REARVIEW MIRROR

BALTIMORE RAVENS 30, ARIZONA CARDINALS 27

OCTOBER 30, 2011

Frustrating means to a satisfying end

With self-inflicted mistakes piling up throughout a frustrating first half of play, the Baltimore Ravens found themselves in a bewildering hole, losing 24-3 to the visiting Arizona Cardinals. 

Against most opponents it would have meant, game over. But this was a Cardinals team that came into town on a five-game losing streak, with a defense that could not match the talent level the Ravens had faced six days prior in Jacksonville.

So the Ravens adjusted and the Cardinals did not.  In the second half the scriptwas flipped and the Ravens outscored the Cardinals 24-3 to pull out a harrowing win.

How they got themselves into such a hole, despite playing in front of a home crowd, is still a concern – a concern that has to start with their offensive line. 

The entire league has now seen the tape from all three matches against AFC South opponents, and it hasn’t been a pretty picture:  Attack the left side of the offensive line and Bryant McKinnie and Andre Gurode are going to allow you to bust-up the Ravens running game and smack around their quarterback, Joe Flacco.   It’s been an inescapable film-study truth.

So the Cardinals sent waves of pressure in the first half that the Ravens had little answer for. Throw in some dumb penalties, errant throws, turnovers, and missed special teams tackles, and it left the Ravens looking hopelessly inept.

If there is a positive to be taken from a game like this, it’s the fact that they did come storming back.  They did fix the protection. Cam Cameron allowed Flacco to get into a fast-paced, shotgun attack—the same style offense Flacco ran at the University of Delaware—and it seemed to give him a comfort level and rhythm to start making quick completions.  Remarkably, or perhaps just coincidently, it also seemed to help with the pass blocking schemes up front.

Regardless, it gave the Ravens offense a reason to feel confident. Perhaps more importantly, it may have finally given them a sense of identity. We’ll see what we see going forward. 

Maybe it was a turning point.  For thirty minutes of game clock at least, it was beautiful to watch.  And that isn’t so bad after enduring a horrifying first half that could only befit a game played on the eve of All Hallows Eve.

Quarterback: B

Flacco seemed to press in the first half as he connected on just 12 of 23 throws for 98 yards and an interception off a dropped ball by Torrey Smith. It added up to a QB Rating of 45 going into halftime.  The Cardinals later dropped what should have been an interception in the end zone as Flacco stared down tight end Ed Dickson.    One of the few pluses in the half was a decision by Flacco not to force a throw from his own end zone and instead tuck and run for a first down.

The team put the weight of the game on Flacco’s shoulders in the second half and he responded, going of 19 of 27 for 238 yards.   He also made good decisions with the ball, picking apart the zone coverage in the third quarter to move the ball, and finding one-on-one coverage deep in the fourth quarter to draw multiple pass interference calls on outmanned Cardinal DBs in the end zone, and to connect on a beautiful 36-yard strike to Torrey Smith with :48 left to set up the game-winning, chip shot field goal.

Running Backs: B+

Sometimes it doesn’t go as planned.  The expectation was that the Cardinals would get a large helping of Rice.  But Ray Rice had just 18 carries on the day for a 3.5 yards-per average.  Then again, sometimes the numbers don’t tell the story. He also scored on three, hard touchdown runs to help keep the pressure off of Flacco.   He was tremendous on cut-backs, spin moves, and maintaining his balance, even if the total yardage doesn’t reflect it.  He was also improved as a pass blocker.  Perhaps his best play on the day was splitting out and fearlessly catching a slant in traffic to move the sticks. He caught seven of the nine balls thrown his way.

Ricky Williams spelled Rice with four carries, and popped a 24-yard run off right tackle. And Vonta Leach contributed with a devastating block on the goal line to spring a Rice TD.

Wide Receivers: A-

Anquan Boldin deserves the game ball for taking over the game in the third quarter and practically willing the Ravens back to beat his former team.   His acrobatic, one-handed catch along the sideline may have been the best reception of the year so far. In all, he was targeted 12 times by Flacco to net 7 catches and 145 yards – an incredible 20 yards per catch average. 

Opposite Boldin, Torrey Smith had a bad drop on a ball that went right through his hands and into the hands of Richard Marshall.  But he didn’t get down on himself and did get a lot of separation downfield to stretch the defense. That included a difficult, over-the-shoulder, 36-yard catch to seal the win. LaQuan Williams ran a nice hot route but allowed the ball to be stripped after nearly hauling in the catch.

Tight Ends: A

In addition to Boldin, it was Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta who helped Flacco get into a rhythm and move the ball down field.  Both were very effective finding soft spots in the zone coverage near the hash marks.  They contributed back-to-back catches at the start of two consecutive third-quarter drives to help jump start the offense. They deserve to be mentioned in tandem because they were equally effective in tandem—each with six catches for 46 and 44 yards respectively. 

Dickson in particular was smooth catching and running with the ball. Pitta shined when catching a side-out throw, bouncing off a hard hit by safety Rashad Johnson and taking advantage of poor tackling technique to keep his balance and turn up field for extra yards.

Kris Wilson checked in on the goal line, opposite make-shift tight end Haloti Ngata, and made a tremendous lead block on linebacker Clark Haggans, which Rice followed into the end zone to put the Ravens ahead 27-24.

Tackles: C

Bryant McKinnie and Michael Oher pulled it together in the second half and gave Flacco time to work. That was not the case for McKinnie in particular with his first-half efforts. He also committed a costly false start after the Ravens had driven to the two, forcing them to settle for a field goal. He followed that up with another bad play, lining up illegally in the backfield but still being so flat-footed that O’Brien Schofield ran right past him to strip Flacco and set up a Cardinals TD. At times he looks too top-heavy, too upright, and too awkward to play the position. But when he drives out, bends his knees, and pops defenders in the running game, he can dominate. 

Oher played a mostly solid game, although he was oblivious to a couple straight-forward stunts run in front of him.  He made a key block on the edge, along with Wilson and Leach, on Rice’s final TD. Jah Reid entered the game as a spare tackle on the long Ricky Williams run.

Interior Line: C

The team still misses Ben Grubbs. His replacement, Andre Gurode stuggled with key gaffes again this week.  That included a false start when he pointlessly tried to catch the Cardinals offsides, and a hands-to-the face penalty. He also badly whiffed on blocking Calais Campbell to allow a free run at Flacco for a sack. 

Matt Birk was a little lethargic at times. He missed a cut block on Daryl Washington on the first Ravens snap, which otherwise should have sprung Rice up the middle with only the safety to beat. He was also slow off the ball to allow a batted pass by the nose tackle. Birk also flinched for an off-sides call to stop a late drive.

Marshall Yanda played very well, including a very nice pull and seal on an easy Rice score to the left side.  As a group, the interior line eventually got their assignments down and pulled up the grade in the second half.  If we graded the left side of the line as a whole, it’s a D; the right side would get a B.

Cornerbacks:  B-

Credit the secondary with a number of coverage sacks.  As a unit, they also tackled extremely well.  In coverage, it may have been a step back for Webb and Cary Williams, who were beaten a few times on slants and back-shoulder throws.  Williams was flagged for a critical hold to keep the Cardinals’ drive alive.  Chris Carr was back at full strength, and he played well covering the slot; he also timed a blitz and sack perfectly.  Jimmy Smith saw limited action and showed promising, aggressive coverage on a slant.

Safeties: C

After a great performance against the Jaguars, Bernard Pollard regressed.  He was caught in no-man’s land a number of times, either slow to close on the line of scrimmage or late to drop into coverage. He and Ed Reed together botched coverage on Larry Fitzgerald to give up a 66-yard completion.  They were burned for 18 yards after giving up soft coverage to the tight end, Jeff King.  Pollard made a dumb decision to taunt after a tackle on the sideline, which helped set up a tying field goal. Tom Zbikowski was back and saw a few snaps. He made a nice open field tackle short of the sticks, but was burned when Kevin Kolb sidestepped his blitz.

Linebackers: C+

Jameel McClain matched Ray Lewis’ five tackles and also hauled in a fluttering duck of an interception when Kolb was hit while throwing.   At times, McClain got caught and blown back on runs.

Lewis did leave the game with what appeared to be a neck or shoulder issue, but returned quickly. He later dropped a sure interception after making a nice break on a slant.  He showed his age trying to chase Kolb out of the pocket.

Jarret Johnson picked up a nice sack, but was uncharacteristically caught inside on a number of first-half runs to the outside.

Defensive Line: A

As good as Boldin was in sparking the offense, Terrell Suggs was better on defense. He was a one-man wrecking crew that the Cardinals’ tackles Brandon Keith and Levi Brown had no answer for.  Thirteen tackles in all, including 4 tackles for a loss and a sack, plus two more quarterback hurries.  No one seemed to enjoy Suggs’ performance more than Terrell Suggs, which was fun to watch.

The Ravens rotated defensive linemen early and often.  Pernell McPhee, Paul Kruger, and Art Jones all made appearances in the first defensive series, even though none started with Cory Redding, Terrence Cody and Haloti Ngata.  Brandon McKinney also saw a lot of snaps against the run. At times this second group outplayed Redding and Cody. 

Paul Kruger gets better each week in his pass rushing skills, picking up a pair of sacks.  McPhee regressed slightly holding ground against the run. The same can be said for Cody, who struggled understandably against double teams.  Ngata was excellent as usual against the run, helping hold the Cardinals running backs to a 3.7 YPC on 27 carries.

Special Teams: D+

The Ravens neither blocked nor tackled very well on special teams returns and coverage. As a direct result, they started ten of thirteen drives on or inside their own twenty-yard line.  Other than getting the ball after the McClain interception, they only managed to start their first and final possessions beyond their own twenty.

Patrick Peterson burned them for an 82-yard punt return, with bad tackling by Pitta and Prescott Burgess.  Pitta was also out of position on a punt return, forcing him to shove Steward Bradley in the back and propel him even harder into a crunching tackle on Webb, the return-man.

Paul Kruger was not very effective in the open field covering kicks. Only Albert McClellan and Haruki Nakamura made a positive impression on kick coverage.  Jimmy Smith was flagged for an obvious holding call on a return.

On the plus side, Sam Koch stuck a punt inside the Cardinals five with three minutes left, and Chris Carr followed-up on the ensuing punt with a great move that allowed the final drive to start inside the Cardinals territory, which helped set-up the winning field goal.  Billy Cundiff recovered from an off-performance in Jacksonville by going 3-for-3 on field goals to preserve the win.

Coaching: B

Cam Cameron was poised to become the goat of the game as the Cardinals’ pressure defense pushed around his feeble-looking offense. But give him credit for adjusting.  Despite being labeled as a stubborn, know-it-all coordinator by fans and even some ex-players, Cameron reshaped his approach to what his quarterback does well.

In the third quarter he called for the shotgun formation on 24 out of 26 snaps, mostly going no-huddle, and throwing the ball on all but four snaps in the quarter, including a QB sneak for a first down.

Even after running the ball into the end zone on the first play of the fourth quarter to finally gain a 27-24 lead, Cameron did not get away from what was working, going shotgun on 13 of the next 14 snaps (with just another sneak as the lone snap under center) until it was time to run the ball into the middle of the field and burn the clock to set up the final field goal.

Chuck Pagano once again dialed up all the right pressure combinations, resulting in a season-high six sacks and numerous hurries and hits on Kolb.

Without being in the locker room, it’s hard to say what role head coach John Harbaugh played in re-focusing his team and avoiding panic at halftime. But it’s hard to argue with the result.

Officiating:  B

Jeff Triplette’s crew was calling a fantastic game, correctly sifting through tough defensive holding instances, and defensive and offensive pass interference calls.  Notice the use of the word, was.  His crew got hanky-happy in the fourth quarter and made a couple of questionable calls that nearly determined the outcome of the game.

That included a terrible pass interference flag on Lardarius Webb on a play with virtually no contact at all.  And for the second week in a row, the Ravens were jobbed on a retaliatory unsportsman-like-conduct call; Ray Rice was penalized for taunting after directing a banchee-like scream at rookie nose tackle David Carter, but Rice was merely responding to Carter’s similar taunt after a downfield tackle.

Broadcast: A-

This just in: Brian Billick knows football. And he knows how to talk about it.  He was excellent in pointing out some of the nuances of the game, and conveying how coaches strategize as the complexion of the game changed. 

The best example of this was after Anquan Boldin shredded the Cardinals defense in the third quarter and Billick announced it was time to put the other corner, Patrick Peterson on Boldin.  The broadcast crew cut to a shot of Peterson himself motioning to his coaches to flip sides, and sure enough, the switch was made.  Billick also called Peterson the best player in the 2011 draft moments before he returned a punt for a touchdown.

Sam Rosen was just okay. He struggled to convey information correctly as he juggled to squeeze in promotional announcements.  For instance, he referred to Patrick Peterson as Patrick Robinson. He announced the Ravens were ahead 24-6 to start second half before he was prompted to correct himself.  He twice credited Terrell Suggs with his “fourth tackle for a loss.” And once he referred to Kevin Kolb as Flacco.