Ravens vs. Raiders: 5 Questions with Just Blog Baby

As the Baltimore Ravens prepare for Sunday’s matchup against the Oakland Raiders, John Buehler of Just Blog Baby took time to answer some questions about the enemy.

Losers of two straight, the Baltimore Ravens head on the road this week for a Sunday afternoon matchup against the Oakland Raiders. With injuries, offensive woes and struggles on both sides of the football, the Ravens are desperate for a win. They come up against a Raiders team that have had their number the past two years, but will be without Derek Carr.

Needless to say, it’s a must-win for both sides on Sunday, but only one team can come out on top.

While we cover strictly Ravens football here, it’s always nice to get some insight on the enemy. John Buhler, site expert of Just Blog Baby was gracious enough to answer some Raiders questions ahead of Sunday’s matchup.

John and his crew are FanSided’s affiliate for all things Raiders and do some great work all season long. If you enjoy Raiders football or know someone who does, they’re the site to go to. You can find them here:

Site: https://justblogbaby.com

Twitter: @JustBlogBaby

Let’s get into the questions:

1. It’s hard not to start off with the news of Derek Carr. Obviously his loss is a huge blow to the Raiders’ offense. How confident are you with E.J. Manuel under center for the time being?

Losing Carr for two to six weeks is brutal. The team hasn’t played well the last two weeks and could fall out of playoff contention fast. That being said, Carr wasn’t playing all that great in the first quarter of the season. Outside of that 64-yard bomb to Johnny Holton in Denver in Week 4, Carr really struggled with his downfield accuracy.

Manuel signed with Oakland to be a serviceable backup. He did work with offensive coordinator Todd Downing back with the 2014 Buffalo Bills. So far, Manuel has looked fine in two preseason games (Arizona and Seattle), as well as most of the end of that Denver game. In short, Manuel knows the offense and has shown glimpses of succeeding in it. However, he will let balls sail on him and that can lead to picks like the one Justin Simmons had to end the game in Week 4. It’s not ideal having Manuel as the starting quarterback, but it could be worse.

2. On that same note, does the offensive game plan/philosophy change with Manuel as the starting quarterback?

I would think that the offense will be a little less complicated than when Carr was running it. The idea was to have the offense be a bit more free-flowing with Carr under center. However, it didn’t seem like Carr was able to get the full grasp the improvisational nuances of it just yet. We we looking at simplification to the offense coming up anyway. With Manuel’s arm being a bit stronger than Carr’s, we might see Downing call plays to accentuate that.

3. The Raiders have had the Ravens number the past two years, pulling out two close victories. What are the keys to success for another win come Sunday?

For the Raiders to come out on top, they have to run the football better. That has been the best indicator of success in the early part of the season for Oakland. The Raiders ran the ball well in the first two weeks, but the ground game evaporated in the next two. The defense has played better, so hopefully the Raiders can lean on that. Lastly, Manuel cannot turn the ball over. Oakland’s defense doesn’t force enough turnovers to lose the turnover margin and still win the game.

4. Derek Carr may be out, but there are still two very talented offensive weapons at wide receiver. How do you think Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree stack up against the Ravens secondary?

That’s hard to say. When Cooper and Crabtree are on, I would say that they match up well with the Ravens’ secondary. The problem is that Cooper can’t stop dropping the football on pass attempts. Let’s not forget that Crabtree is dealing with a bruised lung, too. Crabtree was playing very well before succumbing to injury in Week 3 versus the Washington Redskins. Cooper has not been anything close to a Pro Bowl caliber player in the first quarter of the season. For that reason, I’d say Baltimore has the advantage on the outside heading into Week 5, even though the game is in Oakland.

Next: Baltimore Ravens: Their top 3 biggest problems

5. Who’s a Raiders player that Ravens fans should keep an eye out for?

I think you might find a few players on defense besides Khalil Mack that could have your intrigue in this game. Strong safety Karl Joseph has played very well in his second NFL season out of West Virginia. He’s not just a hard-hitting safety any more, as he can make solid plays in coverage. Linebacker Cory James has been a tackling machine for the Silver and Black. He has been key in the Raiders improving defensively. Rookie linebacker Nicholas Morrow has been impressive in coverage. He’s been terrific given that he’s an undrafted rookie out of Division III Greenville.