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WEEK 5 IN REVIEW |
| Pre Game Analysis: |
Fine whine ages nicely in Cleveland The "Art of Smack" elevates fan bitterness over Ravens visit To borrow an old phrase, you can't swing a dead cat in Cleveland without hitting some Baltimore and/or Ravens-bashing gentleman or lady. That's "Crackmore" and "Ratbirds" for those of you who have denied yourself the pleasure of visiting a Cleveland Browns bulletin board. The story is well documented: A fight with city officials over a new stadium, the moving of a beloved football team with a proud tradition and disappointed, bitter fans left behind in the dust. Sound familiar? Brownie fans, we know the feeling and you good people have a few legs up on us. Cleveland has their team, their name and their colors back. They can even slap on a helmet logo if they ever decide to get fancy. The fans of Cleveland will not empathize with us, nor will we with them. It's human nature, that unmistakable "looking out for #1" in all of us. Let bygones be bygones? Hardly. Nowhere is this hostility more evident than at my friend and fellow webmaster Art Bietz's Cleveland Rant. Artie has spent a great deal of time and effort building his "I Hate Baltimore and the Ravens" theme park and it's well worth putting on your hard hat and taking a ride. They say that time heals all wounds. Perhaps, as has happened in Baltimore, when the Browns step up to contender status, the bitterness, ill feelings and name-calling will drift by the wayside and the action on the gridiron will take center stage in Cleveland. Until then, the Dawgs will continue to bark at the good ole honest, hardworking "Crackmore" mailman. Week 5
Predictions:
(open dates: New Orleans, N.Y. Jets, Oakland) |
WEEK 5: THE FACTS:
Visit the ESPN Ravens Clubhouse: Browns
fans still carrying grudge As a regular visitor to some of the more
popular Cleveland Browns bulletin boards, I have first-hand
knowledge of the ill feelings towards our fair city and
the Ravens or "Ratbirds", as they endearingly
term us. Believe me, these guys are still madder than a
pack of wet hens. With a young expansion team still years
away from contention, the “Dawg Pound” would
like nothing better than to see their beloved new team
somehow come away victorious over the Ravens on Sunday.
Will it happen? Probably not. Last year, Brian Billick
played a head game on the Browns that would have made
Bill Clinton proud. Shifting the focus away from the
Ravens' first visit to Cleveland since the move and onto
potential officiating problems, the sly head coach
sandbagged a city and Baltimore waltzed away with a
convincing 41-9 victory before a rapidly emptying
Cleveland Browns Stadium. So what is different this year?
The Browns are improved --but the Ravens are MUCH
improved. Setting aside the understandable wishes of the
Ohio fans, the teams themselves are at greatly different
levels. Baltimore is on the verge of producing an all
around powerhouse, that is, a suffocating defense, a
grind-it-out offense with big-play potential and a
special teams unit boasting some real hitters. The Browns
are still in the infant stage, stockpiling high draft
picks, as is the custom of an expansion team. Quarterback
Tim Couch and defensive end Courtney Brown will become
household names in the next few years, once a supporting
cast is built around them. Unfortunately for Cleveland,
the Ravens arrive in just a few days. I look for the
Ravens' offense to continue its growth on Sunday, with
Jamal Lewis and Priest Holmes eating up yardage and clock
time while opening up opportunities for Tony Banks and
the young, fleet receivers. The Browns, like all
Baltimore opponents, will have grave difficulty running
the ball and their hopes will ride on Tim Couch's ability
to throw under pressure, a daunting task for a second
year man working behind a suspect offensive line. Michael
McCrary, along with Ron Burnett, who is bidding to become
this year’s Raven’s MVP, should once again
wreak havoc in the Cleveland backfield. |
| Post Game Analysis: |
Week 5 |
Ravens
lay another goose egg Team records second straight shutout; beat Browns 12-0 Not since the great Bears defense of '85 has a team thrown back-to-back shutouts at opponents. You can put the 2000 Baltimore Ravens right up there next to "Da Bears". The seemingly inpenetrable defensive line of the Ravens held a young and spunky Cleveland Browns team to 23 yards rushing and displayed yet another impressive goal-line stand. Forcing 4 turnovers, Baltimore stymied and frustrated a hard-fighting Cleveland team and came away with a workman-like 12-0 victory. The offense moved the ball well, rushing for 188 yards but once again had trouble in the red zone. Four field goals by Matt Stover accounted for all of the Ravens' scoring. The Ravens remain atop the AFC Central division with a 4-1 mark, the team's best-ever start.
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