2014 Record: 10-6
2015 Non Division Opponents: AFC West, NFC West, Jacksonville, & Miami
2014 in review: Baltimore had a typical Baltimore season. Joe Flacco was maddening at times, but when the chips were down, he delivered. The Ravens won a road playoff game at Pittsburgh, and gave the Patriots all they could handle in the Divisional Round.
2015 offseason: The Ravens parted ways with veteran Haloti Ngata, trading him to Detroit for draft picks. The moved cleared space on the Cap, and Ngata was not going to resign after this season anyway. So GM Ozzie Newsome cut bait while he could still get something in return. Baltimore also lost Torrey Smith, Pernell McPhee, and Owen Daniels. All were contributors for Baltimore last season, but in true Raven fashion, all will be replaced.
2015 Draft: Lose Torrey Smith? Draft a WR. Breshad Perriman from UCF was the Ravens first pick. Owens Daniels took a walk? Draft a TE. Maxx Williams was the Ravens Second pick. Perriman is already slated to start alongside Steve Smith, and Williams will back up Crockett Gilmore to start the season.
Player on the hot seat: Justin Forsett finally broke out last season, and got paid for it. Now the pressure is on to see if he can do it again. He averaged a terrific 5.4 yards per carry last season and had a career year. He was hoping for a larger payday than the $9 M he received from Baltimore, and if he plays with a chip on his shoulder, he should have another outstanding year.
Players you want on your fantasy team: If you’re in a 12 or 14 team league, there’s nothing wrong with having Joe Flacco as your quarterback. He consistently throws for almost 4,000 yards every year and had a career high 27 touchdown passes last year. He has a good rapport with Steve Smith and the coaching staff loves to let Joe throw even when he has no business doing so. Steve Smith is the number 1 and will be the best WR in Baltimore this season for fantasy purposes. Torrey Smith had 11 TD’s last year, if Perriman can get 75% of that production, then he’s usable in leagues. Justin Forsett goes without saying, but don’t take him super high.
Season Prediction: The Ravens will smack around the AFC North as usual and will be in a dogfight with the Steelers. I think they have just enough to hold Pittsburgh off. SFTB Prediction: 10-6