The Ravens pushed the Falcons around in the game last night.  John Beck played the whole game proving that he’s finally healthy.  He completed 16 of 28 passes for 232 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the football 4 times for 23 yards (5.8 ypc).  Cedric Peerman led the Ravens on the ground in this game with 31 yards on 10 carries (3.1 ypc).  He also caught 2 passes for 23 yards (11.5 avg) in this game.  Demetrius Williams also proved that he’s finally healthy with 4 catches for 77 yards (19.3 avg).  The Ravens finished up with 276 total yards in this game (72 rushing, 204 passing) but that’s all they needed to win this game.

Linebacker Jameel McClain led the way for the Ravens again in this game with 5 tackles.  The Falcons could only muster 175 total yards of offense in this game (83 rushing, 92 passing)!  The Ravens finished the pre-season with a perfect 4-0 record.

The Ravens are suffocating opposing offenses during the pre-season.  They are only allowed a microscopic 12.0 points per game (5th in NFL) so far.  The Ravens are allowing only 91.7 rushing yards per game and 165.7 yards passing per game as they are hitting like the games already count.  24-year old OLB Jameel McCline has been the standout on the Ravens’ D with 17 tackles, one passed defensed and a interception that he returned 16 yards for a TD.  Look for him to have a bigger role for the Ravens this season as long as he keeps up the good work.

Sure, it’s just the pre-season.  But the Ravens are looking really good on offense.  They are averaging 21.3 points per game and 389.7 total yards (4th in NFL) which is a big reason why they are 3-0.  QB Joe Flacco has really looked sharp as he has completed 40 of 61 passes (65.6%) for 470 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (94.3 QB Rating).  RB Ray Rice has been very busy for the Ravens in the pre-season with 23 carries for 83 yards (3.6 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also has caught 12 passes for 108 yards (9.0 avg) which has really helped Flacco and Troy Smith.  WRs Justin Harper (7 rec, 132 yards, TD) and Kelley Washington (6 rec, 119 yards) are really stepping up with roster spots on the line.  If the Ravens can play offense like this when the real games start they will be a legit threat to win it all.

Despite the close score the Ravens pushed the Panthers around in this game.  Joe Flacco was razor sharp in this game completing 23 of 28 passes for 247 yards with 1 TD pass.  Troy Smith followed him in the game and he completed 7 of 10 passes for 57 yards with a interception.  John Beck finished up this game completing his only pass attempt for 3 yards.  Jalen Parmele led the way on the ground for the Ravens in this game with 68 yards rushing on 4 carries (17.0 ypc).  Ray Rice was also busy carrying the ball 10 times for 32 yards (3.2 ypc) and catching 8 passes for 67 yards (8.4 avg).  Derrick Mason led the way in the passing game for the Ravens with 71 yards on six catches (11.8 avg).  The Ravens finished up with 421 total yards on offense (118 rushing, 303 passing) while holding onto the football for 35:09.

CB Lardarius Webb led the way for the Ravens on defense with 8 tackles in this game.  The Panthers finished up with 281 yards on offense (78 rushing, 203 passing) in this game.

The Ravens were just good enough on offense to back up the sterling defense in this game.  Joe Flacco started at QB for the Ravens in this game and he completed 8 of 18 passes for 120 yards.  Troy Smith finished up this game by completing 4 of 9 passes for 84 yards with a pickoff.  Ray Rice led the Ravens in rushing yards with 29 on 8 carries (3.6 ypc) with a TD.  Willis McGahee pitched in with 23 yards rushing on 8 carries (2.9 ypc).  Derrick Mason led the way in the passing game for the Ravens with 68 yards on 3 catches (22.7 avg).  The Ravens finished up this game with only 248 total yards on offense (73 rushing, 175 passing).

DT Haloti Ngata only had 1 tackle in this game for the Ravens but he set the tone as he intercepted a Mark Sanchez pass and returned it 25 yards for a TD to open the scoring.  Linebacker Jameel McClain was all over the place in this game finishing with 10 tackles.  He also returned a interception for a TD in this game (16 yarder off Kellen Clemens).  The Jets finished up with 295 total yards of offense in this game (141 rushing, 154 passing).

The Ravens looked awesome in their pre-season opener against the Redskins.  Joe Flacco started the game at QB and he was sharp completing 9 of 15 passes for 103 yards.  Troy Smith also played well completing 14 of 30 passes for 200 yards with 1 TD pass.  John Beck finished up the game completing 5 of 9 passes for 105 yards but he was injured during this game.  Matt Lawrence led the way in the running game for the Ravens with 36 yards rushing on 9 carries (4.0 ypc).  WRs Jayson Foster (3 rec, 78 yards) and Justin Harper (4 rec, 57 yards, TD) were both exceptional in this game for the Ravens.  The Ravens rolled up 500 yards of total offense (399 passing) while they held onto the football for an amazing 35:44!

The defense was equally dominant in this game for the Ravens.  LB Jameel McClain (6 tackles), LB Tavares Gooden (5 tackles) and safety Tom Zbikowski (4 tackles, sack) led the way on D for the Ravens in this game.  The Redskins only had 196 yards of total offense in this game and they only averaged 2.9 yards per carry in the running game.

The only disappointment in this game was that the Ravens didn’t win by more points!

The Ravens laid another egg on offense last Thursday Night against the Falcons.  Joe Flacco got another start and he completed 8 of 13 passes for 72 yards.  Casey Bramlet finished up this game and he was awful completing 7 of 21 passes for 100 yards and throwing 2 pickoffs.  Rookie running back Ray Rice led the Ravens in rushing in this game with 37 yards on 7 carries (5.3 ypc).  Allen Patrick was also busy with 30 yards rushing on 13 carries (2.3 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 35 yards (17.5 avg).  WR Mark Clayton led all Ravens’ receivers in this game with 4 grabs for 38 yards (9.5 avg).   The Ravens finished up with 88 yards rushing on 29 carries (3.0 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 34 passes for 159 yards.

Linebacker Nick Griesen led a solid effort by the Ravens’ defense with 10 tackles.  The Falcons finished up with 135 yards rushing in this game on 32 carries (4.2 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 26 passes for 121 yards.  The Ravens finished the preseason with a 1-3 record and things are not looking too promising for the 2008 season.

The Ravens looked terrible on Saturday against the Rams in St. Louis.  The only healthy QB on the Ravens’ roster was rookie Joe Flacco so he played the entire game and looked a little overwhelmed.  He completed 18 of 37 passes for 152 yards with a 15-yard TD pass to WR Derrick Mason.  Fullback LeRon McClain led the Ravens in rushing with 41 yards on 8 carries (5.1 ypc).  Rookie RB Ray Rice also had a solid game with 5 carries for 20 yards (4.0 ypc).  Derrick Mason led all Ravens’ receivers with 6 catches for 85 yards (14.2 avg) with a TD grab.  The Ravens finished up with 70 yards rushing on 18 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 37 passes for 139 yards.  The Ravens only had possession of the football for 23:00 in this football game and it’s very hard to win that way.

The Ravens’ defense was not much better than the offense in this game.  Safety Jim Leonhard and linebacker Robert McCune led the way for the Ravens in this game with 7 tackles apiece.  Safety Tom Zbikowski also had a decent game pitching in with 4 tackles and a interception.  The Rams finished up with 113 yards rushing on 34 carries (3.3 ypc) and they also completed 29 of 41 passes for 298 yards.  This is shaping up to be a very long season for the Ravens.

The three headed battle for the starting QB job has resulted in the Ravens really questioning who they should go with.  Kyle Boller would have easily won the job if he just played well this preseason but he hasn’t.  Boller has completed 19 of 27 passes (70.4%) so far this preseason and he has 142 yards passing with 0 TD passes and 2 pickoffs (51.8 QB Rating).  Boller still appears to be making rookie mistakes in what is likely his last season in Baltimore.  Troy Smith has played even worse than Boller this preseason in my opinion.  Smith has completed 8 of 17 passes (47.1%) this preseason for 99 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 interception (41.1 QB Rating).  Smith has also carried the football 6 times for 41 yards (6.8 ypc) this preseason.  If neither of the veterans show anything in the next two games maybe the Ravens should just throw rookie Joe Flacco to the wolves.  It’s not as if the Ravens are a playoff team anyway so why not get a early look at the QB of the Future?  Flacco has completed 10 of 18 passes (55.6%) this preseason for 74 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 interceptions (65.5 QB Rating).  The fact that the Ravens don’t have a TD pass through two games should really have the coaching staff and fans of the Ravens scared.  Still, it’s just the preseason so don’t push the panic button quite yet.

2nd round pick Ray Rice has taken full advantage of Willis McGahee missing a lot of time this preseason.  He has carried the football 14 times for 89 yards (6.4 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Rice has also caught 7 passes for 34 yards (4.9 avg) this preseason.  If Rice continues to play well into the regular season he could possibly take Willis McGahee’s starting job from him.  If Rice does win the starting job eventually, the Ravens would probably move McGahee to another team as they are starting to tire of his antics.