Baltimore Ravens Dominate Carolina Panthers In 38-10 Win

Sep 28, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Steve Smith, Sr. (89) catches a pass in front of Carolina Panthers cornerback Josh Norman (24) in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Steve Smith Sr. promised blood and guts, and the Baltimore Ravens delivered with a 38-10 win over the Carolina Panthers. One stat summarizes this game nicely: The Ravens produced 454 yards of total offense, while the Carolina Panthers only managed 315, a good deal of that coming in garbage time.

Smith had a massive game, hauling in seven balls for 139 yards and two touchdowns, but it was Joe Flacco who carried the offense in this one.

Flacco had one of the best games of his career, pairing big plays with clock-eating drives. His composure in this game was remarkable, as Flacco uncorked numerous accurate passes in the face of pressure. Even when the pressure was self-imposed, as it was on a touchdown pass in which he fumbled the snap, Flacco consistently made good reads and delivered accurate throws. His final stat line: 22-of-31 for 327 yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions. That’s a passer rating of 137.4.

Steve Smith Sr. promised blood and guts, and the Baltimore Ravens delivered.

As mentioned, Steve Smith had a massive game. The numbers don’t tell the full tale, though. His first touchdown came off an Owen Daniels tip in which Smith broke off his route (which he was not supposed to do), while the second came after a fumbled snap, a play in which Smith was blatantly held as well. He really was incredible.

Another positive story from this game: There was a Torrey Smith sighting! Smith didn’t light up the stat sheet, but he made two big plays down the field, racking up 53 yards and a touchdown on two catches.

In injury replacement news, Owen Daniels held up well in relief of the injured Dennis Pitta, catching four balls for 43 yards. Replacing Eugene Monroe, meanwhile, was rookie undrafted free agent James Hurst, who had a quiet game. For an offensive tackle, that’s a very good thing. He was solid in pass protection.

The ground game wasn’t quite as strong as it had been in weeks past, but the Ravens still managed to pound the ball relatively well. Justin Forsett looked like a human pinball at times, breaking numerous tackles en route to 66 yards and one touchdown. Lorenzo Taliaferro had some solid carries in relief of Forsett. He ended up with 58 yards and a touchdown, garnering the bulk of the work in the second half.

Defensively, the pass rush finally got going with numerous sacks, hits and pressures of Cam Newton. Newton performed admirably in the face of constant pressure and a ton of hits, but he was unable to make up for a non-existent running game. The secondary continued to struggle, but with everything else clicking, it hardly mattered.

As well as the Ravens played, I have to point out the ball consistently bounced their way in this game. Luke Kuechly dropped a probably pick-six, two broken plays resulted in two Steve Smith touchdowns and the Panthers lost DeAngelo Williams early in the game.

Those breaks for the Ravens can’t downplay what was an excellent performance in all phases. Now 3-1, the Ravens will travel to Indianapolis next week to play the Colts. Carolina falls to 2-2 and will host the Chicago Bears next week.