The Maryland Sports Blog

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

Here is the final injury report for the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans game on Sunday. This is from a Ravens press release. It does not look good for Ravens guard Ben Grubbs, most players listed as doubtful do not play.

Ravens

Out
CB Chris Carr (thigh)
CB Jimmy Smith (ankle)

Doubtful
G Ben Grubbs (toe)

Probable
WR Lee Evans (ankle)
FB Vonta Leach (foot)

Titans

Doubtful
S Chris Hope (shoulder)

Questionable
DE Williams Hayes (shoulder)
WE Damian Williams (hamstring)

Probable
DE Jason Jones (knee)
DE Derrick Morgan (knee)
RB Javon Ringer (back)

11. New England Patriots- The defensive line is a concern for the Patriots. Look for Tom Brady to have a better season than he did last year. The star wide receivers might be getting older but Randy Moss still has something left in the tank.

12. Atlanta Falcons- Matt Ryan has shown that he can be a top quarterback in the NFL. Two games against the Saints will be tough but this could be a playoff team.

13. Houston Texans- I rate them higher than other publications because they have a quarterback that can get it done. In a quarterback driven league that proves big. They also have wide receivers and a solid pass rush.

14. San Fransisco 49ers- If they can get consistent play out of their quarterback they should be a solid team. The defense plays tough and they got weapons on the offense that could hurt even the best teams.

15. New York Giants- When comparing teams I always look at the quarterback first and last. The Giants might be the last team in these rankings that have a solid quarterback,  and the talent around him is not bad either.

16. Miami Dolphins- They made improvements in the offseason by bringing in wide receiver Brandon Marshall, and they have a good coaching staff that has them playing hard every game.

17. Tennessee Titans- They got one of the best running backs in the game. Chris Johnson can change the game at any moment. There are concerns with quarterback Vince Young, a reason they are at 17.

18. Chicago Bears- Real wild card with quarterback Jay Cutler. If Julius Peppers comes to play this could be an okay team, but they play in a very hard division.

19. Carolina Panthers- The quarterbacks are really going down hill from here… Matt Moore and Jimmy Clausen in a QB battle.

20. Arizona Cardinals- The reason I have this team so low is the quarterback situation. Matt Leinart and Derek Anderson have not proven anything to me. They lost a lot of talented players this offseason.