Could the Ravens Lose to Cleveland?
Short answer: yes. Yes they could.
I’m not saying they will, and nor am I predicting it. But it’s absolutely a possibility.
The Browns are a bad team. Erik Mangini is a bad coach, and he has assembled a dysfunctional organization. He can’t decide on a quarterback, his starting RB has publicly called him out, and he’s dealing with the fallout of firing George Kokinis.
For all of the question marks the Ravens face on the field, they are free from the kind of drama that dogs the Browns. The Ravens could finish 5-11 but it wouldn’t make them a bad team. In contrast, there aren’t enough wins in a season to make Mangini’s Browns look good.
So it’s Monday night, the team needs a big win, and their opponent is down and ready to go out. Signed, sealed, delivered. Right?
Probably. But every time I see something that is this “sure thing” I immediately think of all the times the NFL has proven to us that no game is for sure. Especially in prime time against a division opponent.
The Ravens need to be disciplined tonight. They need to stay true to their assignments, play crisp ball, and cut down on the penalties. The Browns aren’t going to roll over here. They will take whatever the Ravens choose to give them.
My call: Ravens 27-14. But they’d better be careful.
Three timeouts gone before the end of the first quarter, another missed field goal, and now a 12-men penalty? Wow. Getting it out of their system early, perhaps?
I have this one on the radio and it sounds like one of the sloppiest games ever played. This Ravens drive to close the first half looks promising though. A score here going into the half could be huge.
Annnnd that drive stalled. With help from — yep — another penalty.
This second half makes for an interesting test. Two quarters is two quarters. Things looked bad, but whatever. In-game/halftime adjustments are often the difference between good teams and bad. I mostly expect Harbaugh will do just that.
I also expect that if the Ravens lose this game, Hauschka will be out of a job by Wednesday.
It’s not often that you can take the first TD of a game and say “that’s game,” but there it is. Rice just put the Browns to sleep. Nobody’s listening, but I’m calling it.
And if the Rice TD wasn’t it, that Landry pick six is. Game over.
if brady quinn ended suggs’ season i will personally drive to cleveland and punch him in his dumb fucking face.
From what the radio guys are saying it doesn’t sound that serious. He might miss a game or two, though, which is probably grounds enough to punch Quinn. Not like anyone really needs an excuse to do that.
all i know is it was one of those cheap, punk-ass bitch shots that have zero impact on the game other than potentially ending the season of someone whose jock he couldn’t carry with his mama’s dick.
60 QUARTERS with 5 OFFENSIVE TOUCHDOWNS
are the browns the worst team in history?
i say yes. worse than the lions last year.
just ponder that for a moment.
60 QUARTERS with 5 OFFENSIVE TOUCHDOWNS
The Browns are truly horrible. That first half was handed to them and they couldn’t do a damn thing with it. They’re a joke.
It’s hard to figure what the Ravens take away from this victory. The win is the only thing that really matters, but it seems like there are some causes for concern in the details. They can’t play like they did tonight when they face the Colts, Steelers, Packers and still expect to win.
Is this a case of playing down to the opponent? Did they just “do enough” tonight but still have plenty in the tank for the stretch?
Or are they a team in real trouble, unable to bury a significantly inferior opponent while demonstrating the kind of serious holes that a better team can exploit?
I don’t have the answer, but it’s a legitimate question.
cribbs = karma.
sorry.
and in true karmic tradition, i hope cribbs is okay and misses exactly as many games as suggs does.
That was ugly, and doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence. Shit, I’ll probably be watching the Colts game through a small slat between my fingers, which will otherwise be covering my entire face.
i’ve seen absolutely zero evidence that makes me believe that the ravens don’t get HOUSED by the colts next week. therefore: ravens 20-19
I’m not sure the Ravens manage to score against the Colts. Just a gut feeling.
I’ve never seen a football team as bad as the Browns. I mean, the only time that Quinn threw down field (against a team that can’t defend down field) was in the last minute of the game, and every one of those hucks were out of bounds. FAIL. All he did was snap it and huck it to a guy who wasn’t ready to catch it. The missed time out with 10 men on the field. The wildcat at the dumbest times to run the wildcat. That shit is a straight up MESS.
Meanwhile, I’m not gonna be the guy that won’t give credit to a win against a bad team. I’m glad we won. But there is no chance in hell we win against the Colts.