Post 1 - Divisional Round Recap

Hello! And welcome to the first edition of Cabache's Corner. 

The Ravens’ season is over following our 35-31 Divisional Round loss to the Patriots in the fortress that is Gillette Stadium; a game in which the Ravens built two 14-point leads, only to blow them, and overmatched and outplayed the Patriots for large spells. Ultimately though, they fell to Tom Brady and Bill Belichick but was this really a surprise?

The Patriots entered this game as the number one seed, having won 10 of their last 12 (one loss being the last game of the season with starters resting) and playing as well as, if not better than, any other team, whereas the Ravens entered the game as the sixth seed, coming off a very good win in the Steel City. This, however, covered up a poor December with 2 unconvincing wins against the Jaguars and Browns, along with an ugly loss against the Texans. Furthermore, the Patriots were the league’s 9th most prolific passing team, averaging 257.6 yards per game and 2.1 passing touchdowns per game, whereas the Ravens were 26th in pass defence, allowing 248.7 yards per game and 1.4 touchdowns per game.

Now, you would think that with the fact the Ravens had the 8th best defence in terms of yards allowed, and 6th best defence in terms of points allowed, that the secondary’s leakiness would be somewhat covered up; and it would’ve been… had the Patriots not abandoned the run early in the game, finishing the game with only 7 scripted run plays. Considering the Patriots finished the game with 51 pass attempts (34 completions and 4 touchdowns), it was almost inevitable that our banged up (6 DB’s on IR), leaky pass defence would not be able to hold on for a signature Ravens playoff win. Frustratingly, though our overall defence has been a large contributor to our success, this game followed the pattern of our previous losses: too many big plays through the air.

However, it was by no means just the secondary that lost this game. The offense, even though it scored 31 points, was only really effective on its scoring drives. The Ravens were 1 of 9 on 3rd down, a conversion rate of just 11.1%. 11.1%! As opposed to their 40.9% 3rd down conversation percentage during the regular season. Flacco also threw two picks, one ending the last real opportunity for a comeback. The first was overthrown to an open Torrey Smith with 3 and a half minutes left in the 3rd, thankfully the defence prevented the Patriots from getting points off the pick. The second and ultimately clinching interception came with just over a minute left, on a go route, again to an open Torrey Smith. The common factor? Flacco failed to look off the safety.

Arguably, the most costly and consistent mistake the Ravens made all year, and again in this game, was missed tackles. Against the Patriots, I counted 12 missed tackles (Melvin and Elam each had 3, one resulting in Ammendola’s first touchdown) and each missed tackle were due to the same things. The would-be tackler always went too high, didn’t wrap up or dived at the ball carriers feet, making it easy to gain yards after contact, especially considering Gronkowski, Edelman and Ammendola were among those being ‘tackled’.

Ultimately, I am not surprised that we lost. Of course it’s disappointing to come so close but I could not be more proud of what this team did in this game. Going into the game as big underdogs (despite recent success against the Patriots), the Ravens came storming out of the gate, attacking the Patriots and forcing them to chase for 55 minutes of the game; The Ravens gave everything they could against a better team and certainly put doubt in a lot of peoples’ minds. What an end to a rollercoaster season, eh, Ravens’ Nation?


Thank you for reading the (slightly long) first edition of Cabache’s Corner. I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave any feedback as it is greatly appreciated. I’ll be back next week with a preview of Superbowl XLIX. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

XFL player draft: Wide receivers

Image
The XFL has announced its player pool ahead of its inaugural season starting in February. The XFL player draft will start on Tuesday October 15 and wrap up the following day. So who are these players? You can find them all listed by position here on Cabache’s Corner. QB  |  RB  |  TE  |  OL  |  DE  |  DT  |  LB  |  CB  |  SAF  |  ST As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, the offense in the XFL is going to have to be the draw for a fanbase, at least initially. With QBs and RBs already covered, next up is the WRs who’ll be vying for targets once the action gets started. The players are listed in alphabetical order, on order of the days they were announced – Day one players come first, then day two players are listed alphabetically and so on. Floyd Allen, Ole Miss Anthony Amos, Middle Tennessee State Dontez Byrd, Tennessee Tech Jordan Gandy, Murray State Antoine Grif...
Read more

NFL Week 14 Power Rankings

Image
If nothing else, Week 14 can be remembered for giving us the game of the season. Monday Night Football was an all-time great between the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens, and was hopefully a precursor for the final months of the NFL season. It truly felt like a playoff game, and in the final three weeks of the season we have many playoff-like matchups to look forward to. While we have a fairly clear picture of the teams who are legitimately in contention, there are many questions to be answered ahead of the playoffs, and I can’t wait to find the answers. So, heading into the final three weeks of the season, here are my Week 14 Power Rankings. 1.        Kansas City Chiefs (12-1) Even on a day Patrick Mahomes throws three interceptions, the Chiefs still put up 30+ points and win a game. Kansas City were genuinely tested by the Dolphins throughout the game, but their quality ultimately won out. With teams around them faltering, the route to the Su...
Read more

Post 10 - The second wave of free agency is upon us. Who should we keep an eye on?

Image
Hello! And welcome to my corner. Most of the big names are off the market, the huge contracts have been signed and lots of teams are now focusing on the draft. However, there are a lot of guys still on the market, with plenty to give for any team who comes calling. The Ravens still have many needs, here are the guys I think are at least worth a look. At this point, following the resigning of Justin Forsett and loss of Torrey Smith, receiver is our biggest need. Most of the big name receivers are gone, the only receivers raked in Around the NFL's Top 101 Free Agents list are Michael Crabtree, Dwayne Bowe, Greg Jennings, Hackeem Nicks and Denarius Moore. Of course, there are more than 5 receivers, but I only see a few that are worth a look. That said, I think any of these players would only be a filler for a year or two whilst younger guys develop.   Hackeem Nicks  Down the stretch last year, Nicks showed glimpses of his old self. I think that he could function as ...
Read more