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Dixon, Young Stand Out Against Pats

Kenneth Dixon & Darren Waller celebrate together.
Dec 12, 2016; Foxborough, MA, USA; Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Mike Wallace (17) and Baltimore Ravens running back Kenneth Dixon (30) celebrate a touchdown against the New England Patriots during the second half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports
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The Ravens dropped a bizarre contest Monday night in New England, with none of the three units looking particularly sharp.  Let’s take a look at the mixed results of the rookies, spearheaded by one of the most exciting skill players on the roster.

Dixon Shows Promise

As usual, Baltimore went pass-heavy Monday night, so most of Kenneth Dixon’s work came through the air, but he was still able to post 81 all-purpose yards.  He out-touched Terrance West 19-6, seemingly supplanting West as the workhorse back.  He recorded his first professional touchdown on a well-designed eight-yard swing pass.  Dixon plays with tenacity and finishes every catch or run with surprising power.

I’d like to see Marty Mornhinweg replace some pass plays where Flacco eventually checks the ball down with runs to let Dixon (and West, to be fair) wear down defenses up the middle.

Dixon wasn’t perfect, as he dropped two passes, the first of which was going nowhere, but the second was a poor concentration drop on the first play of the fourth quarter which hurt the Ravens chances to dig out of a 2nd and 14.  He also got flagged for a false start.

Up and Down Defense

As we highlighted this morning, PFF has listed Tavon Young as the top cornerback among all NFL rookies. Young did surrender the Patriots’ second touchdown on a slant route, where again I thought he lined up way too far off Malcolm Mitchell, especially with Dean Pees rushing seven at Tom Brady.

Otherwise, PFF charged just 16 yards total to Young individually Monday night.  With Jimmy Smith missing much of the game, Brady had little reason to target the talented youngster.  He was in on three solo tackles and a tackle assist, and continues to be a fairly reliable tackler.

Michael Pierce got a whopping 34 snaps (as many as Timmy Jernigan, for reference), and got consistent penetration against the run, if not any tackles or highlight plays.  I expected to see him surrender ground considering LeGarrette Blount’s relative success on the ground, but Pierce’s punch was as powerful as we’ve come to expect, the Patriots ball carriers rarely had success running at him, and he drew a holding penalty.

On 24 snaps, Matt Judon was part of the Baltimore pass rush that was stymied for the entire contest by the New England offensive line.  Judon continues to be a liability on special teams, committing a holding penalty on the Ravens kickoff return to start the second half.  He did show good bend and low pad level to register a fourth quarter pressure on Brady by using a quality rip move, but otherwise an unimpressive outing for Judon.

Special Teams Playmakers

Two Ravens rookies made huge special teams plays in a span of 14 seconds to keep the Ravens in the game.

Chris Moore has been getting his hands on the football from the gunner position all year.  He was in position to recover the ball on the New England three-yard line when Cyrus Jones pulled his best Cristiano Ronaldo by booting Sam Koch’s bouncing punt.

Despite not playing in the team’s first five games, Patrick Onwuasor is Baltimore’s leading special teams tackler, and made another picture-perfect tackle on Matthew Slater to force the second turnover during the Patriots’ fumble fest third quarter.

Rookie Notes

– We’re covering first-rounder Ronnie Stanley in the “Notes” section this week, which is great news. He was rarely heard from, kept Joe Flacco clean and made some good looking blocks, including this highlight reel smash job.  Stanley has allowed 0 sacks, 0 hits, and six hurries over his last four games, per PFF.

Kamalei Correa was active Monday night but was limited to special teams duty.

– Special teams ace Chris Moore also added his fourth catch of the year on a five-yard crossing route.

– During the roster shakeup that saw Devin Hester released and Lorenzo Taliaferro sent to injured reserve, the Ravens signed undrafted rookie Lamar Louis, an inside linebacker from LSU who was originally signed by the Cardinals.

Alex Lewis practiced on a limited basis last week, ahead of schedule after his high ankle sprain. It sounds like this weekend against the Eagles may still be too soon to expect the rookie guard’s return, but I wouldn’t rule it out.  Whether he slides back in at left guard or right guard (or at all) is the question.  The offensive line has been playing fairly well as of late with Marshal Yanda working in tandem with Stanley on the left and Vlad Ducasse playing better than expected on the right.

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