Like many fans, Joe Flacco was visibly frustrated following the Ravens’ Week 11 27-17 loss to the Cowboys.
Perhaps it was the scrutiny he was under all week leading up to the game, thanks to former teammate Ray Lewis’ comments about his lack of passion, but in his post game press conference he was anything but Joe Cool.
“We should beat this team,” Flacco said following the loss, which dropped the Ravens to 5-5 on the season. “I am not kidding. I felt very confident coming into this game, and I really feel we should beat this team.”
The Ravens had Dallas on the ropes for three quarters and certainly could have emerged victorious. Even with the offense sputtering, costly penalties taking opportunities away, and a third down conversion rate of just 33% (3/9), the Ravens had a chance.
“We should beat pretty much every team we play,” Flacco added. “In the couple that you lose, you hurt yourself and you lose them, and that’s not what we’re doing right now. We’re obviously not as good as we would like to be.
“I came into this game, I think we all did, very confident, and that we were going to do something nice and come in here and not shock ourselves, but shock everybody else. It didn’t happen.”
Perhaps one of the biggest head-scratchers for fans is that the Ravens again went away from what was a productive running game. Terrance West had 42 yards on eight carries, but just five after his 18-yard touchdown run. Rookie Kenneth Dixon added 40 yards on six rushes.
If you’re keeping tabs, that’s a combined 6.3 yards per carry.
It truly is mind-numbing, considering the fact that the game did not warrant an abandonment of the run game. Having your backs carry the ball just 14 total times, particularly when Flacco is struggling?
Very frustrating for fans.
“I think the thing to take from it is, if we play good, solid football and play winning football, eliminate the mistakes, we would have won the game, in my mind,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “We’re definitely good enough to win any game we play in the National Football League.
“Our eyes go to next week against Cincinnati at home. Six-game season and we need to take care of our business, and part of that’s improving. We’ve got to improve. I think we’ve come a long way in a lot of ways.
“We’re not there yet to beat this team in this situation because we made too many mistakes. That’s on us. No moral victories, no. We expected to come in here and win the game.”
Harbaugh’s answers have become almost automatic when faced with explaining why the same things keep happening with his team. Over and over, we hear how “fixable” these issues are, yet they continue to contribute to games being chalked up in the “L” column.
While their season is anything but over as they remain atop of the AFC North, the Ravens are who they are with six games remaining. A flawed team that has trouble getting out of their own way.
Will it be good enough?
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