GREEN BAY 19 - BALTIMORE 17 (3-3)
Posted by Major Offense on Monday, October 14, 2013 Under: Major Offense
GREEN BAY 19 - BALTIMORE 17 (3-3) : The score does not reflect how the game was played. Aaron Rodgers was able to move his team and escape the rush, chewing up the clock when it was needed and getting away from the pressure when it was applied. The Ravens were able to stay close but failed to play like a good team. For a Home Game, this was not a strong performance.
1. The Offense continues to struggle. The running game is a Total Failure; starting with the O-Line. There are no holes and Rice is not the same runner. If a line cannot push forward for one yard, then there is something fundamentally wrong. Gino is a liability, both as a blocker and as a Line-caller. How many times were there obvious holes for Defenders to clobber Flacco or grab the runner in the backfield because somebody missed an assignment? Add to that the bad throws from Flacco on open receivers and there is no positive point to draw from the Offensive performance. A good team does not show up for parts of a Quarter to try to win. The game is sixty minutes.
2. The Defense put up a great performance in the first half and made up for the sluggish offense on the field. In the second half, they were unable to stop the Packers. There is still miscommunication in the secondary, as was obvious from the only TD. Webb is not as bad as it looked so somebody probably missed coverage over the top. It looks likes somebody bit on something up front and left Webb out to dry. Although they held the Packers to FG's otherwise, one big play shifted the momentum and made the game harder to win. If this team gets to the playoffs, this type of coverage will be toasted by good a QB.
3. The whole series within the Five-Yard Line was terrible, but the call to go for it at 4th and one was not the problem. At that time, the Ravens are down 3-0 and can shift the game if they score a TD. If not, the Packers are pinned against their End Zone. They had pushed forward with the run on the first three downs, but I do not agree that a run was needed on the fourth down. A roll-out, a quick pass, or something a little more surprising would have been a better call. Notwithstanding that position, it is sad that the Line cannot push for a yard. And although they lost by two points, this did not cost them. The Packers could have scored at the end regardless since they moved the ball and were within FG range.
4. On your 34 with 12 seconds left in the half, drop back to throw deep, get stripped so the Defense can pick up the ball and advance enough to let the Packers get a FG and go up 6-0. With the Line playing as poorly as it did, can you expect enough protection to get a Hail Mary? Still, it was obviously meant to try to get a score before the half. With how the offense played up to that point, it was a questionable call to try to pull it out of their hat with a daring play. Down by 6 points in the NFL is not a killer though.
5. Doss had some good catches, but he had some questionable moments in the return game. Fielding the ball inside the 10 on a punt is not a good move, even though he picked up a big return. Calling a Fair Catch when you have Ample Space and letting the ball hit the ground and roll when you can field it and get good field position are two bad moves.
6. Dallas Clark's TD catch was a great one-handed display. Jacoby also looked good on his TD.
7. The Offense was so bad that it gets two mentions. The call to throw the ball to Leach on what looked like a wheel-route is a big question mark. I love the guy but he is not a receiver. And how many times can the O-Line make enough penalties to have the Offense going backwards?
This team has the next three games to try to take control of the division. They are one game behind the Bengals, and fact the Steelers, Browns and then Cincinnati, with a Bye, after the first game. The goal for the year is to get to the dance and one way to do it is to take the Division. The chance to make it happen is now in front of them. They need the Bye to get their heads on straight, but they need to go to Pittsburgh and grab a win first.
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