Cheers and Jeers for Ravens/Eagles

Ravens 36     Eagles 7

Cry, Eagles, Cry! The Ravens got back on the right track with a crucial home win against the faltering Philadelphia Eagles in Baltimore yesterday.  Ravens fans witnessed their home town team reach 7-4 on the season still in second place, one game back of the Pittsburgh Steelers.  Just when you think the Ravens are down and out, they get back up and re-establish themselves as contenders.  The Ravens still have a firm grasp on that last wildcard spot in the playoffs as well.  Here are my cheers and jeers for this game:

Cheers:

The Offensive Line: The offensive line of the Ravens continue to be the unsung heroes of this ball club.  They held the best sacking defense in the NFL to just two sacks and plenty of time for Joe Flacco to do his thing in the pocket.

The Rated R Defense: The Ravens defense reasserted their dominance, after getting housed by the New York Giants a week ago.  The Ravens defense allowed a mere 120 yards passing and 86 yards rushing and forced five turnovers.  The defense did not allow a single Eagles offensive touchdown.  The Ravens are now the second ranked defense in the NFL.

Ed Reed: The 2004 Defensive Player of the Year picked off Eagles quarterbacks Donavan McNabb and Kevin Kolb reasserting himself as one of the most dominate safety’s in the NFL.  Ed Reed set a new NFL record for longest interception for a touchdown (108 yards).  The old record was 106 yards, set by…Ed Reed.

Le’Ron McClain: “Bring the Pain” McClain had an outstanding performance rushing the ball for 88 yards on 18 attempts and one touchdown.

Joe Flacco: Another solid outing for rookie quarterback Joe Flacco.  Bazooka Joe finished the day going 12 of 26 yards passing for 183 yards and two touchdowns.

Rolle and Washington:The Ravens cornerbacks had an outstanding day yesterday with a pair of interceptions of quarterback Donavan McNabb.

Jameel McClain:  Jameel “Deuce” McCalin recorded his second safety in his young NFL career, this time with a blocked punt. (that nickname is a trademark of Steve McNelly, Anita Marks already took the Three Headed Monster from me)

Mark Clayton: The 2005 first round draft pick showed the Ravens, it was a smart decision to draft him out of Oklahoma with the Ravens first pick.  Mark Clayton had two catches for 72 yards and one touchdown.

Jarrett Johnson: Double J came up with the first Ravens turnover with a forced fumble.

Tazered: A Baltimore City police officer told me one of his fellow officers tazered an Eagles fan who wouldn’t cooperate after he was being escorted out of the stadium for being, well and Eagles fan.  Have fun in Baltimore City Lock Up, jackass!

Matt Stover: The future Hall of Fame kicker went 2/2 in this game, both over 40 yards.  Matt Stover also moved to 3rd on the all time list for most consecutive point after field goals. Congratulations Matt!

Jeers:

Lateral?: Ed Reed almost lost the football when he tried to lateral the ball to Samari Rolle to try and produce a Ravens touchdown.  I admire the fact Reed wants to score, but be smart.  Luckily it was ruled an illegal forward pass and the Ravens maintained possession.

The Ravens will now focus on their upcoming division game against their AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals.  The Bengals are in decline with a record of 1-10-1.  The Ravens will look to complete the Ohio sweep this year, as they have already swept the overrated Cleveland Browns and will look to do the same to the faltering Bengals.