Ravens Report Card: The Offense 9/21/2014
The Baltimore Ravens beat the Cleveland Browns 23 to 21 on a last second field goal Sunday afternoon in a hard fought game resulting in a ton of injuries. The offense had its ups and downs but, for the most part, played extremely well.
Quarterback: Joe Flacco’s quarterback rating does not show how well he played. Minus the one interception, which was thrown because he was hit, Flacco played a clean game. He made some really clutch throws to Steve Smith, Sr. and completed 19 of his 31 passes. Flacco finished with a 79.6 quarterback rating. Grade B
Running backs: Lorenzo Taliaferro made the most out of the opportunity and rushed for 91 yards and his first career touchdown. Taliaferro also averaged 5.1 yards per carry and ran extremely hard, something the Ravens missed last season. Justin Forsett also ran hard and had a 5.7 yard per carry average. Grade A
Receivers: Flacco did not really hit many receivers other than Steve Smith, Sr., who had five receptions. Torrey Smith and Marlon Brown need to get more involved. Credit the Browns secondary for covering the Ravens’ receivers, but they need to do a better job at getting open. Grade C
Offensive Line: The offensive line did a number in the running game but still missed some assignments while pass blocking and they need to communicate a little better. Flacco was pressured a lot in the game but avoided getting sacked. Overall, the improvement by the line in the running game has been outstanding. Grade B+
Overall: The Ravens need to finish drives more because they are leaving too many points on the board; seemingly doing just enough to win. This was a tough test for the Ravens playing the Browns on the road. Grade B
