I haven't blogged since the Super Bowl, and I probably won't blog again for a while (at least not until the draft), but the 2009 schedule was just released, and it's worth taking a quick look at the way the upcoming season breaks down for the hometown team. One thing you can count on, there are games that look easy right now that will look a lot tougher when they get here, and there are games that look tough now that will end up looking much easier. The most one can do, therefore, is to say: IF LAST SEASON'S RESULTS CARRY OVER INTO NEXT SEASON ... which of course they never do.
Still, IF LAST SEASON'S RESULTS CARRY OVER INTO NEXT SEASON, here's how things look right now for the purple and black:
WEEK 1: VS CHIEFS (2008 record: 2-14): There aren't many sweeter ways to open the season than at home against the woeful Chiefs. Matt Cassel gets his first test right away, and even with our aforementioned caveat, a Chiefs win here would qualify as a major upset. Were this game in November or December I might temper my confidence (slightly), but in Week 1, for a team that last played in the AFC Championship game and blew out nearly every inferior team it played in 2008, anything less than total domination by the Ravens would be inexcusable.
WEEK 2: at San Diego (2008 record: 8-8): San Diego's no slouch, last year's .500 record notwithstanding. Presumably Shawne Merriman will be healthy, and they have the talent on both sides of the ball to win this convincingly. But the schedule-makers may have done the Ravens a big favor: In two years under Norv Turner the Chargers are 3-5 in September. They'll talk all summer about starting strong, but it remains to be seen whether they can do it.
WEEK 3: VS CLEVELAND (2008 record: 4-12): Another year, another rebuilding job for the new Browns. This time the task falls to Eric Mangini, whose only winning season with the Jets came when he had a quarterback he could trust. Neither Derek Anderson nor Brady Quinn appear to fit that bill. I'm not ruling out a Cleveland resurgence---stranger things have happened---and I would never overlook a division rival ... but for now, at least, a home game against these Browns falls under the heading "Taking Care of Business."
WEEK 4: at NEW ENGLAND (2008: 11-5): The X-factor here is the health of Tom Brady. If he's anywhere close to his usual, pre-injury self, it spells trouble for a Ravens D that has been torched by good passing teams in recent years. At least the weather at Foxboro shouldn't be a factor, another small favor from the schedule-makers.
WEEK 5: VS CINCINNATI (2008 record: 4-11-1): Really, the same things I said about the Browns apply to the Bengals (now minus T.J. Houshmanzadeh). The health of Carson Palmer remains a question mark (again, for now). Another TCOB game for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
WEEK 6: at Minnesota (2008 record: 10-6): The Vikings should return a stout defense, an electrifying running game, and major questions at quarterback. This one could go either way. No shame in losing if the Vikes bring their A-game, but very winnable nonetheless.
BYE
WEEK 8: VS DENVER (2008 record: 8-8): The Ravens are historically very good the week after a bye, and Denver (like most West Coast teams) was dreadful on the East Coast in 2008. We should know by now the extent to which Josh McDaniels misplayed his hand in the Jay Cutler sweepstakes. It's possibly he'll have Kyle Orton making high-percentage throws to a very talented pair of receivers, and a couple of studs from the 2009 draft (plus Mike Nolan) might have returned the defense to respectability ... but still, at first glance this one seems like another game the Ravens should have no business losing.
WEEK 9: at Cincinnati: Until last year, Paul Brown stadium had not been kind to the Ravens, who'd lost three straight in Cincinnati and four of five. This is one of those games that's impossible to break down until it's upon us.
WEEK 10: at Cleveland: Ditto for this one. It's the second of consecutive road games, which hurts, but it's against a division rival, which helps, and it's Monday Night Football, which could go either way. Interestingly, this game begins a stretch in which the Ravens play three of four in prime time. One more thing before I bring the first half to a close ... thus far, no Steelers.
Keywords: Baltimore Ravens 2009 schedule part I
