<TABLE width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=65>
</TD><TD class=sport>ESPN.com: NFL</TD><TD align=right>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Ravens missing too many pieces of puzzle
<HR width="100%" noShade SIZE=1>By Ron Jaworski
ESPN Insider
Editor's Note: Much has been made of the Baltimore Ravens playing the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles. But most of the pregame hype has focused on the off-field issues concerning Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens and his rejection of a trade to the Ravens during the offseason. ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski opened up his film vault at NFL films to see if there was more to this game than just hype.
Despite all the hype concerning the matchup between the Eagles and Ravens, this is going to be an intriguing football game. Both teams have excellent coaching staffs and strong defenses. The Ravens probably have the edge on defense, but the Eagles probably offset that edge with the big advantage they have offensively. This would be an interesting matchup even without the sideshow between Owens and the Ravens.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=5 rowSpan=2><SPACER type="block" width="5" height="1"></TD><TD width=195>
</TD></TR><TR><TD width=195>[font=verdana, arial, geneva]Once again Terrell Owens is the center of attention.[/font]</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>There's no question the Ravens have an outstanding defense, but that's just one side of the football. This season they've had a particularly difficult time sustaining any kind of offense, but defensively they match up very well against the Eagles. They're fast and quick and are able to maintain pressure on the quarterback.
The Eagles are clearly a passing team and coach Andy Reid will rely heavily on the passing game with the absence of running back Brian Westbrook. In the first half of games the Eagles call pass plays 67 percent of the time. Without Westbrook, Reid will use spread formations and the Eagles will try to attack Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.
That may sound a little bit strange because Lewis is such an outstanding player, but his weakness is his ability in pass coverage. In the running game it's easy for Lewis to dominate a game, but when he's made to play in space he can be taken advantage of.
The Ravens are opening up the offense. I thought they were way too conservative earlier in the season so it was refreshing to see the Ravens go to some three-wide receiver sets against a good Bills defense in their Week 7 victory.
Too often this season Ravens QB Kyle Boller has had to deal with formations with two running backs, two tight ends and one wide receiver. The switch to a more wide-open formation is probably due to the return of WR Travis Taylor as well as the coaching staff's increasing confidence in Boller's abilities.
Before last week, Boller didn't have any weapons to throw to because of the injuries to Taylor and Pro Bowl tight end Todd Heap. Taylor caught two passes for 52 yards, but what's most important is that he caught a 47-yard pass from Boller. The Ravens hadn't had a deep threat in quite a while and it's good to see that when the coaching staff had one on the field they weren't afraid to use him.
Also, Ravens backup running back Chester Taylor did a good job replacing suspended starter Jamal Lewis. Taylor rushed 21 times for 89 yards and caught two passes for 11 yards. That's excellent production against a Bills defense that's ranked fifth in the NFL overall. If the Ravens are able to get a successful running game going, the Eagles may be in trouble because run defense is their Achilles' heel. The Ravens will come out and run the ball with Taylor and try to beat the Eagles deep with play action passes. That's how the Ravens will get their points from the passing game.
This isn't an Eagles defense that changes or adds wrinkles from week-to-week. They are a pressure defense that blitzes about 20 percent of the time. Most of those are run blitzes. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson does a terrific job with his scheme. This Eagles front seven is a little light so they use slants, stunts and twists to get penetration in the backfield. Against this offensive line I think the Eagles will have to do some things scheme-wise to stop the running game, but they'll be helped this week by the absence of injured offensive guard Jonathan Ogden.
He didn't play very well last week against the Bills before his injury, but whenever a solid All-Pro tackle is not playing there are going to be problems with protection. It's a step backward when a team loses a player as good as Ogden, as proven by the Ravens play against the Cleveland Browns earlier this season. With Ogden out, the Browns were able to consistently get pressure on the left side of the offensive line.
Adding the loss of Ogden to the absence of Heap and the fact that the Ravens' best defensive player has a weakness that is the Eagles offense's strength makes this an uphill battle for the Ravens on both sides of the ball.
Top Unit of the Week
There's no question that the Kansas City Chiefs offense is my unit of the week. RBs Priest Holmes and Derrick Blaylock both scored four touchdowns behind a great offensive line performance against the Atlanta Falcons. When I broke down the game tape I saw an offensive line that put together the most dominant running game since I came into professional football in 1973.
OG Brian Waters and TE Tony Gonzalez have to be lauded for their strong running blocking against the Falcons. The Chiefs did a great job with their two tight end sets with Gonzalez and Jason Dunn and the Chiefs had a real power strong-side running game. Add in one of the premier blocking fullbacks in Tony Richardson and the Falcons were suddenly in a ton of trouble. The Falcons were completely annihilated by a great blocking fullback, two tight ends and a strong front five on the line. Former NFL quarterback Ron Jaworski is a studio analyst for ESPN and a regular contributor to Insider
</TD><TD class=sport>ESPN.com: NFL</TD><TD align=right>
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Ravens missing too many pieces of puzzle
<HR width="100%" noShade SIZE=1>By Ron Jaworski
ESPN Insider
Editor's Note: Much has been made of the Baltimore Ravens playing the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles. But most of the pregame hype has focused on the off-field issues concerning Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens and his rejection of a trade to the Ravens during the offseason. ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski opened up his film vault at NFL films to see if there was more to this game than just hype.
Despite all the hype concerning the matchup between the Eagles and Ravens, this is going to be an intriguing football game. Both teams have excellent coaching staffs and strong defenses. The Ravens probably have the edge on defense, but the Eagles probably offset that edge with the big advantage they have offensively. This would be an interesting matchup even without the sideshow between Owens and the Ravens.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=5 rowSpan=2><SPACER type="block" width="5" height="1"></TD><TD width=195>
The Eagles are clearly a passing team and coach Andy Reid will rely heavily on the passing game with the absence of running back Brian Westbrook. In the first half of games the Eagles call pass plays 67 percent of the time. Without Westbrook, Reid will use spread formations and the Eagles will try to attack Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.
That may sound a little bit strange because Lewis is such an outstanding player, but his weakness is his ability in pass coverage. In the running game it's easy for Lewis to dominate a game, but when he's made to play in space he can be taken advantage of.
The Ravens are opening up the offense. I thought they were way too conservative earlier in the season so it was refreshing to see the Ravens go to some three-wide receiver sets against a good Bills defense in their Week 7 victory.
Too often this season Ravens QB Kyle Boller has had to deal with formations with two running backs, two tight ends and one wide receiver. The switch to a more wide-open formation is probably due to the return of WR Travis Taylor as well as the coaching staff's increasing confidence in Boller's abilities.
Before last week, Boller didn't have any weapons to throw to because of the injuries to Taylor and Pro Bowl tight end Todd Heap. Taylor caught two passes for 52 yards, but what's most important is that he caught a 47-yard pass from Boller. The Ravens hadn't had a deep threat in quite a while and it's good to see that when the coaching staff had one on the field they weren't afraid to use him.
Also, Ravens backup running back Chester Taylor did a good job replacing suspended starter Jamal Lewis. Taylor rushed 21 times for 89 yards and caught two passes for 11 yards. That's excellent production against a Bills defense that's ranked fifth in the NFL overall. If the Ravens are able to get a successful running game going, the Eagles may be in trouble because run defense is their Achilles' heel. The Ravens will come out and run the ball with Taylor and try to beat the Eagles deep with play action passes. That's how the Ravens will get their points from the passing game.
This isn't an Eagles defense that changes or adds wrinkles from week-to-week. They are a pressure defense that blitzes about 20 percent of the time. Most of those are run blitzes. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson does a terrific job with his scheme. This Eagles front seven is a little light so they use slants, stunts and twists to get penetration in the backfield. Against this offensive line I think the Eagles will have to do some things scheme-wise to stop the running game, but they'll be helped this week by the absence of injured offensive guard Jonathan Ogden.
He didn't play very well last week against the Bills before his injury, but whenever a solid All-Pro tackle is not playing there are going to be problems with protection. It's a step backward when a team loses a player as good as Ogden, as proven by the Ravens play against the Cleveland Browns earlier this season. With Ogden out, the Browns were able to consistently get pressure on the left side of the offensive line.
Adding the loss of Ogden to the absence of Heap and the fact that the Ravens' best defensive player has a weakness that is the Eagles offense's strength makes this an uphill battle for the Ravens on both sides of the ball.
Top Unit of the Week
There's no question that the Kansas City Chiefs offense is my unit of the week. RBs Priest Holmes and Derrick Blaylock both scored four touchdowns behind a great offensive line performance against the Atlanta Falcons. When I broke down the game tape I saw an offensive line that put together the most dominant running game since I came into professional football in 1973.
OG Brian Waters and TE Tony Gonzalez have to be lauded for their strong running blocking against the Falcons. The Chiefs did a great job with their two tight end sets with Gonzalez and Jason Dunn and the Chiefs had a real power strong-side running game. Add in one of the premier blocking fullbacks in Tony Richardson and the Falcons were suddenly in a ton of trouble. The Falcons were completely annihilated by a great blocking fullback, two tight ends and a strong front five on the line. Former NFL quarterback Ron Jaworski is a studio analyst for ESPN and a regular contributor to Insider
