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Ravens-Broncos: The Good

There were some good things in the Ravens' loss on Thursday, we look at them here.

By Victor Hensley
WR Marlon Brown catching a pass against the Denver Broncos in a season opener.
WR Marlon Brown catching a pass against the Denver Broncos in a season opener.
Doug Pensinger

The Ravens were routed by the Broncos on Thursday night, 49-27, but that doesn't mean that everyone played a bad game. Like always, I'll do the installation of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Here is the good from Thursday night. There isn't a lot.

The Good:

  • Marlon Brown: Marlon Brown came in for Jacoby Jones after he was injured by teammate Brynden Trawick on a punt return. This was Brown's shot at showing everyone why he made the roster. In the preseason, Brown played well, just as he did on Thursday. Marlon Brown ended with four receptions for 65 yards and a touchdown, his first of his career. Here were a few reactions from people after Brown's first career NFL touchdown:

Overall, Marlon Brown was one of the only upsides for the Ravens, and I'm not the only one who thinks so.

  • Torrey Smith: Torrey Smith didn't perform as well as many people may have liked, but he still provided a nice passing game for the Ravens. He ended the game with four receptions for 92 yards. Smith lit Champ Bailey up last year in the playoffs, but Bailey wasn't around for him to do that to in this one. He was covered most of the game, and the Broncos' secondary knew that he was the one guy they didn't want the ball to go to. They did a great job at making sure he wasn't open very often, but when he was, he would catch the ball and get a few extra yards. There is no reason to put him on the "bad" list, which is why he's here. He looked like he could still be a very talented number-one receiver for the Baltimore Ravens.
  • Vonta Leach: Leach scored the first touchdown of the NFL season on a two-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco which put the Ravens up 7-0. Leach also had two more receptions, adding up to twelve yards. Leach's main help came in the blocking department, where he usually specializes. The offensive line wasn't the greatest, but the blocking by Leach was normally fantastic. On one play, Leach made a significant block, allowing a big hole to open up for Bernard Pierce, leading to a fourteen-yard gain.
  • Chris Canty: Chris Canty had to be one of the only defensive players that played a decent game on Thursday. Even though Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil each had a sack, they were practically shut down by the offensive linemen almost all day. Canty, on the other hand, wasn't shut down as often. He had two tackles and one sack, an "okay" performance. The entire defense needs to start stepping up, especially the cornerbacks and safeties.
That is the end of the "good" list. I know a few others may deserve to be on this list, so tell me who else you think belongs. No player in the secondary was on this list because of the seven touchdown passes by Peyton Manning. Josh Bynes, the leading tackler, is the only other defensive player I could possibly put on this list. We'll see what you guys have to say.

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