Game 8: Raiders @ Ravens

by Rexx on Jul 8, 2008 9:56 AM EDT

The Silver and Black Raider Nation invade Baltimore for the clash of what could be two former 2007 draft picks at quarterback. Of course, we are talking about both ends of the draft spectrum, with Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell as the first pick in the draft and Ravens Troy Smith in the 5th round. However, timing is everything and Smith may just be in the right place at the right time. The retirement of Steve McNair and the ineffectiveness of Kyle Boller may pave the way for Smith to have an extended tryout in 2008. This may ultimately be a temporary assignment, as the Ravens didn't spend a first round pick on Joe Flacco to sit on the bench for too long. He could certainly end up carrying the clipboard for at least this year, and who knows how long Smith can continue to succeed enough to hold off the inevitable. The Cleveland Browns are looking at the same scenerio with Derek Anderson starting and Brady Quinn waiting in the wings.

JaMarcus Russell sat most of 2007 while the Raiders employed a QB-by-committee approach last season. Finally, Russell received his opportunity late in the season and is looking to be named the starter by default this season. There is no reason to hold off any longer, as this Oakland team is young all over the roster and should earn their wings together as they grow and mature. At some point, if things pan out, they should return to excellence sooner rather than later. They have a young, strong QB, and now have a great rookie RB in Arkansas' Darren McFadden to lead them into the future. Oakland's defense was their stong point, with their pass defense rated one of the NFL's best. Conversely, their rush defense was at the bottom of the ratings, which explains the fact that everyone ran wild over them, while passing only when they had to. The only stat that really matters to a defense is total points allowed, and that is partially why Oakland finished in the AFC West basement in 2007 with a record of 4-12, having allowed almost 400 points.

Unfortunately, the Ravens defense only gave up two touchdowns less than the Raiders in 2007. Luckily, the Ravens will be healthier on defense, while the Raiders have to cope with the retirement of DT Warren Sapp. Therefore, I fully expect the Ravens to be better on defense, while the Raiders will not. Both offenses should improve, but I'd rather be facing the Raiders defense than the Ravens if I'm a second year QB. The combination of the home field advantage, a more consistent offense and a healthy defense should make this one of the easier games for the Ravens in 2008. For once, the Ravens should be able to win this game going away, with the outcome settled in time for the fans to confidently head for the exits long before the final whistle.

Ravens: 30 Raiders: 17

Season Record: 5-3

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Agreed

The Raiders wont be able to stop the run. I also believe this will be a break out game for Ray Rice. Baltimore will switch to a style of play the jags use. Their going to use the run to set up the pass but, the run is going to be so affective, tbey wont need to throw. Expect troy smith to throw about 10-15 passes.

FEAR THE NEVERMORE DEFENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!

by Benji5203 on Jul 8, 2008 10:19 PM EDT 0 recs

Good prediction man

ya i agree with bengi the pass will not be there at all in my opinion(thanks to the aquisition of hall), but the run will be there all day. maybe fabian might get a little revenge on his old team cause the pass wont be there for them too i would pick or db’s vs their reicieving corp all day. i dont think we will score that much, because there will be no passing treat for the ravens. OUR RECIEVING CORP VS THE RAIDERS DB’S. I’m sorry but ill take the raiders db all day. i expect the score to be somewhere in the 24-10 or 20-3 range. WE GET THE WIN NONETHELESS SO GREAT PREDICTION MAN

by RAVEN'SD#1 on Jul 8, 2008 11:39 PM EDT 0 recs

For a change...

...it would be nice to see the Ravens take a big lead early in the game,....and not let the opponent come back to make it gut wrenching at the end. Remember last year’s home games against the Jets and Cardinals when we gave up late TD’s to put them in position to win the game until we stopped them late in the 4th quarter. This shouldn’t happen this season, as I fully expect our defense to be much more opportunistic. Thanks guys!

Rexx

by Rexx on Jul 9, 2008 8:32 AM EDT 0 recs

HAHA

You all know that raiders are going to have the best offensive rushing lines in the league this year!!!!! Dmac, Fargas, and Bush are going to run all over your no name defence held together by Ray Lewis! Wait that was when the ravens were good. I not saying the Raiders are awesome not by any means, but just look at the caliber of players we have this year, you think your going to run all over us, what about our running backs that are said by everyone that they are going to rock!!! (espn, Si.com) Your not going to run all over us, even if the d-line isn’t great our LBs are going to stop you in your tracks! by the way 2nd or 3rd best LBs in the league and our back field we don’t even need to talk about that!!! You all said it. oh yeah your running back last year got 1,207 yard in all his games our best one got 1,000 in seven, Justin fargas! when you look at eveything i see the score 30-14 RAIDERS!!!!!!! Watch and learn! LOOK AT THE FACTS!!! And Ray Rice, Dmac is going to make him look like a fool!!! Are you going to be able to stop our new pass game aswell,YOu guys have a weak secondary as well. Thats straight from espn and sports illistrated! GOOD LUCK!! So your going to run the whole game!!! I can not wait till this game! Raiders are the biggest team said to have a breakout year this year! Thomas Howard is going to eat Ray Rice for dinner! I even bet out tight end Miller will get aleast 65-100 yards of passing against your D-fence, Wasn’t miller the number 2 or 3 tight end last year, And he was a rookie!!!!!! I just think we have a ton more potential! We will just have to see!!!! I do miss watching ray lewis though!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 1:22 PM EDT 0 recs

HAHA

And Fabian Washington sucks Why do you think we dumbed him for Gabril Wilson!!!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 1:23 PM EDT 0 recs

OK?

First of all, Our Defense is musch better then your Defense. The radiers have a great secondary but a lousy front 7. Thomas Howard wont be able to get to the ball carrier because our O-Line are going stright through ur D-line into ur LB. 2nd, Are rush defense was ranked 2nd even with out most of are starts playing and you tink ur going to run the ball on us with ur o-line. U guys drafted one of the biggest busted in the decade with Robert Gallery. JaMarcus Russell Will be running for his life the entire game. Run DMC is going to get shut DOWN and Justin Fargas is going no ware. Another thing, Fabian washington doesnt suck. He had a down year. He had to worry about playing the run more then the pass. Thats not going to happen in baltimore. 1 more thing. Yall 2ndary is that much better then ours. Ok, u got Hall and that one guy Astowea somting. We got probly the 2nd best CB next to Champ in C-Mac and also, The best safty in the game today. So, The Ravens are going to win,At home by the way, End of story.

FEAR THE NEVERMORE DEFENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!

by Benji5203 on Jul 9, 2008 2:24 PM EDT up 0 recs

ok?

Thats why derrick burgess is the best DE in the league!!! Jamarus might be runnging if we were going to pass the ball!!!!!! But that won’t happen much! Oh yeah and both our DT are 6’7 320 but wait they have both lost twenty pounds and gained the speed and agility they had in college!!!!! Boller is going to rocked!!!!! To bad your rush defence was number 9!!! according to nfl.com si.com and espn! learn your facts! And your not even on the rushing top 10 for offence! We are!!!!! Number 6!!!!! To bhad you got smoked by the bowns last year and we beat them. And we sucked last year!!! YOu got 24 pointed by the colts and we lost to them by 10! my bad 7!!! lol We had tons of better players this years so look at the facts and don’t make things up! It will be a good game through we will have to agree on that!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 3:01 PM EDT up 0 recs

Its funny we had more sacks and interceptions than you did and we were third worst team!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 3:15 PM EDT up 0 recs

yeah...

Our d was still the 6th best without all of our players being healthy (c-mac, rolle, lewis, pryce, johnson). What happens when everyone is healthy like say the 2006 season? Oh yeah our d was number 1. The only reason our defense was not ranked higher last year was because c-mac and rolle were hurt for nearly the entire season.That was the only reason why teams could pass on us so easily. I mean seriously our depth was so terrible that we were siging random people to start (gaston). Just to set the record straight our rush d was number 2, so get your facts right….or you could look at this http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?archive=false&conference=null&role=OPP&offensiveStatisticCategory=null&defensiveStatisticCategory=RUSHING&season=2007&seasonType=REG&tabSeq=2&qualified=true&Submit=Find

by inferno5223 on Jul 9, 2008 3:25 PM EDT 0 recs

So you D-fence is good! I know that! But really what are you going to offer on offence that we can’t!!!We have awesome wide receivers and 3 of the best to be RB! And i QB that can launch a dead on 85 yard pass, and one of the best TE. And Gallary is back at his college position were we was the best in the country! we just got a new left tack that is top in rush and pass offence!!! The sides that mattered in the first place!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 3:47 PM EDT 0 recs

oh yeah on nfl.com in 2006 you were number 2 for rush defenceand 16 pass! We were number 1 for pass defence!!! and not happily saying 25th in the rush haha!!! In your had the number 1 D-fence, weird we were number 3! so not much to say there!!!!!!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 9, 2008 4:07 PM EDT 0 recs

In 2006, The ravens destoryed the radiers. Yall only lost by 7 to the colts and beat the browns, congrats, but yall still finished with a record that earned yall the # 4 pick. Rusell has the strongest arm in the nfl, but he couldnt hit a WR if they were 2ft in front of him. Ur o-line is but, Ur d-line is bad except for burgess who is not the best DE in the league(Jared Allen) and they over pay guys who are ethier washed up our never got started.
they signed a DT to a 50-60 million doller deal who has the same amount of sacks as he had knee surgery. Walker is a decent wide out but not good enough to sign a 7-year 10 mill per season deal. The radiers have a chane to become good in about 4-5 yrs but they are not better then the ravens. Baltimore are in a rebuilding year and still have a chance to make the post season.

FEAR THE NEVERMORE DEFENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!

by Benji5203 on Jul 9, 2008 7:20 PM EDT up 0 recs

Another thing, I wouldnt be surprised if Troy smith, a 5th round draft pick palys better and has a better career then Russell. Troy has all the skill and played better then russell in the two games they both started. No INTS with a couple of TD passes. ill take that any day over 3,4,5 picks.

FEAR THE NEVERMORE DEFENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!

by Benji5203 on Jul 9, 2008 7:24 PM EDT up 0 recs

ok but we went 13-3 that year…and you guys are looking at qb’s based on how far they can throw? geez lets get boller and russell together and see who can throw farther! as kyle has taught us all, how far you can throw means absolutely nothing.

by inferno5223 on Jul 9, 2008 6:47 PM EDT 0 recs

correction* not guys, there is only one raiders fan posting, i didn’t bother to look.

by inferno5223 on Jul 9, 2008 6:49 PM EDT 0 recs

Remember...

...the Raiders played their best players all year, including the recently retired Warren Sapp. Opponents kept an eye on him which helped the other players get their tackles and sacks. Without him, the focus changes to Derrick Burgess, who will get double-teamed this year. He’ll still get his sacks. As far as the Raiders running game, sure Fargas got his 1000 yards in seven games. However, there isn’t much in the way of RB’s who have been successful against the Ravens, so what makes anyone think (other than blind loyalty) that he, or anyone will run on us. Fargas is overrated and just keeping the ball warm for DMC, who will see how much faster the pro game is when he feels the speed of Ray, Bart, Ed and C-Mac. Oh by the way, most of our defensive secondary was hurt last year and our pass rush was decimated by injuries, which anyone with football knowledge knows that no matter how good your secondary is, without a decent pass rush your secondary is toast. It’s pretty clear that if the Ravens return healthy (which they are now), their defense will be a lot closer to the 2006 #1 rated “D” than last year’s injury-prone team. Great to see you support your team, but there’s no way they’re winning on the road in Baltimore on week 8!

Rexx

by Rexx on Jul 10, 2008 8:19 AM EDT 0 recs

Not even on the Raiders

By game 8, the Ravens may have scored a combined 30 points. I don’t know why SI sent me to this site, but this is crap.

by RaleighDawg on Jul 10, 2008 4:53 PM EDT 0 recs

Ya right

Even down in Socal this BS script wouldn’t work… First off, Sapp was not known for his run D nearly as much as his ability to get to the QB and reak havoc. He was also immune to screens, his ability to crush a screen and blow it up was a thing of beauty. Leader/Soldier Sapp will be missed. However, teh run D will be better now without him, with 2 big D lineman, and the major factor will be Wilson returning home to blow stuff up! Our O is three times better than the ravens. Our number three WR reciever might be better than your number one. Then our running game is way better than yours, and your strength on O at TE will be negated by the emergence of our TE Miller.

There is no way the Ravens win going away even if they are at home. If the fans leave early it will be becuase the Raiders blew them out!!

Sorry the truth hurts, your D is too old and you have never had a credible offense in the history of your franchise. The 2000 defense was a thing of legend, but that was a lifetime ago!

by PIMPY a.k.a focheezay on Jul 11, 2008 5:55 AM EDT 0 recs

Oh yeah

Jonathan Ogden retired… case closed!

by PIMPY a.k.a focheezay on Jul 11, 2008 8:06 AM EDT 0 recs

HISTORY

Raiders have a great history! Not like we have been forever we did got to the superbowl in 2002! And in 2001 you beat us to get to the superbowl! The reason we did go in 2001 is cause you your cheap a$$ lineman took gannon out of the games. And gannon doesn’t suck, he is talked about going to the hall of fame next year! you are just an expansion team anyway from the colts. Now the colts are good! Raiders noted some of the best player history Stabler, bilintikof, tatum, howie long, hall of fame future thats said by everyone! YOU WILL NEVER STOP DMAC OR BUSH OR FARGAS. The first two were runner ups for the hiesman!!!!! Did you guy even watch russel in college, boller can’t throw for crap! I saw Russel bomb a 85 yard pass trought two defenders! Boller had a worse rating than culpeper and he was our team!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you talk about our record , yeah we had the number four pick, BUT YOU HAD THE NUMBER 5!!!!!!! so shut up about your team that was only good in 2000-2001! Yeah brag about beating us in 2006 six we had Kerry Collins, for a QB and the worst coach in history and a super old D. Our D and O. Is new so And like pimpy said YOur D is now oldschool! not to the caliber that our offence is NOW!!!!!!!!! Hope we kick Your A$$$! BE READY FOR THE RAIDER NATION!!!!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 11, 2008 8:27 AM EDT 0 recs

We played all opur best players thats why we only lost evey game by 7 or less. in onlty two games did we get beat by more than that. And yeah ogden is GONE!!! YOu all got you butts wooped last yeah by alot of teams!!!!! And last year for way more than half the year we had culpeper for QB, Washed up, and Josh Mclown, He blows! so yeah! Your offence wasn’t huet last year, So wheres you point excuse, need an offence to win and you don’t have that!!!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 11, 2008 8:33 AM EDT 0 recs

I'll be at the game...

... so meet me here in Baltimore, wear your colors (and shoulder spikes) cheer for your team, and the loser buys the beers. Good luck!

Rexx

by Rexx on Jul 11, 2008 9:35 AM EDT 0 recs

I'll be there too!

Its a deal man! Let’s have a great time and watch the greatest game on Earth!!!!!!!!

by raiderforlife on Jul 11, 2008 1:36 PM EDT up 0 recs

there are no excuses but both sides of our team were devastated by injuries. Our offensive line had no consistency to its starters. If I’m not mistaken we were one of the top teams in the league for having the most different combinations of o line starters. I think I would know better than a raiders fan since I watch every ravens game, and i doubt that you do. Also, you say our o wasn’t hurt last year. Let’s ask the 3 qb’s that we used last year about that…mcnair was a mess because of injuries, and boller got hurt later too. Willis was hurt the last two games, and Clayton was bothered all year by a hamstring injury (i believe), oh and the probowler Heap was out for most of the year. Bottom line there are no excuses but I could type all day about the players that were hurt last year and the effect that it had on our team going from 13 to 5 wins. It doesn’t matter because niether of our teams won the superbowl last year (obviously), so we can just watch the game and root for our team. Yeah I’m too young for beer but if someone wants to buy me a pepsi I’d be good…hahaha

by inferno5223 on Jul 11, 2008 2:19 PM EDT 0 recs