Key Additions: WR Mike Wallace, TE Ben Watson, S Eric Weddle
Key Subtractions: OT Kelechi Osemele, DT Chris Canty, WR Chris Givens
Strengths
Baltimore has arguably the most underappreciated quarterback in the league in Joe Flacco, and boy, what a fine weapon he truly is. Despite their uncharacteristic 5-11 record from last season, the Ravens still finished with a top-10 passing offense, and that’s even considering Flacco missed the last six games of the season due to injury.
Basically, the Ravens have a pretty solid roster right now. It just so happened that they were the most ravaged team by injuries last season. Now that they’ve gotten an entire offseason to recuperate and retool their lineup, it’s pretty safe to assume that these black birds from the nation’s capital will say “never more” to mediocrity this upcoming season.
Weaknesses
Age on offense appears to be a key factor for this Baltimore team. They either have a handful of aging superstars (wide receiver Steve Smith, 37; guard Marshall Yanda, 31; Justin Forsett, 30 – an old age for a feature back) or a bunch of unproven young prospects (wide receiver Breshad Perriman; tight end Maxx Williams; offensive tackle and 2016 first-round pick Ronnie Stanley). Even Joe Flacco is already 31, believe it or not.
Getting the right blend of championship-level experience and youthful dynamism may be tricky, and the additions of easily-demotivated Mike Wallace and a Drew Brees-less Ben Watson are rather questionable “upgrades” to the receiving corps as well.
Key Player – Terrell Suggs
It’s easy to pinpoint Flacco as the real lynchpin because clearly, the Ravens offense would be dead on arrival without him in command.
Then again, Baltimore has long been considered as a defense-first type of team. So when outstanding linebacker Terrell Suggs tore his Achilles in the opening week of play last season, the Ravens’ D was never the same again and it set the tone for what would become the team’s worst season under head coach John Harbaugh.
At 33 years of age, Suggs may no longer be the dynamic force he once was. Still, having the six-time Pro Bowl selection and former AFC Defensive Player of the Year back on the field to serve as the emotional leader for a relatively thin Baltimore defensive unit may just be the shot to the heart that the once fearful Ravens defense needs to start intimidating opposing offenses week in and week out.
Key Game – vs Raiders (October 3)
When you’re part of the crowded AFC North, every division game is a crucial one. So instead, and considering that the Ravens’ first three weeks of play appears to be a cakewalk (Bills in Week 1 followed by back-to-back road games against the Browns and Jaguars), their first true test may be in Week 4 versus the revamped Oakland Raiders.
This contest will put both teams to an early test and a good first-quarter assessment for the season; the Ravens get to prove whether their team was just really unfortunate last year simply because of injuries, while the Raiders face a playoff-tested club on the road just as well.
2015 Team Stats:
Category
Stat (Rank)
Points per game
20.5 (#25)
Passing yards per game
266.9 (#8)
Rushing Yards per game
92.4 (#26)
Scoring Defense
25.1 (#24)
Writer’s Prediction
The Ravens, who are currently priced at +275 to win the AFC North, finish tied for second with the Cincinnati Bengals (+180) in the division standings. Unfortunately, they lose the tiebreaker to the Bengals and miss out on a wild card berth for the playoffs.
