Ravens quick hits
By now everyone knows that the Baltimore Ravens crushed the St. Louis Rams 37-to-7. Here are some quick hits to take away from that game.
Torrey Smith can be a major factor in changing the way the Ravens play offense. The Ravens drafted Torrey Smith to be a vertical threat for quarterback Joe Flacco. After not making a catch in his first two games, Smith scored three touchdowns this past week for the Ravens. With his emergence and the trade for wide receiver Lee Evans, the Ravens could have two good deep threats. Evans needs to get his ankle healthy, which I predict will be in week six. The Ravens offense could finally change from a running/possession passing attack to a running/vertical attack. They have all the tools to do this: speedy receivers, a quarterback with a big arm, and the offensive line that can protect that quarterback.
LaQuan Williams is playing more and better than anyone could have expected. With Lee Evans out against the Rams, Williams took Smith’s number three wide receiver spot on the field. He may have only had one catch for seven yards, but he was very effective in the blocking game. There were times in which Williams overpowered the Rams defensive backs. The Ravens have a pair of excellent blocking wide receivers with Williams and Anquan Boldin, Boldin actually made a hockey check like hit on a Rams linebacker to knock the linebacker down on running back Ray Rice’s 53-yard run. In my opinion, Williams was the unsung hero for the Ravens in week three.
Haloti Ngata has everything coming together for him. Less than a week after Ngata signed a blockbuster deal to stay with the Ravens, Ngata scores his first NFL touchdown against the Rams on a fumble recovery. Ngata has played great in the past but I have never seen him dominate offensive lines the way he has this year. Losing weight in the off season has helped him become a better pass rusher but his power has stayed.
