2010 Baltimore Ravens Team Preview/Predictions
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2009 Record: 9-7
ATS: 8-7-1
It’s very rare that a team’s defining moment in a season comes in a loss, let alone all the way back in week four. Yet, that’s exactly what happened to the 2009 Baltimore Ravens in a heartbreaking 27-21 loss at New England in October.
The Ravens came into the game 3-0 out of the gate as they headed into Foxborough for a slugfest with the 2-1 Patriots. Then, with 28 seconds remaining in the contest and the Ravens in the Patriots’ red zone, Mark Clayton dropped a fourth-down pass along the sidelines that would have given the Ravens a first down inside the Patriots’ 10-yard line. Game over.
It was a heartbreaking loss, yet the moment helped this new generation of Ravens find their character – even if it hardly seemed so at the time. The Ravens dropped their next two games by a combined five points before climbing their way back to a 9-7 record to end the season.
It wasn’t until the playoffs that one could see how far this Ravens team had come since that gut-wrenching loss back in week four. Baltimore returned to New England to face the champions of the AFC East for their opening-round playoff game.
This time they didn’t just beat the Patriots, they dismantled them, 33-14, and sent Bill Belichick and his team into an offseason of serious soul searching.
The Ravens would eventually succumb to the Indianapolis Colts in the divisional round, but with their talent and skill they have a good chance to be the rulers of the roost in the AFC North.
Their offensive line is stout, their defensive line is stellar, and they might have a renewed field general. Going into his third year as a pro, quarterback Joe Flacco might be able to improve from week to week and shrug off a turnover-plagued 2009.
Behind Flacco, running back Ray Rice appears to have no ceiling to his game. Last season Rice not only ran for 1,339 yards, he was also the Ravens’ leading receiver as well (78 receptions, 702 yards). But wait, there’s more.
This offseason the Ravens finally fulfilled the need that has haunted them for years: They brought in a number-one wide receiver in Anquan Boldin (Arizona). They also return Mark Clayton and Derrick Mason and are taking what amounts to a no-risk flyer on Donte Stallworth.
Suddenly the team whose balance seemed to be limited to the backfield of Rice, Willis McGahee, and pro bowl fullback Le’Ron McLain now seems truly balanced in both the run and the pass. The downside for the Ravens, however, comes on the defensive side of the ball.
Despite a fantastic defensive line which will be led by pro bowler Haloti Ngata, Trevor Price, the signing of Cory Redding (Seattle) and second-round draft pick Terrence Cody (Alabama), the Ravens’ defense has begun to age.
Linebacker Ray Lewis seems indestructible, but he’s 35 and while Baltimore would like him to pass the torch to Terrell Suggs and first-round draft pick Sergio Kindle (Texas), Kindle suffered a fractured skull in the offseason and his return any time soon is questionable.
Going even further into the defense is where things get even more sketchy. Safety Ed Reed flirted with retirement (again) and will start the season on the physically unable to perform list.
Meanwhile the corners are a mess. Domonique Foxworth is out for the year and both Fabian Washington and Lardarius Webb are coming off ACL injuries.
The hope for Baltimore is to generate enough pressure with the front seven to hide how thin they are in the secondary.
Ravens 2010 Outlook
The bigger truth is this: So long as Flacco doesn’t regress and Boldin gives Baltimore the same thing he gave Arizona, the Ravens’ offense should be good enough to not only win the AFC North, but carry the Ravens deep into the 2010 postseason.
Ravens 2010 Futures
Super Bowl Odds: +1100
Conference Odds: +600
AFC North Odds: -120
2010 Ravens Predictions
Place they’ll finish in AFC North: 1st
Place they’ll finish in AFC Conference: 2nd
Over/Under Season Wins Prediction: Over 9.5 Wins
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Dave Golokhov has written for BETUS Sportsbook, Sportsfanmagazine.com, FOX, Askmen.com, Sports-central.org, and the FOXSports.com Funhouse.
