Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.
Jonathan Ogden retired last summer, leaving the Ravens with a young but deep group of offensive linemen to protect rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. Not surprisingly, Ogden's replacement, Jared Gaither (a former supplementary draft pick) was inconsistent, but occasionally flashed glimpses of big-play potential.
James Harrison could have been a Raven. After the Steelers released him in 2003, Baltimore added him to the roster during the 2004 offseason. But the Ravens released him during training camp, he re-signed with the Steelers, and it sure seems like he's spent the past couple of years trying to remind Baltimore of what it could have had.
He's had six sacks in the past two years against the Ravens. He's forced three fumbles and picked off one pass. So when the Ravens watched the film of their first regular-season games against the Steelers, it must have become clear quite quickly that they had to figure out someway to stop their worst nightmare -- an angry Harrison.
As the Steelers prepare to do the impossible against the Ravens -- beat them three times in the same season -- Baltimore is dealing with its own issues. Chief among them: getting healthy in time for Sunday's AFC Championship game.
Although Pro Bowl linebacker Terrell Suggs has guaranteed he won't be sidelined for Sunday's AFC title game because of an injury that team officials termed a strained right shoulder, Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh didn't sound nearly as optimistic about Suggs' status. ...
"I'm not going to sit here and say it's positive, or we're happy about it," Harbaugh said. "We'll just see how it goes. It's going to be close. He's going to work real hard to try to get back. That's all we know."
Suggs would be a huge loss for the Ravens, although defensive coordinator Rex Ryan has an unbelievable ability to just stick anybody out there without the defense losing any effectiveness.
Undoubtedly, the post-game chatter will be about Joe Flacco being the first rookie quarterback to win two playoff games even though, you know, he completed just 11 of 22 passes for 161 yards and the defense, as usual, had almost everything to do with the final outcome.
Whatever your perspective, the fact remains: Baltimore is headed to the AFC Championship game for the first time since 2000. And they'll do it as the most banged-up squad in the league. On Wednesday, the Dallas Morning News' Rich Gosselin wrote that the Ravens finished 11-5 during the regular season "despite losing 64 games by starters because of injury, the fourth-highest total in the league. Baltimore lost 14 more games by starters than any other playoff team."
And next week, whether the Ravens travel to Pittsburgh or San Diego, they could be without a few more starters. Right tackle Willie Anderson, running back Le'Ron McClain, outside linebacker Terrell Suggs and cornerback Samari Rolle were all injured during the Titans game. McClain did manage to hobble his way through the second half, but was mostly ineffective.
The Bengals have had another busy offseason, and, as usual, it's primarily been dealing with various off-field issues. Chad Ocho Cinco and Chris Henry spent much of the spring and summer in the news, and right before the season, the team released running back Rudi Johnson and offensive tackle Willie Anderson, two guys they certainly could've used during last week's dreadful effort against the Bengals.
For all the distractions, Michael Lombardi writes on SI.com that the Bengals should be more concerned about quarterback Carson Palmer, who had one of the worst outings of his football career -- at any level -- last week. He was 9 of 24 for 94 yards, 0 TDs, and 1 pick against Baltimore. Lombardi wonders if Palmer's mediocre play -- not just last Sunday, but the past few seasons -- are tied to the devastating knee injury he suffered during the 2005 wild card loss to the Steelers.
If I were the Cincinnati Bengals, I would be worried about the play of quarterback Carson Palmer. He has not been the same since the knee injury two years ago and neither has the Bengals offense.
The Bengals are perceived as being an explosive offense, but in reality there is nothing explosive about them. The Bengals need to find some answers for their lackluster offense. They need to get more production from their running game when teams play coverage on them, which is what Baltimore did last week.
I live and work in the Metro Cincinnati area and the Bengals are usually on everyone's brain. During the season, I will gather a few of my co-workers (Tom Otten, William Morgan, Dave Chandler and James Uhlinger) together "at the water cooler" and discuss some Bengals topics.
The 2008 season got off to a rough start with a 17-10 loss to the Ravens last week. With the Bengals holding their home opener against the Titans on Sunday, how do fans view the team?
Sportz: Baltimore started a rookie QB, featured a rookie running back and had a rookie head coach. Was this just a tough loss or is it a sign that this will be a bad season in Cincinnati?
Dave: Sign of "Bungles" as usual. Will we ever stop the run? Magic 8-ball says "not anytime soon."
William: Hate to say it but I think it's going to be a bad season.
James: The window isn't closing -- it was already shut!
Tom: This should be a wake up call for Bengals fans. Sell your tickets and seat licenses -- your parking passes. Burn your jerseys and tear off your bumper stickers. An un-victorious season is on the horizon.
Sportz: Carson Palmer had his career worst QB rating. Is this offense completely broken or is it just the offensive line just not getting it done?
T.J. Houshmandzadeh (he's the smart Bengals wide receiver) gets points for frankness, although, unfortunately, that doesn't do much to change the sorry state of Cincinnati's offense. It's all very confusing, really, since this group has been routinely been one of the most explosive unit's in the league in three of the last four seasons.
"We just suck on offense right now. That's terrible. We can't move the ball. We can't get a first down. We can't run. We can't throw. The defense played great, and we just didn't play good on offense, bottom line."
As for Houshmandzadeh's contention that "the defense played great," I can only assume he was being a smart-ass since that outfit allowed the Ravens to rush for 229 yards, including a 38-yard Joe Flacco touchdown scamper. And that's rookie Joe Flacco, who was making his first NFL start and runs like he's wearing cement moon boots.
I understand why Cincy's front office cut ties with Rudi Johnson and Willie Anderson (to save a few buck) but they could've used both of them yesterday. Luckily, Chris Henry made an immediate impact: he didn't register a catch despite being on the game-day roster, which is what happens when you're serving a league-mandated suspension.
The Bengals made a commitment to clean up the organization after a string of embarrassing off-field incidents (my personal favorite: Chris Henry getting arrested for brandishing a firearm in public ... while wearing a Chris Henry jersey). That lasted about six months.
The team decided to re-sign Henry this summer despite all his baggage (that's figurative baggage, Tatum Bell), and in recent weeks, veteran leaders Rudi Johnson and Willie Anderson have been released. Interesting personnel philosophy.
Truthfully, Cincinnati parted ways with Johnson because of money and health issues, but his replacement, Chris Perry, has a long history of injuries. The former 2004 first-round pick has played in just 22 games in three seasons, and started just three. But if Perry can stay on the field, he offers more versatility than Johnson, who was more of a straight-ahead runner.
"It's cool," Anderson said. "The organization was real cool. I was kind of nervous."
Former Bengals wide receivers coach Hue Jackson, now Ravens quarterbacks coach, took Anderson on a tour of the Ravens castle-like facility in Owings Mills, Md.
"When Hue took me down into the locker room, I was nervous to meet all the guys," Anderson said, "but then Ray Lewis, Lorenzo Neal, Chris McAlister, all the guys, came running up to me, it made me feel at home."
Last week, Anderson was the longest tenured Bengal. On Sunday, he will be facing his old team when the Ravens host Cincinnati at Whatever-It's-Named-This-Year Stadium.
For Anderson, this is a pretty nice deal. Having lost his starting job, the Bengals wanted him to take a pay cut near $1.5 million. He refused and was quickly released. Now he gets a chance to start with a little more coin in his pocket.
I live and work in the Metro Cincinnati area and the Bengals are usually on everyone's brain. During the season, I will gather a few of my co-workers (Tom Otten, William Morgan and Dave Chandler) together "at the water cooler" and discuss some Bengals topics.
The 2008 season begins this Sunday when the Bengals play the Ravens. Last year, there were high expectations for Cincinnati when these two met on Monday Night Football. What's the buzz heading into this year's contest?
Sportz: Alright, what do you see the Bengals doing against the Ravens this Sunday?
Tom: They will lose. At least that's my bet.
William: Winning a close, tough game by six.
Dave: Sneaking away with a win ... or making Flacco look like a future Hall Of Famer like so many other quarterbacks in the past.
Sportz: This one's tough. Nothing in the preseason lends me to think Cincinnati will win ... but Baltimore is starting a rookie QB. Man, if the Bengals defense gets smacked down this week, you may as well throw in the towel. The young defense had an up-and-down preseason. I'm trying to figure out if this is a defense on an upswing or just another bad Bengals D.
Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.
James Harrison could have been a Raven. After the Steelers released him in 2003, Baltimore added him to the roster during the 2004 offseason. But the Ravens released him during training camp, he re-signed with the Steelers, and it sure seems like he's spent the past couple of years trying to remind Baltimore of what it could have had.
As the Steelers prepare to do the impossible against the Ravens -- beat them three times in the same season -- Baltimore is dealing with its own issues. Chief among them: getting healthy in time for Sunday's AFC Championship game. 
Undoubtedly, the post-game chatter will be about Joe Flacco being the first rookie quarterback to win two playoff games even though, you know, he completed just 11 of 22 passes for 161 yards and the defense, as usual, had almost everything to do with the final outcome. 
I live and work in the Metro Cincinnati area and the Bengals are usually on everyone's brain. During the season, I will gather a few of my co-workers (Tom Otten, William Morgan, Dave Chandler and James Uhlinger) together "at the water cooler" and discuss some Bengals topics.
The Cincinnati Enquirer is reporting that former Bengal Willie Anderson will sign a three-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens worth $11 million.
