Hello, Tennessee Titans Fans! As I'm sure you all well know, the Baltimore Ravens are coming to town this weekend. We are all looking forward to a great game between two old-school rivals. When I think of Ravens-Titans games, I will always remember the old smashmouth games from the early 2000's with Ray Lewis, Jamal Lewis, Steve McNair and Eddie George.

Obviously, times have changed, and the Ravens are coming to town with a full head of steam after massecring the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. The Titans on the other hand are coming off a tough loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Please us this post to ask questions about the Ravens and answer our questions below. I will do my best to provide you with the most accurate, unbiased answers along with others from the Baltimore Beatdown.

The following is a quick list of generic questions that most Ravens' fans will have... feel free to answer them if you feel so inclined:

1. How exactly does Hasselbeck look?

2. How is Chris Johnson? He's a stud, but only had 24 yards with a 2.7 average.

3. How does the offensive line look? They only allowed 2 sacks but how many pressures?

4. Britt's statistics are impressive. Is he really as good as his statistics or is the Jacksonville secondary bad?

5. How does the defense look? They allowed 97 yards to MJD... Will run defense be an issue versus Baltimore?

The following are both teams' statistics for comparison...

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According to Warren Sapp on the NFL Network, the argument about who's better between Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu is 'not even close.' He believes that Reed is clearly the better player because, according to him, Reed impacts the game more citing Peyton Manning who said "How does he do that?" in reference to Ed Reed.

"It's not even close. When you talk about a safety, because I've had one of the best safeties in the NFL in John Lynch, a bowling ball coming in the hole to knock you out ... When you're a safety in the NFL, there cannot be a blueprint of where I want you or how I want you on the field. You spread Troy Polamalu out, you put him on the hash back there, and I have him exactly where I want to. I've never heard that about John Lynch. I've never heard that about Ronnie Lott. I've never heard that about Ed Reed. The only thing I hear about Ed Reed from the best quarterback that I say is in the game, Peyton Manning, is, 'How does he do that?' and 'What did he see?'"

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Mocking The Draft recently held a live 7 round mock draft with fans/bloggers from every team acting as general managers and making picks for their teams. I had the honor of acting as the Ravens' GM and after a long, laborious draft process, I believe that I've drafted a successful mock class for the Ravens. I'm not going to say that everyone is going to love it because I strictly adhered to a BPA philosophy, which was solely based on my own big board.

That being said, I made two trades in the draft. In both trades, I moved up several picks. I knew ahead of time that I wanted to trade up to draft J.J. Watt if possible. Watt was the eighth overall player on my board and the player I believe would help the Ravens the most in the entire draft. With that in mind, I negotiated a trade with the Rams at 14th overall. I wanted to trade above the Patriots at 17th overall because I believed it was a strong possibility that they would draft Watt. I would have traded with the Patriots or any other team between 14th and 17th overall, but the Rams were the only team that showed interest.

Furthermore, I made out like a bandit in the trade with the Rams. I traded the Ravens' 1st round pick, which is 26th overall and worth 700 points by the trade chart, the 3rd round pick, which is 90th overall and worth 140 points, and the first 6th round pick, which is 175th overall and worth 22.4 points. Therefore, I received the Rams' 14th overall pick, which is worth 1100 points, for only 862.4 points, and that's in the Ravens' favor by 237.6 points, the relative equivalent of the 71st overall pick. Just to illustrate how good that trade was... I was negotiating with the Vikings at 12th overall, and they wanted the Ravens' 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 6th round picks for their 1st round pick. The funny part is that trade was still slightly in my favor. The second trade was more fair but still favored the Ravens. I traded the Ravens' 4th round pick, 122nd overall and 50 points, the second 6th round pick, 186th overall and 18 points, and the 7th round pick, 215th overall and 6.4 points, for the Seattle's 4th round pick, 99th overall and 104 points. That trade favored the Ravens by 29.6 points (104 - 74.4), the equivalent of the 157th overall pick. I made that trade because Marcus Gilbert was the BPA on my board and a huge need for the Ravens that I passed over in the first two picks. I drafted Gilbert at 99th overall, and he was the 59th overall player on my big board. 

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Because of pre-season hype and high expectations, last season left many Ravens fans wondering why the team fell short of their lofty goals, and several confusing and exasperating performances late in the season left many wondering how the team can improve from last season and fix their many apparent holes.

Before we look at how the Ravens can improve, let’s take a look back at exactly what happened last season and try to determine what areas would benefit most from off-season improvements. I have thought long and hard about last season and the problems that the Ravens encountered. I believe that their problems all began in the off-season with the injury to Jared Gaither and his subsequent placement on injured reserve. That injury started a snowball rolling and would grow into a critical weakness by the end of the season. The lack of depth at the tackle position made Gaither’s injury nearly impossible to cover. The passing game suffered due to losing its blind side protector and needing to move Michael Oher from right to left tackle, and the running game suffered due to losing its most physical lineman. Obviously, the Ravens still fielded an offensive line, but their inability to protect Flacco and run the ball effectively became more and more obvious as the season went on. On top of all that, Oher had a very disappointing season at left tackle, and his struggles made a bad situation even worse. Opposing defensive coordinators began to attack the offensive line and caused the Ravens offense to suffer a drastic drop-off.

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The combine is over and the draft is approaching. Now’s a good time to start looking for prospects that could become Ravens on draft day. We all know that the Ravens don’t draft based on need, so trying to predict their picks is near impossible. That being said, I have to start with perceived need and then try to assess the value of players based on where they're predicted to be drafted versus what their value is to the Ravens. That should approximate the likelihood of a player to be drafted by the Ravens. It’s still a largely subjective process, but it at least has some guidelines. The following is a list, in no particular order, of prospects that I believe the Ravens could target on draft day:

1. Ryan Kerrigan, DE, Purdue, 6'4 267, middle 1st round.

Kerrigan has been extremely productive in college. His greatest strengths are his strength at the point of attack and his natural playmaking ability. Kerrigan looks a lot like Paul Kruger did in college and played a similar role for his team. The main difference is that Kerrigan is entering the draft as a legitimate defensive end and unlike Kruger who needed to bulk up, Kerrigan could make an immediate impact in that role. Kerrigan’s biggest weakness is that he’s not very versatile. He can drop into coverage but will not be very effective at it in the NFL. This may be a major blow to his value with the Ravens, who would most likely view Kerrigan as an OLB/DE prospect. If the Ravens want to draft Kerrigan, they will need to hope he falls to them at pick number 26, because most scouts have him graded as a middle first-round pick.

2. Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin, 6'7 314, middle 1st round.

Carimi is the best run-blocker in the entire draft in my opinion. When he gets his hands on a defender, it’s all but a guarantee that he will push them backward. In the running game, he’s a one man wrecking crew and will often use his block to wall off entire sides of the field allowing to running back to either hit a huge hole or reach the second level with enough speed to gain several extra yards from shear momentum. Furthermore, Carimi is also a surprisingly good pass-blocker. He’s not amazing but can hold his own versus good talent. He could be a good left tackle in the NFL, but I think he could be an elite right tackle right away. I would love to see Carimi drafted by the Ravens, especially if they decide not to resign Jared Gaither. Carimi could play right tackle which would allow Yanda to move back to right guard and Oher to remain at left tackle. If the Ravens want to draft Carimi, they will need to hope he falls to them at pick number 26, because most scouts believe that he’s one of the best linemen in the draft.

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The Ravens' rookies report to training camp tomorrow, and a new season officially begins. Before that happens, let's look at the new players on the roster and determine who the Ravens' stud players are, which players are underrated and which players are question marks headed into the season. This is all my opinion so feel free to chime in.

The Ravens have been aggressive this off-season, but not many people would accuse them of being reckless. They have taken a below-average receiving corp and made it one of the deepest in the league by adding Anquan Boldin, Donte' Stallworth, Dennis Pitta and Ed Dickson. They took a defense that struggled to pressure the quarterback and added one of the top pass-rushers in the 2010 NFL draft in Sergio Kindle. They also took a traditionally feared run-defense and added a behemoth nose tackle in Terrence Cody. These moves have made it obvious that the Ravens' front office and leadership believe that this year could be very special for the team.

Most Ravens fans agree, and there's an almost tangible feeling of excitement among the fan-base. On the other hand, many fans are still apprehensive. Many of us remember the 2007 season when the Ravens were also pre-season Super Bowl favorites but disappointed with a 5-11 record. We also remember the up and down seasons under Brian Billick and are still wondering whether those days are over. We've all enjoyed that last two seasons and hope that John Harbaugh's consistency is here to stay, but everyone knows how quickly things can change in the NFL. That being said, things are still looking good for the Ravens going into the 2010 season. They are loaded with star players, and nearly every position has solid players as starters and backups. 

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Football is a complex sport on any level. On any play, there are millions of factors that determine the success or failure of either side, but the best thing about football is that it’s competitive. That’s what keeps people watching. Both teams are trying to win the game, and the success of the winning team is based solely on its performance. On any level of competition, the biggest contributing factor to victory is talent. In the modern NFL, every player has talent and most have played football their entire lives. Typically, games in the NFL are very close, and most teams are well matched in talent. Therefore, the factors of game-planning and execution have become more important than ever. On defense, game-planning is basically refining their defensive coverages and tailoring them to their current opponent, and good execution starts with practice and ends with coaches putting their players in positions to be successful. 

Football fans have heard the terminology and typically have a good understanding of basic defensive strategy. The idea is to keep the other team from scoring. On run plays, the defense needs to tackle the ball carrier and would like to do so behind the line of scrimmage. On pass plays, the defense needs to cover the offense’s receivers long enough to pressure the quarterback into a bad throw or sack. That’s the great thing about football. Even the casual fan can determine if the offense or defense is achieving its goal on a given play. However, anyone who has played football on any level will tell you that there’s more to it than simply lining up and throwing a ball around. On defense, players must learn to anticipate and react to the offense’s plays. Even more than that, they must learn to work together as a unit. Good offenses will try to force and exploit mismatches in the defense and will use all eleven of their players to do so. Therefore, the defense must work together if they want to have any hope of success. 

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I had an interesting discussion where I argued a point regarding the Ravens' performance last season. Technically, it's only a theory, and the more that I thought about it, the more I began to question it. Obviously, many aspects of football are arbitrary and random. Guys can wake-up and have a good or bad day on the football field for no apparent reason. This is the human factor that can never be perfectly described by any one theory and what makes football so fun to watch. That being said, many theories can help to discover and illustrate what may be happening in reality. My theory is that the Ravens' struggles versus quality opponents last season was a result, in large part, to quarterback play on both sides of the ball. This would seem obvious, but my theory is a little more specific.

Basically, I believe that Joe Flacco's quarterback play was worse toward the end of the season and the defense's play was better at the end of the season. The fall of Flacco and the rise of the defense created a unique situation that affected the entire season. Since Flacco was having less success versus opposing defenses and wasn't able to score as efficiently, pressure was put on the defense. Luckily, the defense improved, but the weaknesses in pass coverage and pressure could only be covered up. As a result, the Ravens continued to struggle versus teams with good quarterbacks because Flacco was unable to keep scoring-pace with quarterbacks who had success versus his defense. Obviously, teams with good quarterbacks and good defenses were the hardest for the Ravens to overcome. In my mind, Flacco's drop-off can be attributed to the injuries that he suffered in the Vikings game, and the defense's poor play in the beginning of the season can be attributed to the new system under Greg Mattison.

The argument was basic and based on general feelings. After I made the argument, I began to think about its plausibility. There are so many different and valid arguments that can be made against it. I watched every snap last season, and I definitely got the feeling that Flacco was "on" early in the season but seemed to slow down as the season progressed. I also felt like the defense started out weak but finished strong. Many other fans have expressed the same feelings, and the statistics for Flacco and the defense seem to agree. However, it's hard to make an argument connecting both Flacco's play and the defense's play to wins and loses. For every fact that I could point out, there is one that contradicts it, so I decided to discover the plausibility of the argument for myself. 

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There’s been a lot of talk about defensive linemen in reference to the Ravens' draft needs, and it is well deserved. Last season, the Raven’s defense was still very good, but the pass rush was lacking to say the least. That leads many draft experts and fans screaming for the Ravens to draft an elite pass rusher in the upcoming draft.

I do not believe that the Ravens problem is due to a lack of pass rushers. In fact, I believe that the Ravens have some of the league's best every-down and situational pass rushers already on the team. So, what is the problem then? I believe that the problem started in the 2008 season and only became more obvious as last season progressed. The problem is with the personnel that the Ravens have playing in their front three. In this article, we will look at how the Ravens current players along the defensive line are affecting the pass rush and why the Ravens really need an elite nose tackle.

This article is basically a spin-off of my last article, Football 101: The Ravens Hybrid Defense. I suggest that you read that article before you read this because it will give you a better understanding of this topic.

Last season the Ravens defense could never seem to get pressure when rushing four defenders. It was very frustrating because Ravens fans are accustom to the Ravens consistently dominating games with their defense. When the Ravens would rush three or four defenders, opposing quarterbacks could seemingly take all day to survey the field and find and open receiver. In order to get pressure, the defense needed to send five or more blitzers at the quarterback, and especially versus good quarterbacks, this proved to be the Ravens weakness all season long. If they didn’t blitz enough, the opposing quarterback had all day to find a receiver, but if they blitzed too much, there was such a huge hole in coverage that the quarterback could find the open receiver immediately. They found balance later in the season, but anyone could see that good quaterbacks were nearly impossible for the Ravens to defend against.

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Over the last decade, the Ravens have possessed one of the strongest and most intimidating defenses in the NFL. It has been built around Ray Lewis, one of the best linebackers and defenders in NFL history, but Lewis is only a part of Baltimore’s complex defensive system that has become known as "Organized Chaos." 

What makes the Ravens' defensive machine work, and why has it been successful for so long? In truth, the Ravens have not been running the same defensive scheme during their entire successful reign, which includes a Super Bowl victory in 2001.  Under Marvin Lewis (1996-2001), the Ravens ran a more conventional 4-3 defense. The 4-3 defense allowed Ray Lewis, in his prime, to roam the field from sideline to sideline and put the burden of success squarely on his shoulders. Now, Lewis didn’t do it alone. The Ravens' defensive line in those days was very impressive too, but the factor that made the Ravens' defense special and dominating was the elite talent of Ray Lewis. 

As Lewis aged, he wasn’t able to cover the entire field, and the Ravens' defense needed to evolve. They had the perfect solution… the 3-4 defense. The 3-4 defense took pressure off Lewis, but still allowed him to dominate in run defense. The Ravens have never really used a conventional 3-4 defense. In fact, the Ravens never really switched to a 3-4 defense per se. It was a slow metamorphosis that started with Mike Nolan’s innovations and was ultimately perfected by Rex Ryan. Even today, the Ravens do not run a strict 3-4 defense. The system that they pioneered has become known as a "hybrid" defense because of its ability to shift between 3-4 and 4-3 looks. 

In this article, we’re going to get an overview of the Ravens' hybrid defense. The system is so complex that a complete analysis could fill many hundred pages, but an overview should help everyone understand the basic principles behind this highly innovative and effective defensive scheme. We’ll look at the different positions and the preferred player types and hopefully, discover the factors that make the hybrid defense successful.  

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In a recent quote, Harbaugh would not rule out re-signing Frank Walker, a player most Ravens fans dislike.

Are the Ravens interested in bringing back Walker?

"It’s funny you ask the question and the whole fan base, everybody’s going to be like, ‘Don’t do it.’ But Frank’s a better player than what people think," Harbaugh said at the NFL owners meetings. "I get as frustrated with Frank as anybody does and Frank knows that. He’ll tell you about it and he’ll laugh about it. Frank has got as much talent as any corner in the league. He’s tough, he’s competitive, he’s a physical guy. He loves to play the game. When he gets carried outside of his technique he struggles just like any corner does. When he stays within himself and plays technique, he plays very well."

Harbaugh added, "Frank has got some other options right now, too. People have respect for him. We may not be able to get him signed back. Right now, I’m not so sure that he’s not the best guy out there. You can give me a list of guys and we could think about it, but.. He knows how we play. He knows how we practice. He knows the expectations. We’ve had him for two years. We’ve been through some moments as we all know. And those moments you kind of grow through those things. Hopefully, he understands now what’s expected of him."

There haven't been many posts about the draft, so I figured to get them started. I've already watched tons of tape on many of the prospects for this draft and have been compiling a list of college players that I believe could be of interest to the Ravens. Instead of listing every player that I believe the Ravens could potentially draft, I'm only going to list three of the best prospects for the first and second rounds. These players are based on the following criteria: 1) The prospect plays a position that is widely considered a need for the Ravens. 2) The prospect is likely to be available when the Ravens select in the player's corresponding round. Finally, I will select one player in each round from the following positions of need:

1. Tight End
2. 3-4 Defensive End
3. Cornerback

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