Forgive me if today's post is unusually brief. Watching the Ravens blow two 14 point leads over the AFC's top team was disappointing to say the least. I have to say that I'm incredibly excited for next season, however, and there are a number of strong reasons all Ravens fans should be excited too.
Rick Wagner was placed on injured reserve not long ago, and he graded out as the league's second best right tackle. With Wagner back healthy, you have arguably the best right side of an offensive line in the NFL next season between Wagner and Yanda. The offensive line depth overall will be phenomenal considering what the Ravens were able to do with both of their starting offensive tackles out at points over the past two weeks. Protection of Flacco was incredible all season and especially last night. Joe is phenomenal when he has time to stand in the pocket and throw. I expect nothing less next season.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Ravens will get Jimmy Smith back healthy and in his prime. Jimmy's foot injury will actually be fully healed within the next 6-8 weeks, and his rehab won't take long after that. Because the Ravens were forced to play with such a patchwork group of corners, they now have a far more experienced group to add depth behind Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb. I think no one will be surprised if the Ravens draft at least one (maybe two) corners, but if you have a healthy Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb with Anthony Levine and Rashaan Melvin for depth, that's not a bad situation. Melvin was abused last night, and he missed out on an easy opportunity to bat down a ball that ended up being a touchdown, but he has the physical tools to become quite good with more experience in the off-season. Melvin had actually been a pleasant surprise when the Ravens had basically nowhere else to turn. There is a lot of upside to the young man.
The Ravens 2014 draft class performed incredibly well as a whole. C.J. Mosley will continue to develop, Timmy Jernigan will be even better with another off-season to hone his skills, Michael Campanaro should become far more involved in the offense as he showed flashes last night, Crockett Gilmore will continue to develop into a solid receiving target and blocker, and Rick Wagner will, of course, continue to build upon an unbelievable rookie season.
It's unclear whether or not the Ravens will be able to retain Gary Kubiak. If they are able to do so, the Ravens should hit the ground running with this offense, and absolutely dominate teams next season with the addition of a healthy, revamped secondary. The Seahawks appear once again to be the most dominant team in the league, but that era is about to come to a close as too many free agents will need a contract after this season, and their window with a cheap, effective quarterback will come to a close. Next seasons should, thus, be a golden opportunity for an impressively complete Ravens team to make a return to the AFC Championship and a serious run at the Lombardi trophy. This season is a lot like the 2011 season in that the Ravens showed they could contend with just about anyone in the playoffs--but ultimately fell short. The great thing is that they can pick up right where they left off next season, and this time they'll be in a great position to bully their way through the league.
COLTS AT BRONCOS
A lack of time has forced me to be comparatively brief with my analysis for this game, and for that I apologize. The Colts are a formidable foe, but only if playing inside the confines of their home dome stadium. Indianapolis' defense simply doesn't travel well enough to stop the Broncos, and T.Y. Hilton is no longer enough to beat a team by himself. The Broncos will likely put Aqip Talib on Hilton, and that should be enough to handcuff an offense that no longer has the benefit of an effective Reggie Wayne. Wayne has finally hit a point in his career where he's no longer an effective target. He's simply too slow, and his body has clearly worn down. There's no shame in that at his age, but his decline is absolutely poorly timed for a Colts team that desperately needs all the weapons it can get.
As I sit here writing this, I see the Cowboys are already making my decision to pick the Packers seem foolish. There is still an entire half of football left, but it wouldn't surprise me to see the Cowboys take care of business in this game. It was simply a coin flip to determine whether or not Aaron Rodgers could be effective enough to win this game with his injury, and thus far, it appears as though I called out tails when the result was heads.
Back to business. With a week of rest and home-field advantage, I don't think there's any way the Broncos lose at home to a dome team whose defense struggles on the road. Peyton Manning may not have much left in the tank, but he won't be truly challenged until next week against the Patriots. It would be great to watch luck finally overtake Manning, but then again it would also be great to watch Manning show the young guy who the master is once last time. Neither of these teams will be able to go into Foxborough and beat the Patriots, but at least if the Broncos win here, there will be another epic Brady-Manning showdown for the AFC crown...I just don't think it'll be nearly as epic as I'd prefer.
PREDICTION:
The Broncos are the more complete team, and they'll put up a lot of points in a hurry against a poor Colts road defense. The Broncos defense will give up points, but not enough to lose this game.
BRONCOS 38-27
CHEER UP, RAVENS FANS
OUR TEAM SHOWED WHAT IT WAS MADE OF AND
OVERCAME INCREDIBLE INJURIES WITH A RETURN TO THE POST-SEASON
THE BEATDOWN IN PITTSBURGH WAS ENOUGH TO CONSIDER THIS SEASON A SUCCESS GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES
THIS MARKS A NEW ERA IN RAVENS FOOTBALL
THE RAVENS SHOWED THEY CAN ONCE AGAIN DOMINATE WITH ED REED AND RAY LEWIS GONE
THE COMBINE IS NOT FAR AWAY AND THE DRAFT WILL BE HERE BEFORE YOU KNOW IT!
AS ALWAYS
GO RAVENS!!! (GO DRAFT SOME MORE PRO BOWLERS!)
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