22-year old rookie WR Torrey Smith has been outstanding for the Ravens so far this year.  He has played in 13 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has caught 37 passes for 693 yards (18.7 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  Smith has also carried the ball 4 times for 39 yards (9.8 ypc) so far this year for the Ravens.  Smith has injected big time speed into the Ravens’ offense.  When Joe Flacco looks deep, he’s looking for Torrey Smith.  This was just another outstanding pick by Ravens’ GM Ozzie Newsome.

Ravens’ GM Ozzie Newsome has struck gold in the NFL Draft once again with 22-year old rookie DE Pernell McPhee in the 5th round of the 2011 NFL Draft.  McPhee has played in all 12 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has 20 tackles, 6 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  McPhee is currently second to OLB Terrell Suggs in sacks on the Ravens.

24-year old RB Ray Rice really broke out against the Browns yesterday in Cleveland.  He carried the ball 29 times for 204 yards (7.0 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 10 yards (5.0 avg).  The Ravens are 5-0 this year when Ray Rice gets 20 or more carries in a game!  The Ravens should be a run first team right now, as Joe Flacco just isn’t playing too well so far this year.  Rice has played in 12 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has carried the ball 208 times for 926 yards (4.5 ypc) with 9 TD runs.  He has also caught 56 passes for 547 yards (9.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs so far this year.  Rice is by far the best offensive skill player on the Ravens so they need to get the ball in his hands as much as possible.

24-year old Ed Dickson and 26-year old Dennis Pitta are really stepping up for the Ravens this year.  The Ravens felt these guys were ready to take off and that’s why they let Todd Heap walk in free agency.  Dickson played in 15 games last year for the Ravens and he caught 11 passes for 152 yards (13.8 avg) with 1 TD grab and Dennis Pitta played in 11 games in which he caught 1 pass for 1 yard.  So the improvement this year has been amazing to watch.  Ed Dickson has played in 11 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has caught 43 passes for 392 yards (9.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Dennis Pitta has played in 11 games for the Ravens this year and he has caught 27 passes for 263 yards (9.7 avg) with 1 TD grab.  So these guys have already combined to catch 70 passes for 655 yards (9.4 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  It looks like GM Ozzie Newsome’s draft magic has hit again as Dickson and Pitta are very solid football players.

27-year old NT Halota Ngata is a mountain of a man at 6’4″, 330 pounds and he sits right in the middle of the Ravens’ D.  Ngata has been a force this year for the Ravens as he has been a big time playmaker.  Ngata has played in 9 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has 41 tackles, 3 sacks, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 2 passes defensed.  He has now played in 87 games in his first six years with the Ravens and he has 288 tackles, 15 sacks, 21 tackles for a loss, 4 forced fumbles, 5 fumble recoveries, 3 interceptions and 16 passes defensed.  Most NTs don’t make the impact plays that Ngata makes and that doesn’t even consider how he plays against the run, demanding double teams and keeping the LBs clean to make plays.

The Baltimore Ravens have swept the Steelers this year and they are sitting atop the AFC North tied with the surprising Bengals with a 6-2 record.  The Ravens have amped up the defense once again this year and they are hitting the hell out of opposing offensive players.  The Ravens are only giving up 279.4 yards and 16.3 points per game so far this year!  The only thing really holding the Ravens back is the play of Joe Flacco, but I have a feeling that last week’s game might be the start of him getting back on the right track.  Harbaugh now has a 38-18 (67.9%) record during the regular season in his first four years on the job.

The Ravens have been pretty solid on kickoff returns so far this year.  WR David Reed is the standout on kickoff returns for the Ravens as he has returned 9 of them for 263 yards (29.2 avg).  Reed has missed a lot of time due to injury this year, which has given other players a shot to return kickoffs.  Rookie WR LaQuan Williams pitched in with 5 kickoffs returns for 109 yards (21.8 avg) in 2011.  CB Bryan McCann (2 returns for 53 yards), CB Lardarius Webb (1 return for 37 yards) and FB Vonta Leach (2 returns for 29 yards) also have pitched in on kickoff returns for the Ravens so far this year.  The Ravens have now returned 19 kickoffs for 493 yards (25.9 avg) this year, which is pretty solid.

The punt returns have not been anywhere near as productive for the Ravens so far this year.  CB Lardarius Webb has returned 9 punts for 72 yards (8.0 avg) so far this year for the Ravens.  Safety Ed Reed (2 returns for 29 yards), CB Chris Carr (2 returns for 15 yards) and WR LaQuan Williams (1 return for 0  yards) also have pitched in on punt returns.  The Ravens have returned 14 punts for 116 yards (8.3 avg) so far this year and that is just not good enough.

The Baltimore Ravens have been very physical on offense this year and that is because they got the running game back in high gear.  24-year old Ray Rice is off to a great start in 2011 for the Ravens.  He has played in all five games for the Ravens so far this year and he has carried the ball 89 times for 398 yards (4.5 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Rice has also caught 21 passes for 302 yards (14.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs this year.  So Rice is averaging 140.0 yards rushing and receiving per game so far this year and that is outstanding.  34-year old Ricky Williams has also been pretty solid for the Ravens when Rice needs a rest.  Williams has played in all five games for the Ravens so far this year and he has carried the ball 35 times for 164 yards (4.7 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Williams has also caught 2 passes for 15 yards (7.5 avg) so far this year.  The Ravens are averaging 121.6 yards rushing per game so far this year and 4.2 yards per carry.

Forget Troy Polamalu, 33-year old Ed Reed is the best safety in the NFL.  He has played in 4 games already this year for the Ravens and he has 17 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 tackle for a loss, 4 passes defensed and 2 interceptions.  Reed has now played in 132 games in his 10 years with the Ravens and he has 513 tackles, 117 passes defensed, 56 interceptions (6 returned for TDs), 6 sacks, 11 forced fumbles, 7 fumble recoveries and 30 tackles for a loss.  Reed will be going into Pro Football’s Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio five years after he hangs up his cleats…..but he’s still going strong right now.

36-year old middle linebacker Ray Lewis still has a fire in his belly.  He has played in 3 games for the Ravens so far this year and he has 25 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception.  Teams are only averaging 84.0 yards rushing and 3.5 yards per carry so far this year and Lewis has had a lot to do with that.  Lewis has now played in 16 seasons for the Ravens appearing in 213 games in which he has 1,923 tackles, 47 tackles for a loss, 39.5 sacks, 18 forced fumbles, 18 fumble recoveries, 113 passes defensed and 31 interceptions (3 returned for TDs).  He’s going directly to Canton, Ohio and into Pro Football’s Hall of Fame five years after he hangs up the cleats, but no reason to rush that as he is still playing at a Pro Bowl level for the Ravens.