A banged up Oakland squad comes at a good time to get the passing game on track

The Ravens offense was stifled against a relentless Denver pass rush, and the passing game was almost non-existent for most of the afternoon as the pass rush and the Broncos top CB tandem shut down the Flacco and his receivers. However, corners Aqib Talib and Chris Harris are not going to be guarding our receivers the rest of the season, nor will Danny Trevathian and Brandon Marshall be guarding our backs and tight ends. And of course, Demarcus Ware and Von Miller will not be bearing down on Flacco again this season.

However, the Ravens offense has several things to repair. The offensive line was porous at tackle, the play calling left much to be desired, and the skill weapons were ineffective.

This leads to the group that needs to step up the most: the offensive skill players. Crockett Gillmore and Steve Smith both had game winning touchdown passes that they dropped or had ripped away, and Kamar Aiken was near invisible. The run game was ineffective too, which led to the worst debut by a Marc Trestman led offense, and possibly the worst offensive performance in a season opener in Ravens history.

Nevertheless, the week 2 match-up should provide a salvo for the offense. The Oakland Raiders, already an underwhelming team expected to contend for the #1 overall pick, has to replace two starters in the secondary. Nate Allen was lost for the season with a torn MCL, and Charles Woodson has a sprained shoulder, so the unit will be starting green players at both safety spots if Woodson cannot play, which is looking likely right now.

The Raiders also lack talent at cornerback, so the recipe is there for the Ravens to get the passing game on track. Expect a big day from Flacco and the offense, as the Raiders should have trouble stopping them. The Raider's pass rush is solid with Aldon Smith, Khalil Mack, and Justin Tuck, but that should not stop the Ravens offense with all the holes in the back end.

Hopefully, this game gets the offense on track, as the Ravens play division rivals Cincinnati and Pittsburgh the following 2 weeks, and the team will be counting on Flacco and his receivers to put up points in their first 2 division games.