SB Nation - Tom Zbikowski

Week 15 NFL Capsule: Ravens vs. Bears

Bruce Raffel — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:09:32 -0000

From the NFL, here is all the info you need to know about this weekend's game of the Baltimore Ravens hosting the Chicago Bears. Info on the series and stats first and notes about the game after the 'Jump.'

By the way, while I'd love to see the Colts knock the Jaguars out of the Wild Card slot and end up facing the Saints in the Super Bowl with both teams being undefeated, I see the weather being a factor (rain expected) on how long the Indy starters play and Jacksonville ends up winning the game tonight. Hope I'm wrong!

CHICAGO BEARS (5-8) AT BALTIMORE RAVENS (7-6)

SERIES

	BEARS	RAVENS
SERIES LEADER	2-1
STREAKS	Past 1
COACHES VS. OPP.	Smith: 1-0	Harbaugh: 0-0
LAST WEEK	L 21-14 vs. Packers	W 48-3 vs. Lions
LAST GAME	10/23/05: Ravens 6 at Bears 10. Chicago defense allows 199 total yards & registers 4 sacks. Bears QB Kyle Orton throws 9-yard TD pass to FB Marc Edwards for game’s lone TD.
LAST GAME AT SITE	9/9/01: Ravens 17, Bears 6. Defending Super Bowl XXXV-champion Ravens have strong defensive performance to start season, allowing just 2 FGs.
BROADCAST	FOX (1:00 PM ET): Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick, Chris Myers (Field reporter). SIRIUS: 91 (Chi.), 152 (Bal.). XM: 108 (Bal.).

STATS

PASSING	Cutler: 284-457-3,023-19-22-75.2	Flacco: 270-426-3,111-15-11-86.3
RUSHING	Forté: 201-685-3.4-4	Rice: 194-1,041-5.4-7
RECEIVING	Hester: 54-682-12.6-3	Rice (RB): 68-652-9.6-1
OFFENSE	304.9	355.4
TAKE/GIVE	-4	+4
DEFENSE	329.7	305.9
SACKS	Ogunleye: 6	J. Johnson, Pryce: 6
INTs	Bowman: 4	Landry: 4
PUNTING	Maynard: 41.5	Koch: 44.8
KICKING	Gould: 79 (25/25 PAT; 18/21 FG)	Cundiff: 59 (14/14 PAT; 15/17 FG)

NOTES

BEARS: QB JAY CUTLER has 3,023 yards & is 5th Bears QB to reach 3,000-yard mark in season. When Cutler has 100+ rating, his teams are 13-0…RB MATT FORTÉ is only player in NFL with 1,900+ rush yards (1,923) & 900+ rec. yards (932) since 2008. Has 114 receptions since 2008, most by RB…WR-PR DEVIN HESTER has 20 TDs (8 rec., 7 PR, 5 KR), incl. playoffs. 4 of his 5 career TDs vs. AFC (incl. playoffs) have been 70+ yards. WR-KR JOHNNY KNOX had TD last week & ties for 2nd among rookies with 6 TDs (5 rec., 1 KR). GREG OLSEN ranks 5th among NFL TEs with 6 rec. TDs. WR DEVIN AROMASHODU had career-high 8 catches & 76 yards last week & scored 1st TD…DE ADEWALE OGUNLEYE has 5 sacks in 3 career meetings & aims for 4th in row vs. Bal. with 1+ sack. CB CHARLES TILLMAN has INT in 2 of past 3 vs. AFC, incl. INT-TD. Team is 16-5 (.762) when he has INT. DE ALEX BROWN has 3 sacks in past 3 vs. AFC. LB LANCE BRIGGS had sack last week…RAVENS: Aim for 7th consecutive win against NFC at home…Ravens are 3-1 at home in Dec. under head coach JOHN HARBAUGH…Bal. (319) is on pace (392) to surpass franchise scoring record (391 in ’03)…QB JOE FLACCO has 5-2 record at home in ’09 & has completed 152 of 224 (67.9 pct.) for 1,785 yards with 8 TDs vs. 4 INTs & 96.3 passer rating. Flacco’s 3,111 passing yards are 2nd-most in season in club history (VINNY TESTAVERDE, 4,177 in ’96)…Ravens had 5 rush TDs by 4 different players last week…RB RAY RICE leads NFL RBs in catches (68) & rec. yards (652) among RBs. Rice totaled 219 yards last week (156 rush, 53 rec.). Rice ranks 2nd in NFL w/1,693 scrimmage yards (1,041 rush, 652 rec.). RB WILLIS MC GAHEE has 4 rush TDs in past 3…DERRICK MASON (849) needs 1 reception to become 16th player in NFL history to reach 850 career…LB ANTWAN BARNES had 1st sack of season last week…S TOM ZBIKOWSKI aims for 3rd consecutive game w/INT.

Notre Dame Coach Watch 2009: The Recap

CW — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:00:46 -0000

More photos » by Joe Raymond - AP

Browse more photos »

It's been a busy last few days for the Irish, so let's attempt to catch up.

Friday

The Greatest Hoax of December 2009 was perpetuated on the internet, showing just how unreliable everything we'd heard up until that point had been and making Wisconsin's day a little more interesting. At this point in time, most people accepted that no one had any idea what was going on and just waited for some more concrete information. Others threw themselves further into the Stoops rumor, believing that an offer was on the table, and that everything from ResLife's restrictions to the tiny fact he'd been living in the same place for a decade making four million dollars a year and was building a dream house for his very happy family. The women's soccer team lost in the Final Four to North Carolina in a 1-0 heartbreaker and the hockey team loses a 1-0 game to the top ranked Miami (OH) Redhawks. The internet explodes over the entire day as people attempt to wrap their minds around the events of Jersey Shore.

Saturday

The Chicago Sun-Times decided to try to be as wrong as many times as it could in a 24-hour span by just reporting every possible option regarding Stoops, and getting them all wrong. They then went all-in with a "Well, we'll know Sunday morning! Something will be decided!". (Spoiler alert: Nothing was decided by Sunday morning.) Bob Stoops issued his first real denial-denial and the first bit of Weis' comments regarding Pete Carroll, a grad student and a Malibu beach house started trickling out. Notre Dame hockey loses at top ranked Miami (OH) again, this time 4-0.

Sunday

Tim Abromaitis scored 31 points against Central Florida (Luke Harangody had 29 and 7 on 11 of 16 shooting, but we expect that sort of thing). Not a lot in regards to the coaching search today, although people started losing their minds that Stoops wasn't coming and claiming that "the process" wasn't good enough (these people are all insane, and will be addressed later in the week). It was also reported that Urban Meyer had been hospitalized after the SEC title game, leading to speculation of whether it was caused by the shock of seeing Jack Swarbrick creepily staring in his window in the middle of night. Brady Quinn turns in a nice little start, going 25 of 45 for 271 and 3 touchdowns against the Chargers. Meghan and Cheyne win this season of Amazing Race, meaning yours truly successfully predicted the winner before the first episode for the second consecutive season.

Monday

Things get real. In the saddest news of the day, both Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate announce they will be heading for the NFL at a presser with Charlie Weis, who was there by the 7-to-23 combination's request. In major coaching news, Brian Kelly said on the Dan Patrick Radio Show that there was no guarantee he'd coach in the Sugar Bowl, while the New York Times reported that Kelly would be meeting with Swarbrick in New York today. In perhaps the most transparent action ever by someone involved in a high profile coaching hunt, Brian Kelly then tweeted that he'd indeed be meeting with Notre Dame and listening to their offer. Tom Zbikowski picks off Aaron Rodgers on Monday Night Football.

Now

We wait.

Final Practice/Injury Report: Baltimore Ravens (4-3) at Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)

Kirkendall — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:21:42 -0000

CINCINNATI BENGALS

QUESTIONABLE	PROBABLE
T Andre Smith (foot)	RB Jeremi Johnson (knee)
S Roy Williams (forearm)	DT Tank Johnson (foot)
	S Tom Nelson (shoulder)
	RB Bernard Scott (knee)

BALTIMORE RAVENS

QUESTIONABLE	PROBABLE
S Haruki Nakamura (chest)	LB Prescott Burgess (illness)
DT Haloti Ngata (ankle)	TE Todd Heap (ankle)
S Tom Zbikowski (illness)	LB Jarret Johnson (shoulder)
	LS Matt Katula (elbow)
	RB Le'Ron McClain (shoulder)
	CB Frank Walker (illness)

Practice

BENGALS	WED	THUR	FRI
RB Jeremi Johnson (knee)	LP	LP	FP
S Tom Nelson (shoulder)	LP	LP	FP
S Roy Williams (forearm)	LP	LP	LP
RB Bernard Scott (knee)	FP	FP	FP
T Andre Smith (foot)	FP	FP	FP
DT Tank Johnson (foot)	--	--	LP

RAVENS	WED	THUR	FRI
LB Prescott Burgess (illness)	DNP	FP	FP
LS Matt Katula (elbow)	DNP	DNP	FP
S Haruki Nakamura (chest)	DNP	LP	FP
DT Haloti Ngata (ankle)	DNP	DNP	DNP
CB Frank Walker (illness)	DNP	FP	FP
S Tom Zbikowski (illness)	DNP	LP	LP
TE Todd Heap (ankle)	LP	LP	FP
RB Le'Ron McClain (shoulder)	LP	LP	FP
LB Jarret Johnson (shoulder)	FP	FP	FP

Ravens' Thursday Injury Report

Bruce Raffel — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:54:34 -0000

Once again, there are no players listed on the Baltimore Ravens Injury Report as "out" after today's practice. However, long snapper Matt Katula (elbow) and DT Haloti Ngata (ankle) still are on the "Did Not Participate" list, which is not good. You almost never hear about the long snapper unless it is not good. It is also my recollection that our backup long snapper is none other than,....wait.....Willis McGahee! Is that silence and staring you are doing right now? That is not a typo, as McGahee was taking reps at the long snapper position in Training Camp and might indeed be Katula's backup. Time to cross your fingers, right? Ngata's ankle is not looking good but we are still pretty deep at defensive tackle but then again, how do you replace one of the two or three best DT's in the game so easily?

The following players were limited in participation Thursday: Todd Heap (ankle), LeRon McClain (shoulder), Haruki Nakamura (chest), Tom Zbikowski (illness). On yesterday's Injury report but practicing today were Prescott Burgess (illness), Jarret Johnson (shoulder) and Frank Walker (illness).

Practice Report: Baltimore Ravens (4-3) at Cincinnati Bengals (5-2)

Kirkendall — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:52:16 -0000

Every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evening, we'll (TRY TO) update the practice/injury chart leading up to Sunday's game. The chart is pretty self-explanatory. If the player is listed as out, they're out for the game. If they did not participate, they didn't practice. If they were limited, then they only participated during a portion of practice (typically means missing 11-on-11 drills). If the player is listed as full participation, it simply means that they practiced fully and that the only reason they're listed is because injury was an issue the week before.

Practice

BENGALS	WED	THUR	FRI
RB Jeremi Johnson (knee)	LP	LP
S Tom Nelson (shoulder)	LP	LP
S Roy Williams (forearm)	LP	LP
RB Bernard Scott (knee)	FP	FP
T Andre Smith (foot)	FP	FP

RAVENS	WED	THUR	FRI
LB Prescott Burgess (illness)	DNP	FP
LS Matt Katula (elbow)	DNP	DNP
S Haruki Nakamura (chest)	DNP	LP
DT Haloti Ngata (ankle)	DNP	DNP
CB Frank Walker (illness)	DNP	FP
S Tom Zbikowski (illness)	DNP	LP
TE Todd Heap (ankle)	LP	LP
RB Le'Ron McClain (shoulder)	LP	LP
LB Jarret Johnson (shoulder)	FP	FP

Wednesday Injury Report

Bruce Raffel — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:58:20 -0000

The Baltimore Ravens released their Injury Report for Wednesday. While there is no one listed as "out" for the game, the list of "Did Not Participate" is unusually long for the team, but should be pared down as the week progresses. So far the following players did not participate in Wednesday's practice:

Prescott Burgess (illness), Matt Katula (elbow), Haruki Nakamura (chest), Haloti Ngata (ankle), Frank Walker (illness), Tom Zbikowski (illness).

Todd Heap (ankle) and LeRon McClain (shoulder) were listed as "Limited Participation." Stay tuned for daily updates and changes as they occur when I receive the reports for Thursday, Friday and Final Game Status direct from the team.

Injury Report: Baltimore Ravens @ San Diego Chargers

John (obviousman) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 20:21:44 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sakuma - AP

3 months ago: San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson, right, fumbles the ball and is brought down by Oakland Raiders defensive end Greg Ellis (99) during the first quarter of their NFL football game Monday, Sept. 14, 2009 in Oakland, Calif. The Raiders recovered the ball. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

Browse more photos »

San Diego Chargers

Out - Nick Hardwick, Travis Johnson, LaDainian Tomlinson

Questionable - Antwan Applewhite, Louis Vasquez, Jamal Williams

Probable - Marcus McNeill, Mike Scifres

Baltimore Ravens

Doubtful - Tom Zbikowski

Questionable - L.J. Smith

Probable - Tavares Gooden, Jarret Johnson, Ed Reed, Terrell Sugs

Wednesday Injury/Practice Report: Baltimore Ravens @ San Diego Chargers

John (obviousman) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:16:40 -0000

San Diego Chargers

Did Not Participate

Antwan Applewhite, LB (Hamstring)
Nick Hardwick, C (Ankle)
Travis Johnson, DE (Groin)
Marcus McNeill, T (Hand)
LaDainian Tomlinson, RB (Ankle)
Louis Vasquez, G (Knee)
Jamal Williams, DT (Arm)

Baltimore Ravens

Did Not Participate

Terrell Suggs, LB (Concussion, Chest)
Tom Zbikowski, S (Concussion)

Limited Participation

Ed Reed, S (Concussion)
L.J. Smith, TE (Hamstring)

Full Participation

Tavares Gooden, LB (Knee)

Ravens 53 Man Roster: My Picks

Bruce Raffel — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 11:00:24 -0000

Here are my picks for what the Ravens will end up doing later today when they announce the 53 man roster that they will be trimming down to when they release 22 guys to get down to the NFL max.

Offense

QB: Joe Flacco, Troy Smith, John Beck

WR: Derrick Mason, Mark Clayton, Demetrius Williams, Kelley Washington, Justin Harper

RB: Ray Rice, Willis McGahee, LeRon McClain, Jalen Parmele

TE: Todd Heap, L.J. Smith, Davon Drew, Edgar Jones

OL: Matt Birk, Ben Grubbs, Jared Gaither, Chris Chester, Marshal Yanda, Michael Oher, David Hale, Oniel Cousins

Defense

DB: Ed Reed, Dawan Landry, Fabian Washington, Domonique Foxworth, Haruki Nakamura, Tom Zbikowski, Chris Carr, Lardarius Webb, Frank Walker, Derrick Martin

LB: Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs, Jarret Johnson, Tavares Gooden, Jameel McClain, Brendon Ayanbadejo, Paul Kruger, Prescott Burgess, Antwan Barnes

DL: Haloti Ngata, Trevor Pryce, Justin Bannan, Kelly Gregg, Dwan Edwards, Brandon McKinney

Specialists

P: Sam Koch

PK: Steven Hauschka

LS: Matt Katula

That’s only 52 guys and my final spot is a tough one to decide upon. I am looking at one of the following guys:

Yamon Figurs, Jason Cook, Jason Phillips, Joe Reitz, Kelly Talavou

Figurs still has the speed and with Webb looking a bit shaky on returns, Yamon gives us another option behind Chris Carr. Jason Cook gives us another fullback along with LeRon McClain. Jason Phillips was a 4^th round draft pick in 2009 and Ozzie doesn’t like to release draft picks. Perhaps Phillips will be IR’d to keep our hands on him (I expect the Ravens to IR undrafted rookie LB Dannell Ellerbe as well). Joe Reitz gives us more depth on the offensive line as well as Kelly Tavalou does the same for the defensive line.

I don’t want to take the easy way out by only selecting 52 players, so I will have to go out on a limb and make my selection and therefore the 53^rd spot on the Baltimore Ravens roster goes to Yamon Figurs.

The other players I was undecided about go onto our Practice Squad, where we can have up to eight players. Of course, I would expect the team to peruse other teams’ cuts to add a player or two to either our roster or Practice Squad, and vice versa for the rest of the league. However, in advance of that info, my Practice Squad would look like this:

Cook, Reitz, Talavou, Foster, Riley, Peerman, Smolko, Stallings

Additionally, as I stated earlier, the team would place both Dannell Ellerbe and Jason Phillips on Injured Reserve (IR), which would end their 2009 seasons, but ensure the team retains their rights while giving the players their full 2009 salaries, which do count against the team’s salary cap. However, being rookies, that should not be much of an issue.

Your thoughts and comments on those last few slots?

Ravens' Secondary: Who Stays, Who Goes?

Bruce Raffel — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:54:11 -0000

The Baltimore Ravens will have to make a cut or two today to get down to the NFL maximum of 75 players. On Saturday, they will have to declare their 53 man roster by making a bunch of painful decisions. Today, we will be looking at the team's secondary, and predicting what the team will do with their cornerbacks and safeties.

With the recent announcement that veteran cornerback Samari Rolle will begin the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) List, it makes it a bit easier to look at the list and determine who will stay and who will be let go. Rolle's status on the Pup List is not counted against our roster total, so that actually allows the team to keep another player that might have either been on the bubble or cut had Rolle been ready to go from opening day.

Last year's opening day roster included 10 defensive backs, although there are always a player or two that is placed on the Inactive List for that week's games. Looking at the current Ravens roster of defensive backs, the list includes the following no-brainers who should be starting on September 13th against the Kansas City Chiefs at M&T Bank Stadium:

Ed Reed, Dawan Landry, Fabian Washington, Domonique Foxworth

Adding in those players who figure to be in the nickel, dime and dollar packages, that should ensure the safety of:

Chris Carr, Lardarius Webb, Frank Walker, Haruki Nakamura, Tom Zbikowski

While many Ravens fans seem to think that the often penalized Walker should be more on the bubble than safe, the Ravens still like his physical play and he figures to get a lot of playing time, espeically during the time that Samari Rolle is unavaillable.

That puts nine players in the secondary on the team's roster of 53. If they decide to keep at least one more player, then the choice is whittled down to one of three remaining defensive backs:

Derrick Martin, Evan Oglesby, K.J. Gerard

Of those three, Martin looks to be the choice, as he is more versatile than the others and has been playing mostly at safety this summer. Oglesby has been burned on a regular basis this pre-season and is probably the first of this list to be cut. However, while Gerard intrigued the coaches with his ability to be around the ball in OTA's earlier this spring, he has not made the impact they were hoping for since Training Camp and exhibition games have begun.

We will see the first round of cuts completed by later today, and while the secondary is a major interest to the team, I still doubt the team will make any cuts today in this area, waiting to see how the guys on the bubble perform in Thursday's final exhibition game before making their final decisions by 5 p.m. on Saturday, September 5th.

Poll

If the Ravens have to cut two of the three following defensive backs, who will be safe?

Derrick Martin

311 votes

Evan Oglesby

139 votes

K.J. Gerard

111 votes

561 votes | Poll has closed