Playoff Report Card: Ravens 27, Dolphins 9

The word of the game is... confident. The Ravens were certainly not perfect on offense or defense, but their calm, collective effort suffocated the Dolphins in their first playoff game since 2002. Coming into this game the talk around Baltimore was that the Ravens would have no place losing to the Dolphins and fans were sizing up future playoff matchups against the Titans or Steelers prematurely. Miami still said the right things in that they felt they could make noise, but there was not that same conviction that has fueled the Ravens. That disparity showed itself today in that the Ravens did not blink in the face of adversity, and while Miami still made it a game they still stumbled notably under the playoff pressure.

For the Ravens, their effort was flawed to be sure. Joe Flacco was somewhat erratic, only completing 9 of 23 passes on the game, but he did not turn the ball over nor did he take a sack through the course of the game. The defense, while brilliant, did let Miami make sustained drives down the field in the third quarter. The running game was hot and cold, and its ineffectiveness through much of the second half put the defense in terrible spots. However, the Ravens overcame these flaws just as any great NFL team must do, and prevailed to a victory against a very competitive Dolphins team.

Hide the women and children. Baltimore is about to come crashing into Nashville.

Offense - Overall Grade: B-
Quarterbacks: B
Joe Flacco protected the ball well, but he was erratic throughout the game. He missed several wide open throws which contributed to the defense not getting a significant rest throughout the second half. Make no mistake, he must play better against Tennessee, but no, I don’t think that this is a case of the playoffs being too big for him. Joe was poised and made smart decisions with the football with the exception of one dropped interception in the first half. This young signal caller is the first rookie quarterback to win a playoff game on the road.
Running Backs: B-
Le’Ron McClain ran fairly well today, but seemed slow in finding the hole and lost a key fumble on the Ravens’ opening possession. In the second half the Ravens needed this unit to step up a whole lot more and churn out first downs, but they couldn’t do it until late with McGahee’s big run. And speaking of which, I believe McGahee just made a strong case for getting the ball more often.
Wide Receivers: B-
Derrick Mason is an absolute star, a consummate professional. That being said, someone else has to step up in the passing game. Mark Clayton was open for a few big plays, and while Flacco missed on several there was one deep pass in which Clayton did not extend on what could have been a catchable ball. Marcus Smith has to stop being invisible.
Tight Ends: B
A big catch in the first quarter to set the Ravens up for a field goal, but also a big drop which stopped them from getting a potential touchdown. Todd Heap is working his butt off on blocking, particularly on the unbalanced line, and as a receiver. Expect the Ravens to draft at least one tight end come May.
Offensive Line: B
Not a terrible day by any stretch, but the Ravens really needed this group to assert itself in the second half in the running game and they just didn’t. Also, the procedure penalties in the first half were killer. Flacco was kept clean for the most part, and there were certainly holes that McClain failed to exploit, so the grading shouldn’t be too harsh on this bunch.

Defense - Overall Grade: A
Defensive Line: A+
The Dolphins’ running game was knocked out in the first quarter and never got back up. This is rooted in the success of the Ravens’ front, which controlled the line of scrimmage and got consistent penetration into the Dolphins’ backfield. Trevor Pryce played a monster of a game, and came close to several very big plays.
Linebackers: A
The famed linebacking corps of the Baltimore Ravens did not disappoint on this afternoon, as they shut down Ronnie Brown and the much-hyped Wildcat formation along with putting consistent pressure on Chad Pennington. Each of those four picks were influenced by the constant pressure of the Ravens’ front seven, and they deserve just as much credit for them as the secondary.
Defensive Backs: A
Were it not for the long Miami drives in the second half, this would undoubtedly be an A+. All week long the Ravens had heard about how the Dolphins never gave the ball away; so instead, the Ravens decided to simply take the ball themselves. Fabian Washington and Ed Reed had very strong games; by contrast, Corey Ivy set new lows for tackling in the secondary with his whiff on Davonne Bess resulting in a 45-yard catch and run.

Special Teams - Overall Grade: B
Kicker: B+
Matt Stover converted on his opportunities, but the kicks certainly did not inspire confidence. What was both uninspiring and ineffective was the performance of Hauschka on kickoffs, which certainly must improve.
Punter: A-
As always, Sam Koch put together a very strong performance, albeit not one of his best. He did pin Miami back on the 2-yard line once, and came close to pinning them deep on one other occasion but just missed.
Returners: B+
Is it just me or is Tom Zbikowski a halfway-decent return man? It’s a good thing too, because with Figurs reaggravating his hamstring, the Golden Domer is now the primary for the rest of the playoffs.
Coverage: A
A very solid day for the Ravens coverage teams; Miami had no room to run on returns, and the Ginn was kept in check all day. There was some success by Cobbs on kick returns, but he seemed to be the Ravens’ proverbial kryptonite in both offense and special teams on this afternoon.

Coaching - Overall Grade: A
Offensive: B
Cam Cameron put together a good, solid game plan; the Ravens held onto the football and kept Joe Flacco from getting hit too hard or asking him to make too many plays. Certainly there does need to be more consistent production from the offense, as the short-lived drives kept the defense from properly resting. I am somewhat surprised to not see more trickery today, but I certainly expect to see some next week against a far superior defense to Miami’s in Tennessee.
Defensive: A+
Rex Ryan had this group in the right mentality this week, and the Ravens were all over what the Dolphins wanted to do on offense. They controlled the line of scrimmage, stopped the running game before it could get going, and rattled Chad Pennington into coughing up the game.

And for my MVP/LVP...
MVP (Most Valuable Player) –Ed Reed–I know he gets this award constantly, but when he doesn’t deserve it I promise I’ll stop giving it! Reed picked off two more passes today, and returned one for a touchdown which gave the Ravens their first lead. His second interception closed the door on a drive that most likely would have resulted in a touchdown for Miami. Ed Reed is invaluable to this team.
LVP (Least Valuable Player) –Corey Ivy– I know he gets this award constantly, but when he doesn’t deserve it I promise I’ll stop giving it! Corey Ivy has neither the speed, nor the strength, nor the skills to be a nickel cornerback in this league. He is a liability in the secondary, and it’s only going to show more as the Ravens move deeper into the playoffs. p.s. I freely invite Corey Ivy to make me look like the idiot that I am by having a big game down in Nashville this coming Saturday.

(Photo Credit: Ed Reed(Gene Sweeney Jr/Baltimore Sun), Ray Lewis(Doug Kapustin/Baltimore Sun), Cam Cameron (Doug Kapustin/Baltimore Sun))

Postgame Report Card: Ravens 33, Cowboys 24

The word of the game is... gutsy. This is a cliché word, I know, but what else can you say? The Ravens came into a very hostile Dallas stadium on a historic night for the home team, and beat a team with, quite honestly, superior talent. This was not the perfect night for offense; the Ravens sputtered through nearly the entire game, failing to get into the endzone in the first half despite numerous opportunities. This wasn’t the perfect game for defense; there were significant coverage breakdowns that the Cowboys didn’t exploit and the defensive line was pushed around most of the game.

So what was so great about this game, and how did the Ravens win? The Ravens won with guts. They played hard, they played for each other, and they played disciplined. It sounds awful melodramatic to say that, but anyone watching that game could see the difference between the two teams playing. Both were sloppy in execution, but the Ravens had every man on the field playing hard each snap. Those intangibles trumped talent yesterday.

Offense - Overall Grade: B-
Quarterbacks: B+
Joe Flacco didn’t light the world on fire, but he certainly was poised. Flacco was battered heavily in the first half, as his offensive line allowed him to get mauled to the tune of five sacks. Occasionally Joe held onto the ball a little bit too long, and some of his passes sailed on him that could have been big plays. Still, Joe answered the critics claiming that he had hit the ‘rookie wall’.
Running Backs: B-
Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain had the highlights of the game with their 77 and 82 yard touchdown runs, respectively. Those two runs sealed the game for the Ravens, both responding to Dallas scores late. However, it’s important not to forget that this group got next to nothing done prior to those runs. Le’Ron McClain had a few good runs, but neither was reading the lanes particularly well. Hopefully McGahee’s excellent few runs down the stretch will propel him forward.
Wide Receivers: B
Derrick Mason. What can you say. The man played with one arm, played in pain, and ultimately made the key plays in the game. He recovered the Le’Ron McClain fumble, caught Joe Flacco’s touchdown pass, and converted several other first downs. His performance was a microcosm of the attitude the Ravens showed in this football game.
Tight Ends: B+
Todd Heap was excellent as a pass receiver, getting open several times down the field. Flacco wasn’t able to make a couple of key connections with him, most notably on a sure-fire touchdown to Todd Heap in the first half, but the point is that he got himself open and in a position to make plays. Heap got beaten very badly as a blocker; the assignments were tough but he has to make them for the offense to run. As I’ve said many times before, Quinn Sypniewski has been missed.
Offensive Line: C-
After the first half, make no mistake, this grade was a flat-out F, no doubt about it. They hung Joe Flacco out to dry, missed a key block on what would have been a touchdown throw to Mark Clayton, and opened up no lanes in the running game. However, this group was somewhat redeemed in the second half; they didn’t let Flacco get sacked and the late-game run blocking was brilliant.

Defense - Overall Grade: B-
Defensive Line: B-
The Ravens’ defensive front was uncharacteristically bullied around by the opposing offensive line. For much of the game even stalwarts like Haloti Ngata were getting pushed off the ball by the Dallas line. There was very little penetration in the running and passing game.
Linebackers: B
Again, an uncharacteristically poor performance, as there were several missed tackles by usually sound tacklers in Bart Scott and Ray Lewis. The coverage on flare patterns to the running backs in the flat was excellent, and the blitz execution was sound.
Defensive Backs: C+
They got lucky. Tony Romo missed an awful lot of deep throws that could have won this game for the Cowboys. Credit Rex Ryan for putting Tony off balance, but those lapses could have been devastating. Ed Reed, however, had a couple of interceptions and his big return on the latter turned into an unlikely late field goal in the first half.

Special Teams - Overall Grade: A
Kicker: A
Until the late runs, Stover was the offensive MVP of this football team. He made four field goals, accounting for twelve of the Ravens’ 16 points heading into the fourth period. The kickoffs were hurt somewhat by the deactivation of Hauschka for the game.
Punter: A+
Sam Koch was absolutely brilliant this night. He averaged a net punt of 46.6 yards (with a long of 61) and converted a fourth-and-8 with a 9 yard run out of a fake field goal. Sam Koch is the most underrated punter in football.
Returners: A-
Jim Leonhard was outstanding. Yamon Figurs was not. Just when it seems that Yamon might be back on track, he has this game in which he not only failed to produce field position on kickoffs, he almost gave the game away late with an inexcusable fumble. Jim Leonhard is getting better and better on punt returns; he doesn’t have blazing speed, but boy can he stop and start on a dime.
Coverage: B
Miles Austin got some good chunks on kickoff returns, and Adam Jones broke loose late for a significant return. Other than that the coverage was OK, particularly on punts. The blocking was decent on punt returns but certainly on kickoffs Yamon could have used more help; then again, he could have just missed the lanes so it’s hard to say.

Coaching - Overall Grade: A
Offensive: B+
This wasn’t a particularly good offensive showing, but Cam Cameron did what he could to move the ball against Dallas. The most important thing that Cameron did was to tweak how to attack the Dallas defense as the game went along. The reappearance of Troy Smith in the offense was a welcome sight, along with the use of the tight end screen and a couple option looks with Flacco. Against great pass rushes, Cam needs to start going to the short passing game earlier instead of letting his quarterback get beat up waiting for deeper routes down the field.
Defensive: A
Rex Ryan and his defense shut down the explosive Cowboys offense for three and a half quarters yesterday, and that was an immense accomplishment. Tony Romo was harried and confused for nearly the entire game yesterday. An excellent adjustment by Rex was to shut down the draw game that the Cowboys were running so effectively early in the game.

And for my MVP/LVP...
MVP (Most Valuable Player) –Derrick Mason– Not only was it his six catches and a touchdown, but his attitude. Derrick Mason was a warrior and embodied what the Ravens did last night. Undermanned, hurt; didn’t matter.
LVP (Least Valuable Player) –Corey Ivy– Yet again, he was the major weak link in the secondary and let some big plays be made over top of him. Late in the game, in the red zone, why do you let Jason Witten get behind you?

Postgame Report Card: Ravens 37, Browns 27

The word of the game is…comeback. After being up 10-0, the Browns went on a 27-3 tear to take what looked like a dominating 14-point lead. But the Ravens locked down their defense and revved up the offense, scoring 24 unanswered points and came away from Cleveland with a 37-27 victory. The Ravens improve to 5-3 and are currently a half-game back of Pittsburgh in the AFC North, while the Browns fall to 3-5.

This win means so much to the Ravens. Cleveland is one of the worst places to play for the men in purple. Browns fans have never gotten over the move of the Browns by Art Modell, and because of that the fans put that much more into their taunts and cheering. The city has not had a playoff win with the new franchise, adding to the frustration. And the Ravens just seem to not play well there. But despite all those factors plus being down 14 late in the third quarter, the Ravens rallied to win.

Offense – Overall Grade: B+

Quarterbacks: B+
Joe Flacco had a solid day, throwing 248 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers. He had a few very close throws that could have been problematic, but when the Ravens needed moving and scores, Flacco was at his best. The grade is a little lower with Troy Smith, due to the confusion with his entrances. But overall, Flacco may have had his best day as a quarterback.

Running Backs: A-

Ray Rice was wonderful in place of the injured Willis McGahee, running for 154 yards on 21 carries, the big one going for 60 yards. Moreover, he should some impressive jukes and side-steps when running. His strength has always been his speed, but he showed some great technique today. LeRon McClain's stats, 34 yards and a TD on 14 carries, don't reflect his job, which mainly was going for those short yardage situations, but he did fail to get anything done on a few plays near the goal line. But Rice was the absolute star today.

Wide Receivers: A-

Derrick Mason continues to be Flacco's favorite and most reliable target, getting nine receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown. His touchdown was tremendous, catching the ball and spinning to avoid his defender to easily score. And welcome to the offense Mark Clayton, who had four catches for 87 yards and a score; could have been two if he catches a long one to the end zone, but he had a tremendous day. With Demetrious Williams out for the year with injury, Flacco now getting the ball to Clayton gives him another big threat and spreads out the secondary.

Tight Ends: D

Todd Heap is having a very disappointing year. Today, no catches and two false starts. Just a bad, bad day for him.

Offensive Line: B

For a while, it seemed as if the line were showing the same problems they always were. Flacco was getting hurried, including getting sacked twice, and a lot of confusion on certain plays. But again, once the times got tough, the line stepped up, and protected Flacco and Rice while the scoring machine began. All in all, the line did its job when the Ravens needed them most.

Defense - Overall Grade: B-
Defensive Line: A-
This unit had a strong game, and was occasionally dominant. Ngata and Bannan shut down Jamal Lewis at the line of scrimmage, and Trevor Pryce had his finest game this season, accounting for a sack along with a few key quarterback pressures. Ngata’s pass rush on the Browns’ final offensive play was the key to Suggs’ interception. The line’s grade is docked, however, by the fact that there was a significant stretch through the second and third quarters that this group gave Anderson far too much time.
Linebackers: B+
The running game was wholly shut down, and the linebackers played an equal part to the line in making that happen. The linebackers were weak in covering Harrison out of the backfield and they could not slow down tight ends Heiden and Winslow for the majority of the game. The failure to generate a significant pass rush for much of the game can be significantly attributed to the weakened secondary, forcing the linebackers to play more coverage than usual.
Defensive Backs: C-
It’s almost hard to blame this group, because these players are being pushed into roles that they should not be playing. Fabian Washington, Frank Walker, and Corey Ivy should not have to be the 1-2-3 cornerbacks on the roster. The matchups were difficult, but this unit has to do better regardless of circumstances.

Special Teams - Overall Grade: D
Kicker: A-
Stover was 3-3 on field goals and 4-4 on extra points, so it’s hard to ask for much more from a field goal kicking perspective. However, Stover was unable to put sufficient hangtime and distance on kickoffs to limit Cribbs’ opportunities.
Punter: B
Sam Koch had one abysmal line-drive punt to Cribbs, but outside of that he was alright. Despite his one poor punt he did average 41 yards on six punts, with two placed within the 20.
Returners: C
Musical chairs in the return game for the Ravens, as they used two kick returners (Figurs and Rice) and three punt returners (Figurs, Leonhard, and Reed). None of these returners had much success, and when a team shuffles returners, good things aren’t usually happening.
Coverage: D-
What can I say. They couldn’t block for their return men and they sure as heck couldn’t control Joshua Cribbs in the slightest. Cribbs gained a total of 278 yards between punt and kickoff returns, along with his 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. If the Ravens lost this game, there would be only one place to point the blame.

Coaching - Overall Grade: B+
Offensive: B
This may seem a little harsh since the Ravens offense scored 31 points (six by defense) in the game. Early in the game, the play calling was suspect, as the Ravens seemed to be making overly conservative play calls just to make sure nothing terrible happened. Add to that, the Suggs package caused many problems and did not do any good. However, the fact is Cam Cameron's troops scored 31 points, had the big plays when they needed them, and some of those drives in the second half completely fooled the Cleveland defense. Overall, a job well done by Cam Cameron.
Defensive: B
I really have difficulty grading Rex Ryan on this game, because while his defense was often gashed by the Browns offense, the defense was put in horrible spots by the ineffective special teams and is seriously unmanned in the secondary. The pass defense was suspect, but as usual the run defense was dominant. At the end of the day, Rex Ryan deserves the benefit of the doubt.

And for my MVP/LVP...
MVP (Most Valuable Player) –Ray Rice– Ray Rice was the difference in this game, sparking the Ravens’ comeback in the third and fourth quarters. The rookie from Rutgers was electric, starting in place of Willis McGahee, rushing for 154 yards on 21 carries.
LVP (Least Valuable Player) –Corey Ivy– Another very poor day in the secondary, and Ivy was certainly not the only guilty party. However, Ivy was the weakest link in the group and was repeatedly picked on.

(Photo Credits: Ray Rice (Gene Sweeney Jr./Baltimore Sun), Joshua Cribbs (AP))

Postgame Report Card: Colts 31, Ravens 3

The word of the game is... ouch. Because it hurts. A lot. The Ravens were punched in the face from the start of this game and couldn’t get off the mat. The defense lost it’s intensity after the first long touchdown to Marvin Harrison, and one of the league’s top run offenses could get nothing done against the worst run defense in the league. The Ravens got embarrassed in the worst of ways.

Offense - Overall Grade: F

Quarterbacks: F

Joe Flacco looked like a lost rookie today. He consistently misread the coverage, had trouble finding the open receiver, and was careless with the football in the pocket. To be sure he had little help at all; an early deficit, receivers who couldn’t get open, a nonexistent running game, and horrific field position. This performance, which follows two lackluster starts against Pittsburgh and Tennessee, starts to make you wonder as to whether or not he really is capable of succeeding in his rookie year.
Running Backs: C
Simply based on the fact that they were against the Colts run defense it would be tempting to give this unit a worse grade, but in all fairness they had little to no room to run. Still, the ball security issues and indecisiveness in the backfield are on them. Rice showed nice burst in the second half, but the Colts were playing soft with a 31 point lead.
Wide Receivers: D
This unit found some success in the second half, but when they needed to show up was in the first half before the game was out of hand. In that first half the receivers got little separation and gave Flacco very few options. A quarterback can only get rid of the ball he has targets getting open, and this unit has to start making plays for their rookie signal caller.
Tight Ends: D
Todd Heap made a key reception on the Ravens’ only decent drive in the first half. Wilcox had a silly holding penalty that kept the Ravens backed up in field position. Neither of the tight ends had any success blocking in the run game or in pass protection.
Offensive Line: F
THE OFFENSIVE LINE SHOULD HAVE DOMINATED THE COLTS ON THE GROUND. These aren’t the Pittsburgh Steelers! These aren’t the Tennessee Titans! These are the Indianapolis Colts, far-and-away the worst run defense in the league! The Ravens lost this game when the line decided not to play.

Defense - Overall Grade: D-
Defensive Line: B-
At the start of this game, the line looked as if it would dominate. As far as the running game, the front four did dominate the ground game but was unable to get pressure on Peyton consistently. All that being said, Pryce and Ngata had excellent games (as usual) and should not be tagged for defense’s failure on the whole.
Linebackers: C
The linebacking corps could not build on early success rushing the quarterback and lost steam as the game got out of hand. This is a prideful group and I have no worries that they will bounce back. As with the defensive line this wasn’t a terrible game for them; the real culprit we are about to get to.
Defensive Backs: F
Frank Walker didn’t play terribly in place of Samari Rolle, but Corey Ivy was picked on all game by Peyton Manning. Chris McAlister had by far his worst game of the season and was consistently fooled by Marvin Harrison. He should be able to rebound, but I have significant questions as to whether or not the rest of this group (Ed Reed aside) will be able to. The rush put on by the Ravens’ front seven was nullified by the fact that Peyton didn’t need much time at all in the pocket to pick apart this group.

Special Teams - Overall Grade: C
Kicker: B+
Stover did his job; converted his only field goal attempt.
Punter: A+
Sam Koch is quickly becoming one of the best players on this team. Is that really a good thing?
Returners: F
Figurs has to get it together; he has shown none of the burst that we are accustomed to seeing and he’s been making very poor decisions on kickoffs.
Coverage: C
A mixed bag; Ratliffe was held in check on punt returns, but no holes were opened up for Figurs on the Ravens’ returns.

Coaching - Overall Grade: B-
Offensive: B-
Cam had a good gameplan and, in all fairness, called pretty solid plays. In weighing importance, execution trumps playcalling any day of the week. In this case, otherwise decent play calling was ruined by a complete lack of execution. I still knocked down the grade because the buck does stop with the coaches, after all.
Defensive: B
Umm… similar to my evaluation of the offensive coaching, to be honest. Rex Ryan didn’t ask for Frank Walker and Corey Ivy to be his 2-3 cornerbacks against Peyton Manning. Nor did he ask for the offense to never hold onto the ball for more than a few plays in the first half.

And for my MVP/LVP...
MVP (Most Valuable Player) – Sam Koch – Great, great game from Sam Koch. No, you don’t want him out there and yes, if he is the story then most likely something went very wrong for your team. But boy, he did do his job well; averaged 49 yards on five punts, including a monster 57-yarder. Bravo.
LVP (Least Valuable Player) – Corey Ivy – I’ll spare Joe Flacco, and I gave it to one offensive lineman I would have to give it to all of them (and I just can’t do that; LVP is singular after all, and I’m a little obsessive about stuff like that). SO! I give it to Corey Ivy, because he was by far the weakest link on this secondary. The coaches picked up Walker and Washington to bulk up the depth, putting Ivy as the fourth or fifth cornerback. But Rolle, Washington, and to some extent Walker have been all banged up. Enter Corey Ivy, and exit dominant pass defense.

Bonus grade:
Windsor’s Report Cards: F-
That’s right, I said it. As far as Report Cards go, I give my games an F-. And you know why? Because the last four games I've covered have netted an 0-4 record in increasingly embarrassing fashion. 23-20 Pittsburgh (Ravens), 13-10 Tennessee (Ravens), 31-0 Virginia (Maryland Terrapins), and 31-3 Indianapolis (Ravens). I think we’re all sick of this losing, so let’s all petition Falco to write these Report Cards!
Unless our Maryland teams keep losing, in which case we can move on to blaming him instead of me.

(Photo Credits: AP)