Headlines November - December

Plenty of work to go around in Ravens' backfield

We know this much: The Ravens will run the ball, and perhaps more than any other team in the league. Baltimore is on pace to attempt a league-best 610 carries. But whom will be the Ravens’ starting back going forward? The way we hear it, the starter designation might be one that doesn’t carry much meaning in Baltimore, considering RBs Willis McGahee, Ray Rice and Le’Ron McClain all will get work. “We’re a three-headed monster, as you guys put it all the time, and we’re going to play all three guys,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said. McGahee led the way in Week 10, getting 25 of the team’s 40 rushes. Rice, who started for the injured McGahee in Week Nine and rushed for 154 yards, will continue to be a big part of the offense, especially with the Ravens using the shotgun formation more. Rice’s success running out of the shotgun is no small reason for the Ravens’ offense being as intriguing as it has been in recent memory.


Ravens NT Ngata proving he belongs among elite at his position

Oh, the defensive tackles that could be playing on the AFC side in the Pro Bowl. The Titans’ Albert Haynesworth looks to be a surefire selection. The Jets’ Kris Jenkins has recaptured his dominant form with his new club. So, too, has the Browns’ Shaun Rogers, whose work might go unappreciated because of Cleveland’s disappointing season.

On the other end of the spectrum from Rogers is Ravens NT Haloti Ngata, who has been overlooked for his work on a star-studded Baltimore defense. But that is quickly changing.

Ngata is simply playing too well for that to happen any longer.

The 6-4, 345-pound Ngata has played exceptionally in his third NFL season. In addition to being a force vs. the run, he’s having a remarkable season defending the pass. Through Week 11, Ngata has defended five passes and intercepted two. In Baltimore’s 41-14 win over Houston on Nov. 9, Ngata did something you seldom see from a defensive tackle: He dropped into coverage, leaped to deflect a Sage Rosenfels pass with both hands, tracked down the ball and caught it in the endzone, ending a Houston scoring opportunity.

How strong and quick is Ngata? The Ravens occasionally use him on offense, where he has made appearances in the team’s goal-line package, as well as on special teams.

The way we hear it, there are some around the Ravens who believe Ngata has been playing this well the past two years, but only now is he starting to get widespread recognition.

His teammates are doing their share in that regard. Ravens RILB Bart Scott recently ended an interview with ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption” by singing the praises of Ngata unprompted. “Make no bones about it, the best defensive lineman in the game right now is Haloti Ngata, and I dare you guys to put on the film and compare him to anybody you got in the league,” Scott said.

“He’s a phenomenon,” Ravens LILB Ray Lewis told Baltimore reporters recently of Ngata. “… He’s playing the game at a very, very high level. It’s surprising when you do see it. I’ve been around football a long time, but to see that guy’s gifts athletically and what he does to destroy offenses, it’s really special — definitely when you’re playing behind him.”


Health, play of Ravens' O-line bears watching down the stretch

The Ravens’ offensive line collectively has had a good season to date. Entering Week 12, Baltimore led the NFL in time of possession, and that, in part, had something to do with the play of the O-line, which has led the way for a grinding, persistent running attack and has protected QB Joe Flacco fairly well. But the line could be put to the test in the weeks to come, the way we hear it, with injuries to OLT Jared Gaither (shoulder), ORT Willie Anderson (ankle) and OT-OG Adam Terry (ankle) all causing those players to miss at least one game because of their ailments. The promising Gaither, who allowed only one sack in his first 10 games, did not start the Week 12 game vs. Philadelphia. Terry, who suffered the ankle injury in Week 11, started for Gaither at left tackle vs. Philadelphia on Nov. 20. Anderson, who sat out in Week 11, returned to the lineup vs. the Eagles.


Washington acquisition looks like a savvy one for Ravens

The Ravens might have averted potential disaster this season and beyond by acquiring CB Fabian Washington from Oakland on the second day of the '08 draft. CB Chris McAlister, who carries a salary-cap number of $10.9 million in 2009, will be 32 in June, and he's on injured reserve with a knee injury. The Ravens' other starting cornerback, Samari Rolle, has missed time in each of the past two seasons with injuries and carries a $6.3 million salary-cap number in '09. Rolle will be 33 next August. Washington has missed time because of neck and shoulder injuries, and he was suspended for the Week One game vs. Cincinnati after violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy, but he has started every game he has played this season, and he has given the secondary a lift with McAlister out of the lineup. Washington, who intercepted his first pass of the season in Week 12, is signed through the '09 season, which buys the Ravens time as they decide what the CB depth chart will look like in the seasons to come.


Clayton thriving in suddenly powerful Ravens offense

There is much to like about the Ravens’ offense right now: the improvement of rookie QB Joe Flacco, the robust, persistent running game, the intriguing, effective mix of old-and-new along the offensive line.

And don’t overlook the re-emergence of WR Mark Clayton as one of the club’s top playmakers.

Clayton’s production picked up significantly in November. He caught 15 passes for 377 yards and touchdowns of 47, 53 and 70 yards. He also threw a 32-yard TD pass off a reverse in a rout of Cincinnati in Week 13.

“Plays like that, they’re exciting,” Clayton said of his one-play stint at quarterback. “They bring excitement. Everybody enjoys the wrinkles, if you will.”

And the Ravens, who averaged 37 points in their four wins in November, are more capable of catching defenses off-guard than in past seasons. The creative play-calling of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron has played a major role in this regard. Even early in the season, when Flacco’s on-the-job training may have limited Cameron’s options somewhat, he still struck with the occasional out-of-left-field play call that paid dividends, such as the double reverse Clayton took for a touchdown in the season opener vs. the Bengals.

Clayton praised Cameron’s offensive philosophy as well as how he relates to his players.

“There’s no limit to a Cam Cameron offense, man,” Clayton told PFW. “We’re always growing. There is always something we can learn. We enjoy that every day. We enjoy that as professionals, because there is something we want to grow toward.”

When Clayton is at his most explosive, the Ravens’ offense is at its most dangerous, and the effect can be seen in the won-loss column. Two seasons ago, Clayton caught 67 passes for 939 yards and five touchdowns for a Ravens club that ran away with the AFC North. However, he could not replicate that effort in 2007; slowed by ankle and toe injuries, Clayton averaged only 11.1 yards per catch and did not score a touchdown.

Things are much different this season for both Clayton and the revamped Ravens offense, one that’s feeling awfully good about itself these days.

“The thing that has grown with us collectively is our confidence,” Clayton said.


Pryce an integral part of Ravens' defense

The way we hear it, Ravens DRT Trevor Pryce quietly is having a strong season. Throughout his three seasons in Baltimore, the Ravens’ defense has been at its best when he’s in the lineup, and the ’08 campaign has been no different. The 6-5, 290-pound Pryce has very good pass-rushing ability and strength at the point of attack, necessary skills for an aggressive Ravens defense that uses an odd front. Pryce, who’s two seasons removed from a 13-sack season, has 4½ sacks through 13 games. At 33, he’s still regarded as one of the better defensive linemen in the AFC, and his ability to start every game a season after missing 11 games because of injury has given the defensive line a lift. A source close to the club says Pryce, who’s signed through 2010 and carries a salary-cap number of $6.25 million in ’09, is likely to be back with the club next season.

Ravens FB McClain's surprising season keeps getting better

How big a Pro Bowl longshot was FB Le’Ron McClain entering this season? Well, let’s put it this way: Lorenzo Neal, who joined the Ravens only in August, was probably a better bet, on name recognition alone, to make it to Hawaii than McClain. After all, Neal had been to four Pro Bowls, and McClain was coming off an eight-carry rookie campaign in 2007.

By now, you know how things played out for McClain. He has emerged as the Ravens’ leading rusher and has received the majority of the carries in recent weeks. And last week, he was named a Pro Bowl starter.

McClain’s rise has come as Willis McGahee’s role in the Ravens’ offense has waned. McGahee has been limited by injuries all season, and for much of the campaign, he has looked little like the back who himself made the Pro Bowl in ’07. McGahee did not make much of an impact in the pivotal Week 15 loss to Pittsburgh, carrying only six times for 18 yards. Meanwhile, McClain carried 23 times for 87 yards. However, both backs came up big in the Ravens’ 33-24 win at Dallas on Dec. 20, with McClain gaining 139 yards on 22 carries and McGahee rolling up 108 yards on eight carries. What’s more, both broke long TD runs in the final minutes, with McGahee scoring from 77 yards out and McClain stunning Dallas with an 82-yard score.

The Ravens could easily bring back their top backs in 2009. Second-year RB Ray Rice, a well-regarded prospect, is signed through 2011. McClain, who’s on his first contract, is signed through the ’09 season. Also, McGahee’s salary-cap number is a manageable $3.1 million in ’09. The Ravens have to decide whether to pay him a $1.5 million option bonus in March but figure to do so. Overall, McGahee is signed through 2013, but it’s unlikely he would play out his entire contract in its current form.

The Ravens’ big RB decision could come after the ’09 season, as McGahee’s salary-cap number increases to a little more than $6 million in 2010, and McClain could enter restricted free agency. McClain’s agent, Todd France, told PFW that he has yet to discuss a new contract with the Ravens and indicated any talks, were they to happen, might come in the offseason.


Ravens WR Mason's toughness, production keys for Baltimore

Ravens WR Derrick Mason has played through a dislocated left shoulder in the second half of the season, but he has continued to be the primary option in the passing game. "I don't know if I've ever seen a tougher football player in 25 years of coaching," Ravens head coach John Harbaugh remarked in the week leading up to the season finale with Jacksonville. Mason, who will be 35 in January, remains a tough matchup for opposing quarterbacks thanks to his quickness and savvy. Signed through next season, Mason is likely to be the Ravens' top receiver in the '09 campaign short of Mark Clayton taking a major step forward. Clayton is also a free agent after the '09 season, so the Ravens will have some decisions to make about the future of the position. But it is clear Mason is still a very effective player in Cam Cameron's offense.