Thoughts on tonight's game

**Sephy** · 08-13-2007, 10:08 PM

QBs: McNair looked sharp, Boller looked bad except for a good 2 minute drive (which we've seen before), Smith looked jittery, but showed good pocket presence. Very rookie-like. Olson looked surprisingly good.

RBs: McGahee looked quick on his long run. Musa looked quite bad in limited time - he might not even make the team., and Anderson didn't get any noticeable minutes. Pruitt looked VERY good, picking up blitzers and slipping through holes. Ross looks like a great third down back. McClain catches the ball really well, and can hit.

WRs: Not a whole lot to note, Williams looked good. Linson looked pretty good, he might snatch up a backup role. Figurs looks useless on offense with the dropsies, and showed nothing on returns.

OL: Grubbs looked good and made a killer block to seal off the end to spring Ross on a big run. Gaither absolutely dominated every Eagle DE he faced. Guards looked solid, Yanda looked pretty good at RT. Terry looked pretty lax, he needs to be much more aggressive at that spot.

DL: Not much to say, good play as usual, Ngata made a nice play in the backfield, and Dwan Edwards looks like he's finally ready to play. He'll make a nice member in the rotation.

LB: Shocking miss of a sack by Ray, but I'm not worried. Johnson was marginal, missing a big tackle. Haley looked pretty good. Barnes showed excellent speed and pass rush presence. Burgess was impressive as well. They'll fit right in, and both should make the team.

DB: Not much to say, but honorable mention to Prude who forced a bunch of fumbles, and generally looked good.

ST: Koch looked good, nice hangtime and distance. Stover was absolute money, hitting 1 40+ and 2 50+.

Overall, an excellent night. Next game I'd like to see Troy shake some jitters, and more McGahee. Hopefully some better technique from Terry, and continued good work from the young OL. And definitely a better effort from Figurs. Overall, VERY happy with the effort. Starters look really good and sharp all around.

And NO INJURIES. For us, anyway. On to next time!

**Gabrosin** · 08-13-2007, 10:16 PM

GAME IN REVIEW

The Good:

We're fucking awesome. And no Ravens got hurt (best wishes for Ryan Moats of the Eagles).

The Bad:

Some guys who aren't gonna make the team dropped a few passes.

The Ugly:

Terrell Suggs.

Could not have been a better way to reintroduce us all to RAVENS FOOTBALL.

**Mista T** · 08-13-2007, 10:23 PM

Enjoy watching Figurs zip along while you can.

He does not look like NFL material.

**Heap86** · 08-13-2007, 10:41 PM

Did anyone seem to notice how Steve McNair was throwing lasers, his passes looked as good as I've ever seen them as a Raven. He looked like the old Steve McNair, he looked light years ahead of last pre-season/regular season.

That 17 yard run by McGahee reminded me of what a running game should look like, he was quick to the holes, I can only imagine what he can do to a weak run D.

Gaither looks too good not to start, its a shame he can't play the right side.

Our Offense has the chance to be sick, we may have one of the most talented Recieving corps in the league.

Our First Team D looked good, not great. JJ had a rough night. Ray needs to stop trying to show off and finish tackles.

Our Rookie Linebackers are awesome, expecially Antwan Barnes and Prescott Burgess. Barnes is a flat out beast, I can see him cracking the starting line-up ala. Landry.

If one game is any indication, Drew Olsen may have already beat out Troy Smith.

Maybe we should keep Cory Ross as a RB, he seems to grasp that position more than a returner.

Ben Grubbs looked good, he should get a chance to play with the 1st team.

A few bad things: Adam Terry had a rough night, he may not be the answer at starting RT. Yamon Figurs looked awful as a reciever, he looked like he was playing blindfolded, his returns were Ok, but not great, so far Sams job is safe. Troy Smith looked like a 5th round pick, he could'nt complete a pass, he looked good on his feet, but other than that he was not very impressive. Boller looked like Boller, still staring down recievers, and a few of his passes were telegraphed, did'nt look like the Training Camp/ Scrimmage Boller.

Overall an A+ for Pre-season game #1.

**Ravenfan_11** · 08-13-2007, 10:50 PM

I didn't notice Terry was that bad. But I did notice that Gaither looks like a younger Ogden.

Figurs isn't going to make the team. Neither will Olson, but he deserves to do so. Pruitt looks good as a RB.

I'm worried about Jarret Johnson. I thought we wouldn't miss AD at all, but I guess we will in some ways..

**copenhaggard** · 08-13-2007, 11:13 PM

Heap86, I admire your honesty. I do think you shouldn't jump to conclusions though, as you have in earlier threads.

**RavenFanatic2k6** · 08-14-2007, 12:09 AM

I have to agree on Figurs...I would imagine they will try to get him on IR somehow, he's not going to make the team right now. Sams is clearly the best return man, and Figurs has no chance of playing a down as a WR.

**ClericBlackDave** · 08-14-2007, 01:34 AM

Good:

Gaither. Pro-Bowl in 2008/2009. He's a beast. Why wouldn't people draft him earlier than the 5th? Easily a 1st round talent.

Offensive playcalling. Looks like we're serious about passing the ball.

1st string offense led by McNair. He spread the ball around well, and had the necessary zip when he needed it.

RBs. McGahee, Anderson, and Ross all looked good.

Defense, especially Barnes / Burgess. Swarming.

The crowd. Ravens crowds seem louder than your average NFL team's crowd, and that was true especially in the preseason.

Bad:

Jarrett Johnson. Not saying he looked bad, but conversely, he didn't look fully comfortable. Its definitely going to be a step down from AD. Obviously.

4th/5th WR. Darling and Moore and Figurs all seem to be trying to play themselves off the team.

Fade route to Clarence Moore. It was double covered, and will always be because when he comes on the field the defense knows what the route is. He's a 1-trick pony that becoming obsolete with spiderman in the fold.

Adam Terry. Still not looking natural at RT.

Batted balls on offense. Most of them were clear passing lanes until a d-lineman.

Good to see the offense come out and put up points, and the defense do what it does. Would have liked to have seen more points on offense, but still 13 in a half form the 1st/2nd team isn't bad. If we had that against the colts last year . . .

**blitzin_ravin** · 08-14-2007, 01:36 AM

As a Ravens fan stuck in Shanghai, these game thoughts are much appreciated and exactly what I was looking to read. I may download the game later, but thanks for the insight beyond the box score.

Great to hear about Stover, the news of him missing field goals in camp was starting to concern me... but then again he is money when its game time...

**UKRavenStockers** · 08-14-2007, 03:48 AM

Originally Posted by Heap86

Gaither looks too good not to start, its a shame he can't play the right side.

He can and did last year at Maryland. Whilst he was more inconsistent last year switching between left and right tackle before being permanently pegged at RT around mid-season. I felt his performance against Florida State on an ESPN2 Saturday night game showed he could be just as good on the right as on the left.

**Sephy** · 08-14-2007, 07:26 AM

Originally Posted by UKRavenStockers

He can and did last year at Maryland. Whilst he was more inconsistent last year switching between left and right tackle before being permanently pegged at RT around mid-season. I felt his performance against Florida State on an ESPN2 Saturday night game showed he could be just as good on the right as on the left.

Yep. Honestly, if Terry continues to struggle, it might be worth having him play over there for a season. I'm still amazed how well he played last night.

**Super Fan** · 08-14-2007, 07:54 AM

The biggest positive surprise for me was Dwan Edwards. He chased a RB down from behind on a screen play and took good pursuit angles along the line. Seems like he's trimmed down a little. Gather, Burgess, Barnes and Grubbs were all impressive in their debutes.

I expect teams to go after Scott on 3rd down on crossing routes. Bart was about two steps behind the slot receiver on Philly's first possession. That would have been AD's assignment in the past, so I expect to see alot of it until Bart proves he can stop it.

Figurs will not make it as a receiver, but he does intrigue me as a kick returner. His lone kick off return was impressive just in the fact that he went from the 5 to the 20 in a flash. I know BJ wants to let his blockers get into position, but he seems to jog when he catches the kick off.

I hope the black socks and shoes were not just for preseason. I always hated the white shoes. The all black unis will look a lot better if the black shoes stay.