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Coming off their bye, the Ravens face the Denver Broncos, Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns.
But there's another familiar opponent: the NFL schedule makers.
The Ravens (3-3) must deal with the disadvantage of playing three teams coming off their own bye over the next three weeks, a scheduling quirk not shared by any other AFC North team. They face the unbeaten Broncos at home after Denver's bye and then travel to the Bengals (5-2) and the Browns (1-6) after each has received an extra week of rest.
Unlike some fans, Ravens officials aren't buying into an NFL conspiracy against Baltimore.
"I don't think the league has treated us unfairly," Ravens president Dick Cass told The Baltimore Sun. "The league has to consider so many variables in creating the schedule that each year there are some anomalies in the schedule."
Scheduling "anomalies" with the Ravens date to the 2000 season, when the Ravens played five of their first seven games on the road (including three away games in a row). The next year, the Ravens became one of the few Super Bowl champions of this decade not to have their season opener on national television.
Last season, the NFL rescheduled the Ravens' game at Houston because of Hurricane Ike from Week 2 to Week 10. That took away the Ravens' bye that season and forced them to play 15 straight games without a break (including a stretch of five road games in six weeks).
This year is different because the Ravens aren't the only team with bye-week difficulties. The Atlanta Falcons play four teams coming off byes this season, and the Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans face three teams after their byes.
The Ravens have received several letters from fans voicing their displeasure over this bye-week slight. One fan even sent an e-mail to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about this issue.
"Constructing the schedule is an extraordinarily complex challenge, and we make every attempt to minimize such occurrences," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "There are other teams that are in similar situations. It is a function of 32 teams having byes in a span of seven weeks."
The Ravens, who are 1 1/2 games behind the Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North, have had a solid working relationship with the league over the years. The NFL has tried to give the Ravens a midseason bye after years of receiving an early one. It also avoided scheduling a Monday night game for them at Pittsburgh this year after doing so three of the previous four years.
Still, playing three teams coming off byes is an unfavorable stretch. This season, teams are 8-4 (.667) after their bye.
The Ravens' bye-week advantage is negated by the fact that the Broncos had off last week, too. Then, the Ravens must go on the road to play two division teams, the Bengals (who haven't won a game after their bye since 2003) and Browns (who have won three of their past four games after their bye).
"If you're coming off a bye and the other team is playing, then it probably could be perceived as an advantage from the standpoint that you get a little rest and recover from injuries," coach John Harbaugh said Monday, the first day that players returned to practice. "But there might be a plus in playing because it keeps momentum going and you're sharp."
The Ravens came into their bye losing three straight games by a combined 11 points.
Some players used the four days off to get away. Others - about 75 percent by Harbaugh's estimation - remained around team headquarters.
"All we can focus on is what we can do to get better," tight end Todd Heap said. "I think we came in this week with that mind-set in our bye week, thinking, 'Let's review everything we've gone over. Everybody review what you did yourself. Analyze your own job and what you're doing out on the field.' That's what we've got to do this week - really put the magnifying glass on ourselves."
The Ravens were in a similar position last season, when they started 2-0 before losing three consecutive games. They rallied to win nine of their last 11 regular-season games.
"Just because this team went through it last year doesn't mean that it's going to carry them this year to any great heights. That is something you have to make happen," Harbaugh said. "We control our destiny. We control what we're going to be this year. It's our responsibility and our challenge. I think guys are excited about it."
But there's another familiar opponent: the NFL schedule makers.
The Ravens (3-3) must deal with the disadvantage of playing three teams coming off their own bye over the next three weeks, a scheduling quirk not shared by any other AFC North team. They face the unbeaten Broncos at home after Denver's bye and then travel to the Bengals (5-2) and the Browns (1-6) after each has received an extra week of rest.
Unlike some fans, Ravens officials aren't buying into an NFL conspiracy against Baltimore.
"I don't think the league has treated us unfairly," Ravens president Dick Cass told The Baltimore Sun. "The league has to consider so many variables in creating the schedule that each year there are some anomalies in the schedule."
Scheduling "anomalies" with the Ravens date to the 2000 season, when the Ravens played five of their first seven games on the road (including three away games in a row). The next year, the Ravens became one of the few Super Bowl champions of this decade not to have their season opener on national television.
Last season, the NFL rescheduled the Ravens' game at Houston because of Hurricane Ike from Week 2 to Week 10. That took away the Ravens' bye that season and forced them to play 15 straight games without a break (including a stretch of five road games in six weeks).
This year is different because the Ravens aren't the only team with bye-week difficulties. The Atlanta Falcons play four teams coming off byes this season, and the Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans face three teams after their byes.
The Ravens have received several letters from fans voicing their displeasure over this bye-week slight. One fan even sent an e-mail to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell about this issue.
"Constructing the schedule is an extraordinarily complex challenge, and we make every attempt to minimize such occurrences," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "There are other teams that are in similar situations. It is a function of 32 teams having byes in a span of seven weeks."
The Ravens, who are 1 1/2 games behind the Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North, have had a solid working relationship with the league over the years. The NFL has tried to give the Ravens a midseason bye after years of receiving an early one. It also avoided scheduling a Monday night game for them at Pittsburgh this year after doing so three of the previous four years.
Still, playing three teams coming off byes is an unfavorable stretch. This season, teams are 8-4 (.667) after their bye.
The Ravens' bye-week advantage is negated by the fact that the Broncos had off last week, too. Then, the Ravens must go on the road to play two division teams, the Bengals (who haven't won a game after their bye since 2003) and Browns (who have won three of their past four games after their bye).
"If you're coming off a bye and the other team is playing, then it probably could be perceived as an advantage from the standpoint that you get a little rest and recover from injuries," coach John Harbaugh said Monday, the first day that players returned to practice. "But there might be a plus in playing because it keeps momentum going and you're sharp."
The Ravens came into their bye losing three straight games by a combined 11 points.
Some players used the four days off to get away. Others - about 75 percent by Harbaugh's estimation - remained around team headquarters.
"All we can focus on is what we can do to get better," tight end Todd Heap said. "I think we came in this week with that mind-set in our bye week, thinking, 'Let's review everything we've gone over. Everybody review what you did yourself. Analyze your own job and what you're doing out on the field.' That's what we've got to do this week - really put the magnifying glass on ourselves."
The Ravens were in a similar position last season, when they started 2-0 before losing three consecutive games. They rallied to win nine of their last 11 regular-season games.
"Just because this team went through it last year doesn't mean that it's going to carry them this year to any great heights. That is something you have to make happen," Harbaugh said. "We control our destiny. We control what we're going to be this year. It's our responsibility and our challenge. I think guys are excited about it."
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That's quirky no doubt, but only a clear advantage is if the opponents have injuries that can significantly improve with an off week. Cincy was not exactly beaten up by Chicago. And Cleveland needs more than a bye week ... much more. As for the Broncos, if I were on an undefeated streak, I wouldn't want to sit out a week. It's kind of how I feel about the playoffs - barring fixable injuries, the bye is less the bonus for the upper seeds than home field advantage is. Keep the rhythm of playing going when you are hot (unless, say, an act of God switched your bye week to week 2 and you practiced for a game that week up until Friday and thus had more or less 16 straight weeks of football - What, me bitter?). As for our mutual week 7 byes, we had more to fix/heal than Denver did. They had the hot hand that hopefully cooled off a little w/ a slowed down bye week
tfulwiler (10/27/2009, 8:23 PM )