Ravens vs. Saints grades, preseason week 1

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Aug 13, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens tight end Nick Boyle (82) catches a pass from quarterback Matt Schaub (8) (not pictured) infant of New Orleans Saints linebacker Henry Coley (52) during the third quarter in a preseason NFL football game at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Offense: C

Joe Flacco looked very sharp and comfortable out of the gate, completing 5 of 6 passes for 33 yards and an 89.6 passer rating. He even threw in a 17 yard run for good measure.

Despite all the worries regarding Matt Schaub, he performed quite well. His 45 yard touchdown to Campanaro was nice, and he drove the offense down the field for a pair of field goals afterwards, going 11/18 for 134 yards, the TD, one interception, and a 79.4 rating.

Despite bringing the Ravens back for the last second victory, third stringer Bryn Renner looked pretty awful overall. He wound up 6/14 for 88 yards, an interception, and a putrid 34.2 rating. He’s likely headed for the practice squad regardless, but needs to step up the next few weeks or he’ll wind up on the street.

The Ravens had a hard time running against the Saints, averaging only 2.7 yards per carry as a team. Lorenzo Taliaferro “led” the way with 12 carries for 36 yards and a score, but Buck Allen was right behind him with 11 carries for 35 yards. Surprisingly, Taliaferro had 2 catches for 18 yards while Allen had none.

Michael Campanaro led the Ravens in receiving thanks to his long touchdown, finishing up with 2 receptions for 58 yards. DeAndre Carter had 2 grabs for 33 yards on 4 targets.

In the tight end race, Maxx Williams led the way with 2 grabs for 36 yards on 3 targets, and Crockett Gillmore caught both of his targets for 7 yards. Nick Boyle had a whopping 7 targets, a team high, and turned them into 4 grabs for 25 yards.

Overall, it was a decent effort but not spectacular. The lack of production in the running game is a concern, but the Ravens QB’s did a good job of spreading the ball around. Then again, it was the first preseason game, so we haven’t seen much out of the playbook just yet.

Next: Defense

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