Our new pal 'Rexx' from Baltimore Beatdown has a nice post up today over at his site titled 'How to Beat the New York Giants.'
Here are some of his thoughts on what the Baltimore Ravens have to do in order to win Sunday.
So then how do our Ravens go into the Meadowlands and leave Sunday with a victory over the 8-1 and defending Super Bowl Champs? There are only two chinks in the armor that I think we can plan to exploit. The first is in our control, the second we'll need New York's cooperation. The Ravens lead the league in time of possession. If we can have a couple of long, time consuming drives that result in points, that will wear down the Giants defense, as their offense also ranks high in time of possession and their defense is just not used to being kept on the field longer than the offense. At the same time, the Ravens will need every advantage they can get and to me that translates to a wide open playbook, including trick plays. A quick, easy score can give us some breathing room and take pressure off Joe Flacco and the rest of the offense, while giving them the confidence to move the ball and keep the Giants alert and on their heels.
The second item that we will need the Giants to cooperate with us for is that while the Ravens turnover differential is -2, the Giants are at +6, which is tied for the best in the NFC, but lags far behind the Titans +11 which leads the NFL. The Ravens will need Eli Manning to continue his streak of throwing an interception in the past two games. This should help the Ravens get the short field they feast upon to drive the ball downhill to the end zone. While the Giants defeated the Ravens next opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles last week, they did give up 31 points in the victory, proving that as good as their defense is, it can be scored upon, and we all know the Ravens are averaging over 33 points during their current four game winning streak.
Last, but certainly not least, is the ability of Special Teams to affect the outcome of the game. The Ravens absolutely must shut down the Giants return game if they want to keep this game close and have a chance to pull another one out on the road. Conversely, they will need a big return or two to give them a boost and put the Giants on alert.
I am not going to counter with a 'How to Beat the Ravens' post.
That is not out of conceit, or out of disrespect to a very good Ravens football team.
It is simply this -- I don't feel like I have to analyze anything. The Giants simply need to be the Giants on Sunday.
Suffocating defense, balanced offense including enough running and some big plays in the passing game, solid special teams and win the turnover battle.
That has, for the most part, been the formula that won the Giants a Super Bowl and has led them to an 8-1 start.
If the Giants stick to that it will be good enough Sunday, too.