Bracing for a Baltimore Beatdown
Forgive us for being pessimistic, but the only realistic chance of a Seahawks win today is if the Baltimore Ravens forget to show up at CenturyLink Field this afternoon. Obviously the Ravens will show up physically, but we're talking about an absence of the mental variety. Baltimore could be forgiven for assuming that they will beat the Seahawks, after all, the majority of the football watching populace would agree with the assessment. Such a mentality could be an opening for the Seahawks...a very small opening.
It has been said that two-thirds of the earth is covered by water. The remaining third? That's covered by Baltimore Ravens' safety Ed Reed. And he is just one member of the solid Ravens defense, which includes Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs. It has been over a month since the Seahawks were able to put up more than 13 points in a game, and the Ravens D does not inspire confidence that things will change for Seattle.
Speaking of defense, the Seahawks run defense has taken a hit in the last few weeks, which means they will need to whip themselves back in shape to take on Baltimore's power rushing duo of Ray Rice and Ricky Williams. The pass defense shouldn't have an easy time of it either. Wide receiver Anquan Boldin is playing well, and rookie Torrey Smith revealed that he has scoring capabilities last week. Oh, and Ray Rice has been known to catch a pass or two between runs.
As for the Seahawks offense, by now we are all well versed in their shortcomings. Even with Tavaris Jackson firmly back in the starting spot, he hasn't been able to ignite any fires with Sidney Rice, Mike Williams, or Doug Baldwin. Meanwhile, Marshawn Lynch, in spite of rushing for 135 yards last week, has not been able to establish a run game confident enough to alleviate some of the pressure on Jackson and the passing game. Perhaps Leon Washington could be put to more use?
In light of such difficulties, we are being realistic when we say we are prepared for a Ravens win this afternoon. However, we can't help but employ some optimism when we hope that the Seahawks will continue to improve.
How do you think the Seahawks will fare against Baltimore today?
