If nothing else, the “Purple Wall” gets an “A” for crowd noise and enthusiasm… What a tremendous decibel count! Obviously fans in Baltimore are hungry for NFL football…and they showed it, especially throughout the first half.
Wide receiver Lee Evans, just signed as a free agent from Buffalo, stole the show.
Evans was brought in to stretch the field and take advantage of franchise quarterback Joe Flacco’s big arm. The Ravens were 28th in yards-per-play last season and needed another big gun in the offensive arsenal.
As first impressions go, it looks like they have it. The bonus is that Evans appears to be a third-down option that the Ravens thought they lost in letting Derrick Mason go.
All three of Evans’ catches came on third down. Two catches were of the fingertip variety, the first keeping a drive alive and leading to a 49-yard bomb off the leg of kicker Billy Cundiff.
He was even better running a sideline pattern in the second quarter on third and 7 . Evans got separation — that didn’t happen a week ago — and Flacco unleashed a frozen rope into his hands that led to a 43-yard gain, the longest play from scrimmage during the game.
Three plays later, Ray Rice galloped into the end zone and the Ravens had their first offensive touchdown of the preseason.
“Joe’s throw to Lee was perfect,” offensive coordinator Cam Cameron said. “Lee Evans has been a great addition to our offense since the day he got here, and we’re glad the fans had a chance to see that tonight.”
The defensive line pressure and run-stopping game was much improved for the Ravens, too. Rookie DT Bryan Hall (above, 6-0, 295, Arkansas State) had a huge sack during the second half, enhancing his chances to make the club.
Rookie DE Pernell McPhee (6-3, 278, 5th round, Mississippi State) led an aggressive Ravens pass rush in the team’s 31-13 win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Baltimore logged five sacks Friday night after notching just two in their first preseason contest against the Philadelphia Eagles. McPhee was outstanding along with 2nd year DT Arthur Jones (6-3, 313, Syracuse), LB veterans Prescott Burgess and Terrell Suggs and rookie DT Bryan Hall in getting all kinds of pressure into the Chiefs’ backfield.
First-round pick cornerback Jimmy Smith started against the Chiefs and Pro Bowl receiver Dwayne Bowe. On the game’s first series, the rookie got a strong jam at the line of scrimmage, continued with sound coverage and tipped the ball when it came his way. The Chiefs receiver still made an impressive one-handed grab for a first down. Welcome to the NFL, Jimmy Smith… On the Chiefs’ ensuing possession, Bowe notched a 26-yard gain with Smith in coverage. Smith was right on his hip, but didn’t get his head around fast enough to knock down the pass. Let’s not get it twisted – Smith didn’t have a bad game. He was right there with Bowe on each play – a good first step against a Pro Bowler.
The offensive line play was not great, but it was much improved over the Philly game. Jah Reid did okay at his first start at right tackle. The rookie from UCF got lost in space a few times, getting his feet crossed up on a couple of roll-out scrambles by QB Joe Flacco, but overall he accounted well for himself…and played every offensive snap of the game.
Flacco made some big plays…but left a lot more on the table. Joe was overthrowing a lot of his receivers at times—all except for Lee Evans.He was inaccurate at times and overthrew Torrey Smith and Anquan Boldin when big gains could have been made. The off-target tosses are atypical and shouldn’t overshadow Flacco’s impressive pocket presence and downfield awareness. He did all the little things— like a sidestep to avoid a free blitzer, keeping his eyes downfield in the face of pressure and running through progressions— to inspire confidence. He helped the O-line’s stats by avoiding sacks with his feet or throwing the ball away.
Fullback Vonta Leach was terrific… I was really impressed by this guy. Leach even caught a short pass and became in effect his own lead blocker. He was pancaking guys out there. He helped open a hole for Ray Rice’s 27-yard touchdown run, but as important as that play was, it isn’t what Leach will be remembered for. The picture etched in viewers’ minds happened one play before, when the eight-year veteran leveled the Chiefs’ Brandon Siler. Leach hit him so hard that the linebacker was pancaked to the ground and Leach’s helmet was knocked off. It was a great way to introduce Baltimore fans to the new fullback acquisition. And in a single hit, Leach sent the message that the Ravens’ offense plans on being as physical and smashmouth as its defensive counterpart.
Backup rookie QB Tyrod Taylor completed five of 11 passes for 88 yards and no interceptions while engineering two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter.
After a two-interception outing last week against the Philadelphia Eagles, Taylor showed marked improvement despite playing under duress.
“He’s done, probably, as well as we could have expected so far. He’s a very talented young man,” said Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh. “I like his poise. He’s very intelligent. He’s a very fast learner, and I don’t know if I’ve seen a quarterback, maybe since Joe Flacco, that picks it up so quickly. He just has such a calmness about him, and he’s a pinpoint passer.”
Defensively, the pressure on Matt Cassell in the first hal was impressive not just from the front three but also from the safeties and linebackers. In addition to McPhee, the Ravens got sacks from safety Haruki Nakamura, linebacker Prescott Burgess, defensive tackle Lamar Divens and undrafted rookie defensive tackle Bryan Hall. Linebacker Dannell Ellerbe and cornerback Lardarius Webb shared a sack.
Baltimore also once again had good pressure on the outside from linebacker Paul Kruger, who teamed up with fellow pass rusher Sergio Kindle to lay a big hit on KC’s backup QB Palko near the end of the first half.
It’s all a positive sign after pundits felt Baltimore would have to look outside the organization for pass-rush help. The Ravens are finding it right on their own roster.
“We got some four-man pressure, which was really good,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said. “I thought the blitz stuff was pretty good too.”
Punter Sam Koch looked great as always, and he was really booming the longest and highest punts I have ever seen from him…some traveling as much as 70 yards in the air. The guy is still a great defensive weapon in his own right.
My overall grades:
Offensive Line………. B
Defensive Line …….. B+
Linebackers…………. B
Running Backs……… B+
Fullbacks…………….. A
Quarterbacks……….. B-
Cornerbacks………… C+
Safeties………………. B+
Receivers……………. B+
Tight ends…………… C
Special Teams……… B-
Kicking & Punting….. A
The key for next week is improving the passing game…which implies stronger pass protection by the OL and RB’s. But what’s apparent right now is the Ravens are stocked with solid talent…and Ray Lewis didn’t even play (family matter in Florida). And keeping Lee Evans healthy at WR may turn out to be the Ravens’ biggest challenge. Evans really changed this game in a big way.
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