The Birds of B-More (Baltimore Ravens Dynasty, Madden 12)

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

"The Purple and Black Rebounds in Seattle"

It was a rough week in Pittsburgh last week when the Ravens lost by a mere 5 points. A cross-country trip against a winning opponent seemed like a lot for this Ravens team after that loss, but when they took the field Sunday, they played with a fire not seen since the season opener.

The defense forced a Seattle 3 and out on the opening drive, and then the offense was unchained. A perfect mix of the run and play-action pass plays put the Ravens in the endzone on their opening drive!

How about this news: Ed Reed captured his 60th career interception against Seattle. He has only 3 interceptions to go to tie Ronnie Lott on the all-time list.

Te defense was on mission today, and they came up with plenty of big hits and forced 2 fumbles. One of those fumbles was about to bounce out of bounds, when Cary Williams scooped it up and ran it back for a score. That really took the wind out of Seattle's "12th man." Aside from a few big plays here and there, the defense was pretty much unbeatable. That's what we like to see, and that's what was missing last week.

One area of concern in this game, and many others preceding it, is the protection of QB Joe Flacco. He's being sacked multiple times a game and pressured almost every deep pass play. The line needs to pull together and keep people out of the backfield.

Next week, the Ravens head back to Baltimore to host AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals in their first meeting this season!

Baltimore Ravens at Seattle Seahawks
Nov 13, 2011	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Baltimore Ravens (6-2)	7	7	14	3	31
Seattle Seahawks (5-3)	0	7	7	3	17

Team Stats Comparison
	BAL	SEA
Total Offense	373	329
Rushing Yards	124	159
Passing Yards	249	170
First Downs	18	13
Punt Return Yards	44	36
Kick Return Yards	40	27
Total Yards	457	392
Turnovers	1 (+1)	2 (-1)
3rd Down Converstion	6-14	6-14
4th Down Conversion	0-0	0-1
2-Point Conversion	0-0	0-0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	2-0	1-0
Penalties	3-25	1-10
Posession Time	23:48	20:12

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		BAL	SEA
2:25	(BAL) E. Dickson 12 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff kick)	7	0
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		BAL	SEA
5:14	(BAL) L. Evans 7 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff kick)	14	0
1:12	(SEA) D. Butler 16 Yd pass from T. Jackson (S. Hauschka kick)	14	7
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		BAL	SEA
8:53	(BAL) E. Dickson 27 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff)	21	7
4:33	(SEA) G. Tate 40 Yd pass from T. Jackson (S. Hauschka kick)	21	14
3:06	(BAL) C. Williams, returned fumble 39 Yds (B. Cundiff)	28	14
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		BAL	SEA
10:52	(SEA) S. Hauschka, 40 Yd FG	28	17
6:37	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 37 Yd FG	31	17

Baltimore Ravens PASSING C/A YDS TD INT J. Flacco 19/38 278 3 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD R. Rice 22 121 5.5 0 J. Flacco 4 3 0.7 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD A. Boldin 8 117 14.6 0 E. Dickson 4 85 21.2 2 L. Evans 3 46 15.3 1 T. Smith 2 17 8.5 0 T. Doss 1 9 9.0 0 K. Wilson 1 4 4.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK M. Yanda 0 1 E. Dickson 0 1 M. Oher 0 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD R. Lewis 6 1 0 0 T. Zbikowski 4 0 0 0 J. McClain 4 0 0 0 J. Johnson 4 0 0 0 H. Ngata 3 0 0 0 J. Smith 2 1 0 0 B. McKinney 2 0 0 0 T. Suggs 2 0 0 0 E. Reed 1 0 1 0 C. Williams 1 0 0 1 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG B. Cundiff 1/1 4/4 7 38 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 S. Koch 6 276 46.0 2 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD D. Reed 2 40 20.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD L. Webb 5 44 8.8 0

Seattle Seahawks PASSING C/A YDS TD INT T. Jackson 17/31 181 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD M. Lynch 16 61 3.8 0 T. Jackson 5 55 11.0 0 J. Forsett 5 45 9.0 0 G. Tate 1 -2 -2.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Butler 5 33 6.6 1 B. Obomanu 5 49 9.8 0 G. Tate 3 65 21.6 1 M. Robinson 2 10 5.0 0 S. Rice 1 19 19.0 0 C. Morrah 1 5 5.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK J. Moffitt 0 2 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD A. Curry 6 0 0 0 B. Browner 5 0 0 0 B. Maxwell 4 0 0 0 M. Trufant 4 0 0 0 C. Clemons 3 3 0 0 B. Mebane 3 0 0 0 K. Chancellor 2 0 0 0 D. Hawthorne 2 0 0 0 K. Wright 2 0 0 0 A. Bigby 1 0 1 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG S. Hauschka 1/1 2/2 5 41 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 J. Ryan 6 291 48.5 1 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD J. Forsett 1 27 27.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD L. Washington 4 36 9.0 0

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

Week 11: VS Cincinnati Bengals

Ravens look to take the first meeting of these rivals.

The Ravens were able to shake off that tough loss to Pittsburgh fairly quickly as they took care of the Seahawks on the road last week. It's time to open up another season series with Bengals! Let's see if Baltimore can keep piling on wins.

Last week, Joe Flacco was able to keep his wild throws in check against the Seahawk defense. Let's see if he can keep it going.

The best news is, FB Vonta Leach is back from injury. Expect to see the running game really take off in this one!

Matchup Preview *|* November 20, 2011
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Cincinnati Bengals (3-6, Away)		Baltimore Ravens (7-2, Home)
Offensive Stats Comparison 3,649 Total Yards 4,357 2,428 Total Offensive Yards 3,680 1,514 Passing Yards 2,336 914 Rushing Yards 1,344 17.2 Points Per Game 28.0 9 Passing TD 15 5 Rushing TD 14 111 First Downs 161 11 Red Zone Attempts 32 6-4 Red Zone TD-FG 19-9 90.0% Red Zone Percentage 87.0% Defensive Stats Comparison 2,801 Total Yards Allowed 2,980 1,640 Passing Yards Allowed 2,096 1,161 Rushing Yards Allowed 884 162 Points Allowed 171 20 Sacks 25 8 Fumble Recoveries 7 4 Interceptions 12 19 Red Zone Attempts 18 8-8 Red Zone TD-FG 7-8 84.0% Red Zone Percentage 83.0% Injury Report MLB // R. Maualuga Herniated Disk (2 Weeks) OLB // K. Rivers Dislocated Elbow (3 Weeks) TE // J. Gresham Torn Bicep (5 Weeks) OL // N. Livings Broken Tibia (Out For Season) Game Notes - First meeting between these two teams this season. - Ravens get FB Vonta Leach back from injury.

[winterhillmob]

loving this franchise very creative good layout keep up the good work

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

To everyone posting in here other than me... thanks for reading!

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

"Defense Keeps Ravens in Control in Win"

The Ravens were able to go 1-0 in the season series with Cincinnati with the help of the defense. The offense continues to have troubles in the first 3 quarters.

Baltimore's defense continued to prove they're still a fierce group, never mind how many possible interceptions were dropped. They were able to put pressure on Bruce Gradkowski and force him to make some bad throws. The defense had RB Cedric Benson stuffed all game. Benson was injured late in the 2nd quarter. He suffered a broken collarbone and will be out of action for a few months. After that, Cincinnati's offense was virtually non-existant.

It's great that the defense played so well, because despite the numbers, Joe Flacco and the offense were struggling. Several consecutive drives ended in 3-and-outs, and the Ravens most likely wouldn't have gotten that TD pass if not for having a short field in front of them.

Ray Rice didn't break off a gain of 5 or more yards until late in the 2nd quarter. He finished the game with just under 100 yards rushing. Why do I specifically give Ray Rice his own paragraph? Well, that's because of what his spectacular play this year has been getting him. As of right now, he is in the top 5 race for the Regular Season MVP Award. That's right, he's up there with Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Drew Brees in the running for MVP. What a year for the young back from Rutgers.

Cary Williams made it two straight games with a "Scoop and Score" fumble return. Suggs destroyed the ball carrier, and Williams was right there to take the ball and score. The touchdown earned Williams his second consecutive Player of the Game award. He has really earned that starting spot this year.

Next week, the Ravens play in prime time on Thanksgiving! The San Francisco 49ers will be coming to M&T Bank for this one!

Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens
Nov 20, 2011	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Cincinnati Bengals (3-6)	3	0	0	8	11
Baltimore Ravens (7-2)	3	10	0	13	26

Team Stats Comparison
	CIN	BAL
Total Offense	252	335
Rushing Yards	55	98
Passing Yards	197	237
First Downs	13	20
Punt Return Yards	13	11
Kick Return Yards	0	43
Total Yards	265	389
Turnovers	2 (-2)	0 (+2)
3rd Down Converstion	4-15	7-16
4th Down Conversion	1-1	1-1
2-Point Conversion	1-1	0-0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	1-1	1-3
Penalties	1-5	0-0
Posession Time	17:00	27:00

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		CIN	BAL
3:00	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 25 Yd FG	0	3
0:51	(CIN) M. Nugent	3	3
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		CIN	BAL
8:09	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 38 Yd FG	3	6
1:01	(BAL) A. Boldin 6 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff kick)	3	13
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		CIN	BAL
5:12	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 29 Yd FG	3	16
1:48	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 19 Yd FG	3	19
1:24	(BAL) C. Williams, returned fumble 19 Yds (B. Cundiff)	3	26
0:00	(CIN) J. Shipley 1 Yd pass from B. Gradkowski (2pt)	11	26

Cincinnati Bengals PASSING C/A YDS TD INT B. Gradkowski 17/35 214 1 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD B. Scott 11 5 0.4 0 C. Benson 7 31 4.4 0 B. Gradkowski 3 19 6.3 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD T. Houshmandzadeh 5 86 17.2 0 A. Green 4 48 12.0 0 J. Shipley 4 34 8.5 1 B. Tate 2 33 16.5 0 B. Scott 1 5 5.0 0 C. Harris 1 8 8.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK K. Cook 0 1 C. Boling 0 2 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD T. Howard 6 0 0 0 R. Muckelroy 5 0 0 0 N. Clements 4 0 0 0 D. Peko 4 1 0 0 C. Crocker 3 0 0 0 C. Dunlap 3 0 0 0 B. Ghee 2 0 0 0 R. Geathers 2 0 0 0 K. Jennings 2 0 0 0 M. Lawson 2 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG M. Nugent 1/1 1/1 4 30 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 K. Huber 7 310 44.2 1 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD B. Tate 3 13 4.3 0

Baltimore Ravens PASSING C/A YDS TD INT J. Flacco 22/40 243 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD R. Rice 29 97 3.3 0 V. Leach 1 1 1.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD A. Boldin 7 81 11.5 1 T. Smith 5 48 9.6 0 L. Evans 3 28 9.3 0 T. Doss 2 39 19.5 0 E. Dickson 2 34 17.0 0 R. Rice 2 5 2.5 0 V. Leach 1 8 8.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK V. Leach 2 0 M. Yands 0 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD T. Suggs 4 0 0 0 D. Foxworth 3 0 1 0 E. Reed 3 0 0 0 J. Johnson 2 0 0 0 C. Redding 2 0 0 0 T. Cody 2 1 0 0 J. Smith 2 0 0 0 H. Ngata 2 1 0 0 T. Zbikowski 2 0 0 0 C. Williams 1 0 0 1 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG B. Cundiff 4/4 2/2 14 39 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 S. Koch 4 171 42.7 2 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD D. Reed 2 43 21.5 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD L. Webb 3 11 3.6 0

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

Week 12: VS San Francisco 49ers

It's the Harbaugh Bowl on Thanksgiving Night!

Yes, you read it right... the Harbaugh Bowl! John (BAL) and Jim (SF) go head to head in prime time!

The Ravens will look to get the offense into a smooth rhythm in the game, and get in the endzone more often.

We should be in for another great game as Baltimore looks to continue their winning ways.

Matchup Preview *|* November 24, 2011
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San Francisco 49ers (3-7, Away)		Baltimore Ravens (8-2, Home)
Offensive Stats Comparison 4,930 Total Yards 4,746 3,231 Total Offensive Yards 4,015 2,070 Passing Yards 2,573 1,1621 Rushing Yards 1,442 18.7 Points Per Game 27.8 10 Passing TD 16 7 Rushing TD 14 161 First Downs 181 19 Red Zone Attempts 36 7-9 Red Zone TD-FG 20-12 84.0% Red Zone Percentage 88.0% Defensive Stats Comparison 3,139 Total Yards Allowed 3,232 2,146 Passing Yards Allowed 2,293 993 Rushing Yards Allowed 939 241 Points Allowed 182 17 Sacks 28 3 Fumble Recoveries 8 1 Interceptions 13 21 Red Zone Attempts 21 14-5 Red Zone TD-FG 8-9 90.0% Red Zone Percentage 80.0% Injury Report OL // M. Person Abdominal Tear (1 Week) QB // C. Kaepernick Dislocated Kneecap (1 Week) OL // J. Staley Partial MCL Tear (11 weeks) OLB // A. Brooks Fractured Hip (Out For Season

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

"1st Harbaugh Bowl Goes John and the Ravens!"

It was a great (although rain-soaked) Thanksgiving day match up, Harbaugh VS Harbaugh! At the final whistle though, one Harbaugh stood with his hands raised in victory. John Harbaugh and the Ravens notched their 9th win this season!

The Ravens got the win, but it certainly didn't look convincing, at least from the offensive side of things. Flacco's passes were sailing all over the place, Ray Rice had trouble getting things going, and the offensive line was getting beat up front. I almost hate to write it but, you can't win championships, let alone beat good teams, with performances like this one. Aside from a few bright spots, the offense looked like scrubs. Sam Koch's 10 punts, and the multitude of 3-and-outs goes to prove that this offense has serious problems moving the ball.

Defense, on the other hand, was in complete control. Aside from one 80 yard TD run by Frank Gore, the Baltimore D has the 49ers' number. Intercepting 5 of Alex Smith's passes and forcing a turnover on a fumble. A +6 turnover differential is always a great thing, no matter the opponent. It's proven, you get turnovers, you win games.

Ed Reed and Cary Williams both had 2 INTs on the day. Tom Zbikowski had the 5th, and was the one who fell on the fumble. Cary Williams is on quite a roll: 2 fumble recoveries, 2 interceptions, and 2 touchdowns in the last three games. Not to mention in this game he earned his third straight Player of the Game Award.

Speaking of awards: here are the top 5 players in the running for this year's MVP award (as of this week):

1: Peyton Manning (IND)
2: Tom Brady (NE)
3: Joe Flacco (BAL)
4: Ray Rice (BAL)
5: Adrian Peterson (MIN)

Next week, it's another division match up for Baltimore. They'll be heading to Cleveland to take on the Browns!

San Francisco 49ers at Baltimore Ravens
Nov 24, 2011	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
San Francisco 49ers (3-7)	7	0	3	0	10
Baltimore Ravens (8-2)	10	7	3	3	23

Team Stats Comparison
	SFO	BAL
Total Offense	264	336
Rushing Yards	99	93
Passing Yards	165	243
First Downs	6	15
Punt Return Yards	31	34
Kick Return Yards	0	42
Total Yards	295	412
Turnovers	6 (-6)	0 (+6)
3rd Down Converstion	1-14	9-22
4th Down Conversion	1-2	0-0
2-Point Conversion	0-0	0-0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	0-0	2-2
Penalties	2-15	5-43
Posession Time	15:13	28:47

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		SFO	BAL
6:36	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 40 Yd FG	0	3
6:24	(SFO) F. Gore, 80 Yd run (D. Akers kick)	7	3
4:07	(BAL) L. Evans, 9 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff kick)	7	10
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		SFO	BAL
7:31	(BAL) T. Doss, 5 Yd pass from J. Flacco (B. Cundiff kick)	7	17
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		SFO	BAL
5:22	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 20 Yd FG	7	20
1:53	(SFO) D. Akers, 43 Yd FG	10	20
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		SFO	BAL
0:55	(BAL) B. Cundiff, 39 Yd FG	10	23

San Francisco 49ers PASSING C/A YDS TD INT A. Smith 15/38 175 0 5 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD F. Gore 13 95 7.3 1 L. Polite 1 4 4.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD B. Edwards 6 87 14.5 0 J. Morgan 3 17 5.6 0 M. Crabtree 3 52 17.3 0 V. Davis 2 9 4.5 0 L. Polite 1 10 10.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK C. Rachal 0 2 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD N. Bowman 5 0 0 0 D. Whitner 4 0 0 0 P. Willias 4 0 0 0 I. Sopoaga 3 0 0 0 J. Smith 3 1 0 0 A. Walker 3 0 0 0 R. McDonald 3 0 0 0 C. Rogers 3 0 0 0 P. Haralson 3 0 0 0 A. Smith 1 1 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG D. Akers 1/1 1/1 4 43 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 A. Lee 7 305 43.5 1 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD T. Ginn 4 31 7.7 0

Baltimore Ravens PASSING C/A YDS TD INT J. Flacco 16/45 260 2 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD R. Rice 33 95 2.8 0 J. Flacco 1 -2 -2.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD A. Boldin 5 84 16.8 0 T. Smith 4 47 11.7 0 E. Dickson 3 64 21.3 0 L. Evans 2 58 29.0 1 T. Doss 1 5 5.0 1 V. Leach 1 2 2.0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK B. Grubbs 0 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD J. Johnson 4 0 0 0 C. Williams 4 0 2 0 R. Lewis 3 0 0 0 J. McClain 3 1 0 0 D. Foxworth 2 0 0 0 E. Reed 2 0 2 0 B. Pollard 1 0 0 0 C. Redding 1 1 0 0 C. Carr 1 0 0 0 T. Zbikowski 1 0 1 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG B. Cundiff 3/3 2/2 11 40 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 S. Koch 10 429 42.9 5 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD D. Reed 2 42 21.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD L. Webb 4 34 8.5 0

[AlmostLikeFlacco]

Week 13: @ Cleveland Browns

"Another Division Test as Baltimore Takes to the Road"

It's December, that time when each game begins to mean just a little bit more. These are the must win games for every team, whether you're trying to make the playoffs, or knock someone out of them. Everyone is stepping up their game, and Baltimore needs to follow suit.

With the win over San Fran last week, the Ravens are at 9-2 on the season, but there is still a lot of time left in the regular season. The offense needs to shape up and not only win, but do so convincingly. With games against Indianapolis and San Diego still to come, it's no time to get complacent.

Baltimore looks to get double digits in the win column in Cleveland!

Matchup Preview *|* December 4, 2011
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Baltimore Ravens (9-2, Away)		Cleveland Browns (3-8, Home)
Offensive Stats Comparison 5,158 Total Yards 4,488 4,351 Total Offensive Yards 3,013 2,816 Passing Yards 1,923 1,535 Rushing Yards 1,012 27.3 Points Per Game 13.4 18 Passing TD 8 14 Rushing TD 5 196 First Downs 132 41 Red Zone Attempts 20 22-14 Red Zone TD-FG 8-9 87.0% Red Zone Percentage 85.0% Defensive Stats Comparison 3,496 Total Yards Allowed 3,442 2,458 Passing Yards Allowed 2,348 1,038 Rushing Yards Allowed 1,094 192 Points Allowed 219 30 Sacks 21 9 Fumble Recoveries 5 18 Interceptions 9 21 Red Zone Attempts 21 8-9 Red Zone TD-FG 12-7 80.0% Red Zone Percentage 90.0% Injury Report MLB // R. Lewis Dislocated Elbow (3 Weeks) RB // P. Hillis Partial MCL Tear (4 Weeks) OL // T. Pashos Broken Collarbone (8 Weeks) MLB // T. Brown Complete ACL Tear (Out For Season)