I don’t often write exclusively about my hometown team.
I’m going to, because they’re one of the bigger mysteries of the admittedly-young NFL season. Equally maddening and redemptive in the same game (quarter? drive? play?), the 2016 Baltimore Ravens are a unique collection of players, but gauging their effectiveness is going to require more than simple observance and calculation.
This team is 3-0. There are only four other teams that are currently unbeaten, and the general consensus among even the most ardent fans is that the Ravens are “the worst undefeated team in the league”. Which, considering the drama and puzzling nature of the no-holds-barred collapse of the 2015 Ravens, really isn’t such a terrible thing to be.
As my hometown team, I find myself in a position to judge them, perhaps more harshly than I should. It’s no secret that I was very disappointed in their acquisitions in this year’s draft; after all, picking the unheralded Ronnie Stanley at #6, when trades were on the table that could have netted them bigger names was aggravating, especially for a team that’s lacked a true star since the departure of former free safety Ed Reed. Not addressing the secondary, last season’s wealth of sore spots, until the fourth round was equally galling. Not drafting or negotiating a capable upgrade from presumed bust Breshad Perriman was another kick in the nethers. I let it be known, in this space, on other sites, and most certainly in the comments below, that my expectation for this team, which seemed caught in the illusion of former glories blinding them to their eventual bleak future, was no more than five wins – last season’s win total.
And for all I know, I still could prove correct.
This team has patched together three of the ugliest wins I’ve witnessed as a football fan (as a Ravens fan, that’s truly saying something), while not suffering a single injury of note (most assuredly last season’s biggest bugaboo). They’ve been an offensive eyesore, totaling 324.3 yards of total offense per game, including an abysmal 82.3 rushing (3.3 YPC). Quarterback Joe Flacco has tossed three touchdown passes, all to newly-acquired wideout Mike Wallace, and has thrown four interceptions. The leading receiver is playing on a twice-separated hip. They’ve scored a total of 57 points.
Combined, these sound like the statistics of a team sounding their death knell. However…
Defensively, they’re giving up just 254.3 yards per game. They’re forcing their opponents to a paltry 86 yards on the ground. They’ve given up four touchdowns through the air, but have recorded the same number of interceptions. Opponents are converting third downs just 38.6 % of the time, and the majority of those third downs were converted in their second game, against the Cleveland Browns. They’re fourth in points against this season at 14.7, which is a stunning turnaround from 2015’s 25.1.
Yeah, I think we’ve figured it out.
Curiously, the Ravens don’t have any defensive players ranked in the top five of any statistical category. This is partially due to the fact that they rotate their front seven often, but it also speaks to the overall quality of the unit, which is beginning to establish itself as one of the better in the NFL. The few standouts include such luminaries as DE Timmy Jernigan and DT Michael Pierce.
Who?
So maybe I was wrong…and right. This offense has a long, long road to respectability, and given the fact that they chose to start two rookies on the offensive line (on the same side, no less), it could be well into next season before the line starts to play with any continuity. Wideout Steve Smith Sr. and TE Dennis Pitta are extreme injury risks. No running back, including 2014 and 2015 starter Justin Forsett, has established themselves, which, given the state of the offensive line, is a tough ask. But if this defense continues to play with the attacking nature they’ve shown, this team could well stay in contention, or at least re-establish some respectability. Most Ravens fans will remember 1999, and this team has a similar feel to it.
So I’m revising my stance a bit. This is America, and in an election year, it seems anyone can change their position at any time and get away with it.
Final call: 8-8.
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