Ravens Report Card Week 2
The Baltimore Ravens fell on the road to the Tennessee Titans Sunday, 26-13. Many predicted the Ravens would win, so, this could be considered an upset. It is still hard to gauge how good the Titans are.
Quarterback – Joe Flacco had a tough day, he was constantly running around to buy time for his receivers to get open. He had two interceptions, only one of which you could say was his fault. I thought it was a great play by the corner back. Still, everything looked out of sync. Grade C-
Running back – Ray Rice and Ricky Williams both had tough days running the ball. Rice had a touchdown reception for the Ravens’ only touchdown. Williams also had an early fumble. Neither of the two ran for more than 50 yards. Grade C
Offensive line – The group missed left guard Ben Grubbs and it was noticed. They blocked decently in pass protection but failed to open holes for Rice. Grade D
Receivers – This group really hurt the Ravens. They failed to get separation and really seemed off. Lee Evans had his first two catches as a Raven, but did not look 100 percent. Even so, Flacco missed him on a deep ball.
The tight ends continued to play well in the passing game. Torrey Smith and David Reed were not a factor. Grade D
Defensive line – They shut down Titans running back Chris Johnson. On the flip side, they failed to get pressure on Matt Hasselbeck. If shutting down Johnson was the game plan, they did their job. Grade C
Linebackers– They played coverage well and kept the Titans’ running game slow. No complaint for these guys. Still, more pressure on the quarterback would have helped. Grade B
Secondary – There was a secondary? This was the biggest problem of the day. Missing Chris Carr and Jimmy Smith really hurt this unit. Kenny Britt absolutely owned them. When Ed Reed is constantly having to make tackles, you know there is something wrong.
Special teams – David Reed had a big return to set up a field goal before the half. Billy Cundiff made his field goals and they covered punts well. Best group for the Ravens. Grade B+
Coaching– Everything could have been avoided with a good game plan. The Ravens worried so much about shutting down Chris Johnson that they forgot about they pass. The whole team did not seem ready to play the game. With an offense that was struggling to find rhythm, the Ravens could have called some quick hit plays against the corner backs playing off for a few easy yards. Grade F
