You are tired of reading about it and I’m tired of writing about it but until something changes with the officiating, this tale will be as redundant as Adele on the radio.
NFL officiating sucks!
Actually that’s an insult to all things that suck.
No one in America saw the offensive pass interference called against WR Daniel Brown including the back judge who threw the flag. He called what he thought he saw, the cardinal sin of officiating.
Not to be outdone on the very next play, referee John Parry did NOT call what everyone in America DID see, except of course Dear John – a blatant face mask penalty against Buck Allen.
There was more.
On three consecutive plays inside the 5 yard line, the line judge seemed to spot the ball in position for a Ravens first down. Three times the ruling on the field was short of the first down. Matt Schaub was hit late and at the back of his knees and nothing was called.
I could go on, but this gives me a headache so let’s just get to it, shall we?
THE GOOD
Although limited, Daniel Brown just seems like a good football player. He’s not the strongest, fastest – doesn’t jump the highest but you get the feeling if given an opportunity, he’ll make some plays. His block on the Buck Allen TD reception enabled the score…The Ravens held the Dolphins to 61 yards of offense in a scoreless second half. Tannehill had only 86 yards passing. That’s quite a collective effort from the secondary, one that was not the beneficiary of an effective pass rush. Jarvis Landry, one week removed from 13 catches for 165 yards had a paltry 2 catches for 5 yards…Zach Orr was fast to the ball when subbing for Daryl Smith in obvious pass situations…Nice strip by Kendrick Lewis at a time when the Ravens really needed a turnover…Sam Koch netted 46.4 yards on 5 punts.
THE BAD
Justin Tucker has now missed 5 consecutive FGAs from 50+ yards. He makes them regularly in practice. The swing isn’t there…On a key 3rd and 2 from their own 24 with 8:55 left in the third quarter and after facing serious heat from the Dolphins front four all afternoon, Marc Trestman called for a 7-step drop pass play. Naturally Schaub was buried and the Ravens were forced to punt from their own 15…The front 7 struggled against the Dolphins O-line and Lamar Miller, particularly early in the game. Miller had 73 yards in the first half. His best game in the previous 5 played was 44 yards.
THE UGLY
Matt Schaub is who he is and that is a bad quarterback. He missed some open receivers, threw late or behind them, the most egregious of which was the miss to Kamar Aiken who was wide open on a crosser angling straight towards the front left pylon…Trestman’s red zone play calling was insanely
unimaginative and why he didn’t dial up some iso routes targeting Dolphins’ corner Brice McCain is mind-numbing. And the sequence of plays following the Miller fumble was ridiculous. The Dolphins were dog-tired and they were on the field a ton in that South Florida humidity. Remember after Schaub’s first INT, Tannehill went for the jugular on the first play? Trestman must not have been impressed. Three weak plays later Tucker missed what could have been a game winner…
Everyone watching the game thought that Matt Schaub got the first down on his fourth down sneak at the 2 except (apparently) John Harbaugh’s assistants who failed to convince their boss to challenge the spot…Check out these stats (above on mobile). How the Ravens lost, even while on the short end of the turnover battle, is nuts!…Trestman and O-Line coach Juan Castillo have some work to do if they want to keep Schaub upright. Too often rushers came off the edge untouched, including the tip and Pick 6 by Derrick Shelby…Lastly, what would “Ugly” be without a James Hurst mention. His holding penalty negated a third down conversion by Terrance West.
THE MEGAN FOX
Emerging from this mess that is the 2015 season is a versatile player named Buck Allen. He isn’t the fastest, the biggest or the strongest back but he has the instincts of a playmaker and with the experience afforded him by Justin Forsett’s injury a future Ravens star may be unfolding before us. Allen had 170 yards from scrimmage including 107 yards receiving on 12 catches.
Vines courtesy of Sarah Ellison, Baltimore Ravens @sgellison
