Blogging with Enemy - Ravens, part II

You may remember I traded questions with Ravens blogger Tony Lombardi the last time the Browns and Ravens faced off. I thought it would be interesting to re-visit him now that our two teams are meeting again to see what he has to say about the season thus far.

1) How has your perception of the Ravens changed since the beginning of the season?

After a collection of rather dismal preseason performances, expectations for the Ravens were fairly low with most predicting anywhere from 4-7 wins. However, given the development of the offensive line and Joe Flacco and the watered down 2008 version of the NFL, anything is possible. With the heightened level of opportunity afforded by parity, expectations have risen and at this point in the season sitting at a record of 4-3, a playoff berth is within the realm of reason.

2) Midway through the season, what's your best-possible and worst-possible scenarios for how the Ravens will finish?

Well the best scenario would of course be for the Ravens to run the table as they did back in 2000 but that is clearly unrealistic. An optimistic outlook for the season would be for them to split their remaining games on the road and win their home games where they’ve generally been very tough to beat. That would leave the Ravens with a mark of 10-6 or 11-5.

Pessimistically speaking, the Ravens could return home after a 3 game road trip beginning with their visit to Cleveland this weekend with a record of 4-6. They would then have six games left with four of them at home. The road game against the pansy Bengals looks like a “W” but the other road game is against Dallas in what could be the last home game played in Texas Stadium. That looks like a loss.

The four home games are all against tough opponents: Philadelphia, Washington, Jacksonville and Pittsburgh. They could lose all of those games and then find themselves staring at the same 5-11 record as they finished with in ’07. But that said even in the worst case scenario, they should be able to pluck off a win or two at home. My best guess, when you look at the Ravens, what you will find is an 8-8 team.

3) What's your thoughts on the rest of the AFC North? Are the Steelers for real? What's wrong with Cleveland this year? Is there any hope for the Bengals?

All of the AFC North teams have weaknesses. The Steelers have struggled to protect Ben Roethlisberger and I just don’t see him making it through the season without missing some time. They are a pretty banged up team but they are well coached and I expect them to win the division.

The Browns I thought were overrated entering the season and I don’t think they get to the quarterback enough. Outside of Shaun Rogers, their front seven on defense is rather pedestrian and Kamerion Wimbley has to be disappointing Phil Savage and Romeo Crennel with his inability to make plays. He’s had only 3 sacks over the last 17 games – clearly not what they expected from him. I see the Browns hovering around .500 at best.

As for the Bengals, they are a doormat and I don’t see them making an impact for a couple of years. They need to clean house beginning with Marvin Lewis. Just a bad organization there.

4) What has been your biggest surprise -- good or bad -- this season?

For the Ravens the biggest surprise is how well the offensive line has played thus far. They are young and relatively inexperienced but they are well-coached and they show promise despite the injuries that they’ve suffered. The disappointments are all on offense: Willis McGahee, Todd Heap and Mark Clayton. McGahee showed up out of shape at summer camp and still isn’t close to 100%. Heap looks like a shell of the player he once was and appears to have lost a couple of steps and hasn’t been as sure-handed as he once was. Clayton is a disappointing former first round pick with only 13 catches for 98 yards in 7 games.

The biggest surprise in the league this year would have to be the Tennessee Titans. They don’t appear to be particularly good yet they are 7-0. They’ve learned how to win. On the other side of the coin, I’d say that the Chargers, Colts, Jaguars and Vikings are the biggest disappointments. Each of these teams appeared were forecasted by many to go very deep into the playoffs. Now any of them need a little luck to dance at all in the postseason.

5) What's your prediction for Sunday's game?

This week’s game between the Ravens and Browns will be a typical AFC North slugfest. I see the Browns trying to take the early lead by taking shots down field. But that is exactly what the Ravens expect and when it doesn’t work, they’ll bang it inside with Jamal Lewis and that plays right into the hands of the Ravens. For me the difference in this game boils down to this: Can the Ravens throw the ball against the Browns better than the Browns throw it against the Ravens? I say yes and consequently the Ravens walk away with a tough 20-17 victory.

Be sure to check out my answers to Tony's questions at his blog. Go Browns!