NFL Power Rankings Week 13

NFL.com
This week: 6
Last week: 7
"If the Ravens can create the kind of pressure they did Thursday night, they'll go to the Super Bowl. That's no exaggeration. The corners have long been considered a weakness on John Harbugh's team. They'll get far less exposure with the kind of collapsing pocket Niners QB Alex Smith faced Thanksgiving Night. Of course, Joe Flacco's inconsistent play is always a concern. He was solid in Week 12. How will he fare next week at Cleveland? Don't snicker. The Browns have the top pass defense in football."

ESPN.com
This week: 2
Last week: 5
"After shutting down San Francisco on Thanksgiving, the Ravens have jumped from No. 5 to No. 2, their highest plateau of the season. "
"Opinions vary, but chances are the No. 2 spot will change hands some more in the coming weeks. For now, the pressure's on Baltimore to hold serve."
"With a statement win over the 49ers, the Ravens proved they are a legitimate title contender."

Morning Media Roundup: "Winning on Thanksgiving moves Baltimore that much closer to some home cooking in the postseason."

Photo Credit: http://es.pn/vqM5KU

ESPN's AFC North Blog: Ravens win more than bragging rights

• The Ravens' decisive 16-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers allows you to make the argument that Baltimore is the best team in the AFC. What's not debatable is this: The Ravens are the AFC's most dangerous team at home. 
• Baltimore consistently crashed the pocket on Smith with four- and five-man rushes, tying a franchise record with nine sacks. The Ravens' sacks outnumbered Smith's passes of more than 10 yards (five). For the season, 27 of the Ravens' 38 sacks (71 percent) have come at home. 
• One Baltimore fan held up a sign that read: "We have the better Harbaugh." But this Thanksgiving night was more than the older brother beating the younger. This was about the Ravens establishing themselves as the team to beat in the AFC and proving their dominance at home once again. 

Ravens Insider: Ravens win Harbaugh Bowl, defense dominates Niners

• Relentlessly attacking on defense despite All-Pro middle linebacker Ray Lewis being sidelined for the second consecutive game with a toe injury, the Ravens (8-3) stonewalled 49ers star running back Frank Gore as they limited him to a season-low 39 rushing yards on 14 carries.
• Pro Bowl outside linebacker Terrell Suggs tied a career-high by sacking Smith three times, and defensive end Cory Redding chased Smith down for 2 ½ sacks with All-Pro defensive tackle Haloti Ngata decking him twice more.
• Flacco completed 15 of 23 passes for 161 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions for a 100.1 quarterback rating.
• And the Ravens converted 6 of 9 third downs in the second half and 7 of 15 for the game.

  
  

  
  

  
  

Ravens Feast on the 49ers

NFL Week 12 Power Rankings

A huge win at home for the Ravens last weekend earned them the top spot in the AFC North. Unfortunately, the Raven's inconsistency is still leaving the sports media scene skeptical in terms of this week's power rankings. Where did we land this week?

NFL.com

This week: 7
Last week: 7
"Huge win at home. Those weren't the early 2000s Bengals coming to town. Perhaps more importantly, Ray Rice received 25 touches from offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. That means drive-time listeners on Baltimore AM radio will get to hear something besides Cam-ripping this week. If they had lost, Cameron might have been blamed for the Colts leaving."

ESPN.com

This week: 5
Last week: 6
"It's a family affair this week for John and Jim Harbaugh. Could 49ers-Ravens be a Super Bowl preview?"

First Place... Feels So Good!

"It was just an emotional loss."

Ravens long-snapper Morgan Cox named this year's recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award

Less than one year after suffering an MCL, ACL and meniscus tear during a game against Cleveland, Morgan Cox is being honored by teammates and the Ravens organization as this year's recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award.

Despite the fact that his injury was typically one that would require a player to be carried off the field because they are unable to walk, Cox limped on his own to the sideline and only minutes later returned to the field to finish the game for his team. In pushing through immense physical pain to finish the game, Cox earned the respect of his teammates and coaches.

The Baltimore Ravens and many other teams in the NFL only carry one active long snapper on the roster so if Cox had not finished the game, Baltimore would have had to turn over the duties to backup running back Willis McGahee.

He finished the game without missing any snaps and the Ravens went on to earn the win, 20-10.

For more on his recovery process that helped get him back out on the field this season, check out the full story from BaltimoreRavens.com!

NFL Week 11 Power Rankings: Ravens Take a Fall

NFL.com

This week: 7

Last week: 3

"... starting here. Baltimore beat Houston head-to-head earlier this season, but the Ravens' play lately can be best be described as shaky at best. My colleague Dave Dameshek predicted an interconference snafu from the Ravens, an it came true. It seems Baltimore gets up for the Steelers, then goes flat. It happened in Week 2 at Tennessee, and Sunday in Seattle. Joe Flacco is up, down, up, down, basically inconsistent as hell. Yes, he had 255 yards passing, but it took him 52 attempts to get there. His interception led to a field goal and a 22-7 lead. In the aforementioned loss in Nashville, Flacco went 15 of 32 with two picks. Despite beating Houston earlier this season, Baltimore's Jekyll-and-Hyde nature secures them no better than the seventh spot overall. By the way, it's not all on Flacco. David Reed's two fumbles sure didn't help."

ESPN.com

This week: 6

Last week: 3

"There's no excuse for RB Ray Rice to get five carries and QB Joe Flacco to throw 52 times."

NFL.com - Keep Feeding Rice

"After Baltimore’s surprising Week 7 loss to Jacksonville, the focus was on the fact that RB Ray Rice had a mere eight rushing attempts in that game. In each of the next two weeks, Rice’s workload was bumped up to 18 carries — and the Ravens came out on top. So it’s somewhat distressing for Ravens fans that Rice then had a season-low five carries in Sunday’s loss to the Seahawks.

While the chart below shows that the Ravens are not giving Rice a consistent workload, the formula is pretty simple: When Rice has more than 15 carries this season, the Ravens are 5-0. When Rice runs the ball less than 15 times, they are 1-3." (Check out the full story here!)

           (Photo courtesy of NFL.com)

ESPN AFC North Blogger's Quarterback Report

Jamison Hensley offers his comparison of the 4 AFC North QB's. The Steelers QB, Ben Roethlisberger holds the top spot with a QBR of 90.5, good enough for 9th in the league. Joe Flacco takes a distant second place with a QBR of only 47.0, 16th in the league. Not far behind Flacco is Browns QB Colt McCoy with a 37.6 QBR and Andy Dalton of the Bengals with a 28.1.

Check out his analysis as well as his QB grades following this past weekend's games!

Checking In With the Current AFC Standings

As it stands, each team in the AFC has at least three losses so far this season. Check out the entire list to see how the Ravens stack up with their AFC foes!

Monday Morning Media Round-up: Ravens loss in Seattle proves that they aren't ready to be great

Well, there really isn't much to be said after the showing that the Ravens put on yesterday in Seattle. It's an all too familiar feeling that Ravens fans are experiencing waking up this morning and one that I certainly wasn't expecting considering our opponent. One word really sums up the way I feel about the Ravens right now, disappointed. All week leading up to yesterday's game, the media kept saying that the AFC title was the Ravens for the taking. The inconsistency on BOTH ends of the field leaves me questioning why the Ravens aren't playing up to their potential in every single game. We are closer than we have been in a while to having a real shot at making it to the Super Bowl and we are throwing away games to teams like Seattle? I want to have faith in the Ravens and I want to enjoy watching on football on Sunday, not feel like I should change the channel. I am so proud of the big wins they have accomplished this season but the little games matter too and we really can't afford to throw anything else away at this point. Here's to hoping the Ravens can turn things around this week and prove to everyone the kind of football team they really are!

In case you want to relive yesterday's embarrassment:

AFC North Blog- Wake-up call: Steelers back in first place 

"Just like before you board any roller coaster, the AFC North race should come with an advisory: Please be aware of sudden drops, quick climbs and unexpected jarring turns."

Ravens Insider - Aaron Wilson: Baltimore Ravens Report Card

"QB: C-, Running Back: C, O-line: B, Receiver: C, D-line: C-, Linebacker: D, Secondary: C-, Special  Team: F"

Ravens Insider - Aaron Wilson: Hapless in Seattle: Ravens suffer letdown, lose to Seahawks

Terrell Suggs Talks About Viral Phenomenon, "Ball So Hard University"

NFL Week 10 Power Rankings: Ravens Big Win Moves Them Up the Charts

NFL.com  

This week: 3
Last week: 7
"Huge win for the Ravens, huge win for Joe Flacco. But the biggest boon for Baltimore might be what the team is getting from Anquan Boldin. The vet has been more than reliable the last few weeks, while Torrey Smith is hit or miss. When Lee Evans comes back, what was once a weak position group will become an area of strength for coach John Harbaugh. "


ESPN.com

This week: 3
Last week: 4
"A sweep of the Steelers makes the Ravens the new kings of the AFC North."

2011 Midseason Report: 4 out of 8 NFL Analysts Vote Ravens to the Super Bowl

In a recent post on NFL.com, 8 analysts discuss end of season awards and playoff predictions based on midseason team standings. Out of the 8 analysts, 4 of them chose the Ravens to make it all the way to the Super Bowl against the Green Bay Packers. While none of them picked the Ravens to win the Super Bowl, I'd say that the win against the Steelers this weekend certainly put us back on people's radar in a very good way! Check out the original post for more predictions and midseason discussion!

Yes, last night really happened!

Ravens sweep the Steelers and earn the top spot in the AFC North alongside the Bengals! Check out the games big highlights and hear the immediate reaction from Flacco, Torrey Smith and Ray Lewis!

Is it the best rivalry in the NFL?

Happy Purple Friday!

Happy Purple Friday Ravens fans! After a crazy snow-induced power outage here at school, I am finally back online! Despite missing some of the early pre-game coverage for this weekends HUGE matchup, I am back in action to bring you the Ravens news highlights!

To start us off, here are some of the media's Ravens-Steelers picks!

How did Big Ben respond to Terrell Suggs' comment about owning his butt Week 1? Check out his response!

Will the Steelers question the Ravens blocking this time around? ESPN's AFC North blog weighs in!

I'm sensing a Ravens comeback this weekend! It's time to prove to all the doubters what kind of team we really are!