloti Ngata, Ladarius Webb, and the artist formerly known as T-Sizzle. Oh, and my new best friend Bernard Pollard, the Patriot Killer. While this group is aging, they have the veteran mindset of knowing how to get the job done, and executing. Lewis is arguably the most intimidating player of this generation at least, and Reed is potentially the greatest ball hawk of all time, and as long as both of those guys are on the field, I wouldn’t say that their window is closed just yet. However, the injury to reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Suggs is devastating; it annihilates the pass rush unless rookie Courtney Upshaw can fill his shoes. Suggs, though, says that he will play this season, and if he believes it, then I do too. My thinking is that if he can come back in time to finish the regular season, it will give this unit a boost heading into the playoffs, and then, watch out.

Schedule

The Ravens finished last season at 12-4 and secured the second seed in the AFC heading into the playoffs, where they came within two mistakes in the final seconds of making it to the Super Bowl. They were able to sweep their division in which Pittsburgh and Cincinnati also made the playoffs which is very impressive, but three of their losses also came to Tennessee, Jacksonville, and Seattle, which, frankly, sucks. It happens when they get away from their game plan and have Flacco wing it around the field. They easily could have had 14 or 15 wins and taken number one seed, but they have a knack for losing games against inferior opponents. Let’s see what’s in store for them this year.

Week 1: W vs CIN

Week 2: W at PHI

Week 3: W vs NE (Pollard is rubbing his hands together)

Week 4: W vs CLE (for lunch: italian subs with a side of Weeden)

Week 5: L at KC

Week 6: W vs DAL

Week 7: L at HOU

Week 8: Bye

Week 9: W at CLE (see Week 4)

Week 10: W vs OAK

Week 11: W at PIT

Week 12: L at SD

Week 13: W vs PIT

Week 14: L at WAS

Week 15: W vs DEN

Week 16: W vs NYG

Week 17: L at CIN

I have Baltimore finishing this season at 11-5. The losses might not be in the right places but they will be sprinkled in there somewhere. I think that that Week 7 matchup in Houston is enormous, because as I will elaborate more in the HOU preview, that game could have #2 seed implications. Either way, the 2012 Baltimore Ravens will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming season, and we’ll see if they can redeem themselves and get to the promised land. Up next: the Cincinnati Bengals. Right after a bold prediction, of course.

Bold Prediction: Torrey Smith finishes this season with 1,100 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns. Minimum. He’s got the speed to blow by safeties. And if the Pollard curse holds true...I’m looking at Aaron Hernandez as the latest injury victim.