Hard to believe, but the 2013 regular season is here for the Ravens…
It stinks that this game is not being held on home soil for the Ravens, who deserve their due in an atmosphere of hometown celebration for winning the Lombardi Trophy last February… But that ship sailed when Major League Baseball refused to yield on a scheduling conflict with the Orioles…
Either way, this is an unusually early debut for the Ravens on prime-time TV…
The Denver Broncos have waited almost eight months for their chance to avenge last season's dramatic divisional playoff loss to a Baltimore Ravens team that appears ready for the challenge. Minus some familiar faces, the Super Bowl champion Ravens kick off the 2013 season Thursday night against the host Broncos, who hope to achieve the goal they fell short of a year ago.
"I've got a pretty good feeling that the Broncos fans are going to make us remember (and) think about everything that they want to," coach John Harbaugh told the Ravens' official website.
"We know the environment we're going into. It will be the same environment, or even tougher, than the one that we faced in January. And we're excited about that."
For the Broncos, it's a chance to resolve the past while providing a potential springboard for a promising season.
"It's not about me. It's about the team,' Broncos safety Rahim' Moore said. "We all suffered. But the good thing about it is it's a whole new year. Nobody remembers what you did last year.''
In a marketing move to promote and celebrate the contest (and placate embittered Ravens fans), the NFL installed a banner of Flacco along with one of Denver QB Peyton Manning outside Sports Authority Field. That, along with several lamp-post flags of Flacco throughout downtown Denver, didn't sit well with Broncos fans.
Ravens' outside rushing linebacker Terrell Suggs and cornerback Lardarius Webb are healthy, and former Bronco Elvis Dumervil will try to bring down Peyton Manning instead of cheering him on.
The Pro Bowl linebacker agreed to a restructured contract with Denver, but the paperwork wasn't filed with the league office in time and the team was forced to release him. Dumervil, who combined with Von Miller for 29 1/2 of Denver's league-best 52 sacks last season, signed with Baltimore in March.
"I feel amazing,'' said Dumervil, who has recorded 63 1/2 sacks in six seasons. "As of right now, I'm a Raven, and I feel great about that.''
Flacco will be looking to live up to the six-year, $120.6 million contract he signed after throwing 11 touchdowns and no interceptions in the playoffs. Including postseason, he's thrown for 956 yards with six TDs and one pick while going 3-1 against the Broncos.
He'll face a Denver team that ranked second in the NFL in total defense at 290.8 yards per game and fourth in scoring defense at 18.1 points. However, star linebacker Von Miller is suspended for the first six games for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy, while cornerback Champ Bailey's status is uncertain due to a foot injury.
Harbaugh still isn't taking the unit lightly.
"The Broncos are still the Broncos and they're going to put 11 excellent players on the field and they're going to put pass rushers out there who can rush,'' he said.
Denver's ultimate fortunes hinge on the right arm of the 37-year-old Manning.
After missing the 2011 season to recover from neck surgery, Manning threw 37 TDs and recorded a 105.8 passer rating in his first year in Denver.
He passed for 290 yards and three TDs against Baltimore in the playoffs, but was intercepted twice and sacked three times.
Receivers Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker combined to catch 23 touchdowns from Manning. Also in the mix is veteran Wes Welker, whose 672 receptions since the start of 2007 are the most in the NFL during that span.
Welker signed with the Broncos in the offseason after six years in New England.
Rookie Montee Ball, the NCAA FBS leader with 83 career touchdowns, joins Knowshon Moreno and Ronnie Hillman in a Denver backfield that for the time being will be by committee.
"I think as a team, this is our year,'' Moore said. "I think we're going to do some big things. It's not going to be easy. Not at all. We have to remain the hunters."
A look at varying betting odds for Thursday night’s game has the Ravens ranging from 7 ½-point to 9 ½-point underdogs. Baltimore went into last year’s playoff game as 9 ½-point underdogs.
Perhaps it’s because the Ravens are largely a different team from last season. Or it’s because they’re the Ravens.
“There’s something about the Ravens, something about us [that] we’ve always been underdogs,” running back Ray Rice said.
“We don’t mind that kind of stuff, because when you overcome it. We were never the perfect football team. We won a Super Bowl last year, but we were never the perfect football team. We just found ways to win games, and that’s the kind of football team we are.”
The Denver Broncos are widely regarded as the AFC favorites. As of Aug. 30, they had the second-best odds in the NFL at 6-1, only trailing the San Francisco 49ers. Baltimore is tied for 12th at 30-1.
“No, it doesn’t surprise me at all,” Rice said. “[The Broncos] got a Hall of Fame quarterback on that team. … It’s a pretty favorable team, so much respect to them and what they’ve built over there.”
The Ravens have been talking up the Broncos so far this week. And it’s not hard to do considering the talent Denver has, especially on offense.
With the addition of Wes Welker, they have three receivers who topped 1,000 yards last season. And they have Peyton Manning throwing to them.
“They don’t have a weakness, really, on their whole football team,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said.
Quarterback Joe Flacco said he doesn’t pay attention to the early-season odds. He said the Ravens didn’t go into last year’s divisional playoff game feeling like underdogs, and he doesn’t feel that way in the rematch either.
“It’s the first game of the year; nobody really knows what kind of teams people are,” Flacco said. “We feel like we’re good, we feel like they’re pretty good, and yes, we’re going to have to go play a good game. … We feel like we have a good team and our chances are always pretty good.”
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