Raiders at Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens don’t have the same elite defense that carried them through the last decade but have been able to scratch out enough close victories to keep their record as the second-best in the AFC. The Ravens’ big weakness is against the run, an area the Oakland Raiders don’t appear to be able to exploit. The Raiders, who rank 31st in the NFL in rushing, will be without their top two running backs when they visit Baltimore on Sunday afternoon. Carson Palmer has racked up some huge passing yardage numbers compensating for the stagnant rushing attack but has also been turnover-prone. The Ravens, who lost cornerback Lardarius Webb and linebacker Ray Lewis to season-ending injuries, do not have as many playmakers on defense but still have collected nine interceptions.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Ravens -9.5,. O/U 46.
ABOUT THE RAIDERS (3-5): Both Darren McFadden and Mike Goodson are dealing with ankle sprains and have been ruled out for Sunday, leaving third-string running back Taiwan Jones and fullback Marcel Reese to share the load. Palmer was forced to throw 61 passes last Sunday after both running backs went down, completing 39 for 414 yards and four touchdowns. But as has been the case this season, Palmer also threw three interceptions and Oakland suffered a 42-32 setback to Tampa Bay. Palmer has 13 touchdown passes and eight interceptions and has had trouble connecting on deep routes. The Raiders' defense ranks in the bottom third of the NFL and has surrendered an average of 27.8 points in four road games, with the only win away from O.co Coliseum coming at lowly Kansas City in Week 8.
ABOUT THE RAVENS (6-2): Baltimore has succeeded in winning the games it is supposed to win but has not been strong statistically, leading to some concern from the coaching staff. Defensive coordinator Dean Pees moved up into the press box after the bye week and oversaw one of the better performances since Lewis and Webb went down in last week’s 25-15 win at Cleveland. The Ravens grabbed a pair of interceptions and were strong in the red zone. Baltimore has talked all season about getting running back Ray Rice the ball more and he ended up with 25 carries for 98 yards and a score in Cleveland. Joe Flacco has been held to under 200 yards passing in three of the last four games but has been much better at home in 2012. The Ravens will need to work to not overlook the Raiders with a showdown against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers looming next week.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Palmer is 9-4 in his career against the Ravens, all while he was with the Cincinnati Bengals.
2. Baltimore has won 14 straight regular-season home games, the longest current streak in the NFL.
3. Rice (4,999) needs one yard to join Jamal Lewis (7,801) as the only players in Ravens history to rush for 5,000 yards.