Baltimore Ravens: Did the Chargers Expose the Ravens as Frauds?

Ravens fans were a bit antsy, but nobody expected the Ravens to get so thoroughly rocked Sunday night. This was the worst the Ravens have looked all season on defense, and the offense was thoroughly mediocre, as well.

The Ravens had suffered bad losses earlier in the year, but at no point did it seem like a team actually beat them. For the whole year, it seemed that the only team that could beat the Ravens was themselves. The Chargers have proven, though, that there are soft spots in the Ravens armor.

First and foremost, the Chargers showed that without Lardarius Webb, the Ravens secondary is not good. Cary Williams was beaten several times, and Jimmy Smith had trouble all game matching up with the Chargers receivers. Webb might have struggled with the Chargers' size, but he at least would be near the receivers in man coverage. Williams and Smith were often beaten by a few steps.

While the secondary got beaten badly, the pass rush didn't make their lives any easier. While John Harbaugh complained of holding throughout the game, star pass rushers like Terrell Suggs should be able to make plays regardless.

This was just not the case though, as Rivers was mostly untouched throughout the night. He consistently had time to move around and read the defense before finding an open man.

The offense, meanwhile, started out well. They moved the ball consistently on their first two drives, and only a missed field goal kept them from scoring twice. The offensive line eventually fell apart though, and Flacco was constantly pressured.

He ended up losing 43 yards on seven sacks. The running game was mostly effective, and the line did a good job run-blocking, but it barely mattered with the Ravens behind so early.

The Ravens receivers were not good in this contest.

Torrey Smith had a decent game, and he is looking more and more like Flacco's No. 1 receiver of the future. Anquan Boldin, though, struggles to get separation and is not as sure-handed as Ravens fans would like. Lee Evans again went without a catch, and receiver looks like a need more and more every week. 

The key question is whether these weaknesses were anomalies, or if they will continue to plague the Ravens. I think it's a little of both. The Ravens pass rush has been prone to off days, but I'm not worried about it at all.

Defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano has been brilliant, and with weapons like Suggs and Haloti Ngata, I have no worries that he will put them in position to make plays. Also, don't forget Ngata was questionable going into this game.

The secondary, though, might be an issue going forward, especially if Webb continues to be limited. Without Webb, this is a poor secondary. They need him back as soon as possible if they want to continue to play the pass effectively like they have in past weeks.

Despite the poor defensive showing, the most glaring issues are still on offense. The receivers have been playing poorly, with only Smith making plays as of late. When the running back leads the team in receptions, there is probably an issue at receiver.

The Ravens desperately need Boldin to step up and make plays, or they will remain a one-dimensional offense.

The offensive line was terrible at pass-blocking early in the year, then improved. Against the Chargers, though, they looked thoroughly outmatched.

According to Cris Collinsworth, the Ravens have had to abandon seven-step drops because Bryant McKinnie simply cannot handle pass-blocking for that long. This limits what the Ravens can do, and against the strong pass rushers the Ravens will face in the playoffs, this will be a big problem.

The Ravens are still one of the top teams in the AFC. Some might overreact and say they are finished, but the Ravens still have enough pieces to make a deep playoff run.

The Chargers earned this win, though, and they showed the rest of the league how to beat the Ravens. If the same issues continue to plague the Ravens, they will likely get an early exit from the playoffs. This is a team that reacts well to adversity, though, and to count them out would be a mistake.