NFL: Week Six – Baltimore Ravens vs. Minnesota Vikings
Baltimore Ravens (31) vs. Minnesota Vikings (33)
The Ravens have gone from arguably being the best the AFC had to offer to struggling to keep their head above water in the matter of three weeks. After opening the season with victories against the Chiefs, Chargers, and Browns the Ravens were being hyped as a potential threat to the Pittsburgh Steelers crown. Since then they have lost three straight by a combined total of 11 points.
What is baffling is it is tough to point to one specific reason as to why the Ravens are suddenly struggling to win games. They outgained the Patriots yet somehow managed to lose the game 27-21 because they struggled to put the ball in the end zone. The offense could never get it going and was held to just 257 yards in a 17-14 loss to the Bengals. Yesterday the defense just had no answer for Adrian Peterson and Brett Favre, while the offense managed to put 31 points on the board.
Theoretically it would be an easy problem to fix if the Ravens were losing for one or two specific reasons but it seems to be a different one each week. Ultimately, one thing that seems to be coming to light is this Ravens’ defense is in decline and not nearly as dominant as it was two or three years ago. It appears as though the free agent defections over the past few years are finally catching up with them and teams are now figuring out they can run the ball on the Ravens.
Conversely the Vikings are living up to the preseason hype sprinting out to a 6-0 record with Brett Favre at the helm. Despite the unbeaten record one still wonders if the Vikings are for real. Consider that their road games have consisted of trips to Clevleand, Detroit, and St. Louis who have exactly two wins between the three of them. Also, consider the best teams they have faced this season are the Forty Niners, Packers, and Ravens who are now a combined 9-7.
The Vikings have yet to face a team that can really challenge them. One thing that seems readily apparent is this defense does not seem to be all that it is cracked up to be. The Cleveland Browns averaged 4.5 yards per rush against the Vikings and scored 13 points on them. The Bengals are the only other team to allow more than 10 points to the Browns this year. The only other team to allow the Forty Niners to score more than 24 points this season is the St. Louis Rams. Consider that the only other teams to allow the Ravens to score 31 points this season are the Browns, Chiefs, and Chargers three of the lesser defenses in the league this year.
The Vikings are 6-0 but are they doing this with smoke and mirrors or are they going to be a legit contender that makes a serious post season run? Or, are they going to be one-and-done again this season?
News, Notes, and Observations
Ravens QB Joe Flacco threw for a career high of 385 yards and a pair of scores. On the year Flacco has 3 300-yard games and four multi-TD pass games.
Adrian Peterson ran for 143 yards hitting the 100-yard mark for the first time since week one. He failed to score a touchdown for just the second time this season.
Brett Favre has completed at least 72% of his pass attempts in each of the Vikings last three games.
Ray Rice had 194 yards of offense including 77 rushing on 10 carries and 117 on 10 catches for the Ravens. He also had the first two touchdown game of his career against the Vikings.
Sidney Rice posted career highs of six catches and 176 yards.
Visanthe Shiancoe scored a pair of touchdowns and has found the end zone in each of the last three games for Minnesota.
