Ravens vs. Chargers. Who ya got?

[ChaosLex]

Let's try this again.

[Dwight Schrute]

I'll be there celebrating my 30th bday and looking for a big win.

[NewMarketSean]

Chargers are a bit banged up after their win last night. I've got the Ravens but it's a homer pick for me...I picked them to lose on my official prediction blog.

[JohnnyK27]

Chargers are a bit banged up after their win last night. I've got the Ravens but it's a homer pick for me...I picked them to lose on my official prediction blog.

Really wasnt that impressed with the Chargers...Personally the Raiders lost that game more than the Chargers won it.

[Sports Guy]

The Ravens have 3 swing games this year, on the road.

Minnesota, SD and GB.

The SD game is the most important one due to them being in the AFC.

This isn't a must win but it is an extremely important game...With us likely losing at NE and at home to Indy, it would be good to take 2 out of 3 vs SD and Pitt.

Going to SD isn't some kind of a daunting task either.

We should be able to run the ball and control some clock.

Looks like SD lost their center last night, which is obviously going to hurt their line.

[Don_Aase_Fan]

Taking the Ravens here, but it's an admittedly biased pick.

I don't doubt for a second that we can go into SD and get a win. They weren't overly impressive against Oakland, but that's just one game. It's futile to make judgments on any team after just one game in Week 1 IMO. I do like how Oakland successfully ran the ball on them and hopefully we can do the same against them. Sproles and Gates really scare me, as they give us serious matchup problems over the middle especially if Gooden can't play.

This game is about as big as it gets for a Week 2 game. A contending team on the road. They need to beat either SD or NE this month (or both) to show that they belong in the AFC "elite" discussion.

[itsernst]

I will be at the game on sunday. Alot of my friends out here are worried, as I think they should be. Chargers looked one dimensional. As long as you keep the ball away from Sproles on kickoffs.

They were saying LT must be hurt, and if so, that makes me chargers one dimensional and the ravens should blitz blitz blitz.

[Skeptical]

I don't think that i'm being a homer when i say that the Ravens have an overall better team than the Chargers.

I think our defense is better. They have the pressure up front to stop guys like LT and Sproles. I think our corners can easily cover guys like Chambers and Jackson. As usual the key is going to be to limit Gates and keep him out of the end zone. Between our linebackers and our safeties, we have the speed to clog the middle.

On offense, our young offensive line is going to get better every week. The Ravens will dominate the time of possession by running the ball and completing short passes to Mason, Washington, and Heap. I really think that Mark Clayton is going to get better from week to week. He doesn't have an easy match-up this week, but he showed a lot of maturity this past weekend against the Chiefs.

Prediction: Ravens 24-Chargers 14

[Sports Guy]

Gaither does have issues sometimes with speedy pass rushers...So, the Merriman/Gaither matchup is going to be very important.

We don't want to have to keep Heap on the line to block..Need him out there causing matchup troubles.

[birdsfan4ever]

Gaither does have issues sometimes with speedy pass rushers...So, the Merriman/Gaither matchup is going to be very important.

We don't want to have to keep Heap on the line to block..Need him out there causing matchup troubles.

I think Ray Rice should be pretty effective running at Merriman and on screens to his side.

[Hank Scorpio]

I picked San Diego by accident.

I'd be surprised if the Ravens lost this game in spite of the travel & time difference.

[ChaosLex]

You'll see a different Chargers team Sunday afternoon from the one you saw last night, IMO.

I truly believe this will be a close game.

[itsernst]

You'll see a different Chargers team Sunday afternoon from the one you saw last night, IMO.

I truly believe this will be a close game.

Possibly; But they are banged up on both sides of the ball. Teams generally play better at home, but the injury bug looks like it hit them already. LT is already banged up.

[primetime]

I have 2 concerns for the Ravens in this game:

1)LBs in pass coverage; specifically covering Antonio Gates. Ray's pass coverage has dropped off over the last few years and we have issues covering the middle of field.

2)Darren Sproles.....he's the type of back that seems to ALWAYS give us fits (anyone remeber Amos Zeroue?)

However, I think the Chargers defensive staff is pulling their hair out watching film of our game against KC. I know it's only one game but we FINALLY look like a legitimate NFL offense, so what do the Chargers do? Do they crowd the line of scrimmage and let the WRs work against single coverage OR do they play zone and risk Rice/McGahee/McClain running all over them?

This isn't a must win by any stretch, however it is an opportunity for us to make a statement to the rest of the league. I like us to take care of business in Qualcomm.

[NewMarketSean]

I thought Zeroue was a pretty big-back...

I think SD will still force Flacco to beat them, and I think he can. SD was ranked next to last in pass defense last season. So I think we can score some points on them but the difference will be, can we stop the Chargers from scoring points on us?