My Thoughts on the Ravens First Preseason Game
Thursday night the Baltimore Ravens had their first preseason game of the 2012 season and they did not disappoint in a nice win over the Atlanta Falcons. Something good to look at in this game is that the Ravens outscored the Falcons 24-0 (17 in the 3rd quarter) in the second half which is a good sign because a lot of those guys fighting for roster spots played well.
Who Stood out?
Curtis Painter definitely helped prove that he can be a solid back up for Joe Flacco. Tyrod Taylor also didn’t look bad at quarterback, especially from a rushing stand point.
Western Kentucky product Bobby Rainey I think had the best overall game in his debut. He has a chance to make this team as a running back and return man. Rainey, an undrafted rookie, had 12 carries for 36 yards. He also looked good catching the ball out of the back field with 3 catches and 28 yards, 1 of those receptions being a touchdown. It is worth mentioning he had a fumble too. In the return game, he returned 6 punts for 50 yards and 1 kick off for 26 yards. He can get it done in the all purpose yards category.
Wide Receiver Deonte Thompson from the University of Florida played like he wants to be on this 53 man Ravens roster along with roster locks Torrey Smith, Anquan Boldin, and Jacoby Jones at receiver, and Ed Dickson at tight end. Thompson had 3 catches for 53 yards including a 22 yard touchdown.
By far, the most impressive player on the defensive side of the ball is safety Omar Brown who is another undrafted free agent. Brown, who played at Marshall, seemed to always be in the right place at the right time. He only had 2 tackles, but he had 1 pass deflection, 1 interception, and 2 fumble recoveries.
Veteran Brendon Ayanbadejo impressed me with his 4 tackles, 1 pass deflection, and an interception with a 40 yard return. Albert McClellan (going into his 3rd season), got some praise during and after the game at defensive end with 5 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for loss, and 2 quarterback hits. Sergio Kindle didn’t have a bad game with 3 tackles and I still look to see more from him. Pernell McPhee is another guy who got praise on rushing defense, which is something that doesn’t come up on the stat sheet.
2 Guys who I weren’t really paying attention to, who I definitely will now because of their impressive debuts, are Bobby Rainey and Omar Brown. I hope they can keep it up and other guys start to emerge as well. The Ravens next game is Friday against the Detroit Lions 8 PM on Fox.
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