Chiefs vs. Ravens!

[Chiefs Pantalones]

Let's go!!! Sunday at 12pm CT.

[Redcoats58]

Originally Posted by Jayhawkerman2001

anybody else going to the game? I'll be there baby!!!

Hell yeah I'll be there

[Hammock Parties]

Excellent post from a Ravens fan.

We don't have bad receivers. I think Housh and Mason are being overrated by non-Ravens fans, but they're still fairly solid. The issue, of course, is that they're all the same. Not only are they all possession receivers, but really, none of them are even all that close to being a deep threat. I've hardly ever seen our receivers burn anybody this year, and that takes away one of Flacco's best assets, the deep ball. I mean, it literally takes it away for the most part. Sending Boldin on all of those routes may help underneath, but it takes him out of the game.

I think this also could explain why Flacco is putting up such good numbers, but the perception of him and the performance of the offense is down. It may also indirectly explain our poor red zone performance. Flacco has the nice stats, the YPA and the passer rating. That SHOULD make the Ravens offense strong despite struggles in the running game. The problem is how it's getting done, without big plays. If you drive down the field for 80 yards on 10 passes but stall in the red zone, it doesn't do much other than kill the clock and get you a few points. It's basically forced to be a conservative offense without a running game. That severely limits what you can do.

The passing game is good at that kind of thing, getting first downs. But when you have to get several of them just to score a touchdown, your luck is going to run out at some point. It certainly makes sense as a way of explaining the second half struggles. When asked to describe the Ravens' second half offense, you don't think of nightmarish incompetence, you probably just think "bleh" and try to remember what we did. It's just utterly forgettable and once we fail to get one of those first downs, the drive is over. No turnovers, no displays of hapless incompetence, just our offense running in a manner that doesn't support the odds and typically falters.

That's the thing that can happen when you have a bunch of possession receivers who don't excel at getting separation. Reading the thread about regretting the Housh for Clayton swap, I think that point is spot on. Harbaugh (whose drafting and FA philosophy I generally love) and Oz got a little greedy here and didn't think about the big picture. Blind talent accumulation doesn't work if the pieces don't go well together.

So that's pretty much it. The offense needs big plays. Certainly a better running game would help a ton, as Rice rarely busts anything out thanks to the OL (please move Oher to RT, I really don't think LT makes that much more of a difference). But speaking about the passing game, teams just don't respect our big play potential. The Ravens have a growing number of needs in the 2011 draft, but a deep threat would make the top of my list, with the possible exception of LT (which I'd lean towards).

Now, what does this mean for the rest of the offense? How much are they to blame? I absolutely think our run blocking may still be the biggest problem with the offense as a whole. The Ravens had a second year Flacco nursing an injury, terrible receivers, and pass protection that wasn't as great as everyone thinks it was. Yet they ranked close to ten spots higher. Why? Because the run blocking went from one of the best to one of the worst this year with so many players out of position. Our passing game is much more viable when there is good run blocking, because you actually run a real, efficient conservative offense. I think Rice lost a bit of his shiftiness as well, but that's not a huge deal.

Now...Cam and Flacco. I definitely don't think it's Flacco. He's running in an offense that may suit his strengths but doesn't have the type of talent that needs to play to it. Without that deep capability, a big part of Flacco's game is taken away for the most part. He still gets a few big ones out there, but there just isn't enough versatility to work with. I'm also becoming increasingly reluctant to blame Cam. People talk about us not establishing an identity, that's because we can't.

The running game is too weak and the passing game is too one dimensional (based on talent). Now, I don't think he has some secret element that will ruin us if we fire him and a fresh mind with new ideas could be just what we need, but I don't think he has the perfect opportunity to run an explosive offense that we think he does.

[Hammock Parties]

RAVENS AT CHIEFS


Strength vs. strength: Kansas City HB Jamaal Charles vs. Baltimore DE Terrell Suggs and OLB Jarrett Johnson

Charles has played amazing football this year. By the time our grades are done for the week (and the season), he’ll likely ending up with the best rush rating for a tailback we’ve had in our three years. Although he still puts up good numbers rushing down the middle, they have been ridiculously good when running to the sides. However in this game, when he runs to the side, he will be met by ether Terrell Suggs or Jarrett Johnson, who both typically play every snap on opposite sides of the field and are spectacular run defenders. It’s worth noting that in the three games Charles played against our top-graded run defenses (Oakland and San Francisco), Charles carried 36 times for 237 yards and a 6.58 yard-per-carry average.


Mismatch: Baltimore LT Michael Oher vs. Kansas City ROLB Tamba Hali

Oher isn’t a bad left tackle, but he’s no particular standout and suffers in comparison with some of his teammates on the Raven line. He’s been whistled for 14 penalties in his first 15 games, and is average as a pass blocker. He will be lined up against Hali, who has provided 5.8 pressures a game this year heading into Week 17 — just a remarkable number, the most of anyone we’ve seen since we started in 2008. He regressed a little midseason, but in recent weeks went back to playing like an All-Pro. It’s also worth noting that Oher sprained his knee against the Bengals, which could make this even more of a mismatch.

Baltimore is ranked 25th in pass protection according to Football Outsiders.

[BigMeatballDave]

Originally Posted by |Zach|

If we score.

The idea I believe he was trying to convey was that he isn't worried about our ability to play well enough on defense but is worried about our ability on offense.

If we score...we win. Not a single touchdown...but generally.

Exactly.

[kaplin42]

Originally Posted by ClayWhit

The Chiefs lose. I guarantee it.

They'll blow in the playoffs.

I hate to say it, but yeah, if we thought last Sunday sucked, this Sunday is just going to blow.

You know it's a bad sign when there are only 4 games this weekend, and the talking heads on NFLN gloss over our game everytime it is mentioned.

5-10 Minute spread on the Colts vs Jets game
5-10 Minute spread on the New Orleans vs Seattle game
"Chiefs play Ravens"
5-10 Minute spread on the Eagles vs Greenbay game

I really want to see this team win a game in the post season, but if the line can't handle the Raiders sorry ass rush, then there is no way they will handle the Ravens. And to be honest, game planning hasn't been a strong suit. There is a way to beat the Ravens, but I doubt we see many screens or quick slants on Sunday. It will be R2P2 and we will be embarassed on national television.

[TimeForWasp]

it is time to play to win.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by ChiefsNow

it is time to play to win.

The game?

[TimeForWasp]

Originally Posted by ROR

The game?

It was just a Metawhore

[milkman]

Originally Posted by BossChief

I like our chances of keeping this a low scoring game with our defense against their offense but I'm not convinced we can put up 17 on their defense. I think that's the magic number we have to get to for a victory.

I think we can come out and throw on the Baltimore secondary, which would open up things for Charles on the ground.

It all comes down to the line.

As Bwana discussed in the post immediately following yours, if they show up, the Chiefs can move the ball and score.

[Hammock Parties]

You wanna know how awesome the Ravens are?

If the Bengals don't miss a chipshot FG and drop a TD pass that gets caught for an INT, they score 10 more points easy and beat the Ravens. IN Baltimore.

[OnTheWarpath15]

Originally Posted by milkman

I think we can come out and throw on the Baltimore secondary, which would open up things for Charles on the ground.

It all comes down to the line.

As Bwana discussed in the post immediately following yours, if they show up, the Chiefs can move the ball and score.

I agree.

We absolutely can throw on Baltimore.

IF we can block Ngata, Gregg, Suggs and Lewis on the blitz.

That's a HUGE if.

[DBOSHO]

Originally Posted by ClayWhit

You wanna know how awesome the Ravens are?

If the Bengals don't miss a chipshot FG and drop a TD pass that gets caught for an INT, they score 10 more points easy and beat the Ravens. IN Baltimore.

But theyre alot better than us. We're gonna get creamed, right?

[milkman]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

I agree.

We absolutely can throw on Baltimore.

IF we can block Ngata, Gregg, Suggs and Lewis on the blitz.

That's a HUGE if.

It's imperative that Cassel and the receivers (read Bowe) read the blitz pre snap and make adjustments.

[FringeNC]

Originally Posted by kaplin42

I hate to say it, but yeah, if we thought last Sunday sucked, this Sunday is just going to blow.

You know it's a bad sign when there are only 4 games this weekend, and the talking heads on NFLN gloss over our game everytime it is mentioned...

Converting the Vegas ML into probabilities, a ML of Baltimore -145 / Chiefs +125 corresponds to a 42.5% of a Chiefs win. Seems about right to me. A little bit less than a coin flip. Us winning hardly even qualifies as an upset.

**** the "Baltimore as a juggernaut" storyline. It's a joke.

[Molitoth]

I really want to see this team win a game in the post season, but if the line can't handle the Raiders sorry ass rush, then there is no way they will handle the Ravens. And to be honest, game planning hasn't been a strong suit. There is a way to beat the Ravens, but I doubt we see many screens or quick slants on Sunday. It will be R2P2 and we will be embarassed on national television.

^^^THIS

If we see Thomas Jones on first down nearly every posession, I'm going to cry.