NFL Power Rankings Week 3, Ravens Report Card Grades
By Brett Foote
Sep 21, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns running back Terrance West (28) is tackled by Baltimore Ravens inside linebacker C.J. Mosley (57) and outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil (58) during the second quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to Lunchtime Links, where we round up all the latest Ravens news from around the web for your convenient consumption. Today we have updated NFL power rankings for week 3, a Ravens report card roundup, the uncanny calmness of Joe Flacco, and the good problem the Ravens have at running back.
NFL power rankings week 3
Matt Miller at Bleacher Report has his updated NFL power rankings for week 3, which sees the Browns stand pat after a close game with the Ravens where they almost pulled off another upset. The Ravens take a big jump in the rankings for some reason, moving up to number 9 from number 13.
It’s a little puzzling after the Ravens barely pulled out the win in Cleveland, but it might also have something to do with the disappointing play of other teams that were formerly ranked above them, namely the Panthers, Packers, and Saints. All three of those teams have let analysts down at least once this season, while the Ravens win their second game in a row.
Report card grades roundup
Our grades for the Ravens following their win over the Browns are here, and we also have entries from Jamison Hensley at ESPN and Jason Marcum at Bleacher Report to peruse on Monday morning. Everyone agrees that the passing game was simply OK, while the run game did an excellent job once again.
The secondary was downright horrible, and Hensley is much tougher on the defense as a whole than we were. Perhaps we were just giving them the benefit of the doubt since they held at the end when the Ravens really needed it. One thing we can all agree on is that special teams saved the day, and likely won the game with their excellent play.
Raven’s strength is uncanny calmness
A lot of people knock Joe Flacco for being almost too calm, but it pays off in high pressure situations. Just look at Sunday’s game, where he reeled off a perfect pass to Steve Smith to set the Ravens up for a game winning field goal in a hostile environment. Against one of the league’s best corners.
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Even the fiery Steve Smith admits that calm is a good thing at this stage in his career. At least for those he plays with. “That makes it so much easier,” Smith said following Sunday’s game. “For a long time, when I grew up, I’ve always worked well through chaos. As I’ve gotten older, I prefer calm. It’s been refreshing to come in here and the quarterback in the huddle is calm. That makes it so much easier to concentrate and do your job.”
Ravens have a good problem at running back
Starting running back Bernard Pierce couldn’t go on Sunday with a thigh injury, so the team plugged in rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro for his first NFL action. And the ground game didn’t miss a beat as he racked up 91 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries in an impressive effort.
While some may think it’s a problem to have a bit of a controversy now as the team decides who it will start going forward, it’s definitely a good problem to have. Some teams struggle to find one good runner they can plug in and ride to victory, and the Ravens have three who are capable. We’d much rather argue over who should start than take the former, naturally.