There weren’t many holes in the defense to exploit as the Vikings' front
seven muscled the Ravens' blockers either into a stalemate or pushed them into
the backfield.
After gaining 116 yards in the Ravens’ first two preseason contests, Smith was
limited to seven yards on four carries for a 1.8 average.
Smith was slammed to the ground on an emphatic tackle by former University of
Maryland star linebacker E.J. Henderson on the Ravens’ first offensive play.
“Overall, it was all right, but the whole offense was struggling,” said Smith,
who learned early in the week that he would start in place of Jamal Lewis, who’s
recuperating from a strained left hip flexor. “When you struggle up front, it’s
not a good game for the running backs.”
When asked if the blocking was as strong against the Vikings as it had been in
the previous two preseason games, Smith replied: “No, definitely not. We didn’t
get many rushing yards.”
Mike Anderson didn't fare much better than Smith, gaining 11 yards on 7 carries
for a 1.6 average.
However, Smith didn’t feel that the Vikings had a clear edge in motivation or
intensity.
“I didn’t feel like they were really fired up,” he said. “I didn’t get that
energy from them.”
Offensive guard Edwin Mulitalo acknowledged missing his block on the opening
play.
“I missed my block, other guys make mistakes and it just compounds,” he said.
“It makes it tough to cope.”
DOWNWARD SPIRAL: The Ravens’ defense allowed only three points in the first
half, but weren’t nearly as stingy when it came to yardage. Especially the
secondary.
The Ravens allowed 90 of the Vikings’ 122 yards in the first half on passes.
The major breakdowns were missed tackles and conservative coverage techniques
where cornerbacks Chris McAlister and Samari Rolle essentially conceded the
short, underneath pass to quarterback Brad Johnson.
“The only positive we had going was that we only gave up three points,” outside
linebacker Adalius Thomas said. “It seemed like we just couldn’t make a tackle.
There were too many miscommunications going on and we slipped up.
“It was just bad, just plain bad. It was a little bit of everything: missed
tackles, communication, just the way we rubbed elbows with each other. We got
beat across the board.”
Johnson, 37, completed 9 of 15 passes for 95 yards, including five completions
of 10 yards or higher.
“Brad Johnson is pretty good,” defensive coordinator Rex Ryan said. “It’s tough
to get to him because he gets rid of the ball so fast and he’s decisive with
where he goes.”
OGDEN UPDATE: Offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden’s preseason debut didn’t receive
glowing reviews from an important critic: himself.
The nine-time All-Pro allowed defensive end Erasmus James to get past him
upfield on a 3rd-and-3 situation at the Vikings’ 49-yard line, forcing Steve McNair to throw shorter than intended to wideout Derrick Mason.
“It felt like I had not played football in about seven or eight months,” Ogden
said. “I feel like I’m playing a little high, so on a scale of one to 10, I’d
give it a six.”
Ogden is trying to lose 15 to 20 pounds after missing an entire training camp
following his father’s death.
It was a different experience altogether for James, who recalled struggling
against Ogden a year ago.
“Last year, I couldn’t get past him and he was covering me a lot,” James said.
“It felt great to get back there to the quarterback.”
TURBULENCE: The Ravens experienced an unforgettable white-knuckle flight into
the Twin Cities because of severe turbulence caused by tornadoes in the Midwest.
The team landed safely, but the extended rocking of the plane caused several
players to become nauseous.
“It was the worst plane ride ever,” linebacker Gary Stills said. “You had guys
on the plane going, ‘Oh, we’re going to die.’ It was terrible and I never want
to experience that again.
“There was no warning. Stewardesses were walking around like nothing was going
on. I’m glad they didn’t tell us because if they had said we’re about go down..
I was more concerned about my stomach."
PUNTING UPDATE: Rookie Sam Koch may have made winning the punting competition a
fait accompli, and he has designs on claiming the kickoff specialist job.
The sixth-round draft pick from Nebraska averaged 51 yards on five punts,
including a long punt of 61 yards. Plus, Koch kicked off for 64 and 62 yards and
held for kicker Matt Stover.
Koch appears to be in the driver’s seat for the job over veteran Leo Araguz, who
had a 42-yarder on his lone punt.
“I’m not going to ever say it’s over until the coaches tell me that,” Koch said.
“I'm optimistic about how things are going and it felt great to punt well."
SCOUTING REPORT: Former Washington Redskins quarterback Doug Williams -- a
personnel executive for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- was in the Metrodome
pressbox to prepare an advance scouting report. He'll have plenty to tell coach
Jon Gruden after this lackluster performance.
TRAINING ROOM: The Ravens reported no injuries. However, rookie cornerback
Ronnie Prude was limping noticeably after the game.
QUICK HITS: Linebacker Terrell Suggs had seven tackles and a sack, statistics
that were matched exactly by backup middle linebacker Mike Smith. ... Rookie
defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, the team's first-round draft pick, was much more
active and registered his first NFL tackle. ... Undrafted rookie quarterback
Drew Olson saw his first action, completing 1 of 2 passes for 18 yards. ...
Rookie running backs Cory Ross and P. J. Daniels rushed for 23 and 19 yards,
respectively. ... Defensive tackle Justin Bannan forced a fumble.
Aaron Wilson writes for the Carroll County Times