Ask Baltimore Beatdown: Questions for the Ravens Blogger

by Rexx on Nov 19, 2008 8:32 AM EST

Hey Eagles' fans! This is Rexx from Baltimore Beatdown, SB Nation's blogger on all things Baltimore Ravens. Feel free to leave me questions about your next opponent and I'll be back on a regular basis the rest of the week to give you the enemy's perspective. My guys from our site will probably join me. We are a small but loyal and knowledgeable group of die-hards and welcome the light hearted banter. You are also invited to visit Baltimore Beatdown to see our comments and join to post your opinions as well. Remember to be nice and not make any personal comments (like the Cleveland fans!) if you don't agree with our thoughts. Looking forward to a great game. Thanks!

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Come on guys!?

I can’t believe I haven’t been flooded with questions so far. Every other site I do this with throws a bunch of questions as well as some fun trash talking our way. It gives your fans a decent perspective of where the opposition is coming from and what they think about your team. So come on, put it out there!

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 9:34 AM EST reply actions

Sorry man. I didn’t even notice that you snuck in there until I saw that there was a fan post with a new comment for me to read. Also, you’ve caught us on a tough week, so forgive out lack of response thus far.

Considering that our team may be poorly managed right now on playcalling, our quarter back can’t complete a pass in the first quarter, and our running game is non-existant due to the fact that westbrook is still hurt and gets the ball handed to him about 10 times a game; is there anything on the offensive side of the ball that worries you at all?

Defensively we’ve actually shown a good ability to pressure opposing QBs from all levels of our formation. People draw comparisons of our pressure packages to the Giants’ packages (due to the coaching relation). Do you fear having a repeat of the Giants game (at least from our defense)?

World F*ckin' Champions, indeed...

by foos05 on Nov 20, 2008 9:46 AM EST reply actions

McNabb can still throw the ball

and anytime you have a guy willing to air it out 35-40 times per game, there is always the chance of the big play, which worries me. The Ravens secondary tries to cheat to make the big play as well, which sometimes gets them burned. We’re not worried about your running game, as the Giants was a rare occurance and take away their three huge runs and they were mediocre the rest of the game. This game is on our turf, where we are as tough as anyone in the NFL at home.

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 12:37 PM EST up reply actions

That was sort of my question, does anyone worry about our running game even though we still do have Westbrook back there. Because honestly if I’m on another team I wouldn’t

"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"

by Whodie126 on Nov 20, 2008 3:21 PM EST up reply actions

Does Jim Harbaugh have any power as head coach?

Bleeding Green Nation - Philadelphia Eagles Blog

by JasonB on Nov 20, 2008 10:56 AM EST reply actions

Harbaugh surrounded himself

with a couple of great coordinators in Cam Cameron and retaining Rex Ryan as d-coordinator, which was a class move. Those guys make all the offensive and defensive calls during the game. He is more of an overseer than a play caller. That is good, except when he has to make a decision, such as a Challenge. I’m not too impressed so far, but the players all seem to respect and like him.

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 12:38 PM EST up reply actions

Do you think he had a choice in retaining Ryan?

Bleeding Green Nation - Philadelphia Eagles Blog

by JasonB on Nov 20, 2008 11:14 PM EST up reply actions

isn't it John? Jim is his younger brother right?

"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"

by Whodie126 on Nov 20, 2008 3:25 PM EST up reply actions

John is the Ravens coach

His younger brother, John, used to be a quarterback on the Ravens and is now head coach at Stanford. Ironically, Jim is rumored to be a candidate to be the head coach of the Raiders. That would make Harbaugh’s the head coaches and Ryan’s the defensive coordinators of two teams. Rex Ryan is d-coordinator of the Ravens while his brother is d-coordinator of the Raiders (both are Buddy’s sons). Small world.

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 7:10 PM EST up reply actions

Will Mason

do us a favor and let another ball bounce off his head for a pick six like he did in the Giants game?

Seriously, how do you think Flacco will do against our very strong secondary?

by MJW on Nov 20, 2008 11:04 AM EST reply actions

The only reason Mason didn't catch that throw

was that he has a real sore left shoulder and couldn’t raise his left arm high enough to catch that ball, which might have made a huge difference in the game. Not saying we would have won, but we were down 20-10 at the time and had the ball on our own 48 yard line driving down the field. Mason is one of the best possession receivers in the game, usually catches anything close to him and rarely drops a ball. He will get his catches and yards and we will try to lull your secondary to sleep with a strong run game. Don’t underestimate Joe Flacco. Yes, he is a rookie, but does not play like one. He has a cannon and has protected the ball pretty good up until the Giants game. At home, other than the Tennessee game, he has been excellent. I see no reason why he won’t be successful Sunday. !3 all tie with Cincy!? Come on!

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 12:43 PM EST up reply actions

That 13- 13 tie

was just to lull the Ravens into a false sense of security.

I don’t know, it looked to me like Mason got his hands up and the ball just went through them. Good to know he’ s playing hurt, maybe we can exploit that.

We know about Flacco here because he’s from U.Del. just down 95. Looks like the Ravens gambled and won with him, but I think he’ll have trouble handling the Eagles pressure. You’ll find running against us is tough. Yeah we got gashed by the Giants, but so did you. Other than that we’re very close to the Ravens in terms of run defense.

by MJW on Nov 20, 2008 1:06 PM EST up reply actions

Mason has a dislocated left shoulder

He hurt it in the Houston game and tried to make a go of it in New York. He still is in pain but should be a go for the Eagles, as we need him.

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 7:11 PM EST up reply actions

Are you or the rest of your fan base worried about the Eagles. I feel like at the beginning of the year many teams were and now I think people look at us like … well like we look at San Fran … sorry I’m still bitter it’s been a tough 2 weeks for me.

"I need to do a better job of putting players in the right position to perennially come up short of expectations"

by Whodie126 on Nov 20, 2008 3:27 PM EST reply actions

Hang in there

Philly can compete with anyone. Their worst enemy is themselves. They can score almost at will and have a real tough defense. They games they’ve won they’ve played error free ball, the ones they lost they made too many mistakes. It’s just that the mistakes are all being made by McNabb, so he is the logical scapegoat. Us Baltimore fans are hoping and expecting that our confusing defense will return, shut down Westbrook’s ability to run and force McNabb into turnovers to help us win. That’s been our recipe for success all season and sorry, we don’t see the Eagles as anything close to the Giants, especially at our house.

Rexx

by Rexx on Nov 20, 2008 7:14 PM EST up reply actions

i’m just not worried about andy reed..i feel he’ll go conservative in crucial moments..if he lets Mcnabb move around on 3rd downs you’ll be better off..you aren’t a losing team so we may have trouble.

by raven on Nov 21, 2008 12:36 AM EST reply actions