It's hard to grade the Ravens given how many starters didn't play or saw action on just a couple of series, but here is the final report card of the regular season.
Quarterbacks: Joe Flacco played just two series and was unable to lead any drives that lead to points. He was replaced by Tyrod Taylor, who demonstrated his athletic ability by escaping pressure and breaking off a few nice runs. His passing ability remains a big question, but he did make some quality throws. Grade: C+
Running backs: Bernard Pierce and Anthony Allen ran hard in place of Ray Rice, who saw very little action. The Ravens did not get their running backs involved in the passing game, and the few times they tried, the results weren't pretty. Vonta Leach was injured early in the game and did not return, forcing the Ravens to either play without a fullback or use third-string tight end Billy Bajema in that role. Grade: C+
Wide receivers: Anquan Boldin did not play at all and Torrey Smith and Dennis Pitta left the field before the end of the first quarter. Ed Dickson bobbled a couple of passes but managed to avoid any drops, and David Reed actually showed something in the second half. Jacoby Jones also played well. Grade: C
Offensive line: It was a mess on the offensive line as the Ravens shuffled players in and out and had some shift position throughout the game. It really got ugly in the second half as the Bengals started to get a lot of pressure on the quarterback. This group also still commits too many penalties. Grade: D
Defensive line: It was a solid effort by this group, which was without both Haloti Ngata and Terrrell Suggs. They shut down the Bengals running attack and actually got a good amount of pressure on the quarterback. Even Terrence Cody turned in a solid performance, which is one of the few times we have been able to say that. Grade: B+
Linebackers: Ray Lewis was absent again, but Dannell Ellerbe continues to play at a very high level. The Ravens are also getting solid contributions from Josh Bynes and Brandon Ayanbadejo. Grade: B+
Secondary: With Ed Reed and Cary Williams both sitting for most of the day, this group did a good job in pass coverage. Chykie Brown got beat deep again but played well overall. Jimmy Smith had a nice pass breakup on a deep pass but continues to have problems locating the ball. You wonder if it will ever click for him. Grade: B
Special teams: Jacoby Jones wasn't much of a factor in the return game and Sam Koch did not have a good day. Justin Tucker missed a field goal but bounced back to make a 49-yarder. The coverage units were solid, but the Ravens were unable to recover a critical onside kick at the end of the game. Grade: C-
Coaching: John Harbaugh did the smart thing by resting so many of his key players. Timeout management wasn't great, but there was bound to be confusion with so many inexperienced players seeing significant playing time. The Ravens were able to get Taylor some needed experience that could prove beneficial next year should something happen to Flacco. Grade: B
Comments