Six games remain in the NFL season and my how the weeks have flown by.
The Ravens remain heavily in contention in the AFC North and will need to play their best football going forward in order to avoid missing the playoffs for the second consecutive year.
While the games that looked like “gimmies” earlier this season are anything but, the Ravens and their players are wisely taking it one game at a time being careful not to overlook any opponents.
Ravens linebacker Elvis Dumervil is one example of that very sentiment and used his bye to rejuvenate and focus on what lies ahead for him and the defensive side of the football in weeks to come.
“I just realized what kind of game we’re playing in is pretty tough,” the Ravens sack leader said on Wednesday following practice on how he approached the off week. “It was about just having that week off taking care of the body, self-evaluation and seeing what you can do to try to help the team move forward.”
Dumervil and the rest of the Ravens defense will have their hands full on Monday against Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints’ #2 ranked offense.
“Huge challenge. Drew Brees is a top quarterback – maybe all time, he’s up there,” the linebacker known as ‘Doom’ said. “He has a success of winning overall in his career there.”
“They are a well-coached team; a lot of talented players; a good offensive line; the crowd noise. But we’re built for this type of situation. We have a lot of guys on this team who are tough mentally, so we’re excited for that challenge.”
A challenge it will be indeed; however, it is one that is certainly attainable given the Saints’ recent struggles on both offense and defense resulting in losses in two straight games.
Given the shape and the ability (or lack thereof) exhibited by the Ravens secondary this season, defensive coordinator Dean Pees will need to call his best game of the year to contain the 8-time Pro Bowl quarterback and his weapons. One call to blitz or play coverage at the wrong time could be all that’s needed for the veteran signal caller to make a game-deciding play.
“He’s smart – IQ. When you have good IQ as a quarterback, you know how to get rid of the ball,” Elvis responded how tough it is to bring down Brees.
“He does a great job of knowing where he wants to go pre-snap and making the right checks and putting his offense in the right situations. So, they have a good chemistry there with him and the head coach [Sean Payton].”
Playing in a primetime game in the national spotlight in New Orleans may not be on the same level like the last time the Ravens laced them up in a real game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, but one that could prove costly in the race to the playoffs if they fail to be victorious.
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