Welcome Raven Fans: A gentleman/woman's thread...

I think both teams are going to play well in NOLA. But I do not seem to be hearing from Ravens fans as much as I am from Niners fans that this game is almost a gimme. Yes, Kaep is playung very well right now, Gore is a great RB and your D is pretty stout. But if your pass rush does not pressure Flacco and he has time, he will probably do well against the Niners secondary. And that will create gaps for Rice and Pierce.

This SB will not be a cakewalk for either team. The Ravens have the best red zone defense in the NFL this year. It's one thing to move the ball down the field; it's another to punch it in for 6. And if it comes down to 47 yard FG's, the Niners may be in trouble.

Originally posted by Crow-Magnon:

I think both teams are going to play well in NOLA. But I do not seem to be hearing from Ravens fans as much as I am from Niners fans that this game is almost a gimme. Yes, Kaep is playung very well right now, Gore is a great RB and your D is pretty stout. But if your pass rush does not pressure Flacco and he has time, he will probably do well against the Niners secondary. And that will create gaps for Rice and Pierce.

This SB will not be a cakewalk for either team. The Ravens have the best red zone defense in the NFL this year. It's one thing to move the ball down the field; it's another to punch it in for 6. And if it comes down to 47 yard FG's, the Niners may be in trouble.

This game won't be a gimme , both teams run the same style and are pretty even, it will come down to the final drive and an epic SB IMHO

I hope the term eating crow will have a new meaning come sunday.

Also I wanna point out that IN THIS POSTSEASON (capitalized so yall can hopefully get that i'm not talkin regular season, which dont matter now), the 3 offenses the Ravens beat are traditional, dropback offenses (high-powered, at that). Our offense is a different type of beast, one which'll surely be unfamiliar to the great Raven D.

Now, I think Flacco will have a better day than most of my fellow fans will admit, but at the end of the day, our D is battle-tested against the very best of the elite QBs and elite receiving corps. Ray Rice and the running game will be an x-factor, because we havent yet played a runner at this level so far IN THE PLAYOFFS.

Originally posted by stillpans4gold:

Originally posted by pdizo916:

I feel bad for Atlanta and I like the Ravens


How come we couldn't play teams I hate like the patriots and seahawks?

Yeah I hear yeah, but in the SB we haven't ever played a hated team... Bangles, Broncos, Dolphin, Chargers, and now Raven's. None of those teams I've ever had a hatred for, and I hate a lot of teams. If we ever play the Steelers... oh man, I will watch that game with anger!!!

In the NFC, there aren't many teams i don't hate. I actually don't hate the Falcons. I hate the Packers, but not as much as when they had Farve. They were my #1 hate with Farve. Now it's....

1.) Steelers (Ben Ratheroigngasdg)
2.) Giants (You know why)
3.) Cowboys (That's just eternal)
4.) Seahawks (Pete Carroll)
5.) Lions (Suh, Shwartz)
6.) Packers
7.) Carolina (I really don't like Cam Newton, he shows no sign of humility and love how he's now in the shadow of RGIII, Wilson, luck, and Keap)

I always hated Elway's Donkeys. It was so damn satisfying to wipe that smug grin off his face. Even if it was sloppy thirds after WSH and NYG.

I saw the Ravens-Patriots game and I have to say that I've never seen the Patriots play worse. Now, I'm sure the Ravens D had something to do with that, but Welker AND Hernandez missing easy third down conversions? Come on. As far as this match up is concerned, is the Ravens receiving group as good as the Packers, Falcons or Saints. Is the Ravens D line more physical than the Seahawks, Rams or Bears? Will Joe Flacco automatically perform better than Rodgers, Brady or Brees? Is there a linebacker or a safety on the Ravens who can run with Davis or Walker? And, I always get back to plain old arithmetic and wonder how the Ravens deal with the Niners current version of the Pistol. How do the Ravens stop that set? I've seen two different approaches so far in the playoffs, neither of which worked. Forget about the NIners receivers for a moment. Heck, is there anyone on the Ravens defense who can even run with Kaepernick? He outran the entire Packers secondary, including the 4.3 40 Will Shields. And I don't know about these Ravens blitzes. It turns out Kaepernick is real good against the blitz. He was 9 for 12 against blitzes in the Falcons game and half the time when the Packers blitzed, he was able to step up through them and gouge them for huge gains on the ground.

Anything can happen, Ravens fans and I know the Ravens are hot and I know they're a good team. But, honestly, at this point, I don't think they match up real well with the Niners. In my opinion, the Ravens definitely need to stay hot. Real hot.

Originally posted by spizzy:

Originally posted by TX9R:
One thing that gives me pause, Kaep has had limited success against good defenses. He simply hasn't seen many. ravens aren't what they were but they have woken up in the playoffs and any team that holds Brady to 13 points is a worry. Also legit running games have given us problems, which the Ravens have when they decide they want to. Not feeling as confident as IO was sunday night after looking at these things.

the bears D isnt good? The cards D is pretty solid as well. I read their secondary had some crazy stats

The Bears D completely seemed to take Kaep for granted. The Cardinals defense is vastly overrated.

I don't think we will run the pistol much against the ravens. Staley was man handled by suggs last time around. I don't see Staley holding suggs at the LOS long enough for kap or gore to get proper reads.

I can easily see Kap running for a few large gains but out of a traditional passing situation. I can also see Kap continuing to complete passes down field regardless of who we are playing. Should be a good game, hopefully the 49ers can build a quick lead.

Originally posted by fister30:
I don't think we will run the pistol much against the ravens. Staley was man handled by suggs last time around. I don't see Staley holding suggs at the LOS long enough for kap or gore to get proper reads.

I can easily see Kap running for a few large gains but out of a traditional passing situation. I can also see Kap continuing to complete passes down field regardless of who we are playing. Should be a good game, hopefully the 49ers can build a quick lead.

umm, they would let suggs go free and make him the read.

or pul iupati and blindside him. or miller.



also the baeuty of it is, you can play fake making suggs hesitate and have gore pick him up. there is just so much that can be done out of it.

Originally posted by fister30:
I don't think we will run the pistol much against the ravens. Staley was man handled by suggs last time around. I don't see Staley holding suggs at the LOS long enough for kap or gore to get proper reads.

I can easily see Kap running for a few large gains but out of a traditional passing situation. I can also see Kap continuing to complete passes down field regardless of who we are playing. Should be a good game, hopefully the 49ers can build a quick lead.

Staley might surprise us. He got tossed around by Clay Mathews in the first GB game, but was pretty much lights out in the playoff game (besides the 1 sack) and he was in real pain too.

Originally posted by fister30:
I don't think we will run the pistol much against the ravens. Staley was man handled by suggs last time around. I don't see Staley holding suggs at the LOS long enough for kap or gore to get proper reads.

I can easily see Kap running for a few large gains but out of a traditional passing situation. I can also see Kap continuing to complete passes down field regardless of who we are playing. Should be a good game, hopefully the 49ers can build a quick lead.

Suggs didn't manhandle anybody in that game. He beat Anthony Davis a couple times and embarrassed Rachal. Most of the sacks they got in that game was because of Rachal, doesn't anyone remember that? Rachal was horrible, but not even he was "physically" dominated; he was just a bad player.

Our line is 180 degrees different with Boone at guard, and Kap in the pocket. It's like a completely different team.

Originally posted by Crow-Magnon:
I think both teams are going to play well in NOLA. But I do not seem to be hearing from Ravens fans as much as I am from Niners fans that this game is almost a gimme. Yes, Kaep is playung very well right now, Gore is a great RB and your D is pretty stout. But if your pass rush does not pressure Flacco and he has time, he will probably do well against the Niners secondary. And that will create gaps for Rice and Pierce.

This SB will not be a cakewalk for either team. The Ravens have the best red zone defense in the NFL this year. It's one thing to move the ball down the field; it's another to punch it in for 6. And if it comes down to 47 yard FG's, the Niners may be in trouble.

Both fanbases will be heavily favoring their own team obviously. Id guess 90% of Ravens fans feel that they will win this game, and 90% of Niner fans feel they will also win.

As far as media goes, im hearing a LOT of Ravens hype. Its the east coast familiarity thing, plus theyre getting the Ray Lewis attention. The media in general seems to think that this is meant to be the Ravens' year. Vegas is favoring the Niners because they feel we have the better team, but I think nonpartisan fans/media are picking the Ravens more than the 49ers.

The game is going to come down to 2 factors.

Can the Ravens D stop Colin Kaepernick? and Can the 49ers D keep Joe Flacco off balance?

If the 49ers can make life uncomfortable for Joe Flacco, and Kaepernick isnt held firmly in check, I think the 49ers will win this game. Those are big "IF's" though.

I think the 49ers run D is going to keep the Ravens one dimensional. If there is one thing this Niner D is really good and consistant at doing, its stuffing the rushing attack.

The Cover 2 shell the 49ers have their safeties play will hopefully contain Torrey Smith, and prevent the killer deep ball the Ravens offense lives on. The confusion of Goldson and Tarell Brown on their coverage assignments last week caused just the first time all season we allowed a passing play over 40 yards on the 1st TD to Julio Jones.

Since the Ravens seemed to be uncomfortable facing RGIII earlier this season, it gives the 49ers a cautious hope that Kaepernick might be able to do some damage. I know alot of Ravens fans are thinking they can knock him out of the game on a scramble, like they did to RGIII, but Kap doesnt run wreckless like Griffin. He knows when to slide, or run out of bounds. Hes been responsible and patient with his scrambling this season.

The biggest concern for me is just the fact that the 49ers have struggled against teams built like the Ravens. Teams that are similar to us seem to give us a hard time. But, it all comes back to Mr. X factor. He gives this team the extra dimension it had been lacking. Weve seen similar struggles against the Rams and Seahawks since Kap took over, but they already knew us well. Its hard to say how we match up right now.

Im hoping the Ravens get caught up in the game film from last year. We were on short rest, across the country, and had Alex Smith under center. The ticky tack penalty that called Ginn's early TD catch back also changed the momentum of that game.

The question is, is 2 weeks enough time for a team to prepare for a QB like Colin Kaepernick, who theyve never played before? Our offense throws a TON of looks at defenses, and we audible alot. Between the read option plays, and the exotic sets we line up in and audible from, im hoping the Ravens will get confused here and there.

Originally posted by TheTruth52:

Originally posted by Oregon49erfan:
Well, our offense has been producing more in the playoffs, and lets not forget....We also outscored the Patriots in New England...I think our offense is playing as well or better than NE, and our offense is actually balanced. Add in our far superior defense, and your argument loses merit. Our offense will have more opportunities, and more time with the ball in general than the Patriots did. We will score more than 13 points. I would guess at least double that. I would be surprised if the Ravens put up more than 21

They put up 38 against a higher ranked defense than yours.. on the road... I think the Ravens are capable..

I'm confused..are defenses ranked by yards given up or points given up? I never heard of a team winning with more yards but fewer points..but hey, what do I know?

Niners99, great post.

I realize the 49ers offense is rather unique and has the possibility of being a source of confusion for the Ravens defense. But I would think with two weeks time for veterans such as Lewis, Reed, Suggs and Ngata, let alone Harbaugh, that they will come up with schemes to handle Kaep and the read-option. I think a key will be how do the Niners start out? If it's close through the first half, it's one thing. But if they fall behind like they did against the Falcons, I do not think Baltimore is going to give up 2-3 scores while their offense gets blanked.

Said it right after they won and I will say it again. I am much more scared of the Raven's than I was of the Pats. They are emblematic of the kind of team we have trouble with. Tough defense, bruising ground game, very physical. We are built the same way...with maybe a little more flash since Kap rose to the top. But we have a problem with comming in a little flat sometimes, getting out physicalled early and not dictating the tempo of the game.

Usually though this happens when we do one of a few of things...1) under estimate the opponent, 2) go on short rest, or 3) play a tough stretch of games that wears us down since we dont sub starters. None of those are possible in the Superbowl, we will be rested, jacked, and ready for a fight. I have no doubts the Ravens will give us all the fight we can handle, Still in my heart I think we can and will win this game because we have just a couple more guys on defense that can make a game changing play and just a few more looks on offense that can create a miss match somewhere on the field. This game will come down to a handful of plays or the big mistake. I think we can wind the handful of plays game....the big mistake worries me though.