Baltimore Ravens vs. 49ers: Position-by-Position Grades

Aug 7, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak looks on during the game against the San Francisco 49ers at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

As we approach our first full football season here at The Baltimore Wire, we will be starting a couple of themes throughout the year. One of these will be to post (a day or two after the game) a breakdown about how all the Baltimore Ravens players looked in the previous contest by giving you grades position by position.

After the Baltimore Ravens’ first preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers, a lot has been said about how the first team offense performed on the very first drive of the game. Fans have also bought into rookie running back Lorenzo Taliaferro, who had an impressive NFL debut Thursday night. The big running back carried the ball 13 times for 71 yards. So how did the rest of the squad stack up? Well I’m here to tell you just that, and to welcome your opinions as well.

Quarterback

Joe Flacco looked fantastic in his first and only drive of the game as he completed 4-of-5 passes for 52 yards, leading the team down the field for an opening score. He spread the ball out beautifully, completing all four of his passes to different players.

As for Tyrod Taylor, he started this game very slowly. Ravens fans have been complaining about him taking up the backup QB spot for a while now and he hasn’t shown anything to make fans think differently in the preseason. However, Taylor might have put on display the best performance of his professional career in the second half, as he rebounded to complete 13-of-21 passes for 116 yards. He put together an impressive 75-yard drive in the fourth quarter, in which he finished with a seven-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Jeremy Butler.

Rookie Keith Wenning did get five snaps, but two of them were running plays and the other three were kneel-downs.

Grade – A