Panthers vs. Ravens: Full Game Grades for Baltimore
The Baltimore Ravens hosted the Carolina Panthers for a Week 4 clash at M&T Bank Stadium. Carolina entered the game at 2-1 after losing in Week 3 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Baltimore also entered the game at 2-1 after a Week 3 win over the Cleveland Browns. Both teams were looking for a win to avoid dropping to a .500 record.
Neither offense got off to a good start, as both teams traded punts in the first quarter. Baltimore got on the board early in the second quarter after Joe Flacco fired deep to Steve Smith for a 61-yard score to put Baltimore up 7-0.
On that play, Flacco fired deep to Smith, but the ball got deflected by tight end Owen Daniels. However, the ball went right into the arms of Smith, who made a defender miss and took it to the house.
That put the Ravens up 7-0. Carolina would later tie it after Panthers quarterback Cam Newton hit receiver Kelvin Benjamin for a 28-yard score.
Baltimore would then score the final 14 points of the half to take control of the game. The first touchdown came on an 11-yard rushing core by running back Justin Forsett.
The with just under two minutes left in the half, Flacco hit receiver Smith again for a 21-yard score to put Baltimore ahead 21-7 at halftime.
Though the Ravens had a nice lead, they didn't rest on it. Flacco would hit Torrey Smith early in the third quarter for a 25-yard score. That put the Ravens ahead 28-7.
Baltimore would outscore the Panthers 17-3 in the second half to cruise to a 38-10 victory. Here are my grades for each unit following the win.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Flacco got off to a good start against Carolina, highlighted by his second-quarter touchdown thrown to Steve Smith. However, Flacco got lucky on the play, as he threw the ball short, and it was deflected by Daniels.
Thankfully, the ball fell right into the arms of Smith, who took it 61 yards for the score. While luck was on his side on that play, it was all skill by Flacco on his next touchdown throw.
With just under two minutes left in the first half, Flacco dropped a dime right into the arms of Smith in the end zone for the 21-yard score to put Baltimore up 21-7.
Flacco spread the ball out in the short, intermediate and deep parts of the field to keep the Panthers off balance and unable to stop Baltimore's offense. He finished the game completing 22 of 31 passes for 327 yards and three scores.
This was Flacco's best performance of the year, and it's no surprise this was also Baltimore's most convincing win this season.
Grade: A
Running Back
2 of 10
Forsett got the start versus Carolina. Bernard Pierce was active after missing the previous week with a thigh injury.
Forsett was the one who got the bulk of the touches, and he made sure to strengthen his hold on the starting job.
In the first half alone, Forsett had eight carries for 61 yards and one score. He also chipped in two catches for 26 yards.
None of these yards were coming easy, though. Forsett was consistently breaking tackles on each play as he fought hard for every yard he got. He continues to look like the Ravens' best back.
Forsett finished the game with 66 yards on 14 rushes to go with 31 yards on three catches. Pierce didn't get a single carry.
Rookie Lorenzo Taliaferro chipped in 58 yards and one score on 15 carries. The combination of Forsett and Taliaferro is shaping up to be one of the better RB tandems in the NFL.
Grade: B+
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Steve Smith was facing his former Carolina Panthers team for the first time in this game. Smith made sure to let his former team know that he still had plenty left in the tank.
In just the first half, Smith caught five passes for 122 yards and two scores to help the Ravens build a 21-7 lead heading into halftime. He finished with seven grabs for 139 yards and his two scores.
When Smith was burning the Panthers deep, he was catching passes close to the line of scrimmage, and then made defenders miss to pick up 10 to 15 hard-fought yards.
Because Baltimore was able to build a two-score lead it took into the second half, the team focused more on a ball-control offense that ate up clock and kept the ball away from Carolina.
That led to the other Ravens receivers getting minimal opportunities in the second half to make plays. Baltimore receivers not named Steve Smith finished the game with six catches for 106 yards and one score.
Daniels got his first start at tight end with Dennis Pitta out. He caught four passes for 43 yards.
Grade: B+
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The Ravens offensive line has continued to improve each week, and it looked great against Carolina. In pass protection, Baltimore rarely allowed Flacco to be pressured in the pocket.
That protection allowed Flacco to pick apart the Panthers defense. He finished the day with 327 passing yards, and much of that was from having time in the pocket to let his receivers get open.
The run game was no different. Ravens linemen were consistently opening up running lanes and letting Ravens running backs find easy holes for big gains.
Baltimore finished with 127 yards on the ground. Overall, this was a dominant performance by the Ravens offensive line, and it was a big reason why Baltimore won easily.
Grade: A+
Defensive Line
5 of 10
The Ravens defense had the advantage of going against a banged-up Panthers offense. Starting running back Jonathan Stewart didn't play. Backup DeAngelo Williams was forced from the game with an ankle injury.
That left Darrin Reaves and Tauren Poole to get the bulk of running back snaps. Those were two backs recently called up from the practice squad.
Needless to say, the Ravens defensive line had little problem stopping the run, holding Carolina to just 67 rushing yards.
The Ravens pass rush suffocated Cam Newton for most of the game. Though the defensive line didn't record a sack, it did get good pressure on Newton to keep him off balance for the duration of the contest.
Grade: B+
Linebackers
6 of 10
The Ravens linebackers were the main reason why the Panthers scored just 10 points and recorded just 315 total yards.
Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil were a force off the edge, combining for two sacks while getting several hits on Newton.
Dumervil and rookie inside linebacker C.J. Mosley combined for two tackles for loss. Mosley also chipped in 11 tackles and two pass deflections as he was all over the field.
Baltimore linebackers made their presence felt early and often in this contest.
Grade: A
Secondary
7 of 10
The Ravens secondary was once again short-handed with an injury at cornerback. Lardarius Webb was scratched from the game after practicing all week.
He looked poised to play after getting limited snaps in his first game of 2014 last week against the Cleveland Browns. Webb missed the entire preseason and first two weeks of the regular season while dealing with a back injury.
Without him, the Ravens played with just three healthy corners. Thankfully, the Ravens front seven was able to keep the Panthers offense contained for most of the game.
That made life easy for Baltimore's secondary. However, when Newton got time in the pocket, he picked apart the Ravens secondary for big gains.
The lone touchdown Carolina scored came on a 28-yard pass from Newton to rookie receiver Kelvin Benjamin. Overall, 248 of the Panthers' 315 total yards came via the pass.
Needless to say, the Ravens secondary needs to get healthy and improve before the team expects to contain the NFL's better passing offenses.
Grade: B-
Special Teams
8 of 10
The Ravens special teams was once again solid on all aspects. Kicker Justin Tucker hit a 30-yard field goal and converted all five extra-point attempts.
The only field goal Tucker missed was a 57-yarder right before the first half ended.
Punter Sam Koch had just one attempt on the day, hitting a 39-yard punt that was downed inside the 20-yard line.
Jacoby Jones had one punt return for 18 yards, but he didn't record a kickoff return. On the other side, Carolina had just one kickoff return for 23 yards and no punt returns.
Grade: A-
Coaching
9 of 10
Head coach John Harbaugh and the coaching staff did a great job having the Ravens ready to play Sunday. They pounced on the Panthers early and didn't let up.
On offense, Gary Kubiak called a masterful game. His offense scored 38 points and was forced to punt the ball just once. His play-calling kept Carolina off balance the entire game.
Baltimore finished the game with 454 yards of offense, 127 of which came on the ground. A strong run game helped open up the passing game to keep the Panthers out of sorts and unable to stop Baltimore.
Defensive coordinator Dean Pees also called a great game on defense. His unit gave up just 315 yards, 105 of which came in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach and Baltimore put backup players in.
Grade: A
Final Grades
10 of 10
Positional Unit | Overall Grade |
QB | A |
RB | B+ |
WR/TE | B+ |
OL | A+ |
DL | B+ |
LB | A |
Secondary | B- |
ST | A- |
Coaching | A |
Cumulative Grade | A- |
This was a complete win for Baltimore. The Ravens dominated in nearly every aspect of this game, and that's why they won so easily. This was the best overall performance by the team this year.
What we saw in this game was how good the Ravens can be when they're clicking on all cylinders. If they can continue to play this way, they should not only make the playoffs, but challenge the Cincinnati Bengals for the AFC North crown.
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