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ExtremeRavens: The Sanctuary

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  1. Today
  2. Somebody brought up this might coralate with cox and Koch. His little team was broken up and it might be in his head.
  3. Yesterday
  4. I heard an interview with Stover on Tucker's struggles. He essentially said that it is normal when it comes to kicking, even he had his struggles over the course of his career. He does feel Justin will work things out, just as he did with the 56 yarder in the game after 2 misses. Fun story time; I used to work for Howard County parks & recs. During the off season, Stover, who lived near Centennial field in Howard County, I worked at the park down the road, would go out to Centennial to practice his kicks. Now in the off season, the fields are closed to help the grass recover from the heavy use. Well, one Saturday, a worker there kicked him off the field. When Matt tried to explain, the guy didn't want to hear it. Oh not because he was on a power trip, rather, because he was a Redslurs fan Matt did get to keep practicing there once cooler heads found out.
  5. I don’t think he can win a sb. I have not seen him win high leverage games with any consistency. This d plays well for a game doesn’t make it close to fixed.
  6. Generally speaking he's been solid this year. I think he's become the type of QB who can win a SB especially with the cast of skill players he has right now. But the O-line is only mediocre. We sure miss having an experienced RT and RG. The D is a work in progress and needs more talent. Pass rush, while decent, and secondary can't shut down an opposing team. Don't know for sure if coaching is a problem there or not...I tend to think it is.
  7. Terrell Suggs’ trial in Arizona won’t be held until 2025 after the former Raven’s defense attorney asked for a delay to give Maricopa County prosecutors time to review a request that could settle the former linebacker’s criminal case, according to court records. The request for a delay came ahead of a scheduled pre-trial hearing last week in advance of Suggs’ trial date, which had been set to start Tuesday morning in Phoenix. It was also just over a week before the two-time Super Bowl champion was named a semifinalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025. The paperwork indicates that plea negotiations were likely underway. In his motion for a delay, defense attorney Craig Penrod wrote that the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office was in the midst of reviewing a “proposed deviation request” — a formal ask from the defense during pre-trial negotiations in criminal cases for prosecutors to offer a defendant more favorable terms, either through a less-harsh plea deal or by not taking certain charges to trial. Suggs’ trial on charges of disorderly conduct involving a weapon and misdemeanor intimidation had been planned for September, but was postponed until Tuesday after Penrod asked for a postponement to gather information for the request. Penrod did not return a request for comment Wednesday. The request could ultimately settle the case, Penrod wrote in his Nov. 12 motion, though lawyers “may need to participate in a settlement conference” if they can’t reach an agreement. Otherwise, Suggs’ lawyer will need additional time to prepare for trial, if one becomes necessary, he wrote. Suggs’ criminal case stems from a March incident where prosecutors allege the 2011 NFL Defensive Player of the Year threatened to kill a motorist and pulled out a gun after backing into the driver’s vehicle in a Starbucks drive-through in Scottsdale, Arizona, where the retired Raven lives. Suggs, 42, has said through a representative that he feared for his safety when the man in the vehicle escalated an “incident,” adding that he was simply getting coffee near his home and “not looking for any trouble.” Suggs was arrested on April 9 and released from jail the next morning. An Arizona grand jury indicted him days later, and he subsequently pleaded not guilty to both charges. Suggs, drafted out of Arizona State by Baltimore in 2003, spent 16 years with the Ravens before his final NFL season in 2019, when he played for the Arizona Cardinals and then the Kansas City Chiefs. Have a news tip? Contact Dan Belson at dbelson@baltsun.com, 443-790-4827, on X as @DanBelson_ or on Signal as @danbels.62. View the full article
  8. For much of this season, the prevailing opinion around the NFL was that the Ravens were perhaps best suited to unseat the two-time reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. After Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore might have a much bumpier path to the promised land. As coach John Harbaugh often says, “it’s a week-to-week league.” The tide can turn quickly in a tightly contested AFC. But the 7-4 Ravens — the only current wild-card team with multiple losses to teams with losing records, two of which are now 2-8 — are now two games back of the Steelers (8-2) in the AFC North, tight-roping a sixth-place wild-card spot. If the season ended today, Baltimore would travel back to Pittsburgh for the wild-card round. Should quarterback Lamar Jackson exorcise his black-and-gold demons, the Ravens would likely fly north to face the Bills (9-2), who the Ravens beat at home in Week 4. A win there would likely mean an AFC championship game rematch in Kansas City (9-1) with a Super Bowl trip on the line. It’s a gantlet, but not unprecedented. Remember 2012? Baltimore beat the Indianapolis Colts headed by NFL Rookie of the Year runner-up Andrew Luck, albeit at home. It took a “Mile High Miracle” to get past Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos. And what closer comparison is there for a potential bout with Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City than having beaten Tom Brady’s Patriots in Foxborough? The Athletic’s 2024 playoff prediction model, which factors in projected strength, current health and remaining strength of schedule, spits out a 6% chance of Jackson hoisting his first Lombardi Trophy. A possible trio of playoff road games in Pittsburgh, Buffalo and Kansas City — Harbaugh’s record in such contests is an inconclusive 6-6 since 2009 — would supplementarily require the Bills to advance past the Broncos (6-5) in the divisional round and the Chiefs, who maintain the first-round bye, to get past the winner of the Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) vs. Houston Texans (7-4). Both of those teams lead Baltimore in the standings by a hair. They’re also included in what ESPN’s Football Power Index considers the 17th easiest remaining schedule. The Athletic model pegs Baltimore to finish with 11 wins. That would mean four wins over this next stretch: Monday, Nov. 25 at Los Angeles Chargers Sunday, Dec. 1 vs. Philadelphia Eagles Sunday, Dec. 15 at New York Giants Saturday, Dec. 21 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Wednesday, Dec. 25 at Houston Texans Sunday, Jan. 5 vs. Cleveland Browns Sunday’s loss to the Steelers could prove to be no more than an anomaly. Baltimore has only beaten its biggest rival once in its past nine meetings. They’re a statistical kryptonite. But the Ravens still boast the league’s most potent offense. And despite looming injury concerns to linebacker Roquan Smith (hamstring) and defensive tackle Travis Jones (ankle), the defense played one of its best games of the season. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Former Raven Terrell Suggs’ trial in Arizona postponed amid potential plea negotiations Baltimore Ravens | Former Ravens Terrell Suggs, Marshal Yanda among 25 semifinalists for Pro Football Hall of Fame Baltimore Ravens | Ravens legend Ray Lewis reportedly emerges as college coaching candidate Baltimore Ravens | What’s wrong with Ravens kicker Justin Tucker? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens bolster secondary, add former All-Pro CB Desmond King to practice squad Sunday was also oddly Pittsburgh’s first divisional game of the year. Facing the 11th toughest remaining schedule, the Steelers have five of their final seven games against AFC North foes. Kansas City and Philadelphia are the other two opponents. Should the Ravens bypass Pittsburgh for the top seed in the AFC North, beating the Chargers, Texans and Steelers along the way, the entire playoff picture swiftly reshuffles. The jury doesn’t pay much mind to how the Ravens do in the regular season, anyway. They’ve been to the playoffs every year Jackson has been healthy since they drafted him in 2018. He’s a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player. Pundits, rightfully, only care about his and Baltimore’s postseason resume. “[Backup quarterback] Josh Johnson broke down practice today,” fullback Pat Ricard said Wednesday. “He said we have to attack each game here on out as if it’s a playoff game. That’s the level of focus we need to have.” Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. View the full article
  9. Last Jan I saw one that was all his fault.
  10. Former Ravens Terrell Suggs and Marshal Yanda moved closer to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Wednesday. Both are among 25 modern-era semifinalists for the Class of 2025, the Hall of Fame announced. Suggs and Yanda have a chance to join Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Jonathan Ogden in being enshrined as first-ballot selections. Other semifinalists who also played for Baltimore include Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith Sr., Willie Anderson and Earl Thomas. Former Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata did not make the cut from last month’s list of 50 that had been whittled down from 167 initial nominees. Suggs ranks eighth all-time in sacks with 139 over 17 seasons, all but once of which he spent with the Ravens. Drafted 10th overall out of Arizona State by Baltimore in 2003, the outside linebacker was also the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2011 with a career-high 14 sacks and seven forced fumbles and the league’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2003 with a dozen sacks. He was also an All-Pro in 2011, selected to seven Pro Bowls and won two Super Bowls, including one with the Ravens during the 2012 season and another with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2019 in the final year of his career. Suggs, 42, was arrested in Arizona earlier this year after allegedly threatening to kill another driver and pulling out a gun at a Starbucks drive-through in what was the latest incident in a long list of legal troubles, but the Hall of Fame explicitly instructs voters to consider only what players do on the field. Yanda, meanwhile, was a two-time All-Pro and selected to the Pro Bowl in eight of his nine seasons at right guard. He was also named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team and like Suggs helped Baltimore to its second championship in 2012. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Ravens legend Ray Lewis reportedly emerges as college coaching candidate Baltimore Ravens | What’s wrong with Ravens kicker Justin Tucker? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens bolster secondary, add former All-Pro CB Desmond King to practice squad Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 11: Maybe the Ravens are just undisciplined Baltimore Ravens | Coach John Harbaugh thinks Ravens might have found ‘formula’ at safety He spent his entire 13-year career with the Ravens before retiring in 2019. Smith, who was with Baltimore for his final three years in the league from 2014 to 2016, was a two-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl selection and ranks eighth on the all-time receiving list (14,731). Boldin, who played for the Ravens from 2010 through 2012 and was a three-time Pro Bowl selection before his arrival, was also a key contributor to Baltimore’s title run and ranks 14th in the NFL in career receiving yards (13,779). The list of 25 nominees will be cut to 15 finalists later this year, with between four and eight being selected for induction into the class of 2025. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article
  11. Ravens legend and Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis is being floated as a college football coaching candidate. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Wednesday morning that the 49-year-old is in the mix to be Florida Atlantic University’s next football coach. However, CBS’ Matt Zenitz reported shortly after that it’s “highly unlikely” and there has been no direct communication between Lewis and FAU, which fired coach Tom Herman on Tuesday after he went 6-16 in two seasons. Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger posted on X that folks involved with the coaching search said pretty bluntly, “It’s not happening.” Lewis, who retired in 2013 after winning two Super Bowl titles in 17 seasons with Baltimore and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018, has no previous coaching experience. He has worked as an NFL analyst for ESPN and wrote a New York Times bestselling memoir. If Lewis were to make the leap into coaching — at FAU, which is located in Boca Raton, Florida, and near where Lewis grew up in Miami, or elsewhere — he would be following a precedent set by Colorado coach and fellow NFL legend Deion Sanders. Sanders was hired to coach at Jackson State in 2020 and led the Tigers to consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference titles. He left in 2022 to coach in Boulder and this season has led Colorado to an 8-2 record, a No. 16 ranking and in the mix for a Big 12 Conference championship. Unlike Lewis, however, Sanders had multiple high school coaching gigs before moving to the college ranks. Even if Lewis doesn’t wind up coaching, Ravens fans still might gush at the thought of his legendary pregame speeches regularly finding their way into a college program. Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. View the full article
  12. It would help if players around him did not turn the ball over. 3 turnovers and none of them his fault, though he gets "credited" with one. I know, he missed a number of throws, but still...
  13. That’s real. Let’s see how it stays if teams keep the same defensive style.
  14. I do agree, qbr is subjective. But his td to picks ratio is real.
  15. Most would remember NFL kicker Matt Stover for an enduring career that spanned 19 years, mostly with the Ravens, and in 2000 saw him help them to their first Super Bowl title. It was in that season that Baltimore failed to score an offensive touchdown in five straight games but won two of them on the right leg of its All-Pro, who went on to lead the league in attempts and makes during the regular season and booted the game-winner against the Tennessee Titans in the divisional round of the playoffs. But “Automatic Stover,” as Ravens legend and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis dubbed him, wasn’t always so. Over Stover’s first three years in Baltimore from 1996 through 1999, he made just 75.9% of his field goals. That included missing his last five attempts of the 1997 season and three more in the 1998 opener. Former coach Brian Billick also once chased him down the sideline in front of his teammates, demanding to know if he could just make the next kick. Current Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has yet to endure such discomfiture from current coach John Harbaugh, but he has sunken to a similar level of struggle. Tucker has missed five field goals in the Ravens’ four losses this season. That included failing to convert a 56-yarder in a three-point loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 2 and missing from 47 and 50 yards in Sunday’s ugly 18-16 defeat against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. Through 11 games, his six misses are already one more than all of last season and with one more miss he will tie his career high, which came in 2015 when he connected on 33 of 40 attempts. “Certainly haven’t lost any confidence in Justin Tucker,” Harbaugh said Monday, adding that he has no plans to bring in any competition for the job. “He’s definitely our best option, and he’s going to make a lot of kicks — I really believe that — going forward.” Tucker, who turns 35 on Thursday and has slipped from the most accurate kicker in league history to second, believes that as well. “I’m still confident I’m going to go out there and nail every single kick,” he said following Sunday’s game. “Part of the way we stay confident is by continuing to work and trust the process. I might sound like a broken record, but it’s a part of what brings us success — is just trusting the process and then taking it one kick at a time.” But as uneasiness grows among the fan base, there is at least some reason to believe and not fret. For one, none of Tucker’s misses (53, 56, 46, 50, 47 and 50 yards) have come up short — all have been wide left. For another, history. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker is enduring the worst slump of his NFL career. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Some of the best kickers have overcome periods of turbulence in otherwise long and fruitful careers, including Stover, who bounced back to make 83.8% of his 563 career attempts and landed in the Ravens Ring of Honor. He did so by going back to fundamentals. Sometimes, that meant praying to remind himself that he would be OK no matter what happened on the field. Sometimes, it meant figuring out with his wife how to reduce some stresses of home life. Sometimes, it meant reviewing his kicking journals to see what worked in previous seasons. “I had to work through a lot. I had to overcome bad performance. It’s part of the game,” Stover said. “The desire to want that ball is the No. 1 trait a kicker has to have. I always worked myself back into that mode after I had a poor performance. It didn’t make that next kick easy. In fact, it was a bit more difficult. But I wasn’t running from it. I jumped right back into the fire, and that’s how I handled it emotionally.” Others turned to outside help. Morten Andersen’s Hall of Fame career spanned a quarter century, mostly with the New Orleans Saints, and he connected on the second-most field goals in history. But the “Great Dane” — Andersen was born in Copenhagen — wasn’t always great. Just three seasons after being the NFL’s best kicker in terms of accuracy in 1986, when he made 26 of 30 attempts and missed just one from inside 50 yards, he was one of the worst. In his eighth season and just two years removed from a league-high 28 field goals made, Andersen connected on only 20 of 29 kicks for what ended up being a career-low 69% (minimum 20 attempts), which ranked in the bottom third in the league that year. Five other times, he failed to crack 75%. Which is why early in his career he tapped sports psychologist Dr. John Silva to help him out of a funk. “It didn’t take that long after we started working to straighten a few things out,” Silva, an emeritus professor of sports psychology at the University of North Carolina, recalled. “We had to tighten up Morten’s routine and get him really disciplined that no matter what happens, make or miss, he stayed steadfastly with his preparation routine on the sidelines and with the routine he used on the field. We took away the mystique about different distances.” Silva advised Andersen and other clients to put “situational” confidence — the elation felt after a made kick or the devastation from a miss — in their back pockets and instead focus on “dispositional” confidence, a belief in their abilities over the long haul. “You’re only as good as your last kick; that’s such nonsense, to be honest with you,” Silva said, arguing against an “old-fashioned” method of motivational thinking that he considers damaging to elite athletes. Silva doesn’t know Tucker but said he would advise him not to mess with his technique or let in too many outside voices. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker connected on a 54-yard field goal against the Steelers after shifting his aim slightly. (Gene J. Puskar/AP) “His skill and routine have gotten him this far in his career,” he said. “The worst thing he could do now is start fooling around with it in season. … I would imagine he’s going to come out of this slump. I worked with a lot of placekickers. If they’re good and they have long careers, they all go through some period of time where things aren’t exactly right for them.” Varying examples abound, present and past. Before Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson went on to become one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history, his entree into the league was abruptly interrupted. A fifth-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in 2017, he beat out veteran Kai Forbath for the starting job only to promptly miss three field goals, including two in overtime, in a Week 2 game against the Green Bay Packers that ended in a 29-29 tie. He was waived the next day and replaced by Dan Bailey. “I think most of it was just technical things,” Carlson told AL.com in 2018. “Things that I had known about and wanted to improve for quite some time, even before my senior year of college at Auburn, I wanted to work on some things, but just was kind of too close to the season that I didn’t want to make those adjustments. “So there were adjustments that needed to be made before I obviously got to that, that technically would have helped me out a lot. And so, you know, of course I got cut, and I actually was able to make those adjustments after. That is kind of one of the bright side of things, silver lining is that I was finally able to make those adjustments that I needed to for a long time. You don’t have a lot of time off after your senior season of college.” Two months after being fired by the Vikings, Carlson hit three field goals for the Raiders in a 23-21 victory over the Arizona Cardinals, including the game-winner as time expired. He went on to make all but one of his field goals that season and his 94.1% set a then-franchise record, a mark he eclipsed by converting on 33 of 35 attempts (94.3%) in 2020. Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson hit the game-winner against the Ravens earlier this season at M&T Bank Stadium. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) “I learned a couple things,” Carlson said. “I think it was a little bit of redemption from that. And just to kind of have that feeling, ‘OK, I’m confident again, I’m back to where I wanted to be back then.’” Former longtime kicker Gary Anderson, who played for the Steelers from 1982 to 1994 and the Vikings from 1998 to 2002, along with four other teams, likewise wasn’t immune in a career that lasted over two decades. Though he was a two-time All-Pro, four-time Pro Bowl selection and ranks third in games played (353), points scored (2,434) and field goals made, he is perhaps most often remembered for a kick that he missed. In 1998, Minnesota went 15-1 and Anderson became the first kicker to convert every field goal and extra point during the regular season and had connected on 122 straight kicks. But in the NFC championship game at home against the Atlanta Falcons, he missed a 39-yarder with 2:11 remaining that would’ve given the Vikings a 10-point lead. Instead of Minnesota playing in its fifth Super Bowl and first since the 1976 season, the Falcons tied the game then won in overtime — with Andersen, the former Saint, knocking in a 38-yard field goal for the victory. The losing Anderson, meanwhile, went into a tailspin the next season, making just 19 of 30 field goals with his 63.3% a career low. But the following year he rebounded by converting on 22 of 23 attempts and over the final four seasons of his career he never made fewer than 77.3% of his field goals. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Former Ravens Terrell Suggs, Marshal Yanda among 25 semifinalists for Pro Football Hall of Fame Baltimore Ravens | Ravens legend Ray Lewis reportedly emerges as college coaching candidate Baltimore Ravens | Ravens bolster secondary, add former All-Pro CB Desmond King to practice squad Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 11: Maybe the Ravens are just undisciplined Baltimore Ravens | Coach John Harbaugh thinks Ravens might have found ‘formula’ at safety “It certainly was difficult,” Anderson told the St. Paul Pioneer Press in 2019 on the 20-year anniversary of the painful memory. “I took tremendous pride throughout my career about being the one guy on the team that everyone could count on in a critical situation and that time, that particular kick, I missed the kick. So, yeah, that was certainly a difficult thing to deal with.” “I always had an understanding that as a field-goal kicker, part of your job description is you’re kind of the most visible guy out there,’’ he said. “That’s just the nature of the job. As hard as you try to make all your kicks, you’re not going to make them all. Unfortunately, sometimes you’re going to miss a very important kick. You’d be in dreamland if you’d think everything was going to be rosy all the time.” And that’s why there is still plenty of belief in Tucker, from the man himself to those in the building to those who have been in his shoes. “What’s going on with Justin is very micro,” Stover said. “It could be a technique thing he’s fighting through. You kick great all week and then you get out there and your heart rate gets up a little bit and you try a little too hard. You try a little harder and you attack it too much. You ask a lot of golfers. You’ve got to get comfortable in your skin and just hit it easy. “Justin has set a standard that’s never been seen in the NFL. Who am I to say he’s not going to work out of it? Of course he is.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. Week 12 Ravens at Chargers Monday, 8:15 p.m. TV: ABC, ESPN Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM Line: Ravens by 3 View the full article
  16. That’s old. I no longer pay attn to qb rating as a stat. There is no rhyme or reason for the numbers. A qb has 4 incompletions and a sack but a perfect rating. The next qb has no incompletions and no sack but is missing a few points.
  17. Welp, Lamar has a 109.3 passer rating in cold weather games. https://www.si.com/nfl/ravens/news/ravens-weather062421#:~:text=SportsBettingDime.com thoroughly explored how,climate games among all quarterbacks
  18. Last week
  19. I am wondering if poorer play involves colder weather. LA will be nice so that should not be an issue.
  20. Well, Lamar after the game certainly fired everyone up, so we shall see. They generally play well on Monday nights, something like 6-2, Lamar with 20-0 tds to picks. Two of those games he had 5 tds.. so we shall see..
  21. The Ravens’ NFL-worst pass defense is adding reinforcement. Baltimore signed veteran cornerback Desmond King II to its practice squad on Tuesday. King was released last week from the Houston Texans’ practice squad. In a corresponding move, Baltimore released cornerback Bump Cooper Jr., an undrafted rookie out of Oregon State. King, 29, was an All-Pro as a defensive back and punt returner in 2018 for the Los Angeles Chargers, who drafted him in the fifth round out of Iowa in 2017. He has also played for the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers and had two stints with the Texans. King’s addition comes amid what has been a rough season for the Ravens’ secondary. Baltimore (7-4), which is coming off a mistake-filled 18-16 loss to the Steelers, is allowing a league-high 284.5 passing yards per game and ranks 28th in yards allowed per pass (7.7). The Ravens also rank 26th in total yards allowed per game (362) and 23rd in points allowed per game (24.6). The defensive backfield is getting thin as well. Last week, starting safety Marcus Williams was benched while fellow safety Eddie Jackson did not make the trip to Pittsburgh; coach John Harbaugh declined to say why. Rookie safety Sanoussi Kane also suffered an ankle injury and left Acrisure Stadium in a boot and on crutches, while cornerback Arthur Maulet suffered a calf injury in practice last week and was out Sunday. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 11: Maybe the Ravens are just undisciplined Baltimore Ravens | Coach John Harbaugh thinks Ravens might have found ‘formula’ at safety Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh explains failed 2-point attempt in loss to Steelers Baltimore Ravens | READER POLL: Do you like the Orioles’ new changes to Camden Yards’ left field wall? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens-Chargers connections go well beyond the Harbaugh brothers King, whose addition comes two weeks after the Ravens acquired cornerback Tre’Davious White in a trade, signed with the Texans’ practice squad this summer after being released during roster cuts at the end of training camp. King began last season with the Steelers and appeared in three games but was released last October and then signed with Houston, where he appeared in seven games (three starts). He finished with 47 tackles, one sack and two passes defended. For his career, King has 473 tackles, nine interceptions, seven fumble recoveries, three forced fumbles, 35 passes defended and 9 1/2 sacks along with 2,413 return yards and five total touchdowns. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article
  22. Concerned about this game. The Ravens didn't do well after losing the opener to KC the following week losing to the Raiders, and I'm afraid the long plane ride, time zone change, and very disappointing loss to Pitts will linger. Could be we come out flat and get beat by an inferior team? Up to Harbs to keep the team psyched up and focused. Does he still have the ability to do that? We will see.
  23. Ew, wash that ugly loss against a team the Ravens should have mashed, they were who we thought they were as the saying goes. Up next, the L A Chargers, yeah, that sounds weird to me as well. Are these the same old Chargers that find ways to lose important games? Well, the media would have us believe not, after all, they came back and beat the Bengals, currently sit at 7-3, have a plus 75 points in points allowed and pointsns scored. Oh yes and they are 5-2 in the AFC. New coach, new home in LA, new team? Maybe, then again, maybe not. Herbert is playing well in an old system run by a familiar name, Greg Roman. Run the ball, throw behind the run off of play action, slants, seam routes, occasional deep routes. Herbert is completing 63% of his passes, with 13 touchdowns and 1 pick. He has been sacked 23 times. He has added 182 yards on the ground with 1 score. Yes, he can run like a gazel, the Ravens need to keep disciplined rush lanes and eyes on him. They are averaging 22 points per game while holding their opponents to 14.5 points. They are pretty equal in 3rd down success with their opponents, 38% to 32 % respectively, and on 4th down as well, 66% to 64%. Their defense has recorded 9 picks & 34 sacks. They are allowing teams to average 4.7 yards per carry, but have given up only 3 rushing touchdowns. Like the Ravens, they do comitt a lot of penalties, 5 per, 41 yards per game. The Chargers have also fumbled 12 times so far, but only lost 4 of them. Penalties, turnovers, it's what cost the Ravens a number of victories this year. The key to beating the Chargers, new or old, is to not beat your self. So, who ya got?!
  24. Each week of the NFL season, The Baltimore Sun will recap the best and worst from around the league. Here are our winners and losers from Week 11: Loser: Ravens The Ravens’ long-held belief is that whenever they lose, they beat themselves. “It’s been that way ever since last year, I believe, going back to the AFC championship game, we killed ourselves,” quarterback Lamar Jackson said after Sunday’s 18-16 loss in Pittsburgh. “The Chiefs game [in] the [season] opener, we killed ourselves. [The] Raiders [game], we killed ourselves, and today, it’s the same thing. We can’t be beating ourselves in these types of games. We have to find a way to fix that — it’s annoying.” Perhaps this is a chance to acknowledge that, sometimes, the other team is just better. It did not feel fluky that the Ravens’ league-best offense struggled Sunday. The Steelers have one of the league’s best defenses, led by a formidable front. While Pittsburgh only sacked Jackson twice, they made him uncomfortable in the pocket and forced him to hold onto the ball too long, resulting in the fourth-worst completion percentage of his career (.485). They stuffed him on the potential game-tying 2-point attempt because outside linebacker Nick Herbig beat wide receiver Nelson Agholor’s block and blew up the play. Tight end Isaiah Likely was the only receiver who found open space. Derrick Henry lost a fumble for the first time since 2022 and was held to his second-lowest rushing total (65 yards) as a Raven. “They’re a good defense,” Henry said. “They’re a top-10 defense, but I think a lot of it was on us — self-inflicted wounds.” Really? Yes, the Ravens committed 12 penalties. Yes, Justin Tucker missed two field goals. And yes, they turned the ball over three times. But Herbig made a nice play to force a fumble by Henry on the opening drive, linebacker Patrick Queen ripped the ball from Likely’s hands near the end of the first half and rookie linebacker Payton Wilson made a spectacular interception by stealing the ball from running back Justice Hill on a pass down the sideline. While Tucker missed from 47 and 50 yards, his counterpart Chris Boswell finished 6-for-6 on his field goal attempts, including a 57-yarder. Those are not unforced errors by the Ravens. Those are winning plays by the Steelers. Consider the Ravens’ penalties, too. Four were either offensive or defensive holding. Five were presnap infractions, including two false starts, an illegal shift, a neutral zone infraction and too many men on the field. Left guard Patrick Mekari was flagged twice for being an ineligible man downfield. Defensive tackle Travis Jones was penalized for illegal use of hands to the face. Rookie safety Sanoussi Kane was whistled for an illegal block on a punt return. Whether it’s the result of poor technique, poor coaching or simply getting beat, the Ravens continue to make clear and obvious mistakes. When will that be fixed? It would be one thing to wave away the penalties as a bad day at the office. But the Ravens have been hit with a league-leading 110 total flags, which includes offsetting and declined penalties. Their 763 penalty yards against are nearly 100 more than the second-place Jets. At some point, being undisciplined becomes the team’s identity. Calling those mistakes “self-inflicted wounds” does nothing to address the problem. This team doesn’t feel like the Ravens as we know them. Their longtime special teams edge has evaporated, with Tucker going from an asset to a liability. The defense, while showing fight Sunday, still hasn’t come together under first-year coordinator Zach Orr. Jackson is the only reliable player, and when he struggles, the whole operation falls apart. We’ve seen the Ravens’ ceiling and their floor. Whether they can be consistent enough to make a deep postseason run is up for debate. Bills quarterback Josh Allen slips past Chiefs cornerback Nazeeh Johnson to score on a 26-yard run Sunday in Orchard Park, New York. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP) Winner: Josh Allen We have a new leader in the clubhouse. After leading the Buffalo Bills to a 30-21 win over the previously undefeated Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Allen has leapfrogged Jackson in the betting odds to win the NFL Most Valuable Player Award. It was far from a dominant performance, as Allen finished 27-for-40 for 262 yards with one touchdown and one interception, but his 26-yard scramble for a touchdown on fourth-and-2 with 2:17 to play cemented a signature victory over the two-time defending Super Bowl champions. Allen was perhaps more impressive Sunday with his legs, rushing for a team-high 55 yards as Kansas City neutralized James Cook and the rest of the Bills’ running backs. There are quarterbacks with better statistical arguments. The Bengals’ Joe Burrow leads the league in passing yards (3,028) and passing touchdowns (27). Jackson is second in both of those categories (2,876 yards, 25 touchdown passes) while rushing for 584 yards and two scores. Jared Goff has been sensational in most games (and horrible in others) while leading the Lions to a 9-1 record. But Sunday was a perfect example of how narratives help decide this award. Allen was the engine of a Bills team that ended Kansas City’s bid for a perfect season and put itself in position to claim the top seed in the AFC. His touchdown run will lead all the highlight packages this week. Burrow lost in prime time to the Chargers after failing to come through in crunch time, dropping the Bengals to 4-7. Jackson’s high-flying offense cratered in a frustrating defeat to the Steelers. Goff had a huge day, but it came in a blowout win over a hapless Jaguars team with the league’s worst record. There also could be something to the fact that Allen has never won the award despite being one of the league’s best quarterbacks for half a decade. Maybe voters, subconsciously or not, want to reward that body of work. The Bills have a good chance to finish with the league’s best record, and Allen should be near the top of the stat leaderboards if he keeps his current pace. His numbers right now — 2,543 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns, five interceptions, 316 rushing yards, five rushing touchdowns — are certainly MVP-worthy. You can’t argue with the eye test, either. Just ask his teammates. “When Josh takes off, I find myself just watching, like, ‘Wow, he’s different,’” wide receiver Khalil Shakir said. It’s a long season, and this week proved that things can change quickly. Jackson will have high-profile games against the Chargers, Eagles, Steelers and Texans to make his case. The race isn’t over, but Allen is in the lead. Loser: Joe Burrow Every stat is sadder than the last. After throwing for 356 yards and three touchdowns in Sunday night’s 34-27 loss to the Chargers, Burrow is the first quarterback in NFL history to pass for at least 300 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions in back-to-back games and lose both in regulation. In games this season in which Burrow threw for at least 250 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions, he’s 0-3. Other quarterbacks who have done that are a combined 14-2. Through the first 11 games, Burrow has 3,028 passing yards, 27 touchdowns and five interceptions. Previous quarterbacks to achieve those benchmarks through the first 11 games finished the season 13-3 or better. The Bengals are 4-7. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | Coach John Harbaugh thinks Ravens might have found ‘formula’ at safety Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh explains failed 2-point attempt in loss to Steelers Baltimore Ravens | READER POLL: Do you like the Orioles’ new changes to Camden Yards’ left field wall? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens-Chargers connections go well beyond the Harbaugh brothers Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 18-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers In Cincinnati’s seven losses, Burrow has completed 67% of his passes for 2,156 yards, 18 touchdowns and two interceptions. Only five other quarterbacks have thrown 18 or more touchdown passes all season. Burrow acknowledged Sunday night that this is the most frustrating season of his career. When asked why, he said it’s “pretty self-explanatory.” To make matters worse, star receivers Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase are embroiled in contract disputes. Higgins is playing this season on the franchise tag before becoming a free agent, while Chase has long been advocating for a record-setting extension. The famously cheap Bengals have already signed Burrow to a five-year, $275 million deal, making it unlikely they keep both wideouts. Entering their bye week, the Bengals have a 14.2% chance to make the playoffs, according to ESPN’s Football Power Index. This season likely isn’t salvageable, and there’s little hope the roster will be significantly better next year. It’s a sad outcome for one of the league’s most exciting teams. Have a news tip? Contact sports editor C.J. Doon at cdoon@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/CJDoon. View the full article
  25. After 10 weeks of throwing different looks at the wall and seeing what works, the Ravens’ secondary might have found their formula: pairing safeties Kyle Hamilton and Ar’Darius Washington. “That was the plan going in, those two guys,” coach John Harbaugh said Monday afternoon. “We were trying to attack some issues that we had in the back end, as everybody knows, and I thought they played well back there.” The dark cloud hanging over the Ravens’ defense much of the season has been their NFL-worst pass coverage. While they’re still 32nd in yards allowed and 31st in passing touchdowns surrendered (22), their secondary was among the highlights from Sunday’s 18-16 loss in Pittsburgh. Together, playing nearly every snap, the duo of Hamilton and Washington gave up only three catches on as many targets for 10 yards, per Pro Football Focus. They combined for 21 total tackles. Hamilton, when healthy, hasn’t missed a beat. The 2023 All-Pro appeared to play through pain Sunday. He crumpled to the field with an ankle injury against the Bengals on Nov. 7 that limited him in practice last week. Then he was checked for a concussion and soon after returned in the first half Sunday. And in the fourth quarter against the Steelers, Hamilton appeared to aggravate his ankle but remained on the field and finished with 10 tackles. Washington, a 2021 undrafted free agent, has played nearly half the defensive snaps and a little less on special teams after playing no more than seven snaps the first two weeks of the year. He didn’t play more than 40 snaps until Week 7. On Sunday, he played more snaps than any Ravens defender with 77. “Ar’Darius earned that opportunity,” Harbaugh said. “He earned that chance by the way he practiced and also by the way he played when he was in there over the course of the season.” Opposite Hamilton and before what might be Washington’s spot to hold, Baltimore worked through a rotating cast. Marcus Williams was the Week 1 starter but in Week 8 Baltimore benched the 28-year-old safety who signed a five-year, $70 million deal in 2022 in favor of Washington and Eddie Jackson. Harbaugh kept any specifics of the decision close to the vest. A week later, Williams returned to his starting post, Washington picked off Broncos quarterback Bo Nix for the first takeaway of his career and Jackson was a healthy scratch. Then Jackson played sparingly against Cincinnati, while Williams and Washington split reps. The intrigue didn’t stop there. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | NFL winners and losers, Week 11: Maybe the Ravens are just undisciplined Baltimore Ravens | Ravens coach John Harbaugh explains failed 2-point attempt in loss to Steelers Baltimore Ravens | READER POLL: Do you like the Orioles’ new changes to Camden Yards’ left field wall? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens-Chargers connections go well beyond the Harbaugh brothers Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 18-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers Jackson did not travel with the team this week to Pittsburgh — Harbaugh declined to comment on the matter — and Williams did not see the field. Meanwhile, rookie safety Sanoussi Kane sustained an ankle injury and left the stadium in a boot and on crutches. Ravens cornerbacks might be on the precipice of similar shuffling. Arthur Maulet suffered a calf injury in practice last week and was out Sunday, though Harbaugh doesn’t anticipate the veteran needing a stint on injured reserve. Trade deadline acquisition Tre’Davious White is still getting acquainted with the playbook but logged two pass deflections (including one in the end zone) in 24 snaps, mostly in place of Brandon Stephens. White could feasibly get an expanded role, Harbaugh said. Baltimore’s secondary appears to be thinning in safeties healthy or trustworthy enough to play significant reps but, for now, the pairing of Hamilton and Washington might be the answer they’ve been seeking. “Those guys did a good job,” Harbaugh said. “So that will definitely be a formula going forward. And still, the guys that are here with us, are still going to be working doing whatever they can to help us win.” Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. View the full article
  26. For all of the Ravens’ mishaps and self-inflicted trauma Sunday in Pittsburgh, they still had a chance to tie the game against the Steelers with just over a minute remaining in regulation. Until, of course, quarterback Lamar Jackson was stuffed on a jumbled and poorly executed quarterback run that haphazardly turned into an incomplete pass. Noticeably absent on the play was running back Derrick Henry, who leads the NFL in rushing yards and touchdowns but was on the sideline and not part of the personnel package with the ball sitting on the 2-yard line. Why wasn’t he on the field? “Derrick Henry is a great football player,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Monday. “You want him out there in situations, but he’s not out there for every play. That’s the play that was called.” It was also a play in which the Steelers did not have to worry about perhaps the best running back of this generation. And by design it tipped Pittsburgh, which had called time out when the ravens initially lined up, that the play would likely involve Jackson running or throwing. “Thankfully we even saw some of the semblance of the schematics of what they intended to run,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Sunday. “I think that made them change and go the other direction. Obviously Mr. Jackson is a little bit less dangerous when he is going to his left and his right. So we’re thankful for that.” A day later, Harbaugh wasn’t so much as regretful as he was discontented. “Any time you get a play that didn’t work you look at it very critically,” he said. “We’re disappointed in that play. You want to have a better play, a better play call, a better executed play; everything along those lines. “That’s one we’d like to have back.” For Henry’s part, at least, he had no issue with the play call. “No frustration at all,” he said. “They have in there who they think can execute the play, and I’m always going to support that. Whatever they feel like is the best formation or whatever personnel needs to be in there for us to win, then let’s go do it. There’s no frustration on my end.” Henry was bothered more by what he did when he was on the field. Ravens running back Derrick Henry didn’t complain about being on the bench for the team’s 2-point conversion attempt in the fourth quarter. (Matt Freed/AP) The 30-year-old four-time Pro Bowl selection was held to under 70 yards rushing for the second straight game after rushing for at least 100 yards in five of the previous seven. He had a costly fumble on the game’s second play Sunday, leading to an early Steelers field goal. “My fumble was unacceptable – it cannot happen,” he said. Henry handled just 13 carries against Pittsburgh, despite averaging 5 yards per carry and scoring a touchdown. That tied for his second-fewest of the season, which came in a Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, and were only two more than the season-low 11 he had against the Browns in Cleveland, also a loss. Part of the problem was that the Ravens often put themselves in unenviable positions because of penalties or other mistakes. Of their 12 possessions, they faced second- or third-and-long (at least 10 yards) on a half-dozen of them. That made it difficult for Baltimore to feed Henry, Harbaugh said. Related Articles Baltimore Ravens | READER POLL: Do you like the Orioles’ new changes to Camden Yards’ left field wall? Baltimore Ravens | Ravens-Chargers connections go well beyond the Harbaugh brothers Baltimore Ravens | 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 18-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers Baltimore Ravens | Beyoncé to perform halftime show at Ravens vs. Texans game on Christmas Day Baltimore Ravens | Mike Preston: Steelers showcase blueprint for beating Ravens | COMMENTARY “You want to get him more,” Harbaugh said, noting Baltimore only had 54 offensive plays, which was 20 fewer than Pittsburgh. “You probably need more plays and to get more plays you need more successful plays, more first downs, more yards. we were off the field a couple times real quick. “It cuts down the opportunities for everybody.” Yet, that wasn’t the case on Baltimore’s failed 2-point conversion. “That’s the personnel group that it was set up in through a lot of game planning,” Harbaugh said. “We all try to put the best plan we can together and come up with the best plays, and when it doesn’t work out, it hurts, it’s bad. And you feel disappointed about it, because it’s your job, and it’s what you want to get done well. “I would like to have had a better play there, and I would have liked to have a successful play. So, you look back on it, and that’s how you feel about it. You feel bad about it.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article
  27. They didn’t run right at queen.
  28. As did Queen, wish that they could have kept one of them. On a positive note, Owe seems to be rounding into form as is Robinson who is destroying pockets.
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