How do you lose a game before the opening kickoff? The Ravens came into today's home game against the Cincinnati Bengals with an offensive game plan that aimed to stay away from Cincinnati's strength - cornerback Leon Hall, instead of playing to their own strengths. Derrick Mason was targeted zero times. The entire offensive consisted of delayed handoffs to Ray Rice and short passes to Rice and Heap. Other than a play made entirely by Rice, the offense was worthless all day, relying on Ed Reed's interception return for a touchdown.The bottom line is that the Ravens should have respected that the Bengals had played four close games already. This is not a game they wanted in 13-10 or 17-14 range. They wanted this game in the 20s or 30s. By playing conservatively, the Ravens put their suspect secondary one breakdown away from losing for the entire game.In fact, they want every game in the 20s and 30s this year. The Ravens have very good depth at every position except DB. In...
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