Tuesday Links
October 27th, 2009 | by Kevin Hanson |With ten regular-season games remaining in the season, the Ravens face only three teams (Cleveland, Detroit and Oakland) with losing records. The first six games (Denver, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh and Green Bay) of their post-bye schedule will be much tougher than their last four games (Detroit, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Oakland) of the season. Not only is the combined record of their next six opponents 27-12, but four of those teams rank in the top 12 in the league in passing.
Of course, you can only play one opponent at a time. “Playoff calculations? No, that’s taboo,” said head coach John Harbaugh, per Mike Duffy of BaltimoreRavens.com. “You know how you make the playoffs? You win games. And that’s what we need to do.”
Coach John Harbaugh said today that “everybody practiced to some extent, one way or another. They’re all working to get ready for the game, and we’ll see how it goes.”
However, Harbaugh deflected questions about the potential for Michael Oher remaining at left tackle and Jared Gaither playing right tackle. “I wouldn’t tell you if I thought that was possible, but all things are possible,” he said. “We’re going to play our guys in the position that we think gives us the best advantage against guys like [Elvis Dumervil] and the rest of the Broncos. It’s a fast and aggressive defense, and they present a lot of challenges.” Dumervil leads the NFL in sacks (10) through week 7 games.
In either case, Gaither says that he is 100 percent.
Ravens cornerback Dominique Foxworth says the toughest quarterback he’s faced is Peyton Manning. “… He’s as good as it gets. Obviously, [Tom] Brady [of the New England Patriots] is excellent also, but as far as pure passing, you can’t beat Peyton.”
San Francisco placed right tackle Tony Pashos, who spent his first four NFL seasons with Baltimore, on Injured Reserve (IR).
In ESPN’s week 8 Power Rankings, the Ravens rank 14th, which is three spots lower than week 7. The Bengals and Steelers rank 6th and 7th, respectively, while the Browns rank 30th.
Tags: Dominique Foxworth, Elvis Dumervil, ESPN Power Rankings, Jared Gaither, Michael Oher, Peyton Manning, Tony Pashos
