Ravens Won’t Feel Sorry For Broken Jets

“It’s my responsibility. We’ve got to get this thing fixed. I don’t know what it is.”

Those were the words of Jets Head Coach and former Ravens Defensive Coordinator Rex Ryan after his team was upset yesterday by the Oakland Raiders, 34-24.



Ravens fans hope that whatever is broken, Ryan can’t solve it by Sunday night when his team – laced with former Ravens, including safety Jim Leonhard, receiver Derrick Mason, linebacker Bart Scott and Defensive Coordinator Mike Pettine – come to M&T Bank Stadium for another bruising showdown.

“The Raiders overpowered the Jets like no other team has since coach Rex Ryan brought his brash style to New York two years ago,” wrote the Associated Press’ Josh Dubow.

Running back Ray Rice will be licking his chops against a porous Jets’ run defense. It had no answer for Raiders running back Darren McFadden, who ran for 171 yards and two touchdowns.

And the Ravens’ pass rushers will be itching to get after quarterback Mark Sanchez, who took a beating yesterday behind a weakened offensive line with center Nick Mangold not even making the trip to California because of an ankle injury.

“The Jets’ inability to run the ball is forcing Mark Sanchez to be more of a thrower than a manager of the game,” wrote ESPN’s John Clayton. “That doesn’t work.

“Sanchez had to throw 43 times Sunday and he took a lot of punishing hits. In fact, he may have broken his nose. This isn’t Rex Ryan football. Things should get better if Mangold returns to the lineup next week, but the Jets better figure out how to get the running game going or they may not have Sanchez long.”

Jets outside linebacker Calvin Pace got it right when he said the Jets have to quickly move on because the Ravens won’t feel sorry for them.

“We love it. We love it. My adopted dad, Rex Ryan, my adopted uncle Mike Pettine, my brother-in-arms, the mad ‘backer Bart Scott, they get to come back. They get to come back in a stadium where they got their start,” Suggs told Carroll County Times’ Aaron Wilson. “It’s going to be fun. It’s going to be fun. We can’t wait to play against them.”

Who Takes Cheap Shots At Ray Lewis?

Apparently Rams tackle Jason Smith does.

But he quickly regretted his actions.

After St. Louis running back Cadillac Williams carried the ball nine yards for a first down in the second quarter, Smith shoved Lewis in what The Carroll County Times’ Aaron Wilson called a “cheap shot.”

Ravens defensive end Arthur Jones retaliated, shoving Smith back and knocking him down to the ground. Only Smith was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, costing the Rams 15 yards.

“It was a poor decision on my behalf,” Smith said. “There was no justification for what I did.”

Rams Players Ask Media To Back Off CB King

For rookie receiver Torrey Smith, yesterday was easily the best day of his three-game NFL career.

But for Rams cornerback Justin King, it was easily one of his worst.

King was the guy just outside your television screen trying to keep up with Smith. The four-year veteran was lit up for three consecutive touchdowns in the Ravens’ 37-7 trouncing of the St. Louis Rams.

The Rams had no choice but to bench King at halftime.

“I didn’t give them a reason not to throw it at me,” the dejected corner told reporters in the locker room after the game.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell was there to witness King confront his critics.

“Inside the cold and hollow Edward Jones Dome, where football dreams seem to always come to die, the Rams’ locker room was telling a tale,” Burwell wrote. “Grim-faced Justin King was surrounded by minicams and microphones, a stoic man facing a different kind of music.

“Frustrated teammates Quintin Mikell and Al Harris chirped defiantly in the background, telling the media to leave King alone. ‘It wasn’t him … it was all of us … eleven men on defense …’”

Those 11 men couldn’t stop the Ravens on their way to a franchise-record setting day with 553 total yards. They couldn’t stop quarterback Joe Flacco either, as he churned out a career-high 389 passing yards.

Not expecting much from Smith, King started out in press-man coverage, but was soon watching the rookie receiver blur past him. Even when the Rams brought over safety help, they still couldn’t prevent the former Terp from building an early first-quarter 21-0 lead.

“The Ravens gangster slapped the Rams so hard that this game was over before it barely got started,” Burwell wrote.

Mike Tyson Couldn’t Deliver A Better First-Round KO

Starting with the gangster-slapping line above, I couldn’t help but be entertained by some of the descriptions writers used to describe the Ravens’ dominating victory.

Here are some of my favorites:

“Smith looked like [100-meter world record holder] Usain Bolt as he zipped down the sideline and hauled in a 74-yard TD from Joe Flacco.” – Burwell

“Their victory over the outclassed St. Louis Rams at the Edward Jones Dome was essentially a first-round knockout. Mike Tyson in his prime couldn’t have done it more savagely or decisively.” – CSNBaltimore.com’s John Eisenberg.

“The Ravens did exactly what an elite team should do to an overmatched opponent. They took control of the game early and broke the Rams’ spirit.” – The Baltimore Sun’s Jeff Zrebiec.

“Instead of trying to play conservatively and win a grind-out game, the coaching staff came up with a daring game plan that put all the focus on Torrey Smith, who [up] to this point seemed to shrink in the spotlight. But he thrived, and the Ravens hype machine, for better or worse, has been switched back to the on position. Firmly.” – The Sun’s Chris Korman

“It was a debut [for Smith] that conjured memories of Randy Moss, who torched the Cowboys with three catches for 163 yards and three touchdowns on Thanksgiving in 1998. … The difference this time around is that few people were watching the Ravens-Rams game, a CBS late-afternoon regional broadcast on a day that featured a FOX doubleheader. If it had happened on national television and/or in prime time, Torrey Smith would have been the toast of the league this week. Instead, he’ll simply be the toast of Baltimore.” – PFT.com’s Mike Florio.

Reshuffled O-Line Somehow Works Out (Again)

After four preseason games and three regular-season games, we still haven’t seen the same five offensive linemen start together in back-to-back games.

Somehow things worked out in Week 1 vs. the Steelers when four out of five positions was occupied by a new face. It didn’t work out so well in Tennessee, though, when the fifth position had a change too. Left guard Ben Grubbs sat out with a toe injury and Mark LeVoir filled in, but the results left something to be desired.

So, the Ravens tried another shuffle, inserting five-time Pro Bowl Andre Gurode at left guard, a position he had never before played.

The new lineup “seemed to be the antidote the front five needed,” wrote The Baltimore Sun’s Edward Lee.

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