Ravens hope 1 win leads to another in matchup vs Browns

When the Ravens released their depth chart earlier this week, the kick returner spot read “TBD”.

Preparing for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mike Vick last week, the Ravens leaned partly on quarterbacks coach Marty Mornhinweg, who had worked with Vick while with the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Jets. However, in recent years the team has found ways to win division games-unfortunately those wins have not come on the road against the Baltimore Ravens.

With so many team injuries, quarterback Joe Flacco will have to make adjustments to his game, but his support system doesn’t seemed to be anxious.

The Ravens acquired wide receiver Chris Givens from the St. Louis Rams for a conditional draft pick to add depth. Cleveland has had mediocre success on the ground with Johnson and Isaiah Crowell.

Holy crap that Baltimore Ravens WR corp is a banged up mess at the moment. Those are all players that have been key to the Ravens success the past couple years. That win, which occurred at FirstEnergy Stadium, preceded a seven-game losing streak to close out the season. Aiken isn’t going to lead your team to FF glory.

I wasn’t too surprised, as I fully expected them to win. They have been right in their last two games, however, so anything’s possible.

It’s really as simple as that.

The Ravens have had extra time to prepare for this game and the Browns defense is one of the worst in the league. Wide receiver Jeremy Ross and cornerback Asa Jackson are both on the practice squad and have experience in the return game. Against the Raiders, Amari Cooper struck for a touchdown play of 68 yards.

As much as offensive coordinator John DeFilippo doesn’t want to admit it, the lack of a big receiver hurts in the red zone. If Gillmore is out again, that would make rookie Maxx Williams the primary tight end. He’s caught 16 passes for 235 yards and two scores this season. Flacco is averaging almost 40 passes and 263 yards a gane. Per PFF, Hill ranks ninth out of 132 safeties in pass coverage. Offensive success will likely hinge on the play of McCown on Sunday. His four TD catches are career high…. That’s mainly because Cleveland has had little rushing offense to speak of. In a change from the norm, Baltimore finds itself in the same position. This was crucial seeing how the Browns only lost to San Diego by three points.

Without Smith, the Ravens simply don’t have anyone that is going to be stepping up to replace what he brings to the offense. “He can (also) move better than I think people give a guy that tall credit for”, Pettine lauded.

On the other hand, that was such an emotional and draining game that Baltimore could have a letdown game against what most view as an inferior opponent. Ravens RB Justin Forsett coming off 150-yard rushing performance against Steelers.