NFL Power Rankings Week 5, Ravens O-Line Falls Apart

Oct 5, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flaco (5) is chased by Indianapolis Colts linebacker Jerrell Freeman (50) at Lucas Oil Stadium. Colts won, 20-13. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-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 round up the early Monday NFL power rankings week 5, detail the Raven’s o-line struggles from Sunday, and highlight the rise of C.J. Mosley.

Ravens o-line crumbles against Colts

The Raven’s offensive line has been the catalyst for offensive success this season. So it’s no surprise that when they failed to perform well against the Colts, the Raven’s three game win streak came to a screeching halt.

One week after performing quite admirably for an undrafted rookie making his first NFL start, left tackle James Hurst fell flat on his face.  Joe Flacco went three games without being sacked a single time, yet Hurst alone gave up three sacks on Sunday along with countless hurries and pressures.

It may be unfair to make Hurst the scapegoat for the loss, but those are the breaks in the NFL.  Gary Kubiak deserves his share of the blame as well for largely abandoning the run even though his backs were averaging 6.0 yards per carry and the score was never out of hand.

NFL power rankings week 5 Monday roundup

The early week NFL power rankings are up for week 5, and as expected, the Ravens slipped a little.  They dropped two spots from 7 to 9 in Bleacher Report’s rankings.  B/R gives the Ravens the benefit of the doubt in a game that could have gone either way, and retains that the team is still one of the best in the AFC.

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The Ravens likewise slip in FanSided’s rankings, from 6 to 9.  It’s interesting to note that FS has the Ravens ranked ahead of the Bengals, who were the recipients of the Patriot’s rage on Sunday night.  The Pats were due for a bounce back and they certainly did, but we still aren’t sure that the Ravens deserve to be ahead of them yet.

C.J. Mosley continues his breakout

Rookie linebacker C.J. Mosley had his first really good game last week against the Panthers, and he built upon that performance by having an even better one against the Colts.  Mosley racked up 14 tackles, an interception, and deflected a pass that resulted in a Haloti Ngata interception.

Mosley was literally all over the field in a game where few others looked inspired, including Terrell Suggs, who had a rough day. “I think he played phenomenal,” said Suggs, following the game. “We all got to catch up to him. He was out there making a lot of plays. We knew the kid was special coming in. That’s why we brought him in here. He had a hell of a day.”