It’s finally game week for the Baltimore Ravens, and while all attention is directed toward the Cincinnati Bengals for now, looking ahead to the entire regular season is just as intriguing.
Baltimore’s final roster decisions left many surprised regarding several moves, leaving the uncertainty – yet excitement – heading into a rebound year even more enjoyable.
Common sense says that the team’s more improved/solidified roster can’t finish any worse than 8-8 (the team’s 2013 record), and it’d be a major surprise if the Ravens don’t at least remain in playoff contention through the final week of the regular season.
Will there be plenty of surprises – both positive and negative – this year? There surely will, so let’s take a stab at trying to predict some of the events that will unfold over the next several months in Baltimore.
1. Ricky Wagner will play well enough to prove himself as a starter beyond 2014.
If you’re surprised by Ricky Wagner’s seemingly effortless transition to becoming the starting right tackle, don’t be.
Wagner entered the season as a player who flashed both in college and during his rookie season in the pros, and to think he wouldn’t beat out Jah Reid for the starting job was naive.
He played well in all three preseason games he participated in (did not play against the New Orleans Saints) and showed fans why they should have confidence in him as Michael Oher’s replacement.
Having won the job with ease, the next tough task for the second-year lineman will be to not only hold onto the job throughout this season, but heading into 2015 as well.
The team is in search of a long-term replacement for Oher, and Wagner can be that player.
Don’t be surprised if he has growing pains in run blocking, but right now, his pass blocking ability is consistent enough for him to prove his worth as the sustained starter at right tackle.
2. Terrence Brooks will become a full-time player on defense, both at safety and cornerback.
As the preseason progressed, we began to see more ways in which Terrence Brooks could be used by Dean Pees this season.
Getting him on the field in some fashion greatly benefits and improves the athleticism of the defense, and his usage at both slot cornerback and safety made it evident that there are multiple ways to find the rookie playing time.
A quick, instinctive playmaker, as Brooks likely adjusts to the speed of the game throughout the regular season, his role on defense will gradually increase. Whether it may be as the third safety on the field – likely playing cornerback in such situations – with Matt Elam and Darian Stewart, or stealing playing time from Stewart at safety, Brooks can be a regular in the defensive rotation sooner rather than later.
3. Joe Flacco will finish with the highest completion percentage of his career.
While running for his life on many occasions during the preseason, Joe Flacco’s positive decision making and short-t0-intermediate accuracy were on display. He still had disappointing accuracy downfield (ex: the Dallas game), but overall, Flacco looked comfortable in the new offense.
Playing behind what should be an improved offensive line – granted the preseason results were just OK – Flacco will have more time to throw this season.
Throw in a deeper set of tight ends and wide receivers, an offensive coordinator who simplifies the passing game, and the stock sign is pointing up for Flacco after undoubtedly the worst season of his career in 2013.
Flacco’s career high for completion percentage is 63.1 in 2009, and the new offense makes it realistic that Flacco can finish somewhere between 63 and 64 percent this season, even if his yards and/or touchdown totals compared to his career highs (3,912 and 25, respectively) don’t improve.
4. Practice squad players John Simon, Tramain Jacobs and Fitz Toussaint will make it to the active roster.
Most of the players who comprise Baltimore’s practice squad weren’t massively “surprising” cuts per se, although the likes of John Simon, Keith Wenning and Ryan Jensen entered the preseason as expected members of the final roster.
Of Baltimore’s practice squad members, Simon, cornerback Tramain Jacobs and running back Fitz Toussaint all have legitimate shots at making it to the active roster at some point during the regular season.
Simon spent all of last season on the active roster, and while he was consistently poor and unimproved this preseason until the final game, even a marginal improvement as a defender could lead to him making it back to the main squad.
For Jacobs – who had an impressive preseason – he has the advantage of playing cornerback, arguably Baltimore’s weakest position at the moment.
The combination of the marginal talent of Chykie Brown and Derek Cox, as well as the recent injury history for Asa Jackson, Lardarius Webb and Jimmy Smith, could lead to the team needing an extra corner for some games this season, and Jacobs would be an obvious call-up.
Toussaint – the star of the final preseason game – displayed the quick burst and change of pace that could make him a December call-up candidate depending on Baltimore’s playoff situation.
Wenning and Jensen could make it to the active roster, but Wenning likely wouldn’t unless Tyrod Taylor is released, and Jensen simply wasn’t good during the preseason despite being a 2013 draft pick.
5. Marlon Brown finishes with less than 35 receptions.
A pleasant surprise last season going from an undrafted rookie with a torn ACL to the second-best receiver on the team, odds are Marlon Brown will come back to earth this season.
He put up impressive stats – 49 catches and seven touchdowns – despite some inconsistent play, but now that the wide receiver depth chart is improved, Brown may not get the opportunities he had in 2013.
Brown will battle with Jacoby Jones for playing time as the third receiver, but the two Smiths – Steve and Torrey – will get the bulk of the wide receiver receptions anyway.
His impact will be limited compared to last season, and don’t be surprised if there’s some regression – at least statistically – on the part of Brown.
6. Arthur Brown closes the gap with Daryl Smith, evens snap count by season’s end.
Quietly one of the best preseason players for the Ravens was second-year linebacker Arthur Brown, who proved yet again that when given extended playing time, he can make his presence felt in the backfield.
It is evident that the Ravens plan to make rookie C.J. Mosley a full-time player this season, and rightfully so, but don’t be surprised if Brown steadily closes the gap with veteran Daryl Smith for playing time next to Mosley.
Brown is simply too diverse and athletic to continue to ride the bench, and while he may not be a starter at any point this year, don’t be shocked if the snap distribution with Smith is fairly even by season’s end.
7. Kyle Juszczyk catches 40 or more passes; will have second-most catches out of backfield.
With 10 catches during the preseason, it became evident that Gary Kubiak intends to utilize second-year fullback Kyle Juszczyk’s above average receiving ability this season.
His blocking still needs work, but “Juice’s” impact will be felt this year through the air. He’s a reliable, safe option in the flat, and while his yards per catch may not be anything to write home about, the high volume of receptions he’s capable of producing in the short passing game makes it likely he takes on a large role on offense.
It’s a safe bet to say he can realistically be second to Ray Rice in receptions for running backs on the team.
8. Brandon Williams will be the breakout star of the team.
Watch even just a handful of defensive plays from this year’s preseason for the Ravens, and it’ll be quite easy to notice that second-year defensive tackle Brandon Williams was the best player on the field. Consistently winning off the snap and showing pure strength against overmatched interior linemen, Williams’ growth from year one to year two was evident, and he took over as the starting nose tackle job with ease.
After sparse play as a rookie, don’t be shocked to see Williams take the biggest step forward of the second-year players on the roster.
9. Owen Daniels plays 12 or fewer games, will have minimal impact.
One of the lowest-risk signings of the offseason for the team was the one-year, non-guaranteed deal with former Kubiak counterpart Owen Daniels.
An oft-injured but good player when healthy, Daniels enters the season as the second tight end on the depth chart behind Dennis Pitta, and should see plenty of playing time…for now.
Already having an unfavorable injury history, Daniels played in just one preseason game and missed time with “leg soreness,” whatever the heck that’s supposed to even mean.
When healthy, he can be a reliable #2 tight end with a few clutch catches here and there, as well as supplying better blocking than Ed Dickson ever offered.
But don’t be shocked if/when he misses games due to injury, which could hamper his ability during games in which he is healthy enough to play.
10. The Ravens finish with 10-11 wins, return to playoffs.
An improved roster, a better coaching staff, a team not dealing with the “Super Bowl Hangover” (or in Baltimore’s case, we can just call it “really bad offensive line play”)…
Things can only get better this season, right?
The Ravens were for the most part terrible last season and still went 8-8 and were 30 minutes of football away from a playoff berth.
Now with a more diverse set of offensive playmakers, a better offensive line, an über-talented linebacker corps and a relatively healthy roster, odds are the Ravens will return to the norm this season and become a playoff team again.
Likely finishing with either 10 or 11 wins, it will be a tough call to say whether or not that will be enough to win the AFC North.
But the team is talented enough to return to the playoffs as a division winner or wild card team, and watching Ravens football in January again this year wouldn’t be a surprise.
