MVN - Most Valuable Network

Eric Brown

Ravens vs Colts

The Ravens-Colts game Sunday night won’t carry the emotion of last seasons playoff loss, and I for one am glad it won’t. That one represented the sudden death of a spectacular 13-3 season and Super Bowl aspirations all in one instant. It took me months to get over it, if I have at all.

For the Ravens this game still holds importance, it gives them a chance to fix what’s broken. Even though the playoffs are an afterthought this team needs to become better, better at blocking, better on defense, better at execution, and they had better cut down on the senseless penalties. They need to chill with the attitude problems and do what they’re paid to do.

This is when you look at players to see who’s playing hard, and who’s just mailing it in. You know, guys who don’t sustain that block quite long enough, the receiver who easily runs out of bounds rather then fight his way up field, or the tackler who just sticks an arm out acting like he did something. Players with that mindset prevent you from becoming a top team, plain and simple. These next four games will tell us who deserves to stay, and who the team needs to weed out.

It will be interesting to see if the Ravens play with the same intensity they displayed against the Patriots. And why shouldn’t they? That was the kind of play this team should have been bringing to every game this season. Why they’ve waited so long to show it baffles me to no end. I’ve got my ideas why, I’d like to hear yours.

The Colts come into Baltimore looking to wrap up the AFC South, and it will be up to the Ravens to postpone those plans. The Ravens want revenge for that playoff loss, and I expect them to come at the Colts with both barrels blazing. This should be another hard hitting game that will be determined by which team wears the other one down first.

I’ll be there, and I’ll be screaming my lungs out for the Ravens, as I always do. That’s being the 12th man, and we, unlike the team, haven’t had a slump this season. It should be another cold night, this time with rain added to beef up the misery index. Did I mention I hate night games? Tailgating in the dark isn’t nearly as much fun. At least I’ll get to wear my “Beat Indy” teeshirt for a second time.

When the Colts have the ball;

If Chris McAlister can’t go, or if he’s only at 80% or less, then Manning will have the mismatch he wants. Marvin Harrison may return for this game and he’s a threat from anywhere on the field. Both McAlister and Samari Rolle will have their hands full with this Colts’ offensive machine. The Colts have beaten the Ravens the last three times they’ve faced them, and this time they will have Joseph Addai as their prime back. He’s come a long way from last year and has learned how to pick his holes to get to the second level. His slashing style may cause problems for Ray Lewis and the linebacking corps. Look for Manning to run the ball throughout the game and pick his spots for play action.

The Ravens defense has to clog the middle, and seal the edges to prevent Addai from getting into the open field, and punish him along the way. And, they have to be able to do it with a base defense. If they have to commit Suggs , Scott, or Antwan Barnes to defending the run primarily then Manning will have all day to find his receivers, and believe me, he’ll find them.

When the Ravens have the ball;

If Brian Billick doesn’t commit to the run early and often I’ll personally hunt him down and smack the Hell out of him. Willis McGahee has shown that he can dominate a game, when given the chance, and that is the only way the Ravens walk away with a win. Kyle Boller needs the running game to succeed to pick his shots down field, and keep the defense from knocking his brains out on every play.

The offensive line has to continue to come together into a cohesive unit and dominate the line of scrimmage on both running and passing plays. They will decide how this game plays out, and if they can grind out yards and chew some clock then Manning will be resigned to a seat on the bench, which is exactly where the Ravens want him to be.

The Colts defense will be looking to pressure Boller and force him to make mistakes. Even without Dwight Freeny the Colts defense has maintained a strong pass rush, and they’ll use it as often as they can. The bigger problem for them will be containing McGahee. Look for the Colts to stack the box early to stop the run, and if successful they will start applying more pressure to the quarterback. If not they’re in for a long night.

If the Colts defense can’t dominate up front then the Ravens O- line will punish them like they did the Patriots. This game, as most are, will be decided in the trenches.

Key match ups;

Dallas Clark vs Whomever

With the Ravens defense you can’t say who will be responsible for Clark on any given play. It could be Cory Ivy, Bart Scott, or Jarret Johnson. Clark is to the Colts what Todd heap is to the Ravens. He’s the guy who always seems to make the back breaking play at the right time. The Ravens have to limit his effectiveness.

Robert Mathis vs Marshall Yanda

If Yanda is left on an island to contain Mathis then he’ll have more than his share of breakdowns. Yanda has played well in his starts this season, but he doesn’t have the savvy to counter Mathis all game long. The Ravens will counter by having TEs Quinn Sypnewski and Daniel Wilcox, along with FB LaRon McLain and McGahee chip on Mathis to keep him outside, and away from Boller.

Prediction; Ravens 27, Colts 24

Did you think I was going to bet against them?

Take a look at the game from the Colts perspective from the Colts Couch Crew

This entry was posted on Friday, December 7th, 2007 at 11:22 pm and is filed under Ravens game preview, Mike Brown. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.