When it comes to the relationship between the Ravens and left tackle Bryant McKinnie, there’s a lot of water under the bridge, and it’s probably fair to guess that neither side is feeling a whole lot of trust in or loyalty to the other. That, said, it’s becoming more and more clear with each passing day of the NFL off-season that McKinnie and the Ravens need each other.

It’s not as though the Ravens failure to land a starting left tackle in the draft should be a surprise to anyone. Sitting with the 32^nd pick overall makes it tough to put together the type of package that could get a team into a position to land a tackle in whom they could have a lot of faith right away. That may have been even truer in this year’s draft where the top tackles were flying off the board in spots usually reserved for quarterbacks and franchise changing play makers.

The debate over where Joe Flacco fits in the hierarchy of NFL quarterback talent has been raging since Flacco’s first season in the league, and a Super Bowl MVP and a $100 million contract have only helped to add fuel to the arguments on both sides.

Clearly Flacco’s regular season statistics don’t measure up against the NFL’s “best of the best” at the QB position. On the other side of the argument however, throughout his career Flacco has seen at least a 40% turnover on his offensive line each year, and substantial turnover at the receiver position too. Chemistry certainly means something when formulating a complex NFL passing offense, and the Ravens haven’t prioritized fostering chemistry for their young franchise QB.

Ironically, it was a shake up on the offensive line to begin the playoffs that, perhaps more than any other factor, set the tone for the Ravens successful run to a Super Bowl title last season. The promotion of McKinnie to the starting left tackle improved the offensive line exponentially by moving Michael Oher to right tackle where he was an upgrade over Kelechi Osemele, and by moving the displaced Osemele to the left guard where he too was an upgrade over the revolving door of “answers” the Ravens had fielded at that spot throughout the regular season. Understandably, any move at left tackle for the Ravens that involves Oher moving from right tackle and/or Osemele moving from left guard will be seen as taking multiple steps back. The retirement of center Matt Birk only serves to compound those concerns.

Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome has earned the trust of the fans, and reinforced that trust this off-season with a number of “game changing” acquisitions. After experiencing a substantial defection/exile of talent in the early stages of the off-season, redemption came quickly for the Ravens GM via the additions of a number of talented veterans. Unfortunately for the Ravens new $100 million man Flacco, all of those pick-ups came on the defensive side of the ball.

The secondary market has typically been good to the Ravens and to Ozzie Newsome. Every year as players find their way to new locations through free agency and the draft, a number of other players become displaced by those acquisitions. The Ravens have been good at finding serviceable, even high level talent on this secondary market, especially during the Joe Flacco / John Harbaugh era. With the number of left tackles available in free agency and early in the draft it seemed logical to wait and see what kind of secondary tackle market might develop. Now that the dust has settled though, outside of Roger Saffold (Rams) and maybe King Dunlap (Eagles), the secondary market on left tackles doesn’t look quite as promising as one might have hoped. And let’s face it, if Saffold and Dunlap were sure things their teams probably wouldn’t have been so anxious to replace them.

The market for McKinnie has been slow to non-existent too, so it appears that the time has come for the Ravens and McKinnie to swallow a bit of pride and find their ways back to one another. It doesn’t seem that either have any better options. Then the Ravens can focus on the business of trying to find a 2^nd and/or 3^rd receiver candidate that’ll hopefully provide more upside than TJ Houshmandzadeh or Lee Evans…unless they believe that Tandon Doss is more ready to break out than he’s shown to this point in his NFL career.

Here’s a quick look at the Ravens revolving door of pass blockers and pass catchers during the Joe Flacco era:

LT: 08-Gaither, 09- Gaither, 10 – Oher, 11 – McKinnie, 12 – Oher, 12 (PO) – McKinnie 13 – ?

LG: 08- Grubbs, 09- Grubbs, 10- Grubbs, 11- Grubbs/ Gurode, 12 – Harewood, Reid, 12 (PO) – Osemele, 13 – ?

C: 08- Brown, 09- Birk, 10- Birk, 11- Birk, 12 – Birk, 13 – Gradkowski

RG: 08- Chester/Yanda, 09- Chester/Yanda, 10- Chester, 11- Yanda, 12 – Yanda, 13 – Yanda

RT: 08- Adam Terry/ Willie Anderson (TE), 09- Oher, 10- Yanda, 11-Oher, 12 – Osemele, 12 (PO) – Oher, 13 – ?

FB: 08- Neal, 09- McClain, 10- McClain, 11- Leach, 12 – Leach, 13 – Leach?

RB: 08- McGahee/McClain, 09- Rice/McGahee, 10- Rice/McGahee, 11- Rice/Williams, 12 – Rice/Pierce

TE: 08- Heap/Anderson 09- Heap, 10- Heap/Dickson, 11- Dickson/Pitta, 12 – Pitta/Dickson, 13 – Pitta/Dickson

WR1: 08- Mason, 09- Mason, 10- Mason/Boldin , 11- Boldin, 12 – Boldin, 13 – Smith

WR2: 08- Clayton, 09- Clayton, 10- Mason/Boldin, 11- T. Smith, 12 – Smith, 13 – Jones

WR3: 08- Williams, 09- Clayton, 10- Houshmandzadeh, 11- Evans/L.Williams?, 12 – Jones, 13 – Doss?

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It’s a topic that’s been discussed ad nauseum for the better part of the last couple of weeks, and now that it’s been resolved (or at least decided) I’m going to take one last lick at this dead horse before we put it to bed…until the beginning of September that is, when we’re sure to dig it back up and beat it to death all over again.

For now, it’s time for Ravens fans to let go of the “woe is us” and realize that this couldn’t have worked out any better for the team.

In the Harbaugh era, and to some degree before it, there are two giant hammers that the Ravens have wielded consistently. The Ravens have been near impossible to beat at home, and are undefeated when they’ve had extra rest or opportunity to prepare for an opponent. There’s no need to swing both of those hammers at the same time, and all Schedule-Gate has done is prevented the Ravens from having to.

I get that fans want to celebrate the team’s Super Bowl win with the whole world watching; but what’s best for the team? It’s kind of laughable that those who consider themselves fans of the Ravens suddenly seem to be more interested in having center stage for themselves for one night in September, than they are in giving the Ravens their best opportunity at winning enough games to possibly make another Super Bowl run.

The Harbaugh era Ravens are 5-0 in opening games and 14-0 when having 10 or more days to prepare for an opponent (including openers). It’s probably also worth mentioning that 4 of those 5 opening game wins have been at home (so much for the “NFL is out to get us” angle). Now that it’s decided that the Ravens will open on the road, there are only 3 games that should be up for consideration for the NFL’s showcase. Not coincidentally, those games happen to be the Ravens 3 toughest looking road games as well (Pittsburgh, Cincinnati or Denver). Since there’s no avoiding having to play those games anyway, doing it in the first week of the season is ideal.

It’s better to get Peyton Manning and Wes Welker in the first game of the year, when they’re still trying to figure one another out, and probably more ideal to get in and out of Denver before the frost settles in. While it by no means insures the Ravens will win; it seems to give them their best chance to win. In fact, if we can get over our hurt feelings for long enough to think about the good of the team, ideally the Ravens would open in Denver, and then on the back of 10 days rest head to either Pittsburgh or Cincinnati, and then return to Baltimore for the home opener.

It’s also worth mentioning that opening on Thursday night has not always precluded teams from having to play another Thursday game in the same season. Given that the Ravens are defending Super Bowl champions, it would seem likely that they’ll get their maximum 5 prime time games, and that there’s a real possibility that they’ll have another Thursday game. Opening on Thursday, on the road would not only prevent the Ravens from having to be ready for Thursday night on 3 days rest, but would also virtually insure that if they did get a 2^nd Thursday game it would be in Baltimore, with another (likely tough) opponent having to prepare and travel on short rest.

So if we’re keeping score at home, the NFL played the role of bully on behalf of NBC, and tried to impose themselves on the Orioles. The Orioles held their ground and as a result are stuck with a September 5^th game that is sure to be a dog attendance-wise because it’s going up against the Ravens opener. The Ravens by opening on the road against a tough opponent will have a likely better chance to win a tough road game than they would otherwise, and may still get a Thursday home game with significant, inherent advantages built in. Someone remind me again why everyone is so mad at the Orioles over this. Oh yeah…it’s because we miss out on the chance to scream “look at us” to the football world while pounding our chests, right?

Sign me up, 10 times out of 10, for the schedule formula that gives the Ravens the best shot at being a playoff team, or a division winner, or a home playoff game host, or a bye week possessor. Frankly I’m shocked that Ravens fans are having such trouble grasping this one. I thought better of most of you.

Lastly, if the locker room somehow sees this as a slight, as fans clearly have, then it facilitates the mentality that has seemed to serve them so well lately. It’s Baltimore against the world as usual. If that works, so be it. But the Ravens are the winners in this mess; it’s just that some folks’ sensitivity won’t allow them to see it.

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This week has been comparable to the reaction I saw after Baltimore got crushed at home by the Denver Broncos towards the end of the season and fans were saying the Ravens wouldn’t win another game and that Ozzie Newsome cannot possibly give Flacco a contract that would make him the highest paid quarterback in history. Ravens fans have been so outraged these past few days with the trade of Anquan Boldin, the release of Bernard Pollard and their inability to retain Dannell Ellerbe.

First, there is no way Baltimore was, or could even afford to pay Ellerbe $35 million over five years, and honestly, he is not worth that kind of money.

Boldin was immediately rumored to be a salary cap casualty as soon as the Super Bowl was over, so we all knew, at least if you paid attention, that Boldin was likely not going to be back in Baltimore next season. Keep in mind, the Ravens did attempt to keep Anquan asking him to take a pay cut to stay, which has happened before in the world of the NFL, and some have taken that option, and others, like Boldin did, reject it because they do not want to play for less, which he had every right to do. I love Boldin, he played like a Raven, and is one of my favorite players, but the NFL is a business, and the financials did not support keeping Boldin at his $7.5 million cap number, and the Ravens did not feel he was worth that kind of money. It happens, remember Ben Grubs last year? Jarret Johnson? What happened? Our Ravens WON THE SUPER BOWL!

In regards to Bernard Pollard, this is not a power play by John Harbaugh, so if you think this is the case you need to get a clue and check out Drew’s blog this morning regarding it. Pollard was not only a disruption on the field sometimes with his constantly penalized hits (I will admit, that did not bother me, he played the game hard and did the Raven thing and intimidated the opponent), but Pollard’s locker room antics were the biggest disruption. Again check out Drew’s blog for the full details and read about his incident with Josh Bynes after the loss to the Washington Redskins. Next season, Pollard will be playing with his fourth team in the NFL in just eight seasons, there is a reason the Chiefs, Texans, and now the Ravens let him go. His teammates do not want him there.

Lastly, and most importantly, Ravens fans need to wake up and realize they have without a shout of a doubt, the best GM in the NFL. Ozzie Newsome has been our GM ever since we came to Baltimore and he has delivered two Super Bowls titles, four Division titles, and nine playoff appearances over 17 years. For you math estute readers, that is more playoff appearances than non playoff appearances, there are not many teams out there that can make that claim over the last 17 years. In fact, if you want to get even more technical, Baltimore has gone to the playoffs nine times in the last 13 seasons!! Newsome has also put together a full out defensive team that won the Super Bowl and a primarily offensive team that won the Super Bowl, thus proving he is not one dimensional in that regard as well. We praise Newsome for ten months of the year, but right around this time of year, all of the sudden Ravens fans either forget or ignore what Ozzie has done for this franchise.

I am not saying that I haven’t been surprised for some of the moves that have occured over the past week, but I sit back and always say to myself that “Ozzie must have a plan, like he always does.”

So please step back from the ledge Baltimore and join me in saying “In Ozzie we Trust!”

The post Ravens fans need to take a deep breath and trust in Ozzie appeared first on We Never Stop Talking Baltimore Sports.

Reflection on the convergence of circumstances that led to the Ravens improbable playoff run and Super Bowl victory would be difficult to believe if we hadn’t witnessed it with our own eyes. For all of the tremendous and heart wrenching storylines that unfolded around the team, it was a difficult decision made at a difficult time that seemed to have the biggest impact on the team’s ultimate success. Parting company with long time Offensive Coordinator Cam Cameron, and replacing him with Quarterbacks Coach Jim Caldwell was likely the biggest of the numerous catalysts to the Ravens success.

Since that time, Cameron has probably shouldered an unfair amount of the blame. It’s tough to indict Cameron’s offense as the cause of all of the Ravens problems without at least giving him some credit for the foundation he built under those guys. And Caldwell has probably gotten an overstated amount of credit too. It’s unlikely that whatever it was that the Ravens were lacking under Cameron, was taught to them by Caldwell in just about 2 ½ weeks before crunch time was upon them. Make no mistake though, without the change being made, the season probably plays out much differently and the Ravens probably aren’t the Super Bowl champions.

What we have seen from the Caldwell led offense has been enough to have fans giddy with anticipation over what next year might be for this offense. It also has to have the Ravens concerned about the potential of their OC being a lame duck.

John Harbaugh’s ride as Ravens Head Coach has been an interesting one to say the least. As a former Special Teams Coordinator, Harbaugh is typically (and unfairly) seen as a master of neither offense nor defense. Therefore, when fans have praise or criticism to dole out on one side of the ball or the other, it usually bypasses the Head Coach and falls directly to his coordinators. This has been (mostly) a convenient position for Harbaugh.

One thing that can’t be denied is that Harbaugh’s confidence has outpaced his experience since his arrival in Baltimore and has been an essential part of his success as well. While most guys given head coaching opportunities, for the first time ever, at the NFL level have seemed to go out of their way to clear out any coaches from their supporting staff with NFL head coaching experience, Harbaugh has embraced these types.

In his first season as Head Coach, Harbaugh’s staff featured Cameron, vanquished from Miami, Jim Zorn, fresh off a head coaching stint with the Redskins, and Rex Ryan, with whom he competed for the Ravens top job. In business, top managers and CEOs have been called wise for embracing a willingness to surround themselves with people smarter than themselves in the areas that those people are hired to preside over. Harbaugh has done this at the NFL level and done it successfully. Welcoming Jim Caldwell as QB Coach last season was further evidence of that philosophy.

Another aspect of the Ravens success, one that precedes Harbaugh, on the defensive side of the ball has been the practice of promoting from within. The downside of dominant defense has been the tendency of other teams to scalp defensive coaches from the Ravens. The lineage of Ravens Defensive Coordinators, going back to Marvin Lewis, has always entailed replacing the departing coach with someone already on staff and already familiar with the language, tendencies and philosophies that made the last coach successful. The Ravens would do well to make that happen on the offense too. The question becomes whether or not that candidate is already on staff.

Make no mistake about it; with his influence over the Ravens post-season run, Jim Caldwell has made himself a hot commodity once again. It’d be fair to suggest that Caldwell is already at the top of most head coaching wish lists for 2014. Couple that with “Rooney Rule” requirements and the vocal disappointment of the league over no opportunities given to minority head coaches this year, and Caldwell is all but gone barring an offensive catastrophe for the Ravens in 2013.

So while the Ravens haven’t always felt compelled to have a QB coach on staff, it would seem imperative not only to find one for 2013, but moreover to find one that they’d feel comfortable grooming to succeed Caldwell when he likely rides off into the sunset for a head coaching gig after next season.

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First person to get an accurate headcount gets a free Hurricane next time in The Big Easy!

I’m wondering which 10 of these are the only listeners we have at WNST. LOL…

Enjoy the march…and if you spot yourself, throw us a note: nasty@wnst.net.

We’re planning the NOLA March reunion over a beer in the spring!

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Two players that really come to mind; Ed Reed and Torrey Smith. Both suffered the tragic deaths of their brothers in the past 18 months but powered through the emotional back lash. Reed went out and played every game since the incident, and played at a pretty high level as well. Now this may have been his last game as a Raven, adding into the praise the future Hall of Famer earned along the way.

The utmost respect goes out to Torrey Smith though, as he essentially had the game of his career, against the Patriots in Week 3, just hours after receiving news of his brothers motorcycle accident. Smith has grown into not just an outstanding player, but human being as well. His mental toughness played a big role in getting the Ravens to New Orleans.

Many other veterans along the roster deserve credit for their performances and drive to lead to the ultimate victory. Lewis already has his ring and fate was sealed as an all-time great a long time ago, but Anquan Boldin and Matt Birk are players still writing their legacy. Boldin has been the most important player on the roster not named Flacco the past couple months.

As the big name free agent three years ago, he was supposed to be the center of the passing game, after his illustrious career in Arizona. Cam Cameron never used him as such, but never did we hear complaints from a player whose Hall of Fame career was derailed by the past versions of the Ravens offense. Boldin has always put this team first, and when given the opportunity to take on a leadership role on and off the field, he took full advantage of it the year. As being on the losing end of a previous Super Bowl, Boldin was crucial to this team keeping calm during such a difficult season long run.

Matt Birk is a former All-Pro, which has never smelled the Super Bowl throughout most of his career before coming to Baltimore. After being one of the most underrated players in the league, Birk, like Lewis, will end his career as a champion. He may never make his way to Canton, but for a stand up individual, who led as a professional, nothing could be a better send off.

Now to the two people that made the biggest impact on the Ravens Super Bowl march all season long; the Quarterback and the Head Coach. To start Flacco had to establish himself for this team to make the next step and did he ever. Having one of, if not the best, postseasons by a QB in NFL history puts Flacco into a different stratosphere. Sure he has some inconsistency but his career path follows the mold of Eli Manning, which has proven to be pretty damn good. The Ravens will not let him go, and with Lewis moving on, it was at the utmost importance for Joe to make it his team.

As far as the Head Coach, John Harbaugh proved to best the laundry list of excellent competitors in his way. Starting with the emotional game against the Chuck Pagano led Colts, out dueling Peyton Manning and John Fox, then taking it to Bill Belicheck and Tom Brady, Harbaugh proved to make a big name for himself in a “Super” way (I know that’s cliché). No other individual deserves more credit than Harbaugh, who stared down every challenge this season (and there were a lot) and came out the victor. Whether it was personnel changes, staff changes, holding an injury riddled roster together, or making crucial in game decisions, the Ravens Head Coach was simply phenomenal.

So congratulations to the Ravens, who defied all the expectations (including my own) and became World Champions as a team. It is nice that a G.O.A.T. like Ray Lewis could walk off into the sunset with a ring, but this game was so much more than that. The sexy headlines only tell a small portion of the 2012-2013 Baltimore Ravens.

The post It Wasn’t About Ray appeared first on We Never Stop Talking Baltimore Sports.

It’s no secret that 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is a dynamic athlete that is capable of big plays through the air and on the ground. Since he has earned the starting job over backup quarterback Alex Smith, no one has been a more prolific passer in terms of deep passes than Kaepernick. During his stint as the starter, Kaepernick has a 54.9 completion percentage on passes  of 20 yards or more.  This is quite the contrast from what the 49ers were last year as an offense. Last season, they were more conservative and relied on playing mistake-free football, rely on their ground-and-pound style featuring Frank Gore and throw the occasional deep ball to Vernon Davis.

With Kaepernick in at quarterback, they obviously have a much more dynamic and exciting running game that still features Gore, but primarily runs through Kaepernick– the pistol option quarterback. His throwing ability has also resulted in the emergence of wide receiver Michael Crabtree as he is playing like a top 10 receiver. This offense will be productive simply because of the scheme and the athletic ability of the 49ers playmakers, regardless of what the Ravens do to try and stop the pistol.

2. Joe Flacco will continue his postseason success and toss three touchdowns against the highly regarded 49ers defense.

114.7 quarterback rating. Eight touchdowns. Zero interceptions.

These are Joe Flacco’s numbers  this postseason. He is up there with the likes of Montana, Young, Brees in terms of his postseason numbers. Joe Flacco has been the reason why the Ravens are where they are on the field. Yes, I understand the emotional lift that Ray Lewis has given this team, but Flacco has been the main reason this team is playing for the Super Bowl title in New Orleans. Flacco has elevated his game to… “elite” status. Yes, I hate using that.

One of the most noticeable differences in Flacco’s game this postseason has been the addition of Jim Caldwell as the offensive coordinator. Clearly, he and Flacco have a much better chemistry and relationship than Joe had with Cam Cameron, who was fired with three weeks left in the regular season. Caldwell has found a way to maximize Flacco’s potential, giving him plays that showcase his decision making and strong arm. He’s primarily been throwing balls to his right and that’s where he shines– see the Jacoby Jones touchdown against the Broncos.

The Ravens can continue to use the seams against the 49ers as Willis and Bowman have struggled stopping tight ends and receivers coming over the middle on slants and posts. If they stay on the gas pedal early and often, expect big days from Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith, Dennis Pitta and Flacco once again.

3. Ray Lewis will have double digit tackles once again and finish the postseason and his career strong.

Let’s be honest, Ray is clearly not made like the rest of us (insert deer antler joke here).

Ray has come back to this team and been the best defensive player on the field each time he’s crossed the white lines. He hasn’t missed a single down of defense. He has played with an arm brace that makes him look like a transformer. A facemask that makes him look like Bane.

Regardless of his appearance, Ray has found a way to lead the postseason in total tackles — 44 in three postseason games. He is displaying incredible field awareness and a nose for the football not typical of a 37-year-old linebacker.

This will be Ray’s final game unless he decides to go Brett Favre on us. Let’s get real, he will play the game of his life with whatever is left in the tank.

4. Jacoby Jones will do a “Super” dance in his hometown as he will return a punt for a touchdown.

It’s his hometown and Ravens wide receiver and kick return specialist Jacoby Jones told me in the locker room last week that he has a “Super” dance planned for his folks. Obviously, talk is cheap and it’s just a matter of performing and actually backing up the talk with a result on the field.

This is the game where Ravens head coach John Harbaugh and special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg may look to dial up a more creative scheme to get Jones in space on kick and punt returns. No one knows John Harbaugh better than his brother 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh. They share schemes throughout the season and give each other tips for how they can improve on each facet of the game. John’s specialty is special teams, as he was a long-time coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles prior to his stint in Baltimore.

Look for Jacoby Jones to do his best Jermaine Lewis impersonation and score a touchdown on the biggest stage. Enjoy The Choppa City Juke.

5. The Ravens’ magical run will end in triumph as the Ravens defeat the 49ers 31-21.

Both of these offenses are going to put up points which is not something these franchises are used to seeing in recent memory. Kaepernick’s athleticism  and the pistol offense are enough to scare any defensive coordinator and keep them up through the night. However, Flacco will outplay the young quarterback, who will be making just his 10th start ever. Ray Lewis and the Ravens will finish this magical run and capture the franchise’s second Super Bowl.

Prediction:

Ravens- 31

49ers- 21

The post Five predictions for Ravens-49ers appeared first on We Never Stop Talking Baltimore Sports.

The sad fact, for football fans in general, is that the more you that watch games and then compare what you’ve seen to what the pundits are spewing, the quicker you come to realize that those who are paid to opine and comment on football games can’t seem to be bothered to actually watch much football. Instead it seems that many have defaulted into the habit of watching whatever games are of local interest to them or are being served up in their areas, along with the prime time games, and then forming their opinions on the rest of the field based on what they’ve seen in highlight packages or heard from someone else.

That being the case, this seems to be a Super Bowl match-up served specifically into the collective wheelhouse of the lazy media, as there’s little useful film on either of these teams outside of their playoff games. The Ravens changed offensive coordinators near the end of their season and took a couple of weeks to find a rhythm as an offense. Also, the national media seems to have been mesmerized by the Ray Lewis story to such an extent that they’ve missed the biggest single reason for the Ravens improved results, the inclusion of Bryant McKinnie on the offensive line. McKinnie’s presence has not only improved the Ravens at left tackle, but by casting Michael Oher back to right tackle has improved the team there too, and that move having pushed Kelechi Osemele to left guard has improved a 3rd offensive line position making the impact of McKinnie exponential.

The results have been undeniable, quarterback Joe Flacco, now better protected seems to have more time and confidence in the pocket allowing him to focus downfield and utilize his greatest strength, his strong and accurate arm. In the lead-up to the Broncos game, no one was suggesting that Denver had an issue in their secondary, because they hadn’t shown one all year. Hindsight now shows that perhaps the edge rush capabilities of Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil was a big part of the secondary’s success. When that pass rush was neutralized by the Ravens new look offensive line, the secondary couldn’t find an answer and the rest was academic.

Hindsight as well would suggest that the “finesse” offenses of the Broncos and Patriots weren’t ready to respond to the physical style of play that the Ravens defense brings regularly. The evidence, on the Patriots side of the equation was there based on their previous meetings with the Ravens, as well as their inability to deal with the physical defensive stylings of the 49ers, Seahawks and Cardinals. The NFC West, it seems, is becoming very AFC North-like when it comes to defensive prowess.

As the Ravens and 49ers prepare to meet for a title, the read option offense run by the Niners and the bold decision by coach Jim Harbaugh to change quarterbacks mid-season are the talk of the football world. What’s being overlooked however, probably because of the physical nature of San Francisco’s defense, is that their offense hasn’t exactly responded well to the physical style of play the Ravens defense projects to bring to the table against them. The Niners are bullies on defense but may be prone to getting bullied on offense.

The 49ers are a Slick Offensive Football Team. Their current brand of offense is geared more toward getting defenses off balance and tricking them than it is to simply lining up and beating teams physically. There’s nothing wrong with that, as league-wide there are plenty of teams finding success with that formula; unfortunately for San Francisco, they haven’t been finding success against defenses like the Ravens.

Slick Offensive Football Team = S.O.F.T.

While Colin Kaepernick seems to be the wildcard in the assessment of the 49ers offense, the team’s handling of Kaepernick makes it even wilder. Not only did the Niners change QBs mid-season, but even after making the change they seemed to try making him fit into a pro-style offense and force him to be a pocket QB. Once the playoffs came around though, the Niners have gone much more read option heavy and as a result, much like the Ravens, it becomes difficult to draw many conclusions about the 49ers based on anything other than their playoff games based on a glaring and dramatic change in strategy.

The post 49ers Offense is S.O.F.T. appeared first on We Never Stop Talking Baltimore Sports.

Even though their destiny isn’t completely in their hands, the Ravens will be more at ease since they guaranteed themselves a home playoff game with last week’s win.

It is also a sigh of relief for the team that they garnered a win to escape their three-game skid — their worst such streak since 2009.

All thoughts of “backing in” to the playoffs were dismissed last week as the Ravens virtually dominated the Giants on home turf.

That being said, the Ravens aren’t looking to rest too many players going into the regular season finale.

As they shouldn’t.

As former Jets and Chiefs head coach Herman Edwards once said, “You play to win the game, hello!”

The Ravens have been banged up quite a bit this season and it would seem that the Ravens would try to give some of their valuable commodities some form of rest in the final week of the regular season. The Ravens have more on their minds though.

They have instead decided to rest some of their players during the week that are nursing injuries but are looking to play come Sunday. They are also trying to give some players that have missed significant time this season a good amount of practice reps as players like Ray Lewis and Jimmy Smith were full participants in practice on Thursday.

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh announced earlier this week that Ray Lewis, despite practicing fully, will not return to action until the postseason.

It is a little alarming that Anquan Boldin and Albert McClellan were limited Thursday, but the Ravens may decide to rest them as McClellan missed last week’s game (shoulder/thigh) and Boldin left the game after making a diving catch in the second half (shoulder).

The status of Bernard Pollard remains uncertain even though he was a full participant at practice Thursday.

Even though the Ravens still have quite a few injuries, they will play to win against a Bengals team that can’t improve their position as the sixth seed in the AFC.

The Ravens will use this game to try and fine tune things on both sides of the ball and finish the regular season how they started — with a win over the Bengals.

Offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell had to be pleased with his unit’s performance last week against the Giants as the offense took a complete 180 and put 33 on the board as they won in convincing fashion. They also netted an astounding 533 net yards on offense and both Bernard Pierce and Ray Rice went for over 100 yards on the ground.

Defensive coordinator Dean Pees had to be satisfied with his defense even though they didn’t commit any turnovers. Giving up under 186 net yards on offense last week reminded Ravens fans of the “golden years” of the Ravens, where defense was the main staple in the organization’s success.

The Ravens will use the Cincinnati game to finalize any holes they may have heading into the postseason, while also giving select players the rest they need to be healthy going into Wild Card weekend.

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