Baltimore Ravens 2017 Season Preview
Believe it or not, 2017 will be year ten for quarterback Joe Flacco. We’re closing in on a decade in Baltimore for one of the more polarizing figures in the NFL, at least in terms of his on field play. Opinions are very divided all throughout the league, but he does have a Super Bowl ring. Can the squad he’ll be leading this year get back to playing in January, and maybe even February?
2016 Summary
Even though the Ravens started 3-0, I think a lot of the fans could see that they were just papering over the cracks. They beat Buffalo, Cleveland, and Jacksonville by just 13 combined points. The obvious flaws started to show in a four game losing streak that included a humiliating 24-16 loss to the lowly New York Jets. A year of up and downs continued, but this time with a good trend up the standings. John Harbaugh’s group won five out of seven games to catapult themselves to 8-6 and set up a winner takes all game for the AFC North title vs. their hated rivals from Pittsburgh on Christmas.
Baltimore led 20-10 with a dozen minutes left in the game; setting up one of the most dramatic finishes of the season. Pittsburgh scored 14 unanswered points, but things looked good when Kyle Juszczyk stumbled into the end zone with 78 seconds to go, Baltimore took a 27-24 lead. Their defense again couldn’t make it stand up though, as the Steelers won the game with eight seconds left on an Antonio Brown touchdown catch. Baltimore lost their week 17 game to finish back at ground zero with an 8-8 season.
Personnel Changes
For the first time since 2012, Baltimore will not have Elvis Dumervil will not be aiding the pass rush. The now San Francisco 49er recorded 35.5 sacks for the Ravens in four seasons before being released. On the flip side of the defensive line, they managed to retain nose tackle Brandon Williams, who re-signed with the team on a five-year, 52 million dollar deal. The trio of front seven moves was finished off when Timmy Jernigan was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, who in turn gave Baltimore a third round draft pick that was 25 picks higher. GM Ozzie Newsome used the pick on Michigan defensive end Chris Wormley.
Brandon Carr has been Mr. Reliable in his NFL career. The cornerback who has played in all 16 games of every season of his nine-year career will now take his talents from Dallas to Baltimore, signing on the dotted line for a four-year contract. Pro Bowl center Jeremy Zuttah started all 16 games for the purple and gold last season, but was traded to the 49ers in March. Finding a new center is a major issue to be resolved before the season gets underway.
2016’s leader in tackles on defense Zachary Orr retired from the NFL at 24 years old, but has since announced he is coming back to football. He is no longer a Raven though, but rather an still un-signed free agent.
In the draft, Ozzie Newsome did what Ozzie Newsome does best. Drafting Alabama players. Marlon Humphrey and Tim Williams both leave Tuscaloosa set to make an immediate impact on the defense. Sandwiched between the two were linebacker Tyus Bowser and the aforementioned Wormley. It was an extremely defense-centric draft on the whole, with five of the seven players taken going towards that side of the ball.
Team Strengths
Is it usually has been for Baltimore since they re-gained NFL status in 1996, the defense rules the show. C.J. Mosley built on a solid first two seasons and has become a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the defense. Eric Weddle proved to be a good money free agency signing, as he kicked off his stint in Baltimore by tying Mosley for the team lead in interceptions, hauling in four picks. Terrell Suggs is still getting after the quarterback at 34 years young, grinding out eight sacks last season.
The Ravens as a team tied the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers for the NFL lead in interceptions, with the team netting 18.
At the end of the day, the goal is to score more points than the other team. Baltimore’s defense allowed 20.1 points a game on average last season. Dean Pees had a defense that was always able to keep Baltimore in the game and give Flacco’s offense a chance to win it. Despite the disappointment of that late meltdown in Pittsburgh, you can’t overlook how sturdy this unit was throughout the season.
Speaking of strengths, Justin Tucker deserves a lot of credit. There is no denying that he is the best kicker in the NFL. The former Texas Longhorn went 38/39 on field goals last year, and 10/10 on kicks longer than 50 yards. He’s also a perfect 166/166 in his career on extra points. Tucker is a weapon that is enormously important to shorten the field on offense.
Team Weaknesses
Terrance West was Baltimore’s rushing leader last season, and he averaged 48.4 yards a game. Seriously. The Ravens as a team averaged 91.4 rushing yards a game, dead last in the AFC. Second running back Kenneth Dixon showed a lot of promise, but he will miss the entirety of the 2017 season due to injury, and he would have missed the first four games through suspension anyway. Baltimore need to find productive rushing in any way possible.
The next worry is the alarming lack of big play receivers Joe Flacco has. Mike Wallace was a healthy surprise last year as the leading receiver, but things were bleak after that. Dennis Pitta has always been a good safety net man, but the vertical threats down the field are just missing. Considering Joe Flacco is supposed to be a deep ball quarterback, this is a serious omission from the offense.
Best Case Scenario
The defense continues to do what it does best. They keep forcing turnovers and giving Joe Flacco short fields. Flacco starts to mold his game a little more into the skill position players he has, and the offense does enough to sustain the defense. The Ravens get back to the playoffs, but end up falling a little short against some better, more rounded teams. 11-5, 1st place in AFC North, lose in divisional round.
Worst Case Scenario
Everything goes wrong on offense again. The receivers and running backs continue to struggle, forcing Flacco to do too much and make mistakes. Baltimore’s defense struggles without Zachary Orr’s presence, and the puzzle fails to stay together. Some of the close wins last year turn into losses, and the Ravens crash out of playoff contention. 6-10, 3rd place in AFC North.
Prediction
Baltimore’s defense continues to play strong and keep them in the game, but I still really don’t know where the big plays are going to come from. They are going to have to grind out results. They are absolutely capable of it, but I don’t think they did anywhere near enough in the offseason for the offense to match the defensive level. I’m predicting a very similar season to last year. 8-8, third place in AFC North.