Baltimore Ravens 2010-11 Season Recap

Prior to the 2010-11 NFL season, many players, personnel, and coaches in the Baltimore Ravens organization had high expectations. Why shouldn’t they have? Baltimore had made the playoffs in two consecutive seasons since the installation of Head Coach John Harbaugh and Quarterback Joe Flacco. Future Hall of Famers Ray Lewis and Ed Reed were set to anchor a stingy stop unit that has always been the hallmark of the Ravens franchise. And with Ben Roethlisberger sidelined the first four games of the season, it seemed like the Ravens would get a head start in the race for the AFC North crown. Every Ravens fan hoped home field advantage would be what Baltimore needed to finally beat Big Ben and the Steelers.

Things don’t always go according to plan.

Taking Care of Business

The season started off well enough, with a hard fought 10-9 victory over the Jets on Monday Night Football. In week 2, however, Joe Flacco tossed a franchise record-tying 4 interceptions in a 15-10 loss against AFC North rival Cincinnati. After a home win against Cleveland, the Ravens traveled to Pittsburg to take on Charlie Batch and the Steelers. Flacco hooked up with T.J. Houshmandzadeh for the game-winning TD with 0:32 remaining, and the Ravens moved into a tie for first place at 3-1.

The good news is that Baltimore did a great job of beating the teams they were expected to. They finished 8-1 against teams that finished below .500, with the Week 2 Bengals game as their only blemish. The bad news is that after week 4 they were just 2-3 against teams with winning records. They recorded home wins against Tampa Bay and New Orleans, but couldn’t pull out a victory at Atlanta or in overtime at New England.

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Fasten Your Seatbelts

And then there was the second Steelers game. Coming into week 13, both teams were 8-3, and the winner of the Sunday night showdown would likely win the division. This time the game was in Baltimore, which favored the Ravens on paper. The Ravens had the lead until they blew a pass protection in the fourth quarter, which led to a strip sack by All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu. The Steelers recovered in Ravens territory and scored the game-winning touchdown on the ensuing drive. Pittsburgh 13, Baltimore 10.

The Steelers predictably went on to win home field advantage while the Ravens had to travel to Kansas City for a Wild Card game. Still, Baltimore had to feel confident. With many veterans and a strong defense, they possessed all the tools needed to win on the road in the playoffs. And in Kansas City that was exactly what happened, as the Ravens defense generated five turnovers en route to a 30-7 waxing of the Chiefs. That victory helped set up a third showdown between the Ravens and their arch rivals, once again in Pittsburgh.

In the divisional round, the Steelers struck first on a 1-yard Rashard Mendenhall touchdown run. Then the Ravens took full advantage of two second quarter fumbles and suddenly controlled a 21-7 lead at intermission.

Then, the third quarter happened.

Ruination

It’s not entirely clear who is to blame for the debacles that cost the Ravens a shot at a Super Bowl. First, credit should be given to the Steelers. Their perennial #1 run defense shut down the Ravens running game and probably forced Joe Flacco to make more plays than he was comfortable with. Second, much like in the second outing, Baltimore didn’t always protect Flacco well. This was a recurring theme throughout the season; Flacco took the second most sacks of any Quarterback in the regular season (40). In this game, Flacco took 5 sacks, was hit 4 more times, and had a fumble and a pick. Ray Rice also had a fumble, his first in 405 touches, which was the longest active streak.

Just like that, the Steelers were back in the game, and took a 24-21 lead with 12:15 remaining. The Ravens tied it up with a field goal just inside of four minutes to go, but the Baltimore secondary ultimately betrayed them. Ben Roethlisberger hooked up with Antonio Brown on a backbreaking 58-yard pass play on 3rd and 19 to put the Steelers in field goal range. That play happened due to a blown coverage by Lardarius Webb and Dawan Landry. Mendenhall punched it in from the 2-yard line, then Houshmandzadeh dropped a pass on 4th down as the Ravens tried to march down the field to tie it up. Game, set, and match to the Steelers.

Takeaways

What went right for the Ravens in 2010-11? Well, Joe Flacco once again showed improvement in nearly every statistical category. Four defenders made the Pro Bowl: Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, and Haloti Ngata. Kicker Billy Cundiff will tag along as well. Terrell Suggs had a team-high 11 sacks and Ngata was second with 5.5. But overall, the team only tallied 27 sacks yet allowed 40 to the other team. That is a ratio that has to improve in order for the Ravens to win it all next year. Overall, the offense took a step back this season, partially due to the loss of OT Jared Gaither to injury. He’ll be a free agent this offseason, so it’ll be interesting to see whether he’ll be resigned or replaced.

Peeking around the corner

Now, the powers that be within the Ravens organization will be faced with many tough decisions. This is a team that was built to win now. This year’s roster was old, and will contain many free agents in the upcoming offseason. Players like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, and Center Matt Birk will contemplate retirement. The discussions regarding the CBA could cause a strike, leading to a shortened or canceled 2011-12 season.

All we can do as fans is cross our fingers and hope for a good draft class and offseason. The front office has made clever moves in the past; why doubt them now?

By: Ben Jackson
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer