Week 1 Of Nfl Monday Night Football Predictions: Ravens At Jets

While the Jets were busy flexing for the HBO cameras on Hard Knocks

, the Ravens made offseason acquisitions that have the experts talking Superbowl. But with Darrelle Revis back on his island, Rex Ryan will love nothing more than to open the season with a win over his former team on Monday Night Football.

Ravens on Offense

The offseason signings of Anquan Boldin, Dante Stallworth, and most recently acquired T.J. Houshmanzadeh, will make the Ravens a more balanced team. These guys add depth and veteran leadership to Joe Flaccos receiving corps, and all 3 will help him build on his confidence of making the playoffs in his first 2 seasons. Now that Revis is all-in for Monday Night, the Jets might use him to shut down a guy like Anquan Boldin. This leaves Antonio Cromartie and the rest of the secondary a lot of room to work with, whether its blitzing Flacco and/or helping Revis in coverage (even the Messiah could be a tad rusty after a 36-day holdout). This is where Baltimores bread-n-butter comes in: not Maryland crab cakes... New Rochelles very own, Ray Rice. With over 2,000 yards from scrimmage in his sophomore season, Rice proved to Coach John Harbaugh that his 58 212-lb frame could carry the bulk of the offense. Not only is he a handful because of his quickness and elusiveness, but his receiving skills are a threat to any defense, including the Jets. Flacco will look for Rice to bail him out of tough situations on Monday night, and itll be up to the Jets linebackers to stop big gains from happening. OLB Calvin Paces absence doesnt help New Yorks cause.

Jets on Offense

With Baltimores secondary somewhat slim (i.e. Ed Reed out 6 weeks), expect the Jets to throw slightly more than usual. Mark Sanchez is earning the coaching staffs trust (despite the tasteless pranks), and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer will want to catch the Ravens off-guard every now and again. Santonio Holmes will be out of commission, but Braylon Edwards has some big-play ability if he keeps his drops to a minimum. Maybe he can motivate himself by vowing to shave his beard if he reaches the end zone. In all seriousness though, New Yorks success is dictated by their offensive line. It starts with C Nick Mangold, whose chemistry with Mark Sanchez can lead to far less miscues, sacks, fumbles etc. The Ravens will test the Jets with their defensive schemes, and itll be up to Mangold to bring Sanchez up to cue before the snap. The O-lines presence will be felt in the running game as well. It looks like Shonn Greene will grind it out for the majority of the carries, but LTs presence will be crucial during 3rd down and red zone situations. This backfield faces a huge challenge on opening night against the Ravens, whose rush defense is as tough as they come.

The New Meadowlands Stadium is a place youll want to be at come Monday night. Both teams have the defense and rushing attack to mix it up with the best of them, but itll ultimately come down to Baltimore making a few more game-breaking plays via Flacco.

Prediction

Baltimore23

NYJ13

by: Asaf Winer

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