Offense 1.      Three wide, shotgun set: There are as many storylines as there are Pro Bowl players to line up on Sunday night. Among the key concerns is whether fullback Le’Ron McClain will line up at fullback when the grudge match between AFC North rivals ensues. Given McClain’s potential unavailability, the offense will have to operate from more spread formations. Against Pittsburgh, the formation of choice would be a shotgun set in which T.J. Houshmandzadeh is the third receiver, and the backs next to quarterback Joe Flacco are tailback Ray … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Run/Pass Read: Tampa Bay lines up in a base Cover 2 look on most downs. However, in this game against the Ravens, the Bucs may show more Cover 3 with the strong safety dropping closer to the line. Tampa Bay has struggled to stop the run all season, so they could use an eighth man to defend the Baltimore tailbacks. It will be up to Joe Flacco to make the right adjustment at the line depending on how the safeties are positioned. If he is facing the Cover … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Fast and furious: The Ravens have been absolutely dreadful coming out of the blocks on the road. The stats are staggering, including going scoreless in the first quarter in four out of five road games they have played this season. That trend needs to change against Carolina on Sunday. The Ravens should look to pass on first down and establish a rhythm with quarterback Joe Flacco with pass completions off of play-action. Play-action fakes should be effective against a defense that will commit much of its attention to … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Control the clock: One of the biggest keys for success against Atlanta is controlling the tempo and time of possession. On Thursday night, the best defense against a high-powered Atlanta offense will inevitably be a ball-control, clock churning offense. In order to hog the ball, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron should devise a game plan that features plenty of intermediate pass plays and carries to the backs. While finishing these drives will be equally important, the offense has to stay on the field to keep the defense fresh and … Continue reading →

Offense 1)      Throw away from Vontae Davis: Although the Miami secondary is potentially vulnerable, the second-year cornerback is not someone who can be picked on. Davis has emerged as a tough man-to-man cover corner who has been able to slow down most of the receivers he has faced this season. Davis is also a capable playmaker with the ball skills to make a play on the ball.   On the other hand, the corners opposite of Davis can be exposed. Quarterback Joe Flacco will need to make a concerted effort … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Attack from the jump: The Ravens remain a predominant first down rushing attack. There has been very little change up in their approach. They run the ball up the gut with Ray Rice, hoping for a quick three or four yard gain. Opposing defenses are packed in to stop the Baltimore rushing attack and more times than not, they hold the Ravens to a modest gain. On first down, the Ravens need to take advantage of their natural play-action opportunities. They don’t need to set up the pass … Continue reading →

Battle Plans: Ravens vs. Patriots Offense 1)     Control the clock: In last year’s playoff domination of the New England Patriots, the Ravens were able to hog the ball and control the time of possession battle. The same formula for success would have to apply this Sunday. In particular, the Ravens will have to find a way to move the chains on the ground. This would call for the offensive line to get movement at the point of attack. The biggest obstacle will be nose guard Vince Wilfork. The Patriots main … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Find Brian Dawkins: One of the big keys for success in the Ravens’ 30-7 romp over Denver a year ago had to do with their ability to complete timely passes against a tough Denver secondary. In particular, quarterback Joe Flacco did an outstanding job of recognizing the Cover One look that Denver employs quite often. Given safety Brian Dawkins’ ability to blitz and stuff the run, Denver will use him as a box player. Once he shifts from the deep half closer to the line of scrimmage, one … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Pass the ball on early downs: Winning the down-and-distance battle against the men of steel is absolutely critical. For an offense, not being on schedule toward third down conversions means being in danger against an opportunistic defense. The Steelers absolutely thrive in obvious passing situations. For the Ravens, gaining yardage on first and second down is a must. However, they won’t be able to consistently gain yardage through the running game, as the Steelers are the best early down run defense in the league. Offensive coordinator Cam Cameron … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      No-huddle offense: The Ravens operated from a hurry-up, no huddle attack through their opening series in games against Carolina, Washington, and New York. One would have thought they were gearing up to use that approach in their opening tilts against the Jets and the Bengals. However, the offense huddled up in those games, perhaps in anticipation of the crowd noise. Now that the team will be at home against the Browns, there is a perfect opportunity to breakout their speed offense. Moreover, if the Ravens use this attack … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Hurried spread attack: Against the Jets, the Baltimore offense didn’t need to score a lot of points to win the game. The Bengals are a different animal. They have the offensive capability to either keep pace with the Ravens or to lap them. Therefore, the Baltimore offense will have to be in attack mode from the start. For the most part, the Ravens kept their offensive formations tight to counter the New York blitz. They will need to spread it out against a Bengals defense that will play … Continue reading →

Offense 1.      Quick release: Whether the ball needs to be delivered off of a three-step, five-step or seven-step drop, quarterback Joe Flacco will need to get rid of the ball on time. If it’s a three-step pattern, he’ll need to be in rhythm once he firmly plants his foot in the ground. Given the speed of New York’s pass rush, any missteps by Flacco could result in a sack or a hurried throw. Moreover, the count should usually go to three and five steps until the offensive line can prove … Continue reading →

When Baltimore came back around in the fourth round and nabbed tight end Dennis Pitta from BYU, many observers were probably dumbfounded.   Two high-profile tight end prospects in back-to-back spots?   It seemed that the Ravens’ selection of Pitta and Ed Dickson may have been overkill.   However, there is definitely more than meets the eye. Although Pitta and Dickson are similar in size and weight measurables, and are exceptional pass catching tight ends with unrefined blocking skills, their roles and route combinations will be different in the offense. While … Continue reading →

Offense   1)      Run deception: The play-action passing game is wide open for the Ravens on first down. Whether they are able to execute is a different story.                 Thanks to the attention that the Baltimore rushing attack has garnered over the week, the Indianapolis defenders will have their eyes in the backfield. At times this season, they have bitten up field to defend the run. However, they also have the speed to recover and break on the ball if the pass is delivered late.   Joe Flacco’s timing will need … Continue reading →

Offense   1. Quick drops: Against Pittsburgh and Oakland, quarterback Joe Flacco was sacked eight times. In particular, he and the offensive line struggled on third down, against heavy blitz packages.   Enter New England and Bill Belichick’s blitzkrieg scheme. Belichick doesn’t have the edge rushers that he’s had in years past, so he relies on exotic looks to breakdown protection. He’ll bring defenders from every direction, including from the secondary.   Against Baltimore in Week 4, New England blitzed Flacco often, and they will likely recycle the same formula. … Continue reading →

  Offense    1)    Use Asomugha as a decoy: Coming into this game, the Raiders big focus will be to slow down the Baltimore rushing attack. Given that cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha is able to shut down his side without safety help, Oakland will drop strong safety Tyvone Branch into the box on early downs. If Branch plays close to the line, there will be one-on-one opportunities for the receivers to exploit on the outside. For quarterback Joe Flacco, he must find a way to move the single safety away from cornerback … Continue reading →

Offense   1)    Decipher the A gap blitz: Over the years, the inside blitz has been a staple play for the Chicago defense. This design has the inside and weakside backers perched directly in front of the A gaps. The backers will either blitz simultaneously; bluff the blitz; or one linebacker will shoot the gap while the other will drop.   Quarterback Joe Flacco had a tough time with this look against Indianapolis. The inside linebacker did a nice job of disguising his movement to indicate blitz, only to drop into … Continue reading →

Offense   1)    Open attack from the start: The Ravens have reached the point where they can no longer afford to start slow on offense. Beginning every game in a two-back, one tight, two-wide set has yielded minimal results.   The team should open from a three-wide, shotgun spread formation. Detroit ranks dead last in pass defense, and the game plan should be to attack through the air on early downs. The offense needs to play with a killer instinct.   Moreover, this is also a game for quarterback Joe Flacco … Continue reading →

Offense   1)     Rev up the three-headed monster: The three-headed monster made its return of sorts against Indianapolis two weeks ago. In that ballgame, the trio of Ray Rice, Le’Ron McClain and Willis McGahee gained 98 yards. The key though was the distribution of carries, as McGahee and McClain logged a total of nine carries.   Against the stingy Steelers, the three backs carried the ball 29 times for 132 yards. The formula was similar; Rice carried the ball 19 times, while McGahee and McClain again received nine handoffs.   As … Continue reading →