Baltimore Ravens vs. Cleveland Browns: Week 3 Game Preview
The Baltimore Ravens will finish their first round of facing every AFC North team this week.
After playing the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers in their first two games, Baltimore will face the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, ensuring that the Ravens have faced all three AFC North opponents before the month of September ends.
After losing to Cincinnati in Week 1, Baltimore rebounded in Week 2 with a win over Pittsburgh. Both of those games came at home though.
The Ravens will hit the road for the first time when they play the Browns, who beat Baltimore in Cleveland last year. While Cleveland looks like a better team than they were last year, so too do the Ravens, who need to win this game to keep pace with the 2-0 Bengals atop the AFC North.
Baltimore, Cleveland and Pittsburgh are all sitting at 1-1 right now. While a loss and a 1-2 start isn't a big hole to climb out of, a win and a 2-1 record would be much nicer. That's what will be on the line Sunday in Cleveland.
Here's my preview and breakdown of the game.
Week 2 Recap
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The Ravens and Steelers clashed in prime time on Thursday night in Week 2 as part of the 2014 debut of CBS' Thursday Night Football. The defense suffocated Pittsburgh for much of the night, and a key turnover early in the game helped set the pace for Baltimore.
On the first drive, Ravens linebacker Daryl Smith stripped Steelers receiver Justin Brown of the ball on a passing play, and defensive end DeAngelo Tyson recovered the fumble. It was the first turnover the Ravens have forced this season.
That gave the offense its first possession of the game, and it drove right down the field. The drive ended with a play-action fake to help Joe Flacco find a wide-open Owen Daniels to give Baltimore a quick 7-0 lead.
The Ravens took a 10-3 lead heading into halftime, but coming out of the break, Pittsburgh managed to get a field goal to cut the lead to 10-6.
However, Baltimore's offense answered with a long drive that ended in another TD strike from Flacco to Daniels to put the Ravens ahead 17-6.
The defense would force two more turnovers that led to easy field goals and ultimately helped Baltimore win the game, 26-6.
News and Notes
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Lardarius Webb's Return
The Ravens played without their best defensive back in Lardarius Webb in each of their first two games. With Webb out, Baltimore allowed 251.5 passing yards per game, ranking them 22nd in the NFL in that department.
However, Webb is expected to play this week versus Cleveland after missing the entire preseason and first two games with a back injury. When Webb is able to finally play, he feels like his conditioning will be good enough that he'll be able to hit the ground running.
Webb, Via The Baltimore Sun:
""When I get back out, I'm going to be in NFL speed. I don't want to go out on the field if I'm not ready for NFL speed. I play corner, that's what I do. By the time I get out on the field, I'll be ready.
Conditioning is great. I'm tired now, so you can tell. I've just been doing a lot of running to get back in shape. It's kind of my mini training camp, I would say."
"
With Webb back, this defense should get a nice boost in their pass defense.
Bernard Pierce May Not Play
The Ravens have used a committee approach in their backfield through the first two weeks. Justin Forsett has gotten 19 carries for 126 yards (6.6 yards per carry), while Bernard Pierce has carried the ball 28 times for 113 yards (4.0 ypc).
However, Pierce may not play this week as he deals with a thigh injury. He's officially listed as "questionable" on the final injury report, which means there is a decent chance he doesn't play this week. Forsett has looked like the better back through two games.
If Pierce doesn't play against Cleveland, this could be Forsett's chance to lock down the starting job.
Will Lorenzo Taliaferro Get Touches?
If Pierce misses Week 3, that would leave Forsett to get the bulk of the carries versus Cleveland. It may also mean rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro makes his debut.
The rookie fourth-round pick out of Coastal Carolina has yet to receive an NFL carry or catch a pass through two games, despite being listed third on the depth chart.
If Pierce doesn't play, someone will have to get touches other than Forsett. Even if Peirce plays, if he's not 100 percent healthy, Taliaferro may need to get a handful of touches.
According to The Baltimore Sun, when asked about getting touches, Taliaferro said, "I don’t know what my role is going to be. I just know I’m ready for whatever it is. I can’t control any of that. All I can control is what I do when my number is called in that moment.”
Injury Report
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NAME | INJURY | GAME STATUS |
|---|---|---|
Flacco, Joe | Illness | Probable |
Jackson, Asa | Concussion | Probable |
Jernigan, Timmy | Knee | Doubtful |
Monroe, Eugene | Knee | Probable |
Pierce, Bernard | Thigh | Questionable |
Webb, Lardarius | Back | Probable |
Rookie defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan is the only player listed as "doubtful" to play. He's dealing with a knee injury suffered in Baltimore's Week 2 win over Pittsburgh.
Joe Flacco had an illness earlier in the week that forced him to miss Wednesday's practice. He did practice Thursday and Friday, though, so it looks like he's over what was reportedly a stomach virus.
Asa Jackson suffered a concussion versus Pittsburgh. He's since been cleared to practice and play in Sunday's game versus the Browns.
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Matchups to Watch
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LG Joel Bitonio vs. DT Haloti Ngata
If the Ravens want to find a hole on Cleveland's offensive line to expose, it may come in the form of rookie guard Joel Bitonio. The second-round pick out of Nevada has played well through two games, but has surrendered five QB hurries, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
On the opposite end, he'll be matched with defensive tackle Haloti Ngata. Regarded as one of the best defensive lineman in football, Ngata will be a load for the rookie to handle on Sunday.
If Bitonio can block Ngata one-on-one, it will help keep the run-heavy Browns offense rolling. Cleveland's rushing offense ranks No. 5 in the NFL through two games.
However, if Ngata wins this battle consistently, or forces Cleveland to double-team him, that could free up the linebackers to tackle Browns ball-carriers and minimize their gains.
OLB Paul Kruger vs. Ravens Offensive Line
Cleveland's top pass-rusher is outside linebacker Paul Kruger. He'll line up and blitz from both the left and right side, so it will be up to most, if not all of Baltimore's offensive linemen to block him.
Through two games, Kruger leads the team with three sacks and is second on the team in stops (tackles constituting an offensive failure, subscription required) with eight.
If Baltimore doesn't contain Kruger, he'll wreak havoc in the backfield. Keeping him blocked consistently will be key to keeping the offense in rhythm.
Prediction
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In Week 1, Baltimore looked lost and confused on offense against the Bengals. In Week 2, they looked like a different team in how efficient they were against the Steelers.
The only thing that was consistent in both games was Baltimore's defense. There's little reason to think they won't limit Cleveland to between 17 and 20 points.
How well the offense performs will ultimately determine this game. Will we see the Baltimore offense from Week 1 that committed two turnovers and allowed three sacks, or will it be Week 2's offense that didn't allow a sack or commit a turnover?
I believe Baltimore has a clean offensive game that is geared more towards a ground game that keeps the clock moving, helping the Ravens win the time of possession battle.
On defense, Baltimore stuffs the run and forces the Browns to rely on their enigmatic passing offense that ranks No. 22 in the NFL. The Ravens hold off a late Browns rally after forcing Brian Hoyer into a game-clinching interception.
Prediction: Baltimore wins, 23-17.
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