Could it be, Ravens fans, that the apocalypse is near? The Cleveland Browns are talking smack about the Baltimore Ravens!
Browns cornerback Joe Haden’s comments about the Ravens may not be the smartest thing the lowly Browns should be doing in preparation for Sundays match-up.
“The Ravens aren’t the Ravens of old,” Haden remarked to the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot.
“They’re still really good, a real talented team, a division opponent, but at the same time, our team is a whole different team,” Haden went on. “It’s a different squad. We still haven’t gotten over the hump, but there’s no reason why we can’t.”
While the Ravens have their issues, it is still a pretty ballsy comment coming from a player on a team that has lost 11 straight games to the Ravens. While the Browns have lost three straight games this season, they have indeed improved on the defensive side of the ball. Their front seven will certainly put pressure on Joe Flacco this week.
The Browns are giving up an average of 216.8 passing yards per game this season. Haden will draw the Ravens’ top receiver Torrey Smith this week and the Browns upset chances could fall on the shoulders of Haden.
“Everything is still in front of us,” Haden said. “We still have so many division games in front of us and nobody’s really out there. Cincinnati’s ahead but we can always catch up. We’ve still got everything ahead of us that we want to do. We just need to do it.”
While I respect Haden’s opinion about the Ravens this season – and to a degree he is correct; they aren’t Ravens of old – he may want to be careful what he wishes for.
Poking the defending Super Bowl Champs coming off a bye week is never a good idea. Throw in the fact they have a point to prove on offense and Mr. Haden could very well be eating crow come Sunday evening.
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