Bills - Ravens

Lori · December 28, 2006

BUFFALO BILLS (7-8) at BALTIMORE RAVENS (12-3)

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2006 – 4:15 PM ET

***NOTE TIME CHANGE***

M&T BANK STADIUM, BALTIMORE, MARYLAND

CBS: Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon

DIRECTV NFL Sunday Ticket: Channel 704 (no HD)

RADIO: Buffalo Bills Radio Network

PLAY-BY-PLAY: John Murphy

COLOR ANALYST: Mark Kelso

SIDELINE REPORTER: Paul Peck

Baltimore Ravens Radio Network

PLAY-BY-PLAY: Gerry Sandusky

COLOR ANALYSTS: Stan White (offense), Rob Burnett (defense)

Sirius Sunday Drive: Channel 143 (Buffalo feed) / Channel 130 (Baltimore feed)

REGULAR-SEASON SERIES RECORD: 1-1, with both games taking place in Baltimore.

LAST MEETING: October 24, 2004 – Ravens 20, Bills 6

The defense played a decent game, holding Kyle Boller and the Baltimore offense to 13 points and 160 net yards, but the Ravens D stuffed the Bills’ rushing attack and pressured Drew Bledsoe into one of the worst games of his career. Four picks (including a gift-wrapped touchdown for Deion ‘PrimeTime’ Sanders), four sacks, a fumble, and countless other hits added up to a 32.3 passer rating for Bledsoe and a no-touchdown day for the Buffalo offense.

Aaron Schobel got things off to a promising start, sacking Boller on the second play from scrimmage and forcing a fumble recovered by Jeff Posey at the Baltimore 22. A completion to Mark Campbell gave the Bills first-and-goal at the six, but a false start by Mike Williams and a third-down sack brought on Rian Lindell for a 24-yard field goal. The Ravens tied the score on their next drive, aided by a roughing-the-passer penalty on London Fletcher that negated a third-down incompletion.

Disaster struck on Buffalo’s next possession; on third-and-nine from the Baltimore 45, a poorly-executed swing pass intended for Willis McGahee was tipped into the waiting arms of Sanders, who showboated his way into the endzone for a 10-3 Ravens lead late in the first quarter. The hometown team dominated the second quarter; while the defense was keeping the Bills penned up short of midfield, B.J. Sams’ five-yard touchdown run capped off an 83-yard drive that extended the lead to 17-3 at halftime.

A long completion to Eric Moulds set up another first-and-goal early in the second half, but once again, the Bills had to settle for a Lindell field goal. The Ravens defense took over from that point: each of Buffalo’s next four drives ended in a Bledsoe giveaway, including a Chad Williams interception that looked like a sure 99-yard touchdown return before Moulds managed to catch him at the Buffalo 6-yard line. The defense kept the Ravens out of the endzone, but Matt Stover tacked on the short FG for the final margin of victory. Two more possessions, two more turnovers, and the Bills trudged out of M&T Bank Stadium with a 1-5 record.

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RAVENS OVERVIEW (2006 RANKINGS)

OFFENSE (#17 total yardage, #25 rushing, #11 passing, #10 scoring):

After suffering through yet another year of mediocre play at quarterback, Ozzie Newsome and Brian Billick jumped at the chance to trade for a former league co-MVP. Steve McNair, an instant upgrade over the 2005 tandem of Kyle Boller and Anthony Wright, is 25 passing yards away from joining Hall of Famers Fran Tarkenton and Steve Young as the only quarterbacks in league history with 30,000 passing yards and 3,500 rushing yards. He got off to a slow start with Jim Fassel calling the offense, but has engineered an impressive turnaround since head coach Brian Billick fired Fassel and took over play-calling duties following the team’s bye week:

6 games under Fassel: 95-169, 915 yards, 5 TDs, 7 INTs, 64.1 passer rating
9 games under Billick: 177-264, 1,919 yards, 11 TDs, 4 INTs, 95.8 passer rating

When McNair and Derrick Mason were reunited most observers probably assumed he’d be targeting his longtime favorite receiver early and often, but he’s been doing a good job of spreading the ball around. Todd Heap, Mark Clayton, and Mason all have 60+ catches this season; Heap leads the team in both catches and receiving touchdowns, while Clayton is within reach of his first 1,000-yard season. The #3 WR, Demetrius Williams, is averaging over 19 yards per catch. Daniel Wilcox, Heap’s backup, has three touchdown catches of his own.

Jamal Lewis will never have another 2,000-yard season, but he remains the Ravens’ workhorse: he’s just six touches short of 300 carries for the fourth time in six years, while McNair has more rushing attempts than either backup RB. Mike Anderson (FA – Broncos) gets a few carries here and there; Musa Smith is on I.R. Watch out for FB Ovie Mughelli sneaking out of the backfield – he has sixteen catches, including two touchdowns.

The Ravens have given up a mere 17 sacks in 15 games, trailing only Indy (15) for the league lead. Pro Bowl left tackle Jonathan Ogden could miss his second game in a row, though; if his hyperextended toe continues to keep him out of the lineup, Syracuse alumnus Adam Terry, Baltimore’s 2005 second-round pick, will get another start. Jason Brown took over at left guard five games into the season, after Edwin Mulitalo was lost with a triceps injury. Center Mike Flynn -- originally an undrafted free agent -- has missed only eight games since becoming a full-time starter in 2000, at the beginning of the Ravens’ Super Bowl run. Keydrick Vincent is back at RG after missing three games earlier in the year. Right tackle Tony Pashos took over for an injured Orlando Brown midway through last season and has kept the job ever since.

DEFENSE (#1 total yardage, #2 rushing, #6 passing, #1 scoring):

They might not be on track to match the record-setting performance of their Super Bowl squad, but the 2006 Ravens are still among the nastiest defenses in the league. After six seasons as the defensive line coach, Rex Ryan – yes, he’s one of Buddy’s sons – took over as coordinator last year; despite long-term injuries to stalwarts Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, Baltimore finished in the top five yet again. This season, other than two games Lewis sat out back in November, the starters have managed to stay in the lineup. (Good news for Baltimore, not so much for opposing offenses.)

In fifteen games they’ve allowed just five rushing TDs; accumulated an impressive +15 turnover differential; and obliterated the previous franchise record with 57 sacks, led by LDT Trevor Pryce (12), OLB Adalius Thomas (11), ILB Bart Scott (9.5), and OLB Terrell Suggs (8.5).

According to their weekly press release, Baltimore switched to a 3-4 base defense several games ago. Realistically, though, the only major change has Adalius Thomas and Terrell Suggs swapping sides, with Suggs now rushing from the left side behind Pryce. Toss in various disguises and blitz packages, and even that's not a certainty...

Underrated NT Kelly Gregg holds the middle; right tackle Haloti Ngata, most Bills fans’ preferred choice for the pick used on Donte Whitner, has started every game. Thomas and Suggs will be packing their bags for Hawaii once Baltimore’s playoff run ends, and one could argue that both Lewis and Scott are just as deserving. As usual, Lewis leads the team in tackles.

The ball-hawking secondary has combined to snag 20 of a franchise-record 26 interceptions, returning four for TDs. CB Chris McAlister and SS Ed Reed are also on their way to another Pro Bowl, the third selection for each. (Nate Clements replaced an injured McAlister in the 2004 game.) Steady veteran Samari Rolle lines up at the other corner. Sixth-round pick Dawan Landry is the other safety -- his five interceptions lead all rookie defenders in that category, as well as tying him with McAlister and Reed for the team lead.

SPECIAL TEAMS:

Matt Stover, the last remaining Browns alumnus on the team, is having a great season; he’s 27-29 on field goal attempts, including seven of eight kicks outside 40 yards. Rookie punter Sam Koch isn’t among the league leaders in yardage, but has managed to place 27 of 82 kicks inside the 20, with just three touchbacks.

B.J. Sams was lost for the season with an ankle injury; reserve running back Cory Ross is handling return duties. The cover teams are above average, and have yet to allow a return TD this year.

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OUTLOOK:

The Ravens are on a roll heading into the playoffs, with wins in eight of their last nine games. Beating Buffalo would not only secure a first-round bye, but give them the best regular-season record in the franchise’s short history, so don’t expect to see many starters coming out of the game early.

Stunning stat, courtesy of Ira Miller’s column at AOL Sports:

”In the last five games, the Ravens have sacked opposing quarterbacks 27 times while allowing just a single sack themselves.”

Look out, J.P.

For years, the Baltimore defense has been carrying an underperforming offense. The offseason addition of McNair didn’t instantly turn them into the 1999 Rams, but even an average offense makes this one of the best teams in the league -- and an intimidating matchup for the young Bills. While I’d love to see Buffalo finish at .500, I don’t expect it to happen.

Go Bills, anyway… and a happy and healthy 2007 to everyone on the Wall!

Links:

NFL.com: injury report / Ravens depth chart / Ravens team stats / Bills depth chart / Bills team stats

Official team websites: BuffaloBills.com / BaltimoreRavens.com