465 BUF 3.0 (-110) Greek vs 466 BALAnalysis: I'll be on the Bills here to open up the season. I have some serious concerns for the Ravens in the first few games...My biggest concerns are with chemistry & injury....When you look at the "Play Makers" for this team you will notice they lost 8 of the 10 best players to season ending injuries....Yes 8 of the best players on this team ended up on the IR
Now LB Terrell Suggs (pictured) was a opening game Achilles injury last year. He has had plenty of time to rehab his body over the course of a season and a half. Some of the naysayers thought Suggs lost a step going back two years ago. Now a full two years from those opinions off a Achilles tear worries me he might lose two steps. When it comes to sports injuries IMO in any sport, the Achilles tear is the hardest for a player to come back from. Especially at an older age.
Throw Steve Smith Sr.(pictured) right into this conversation...He goes down with the same injury last year, but his injury occurred Week 7 of last year. It's still only a 10 month layoff since he had his surgery....Smith at 38 years old might lose a step as well.
QB Joe Flacco (pictured) was another disaster for the Ravens last year..Flacco goes down in week 10 with a ACL/MCL tear...This was the first real injury he acquired...How will he be off a short rehab?....I worry a ton about Flacco having ample amount of time with the WR core being busted out last year...limited reps will hur them overall.
How about RB Justin Forsett (pictured)....He breaks his arm later in the year and he misses plenty of reps as well...DL Chris Canty went down in Week 9. TE Crockett Gilmore goes down in Week 10...Backup RB Lorenzo Taliaferro goes down in Week 3. All of these guys suffered severe season ending injuries....I can go on and on with this Ravens team with injuries....That's just the short list of starters...They had other starters on the IR as well....They led the league last year with season ending injuries to key players. I have major worries about the health progress physically and mentally.
It's an easy statement to say the entire team is back !!...It's an easier argument to win stating just how hard it is to combine lack of chemistry and health physically and mentally to win in week 1...It's going to be very tough for the Ravens to get the ball rolling for a week or two..Quite possibly even 3 weeks...I'm one to throw teams in the trash early, but the Ravens have a good team. I think they have a rather easy schedule and if healthy they will rattle of a bunch of wins. I just feel it starts week 2 or 3 this year..Chemistry is key and so is the mental part of 8 key starters coming back from the injuries they had. I could understand a basic foot injury or broken ribs, etc, etc, but we are talking about Achilles, ACL.MCL, pectorals and back injuries...The worst kind in this sport...Some of these guys won't be ready for preseason...I almost forgot the WR Breshard Perriman...I was very high on him coming into last season out of UCF....He played just a few games with the Ravens and he goes down..He is slated as a starter this year..So tell me how the Ravens sustain chemistry with the limited training camps and preseason games with guys shuffled in and out of this lineup?
When I look at the Bills we have a team that played well last year
Tyrod Taylor (pictured) gets his 2nd true look as a starter...No controversy to speak of...He is the #1 guy this year..He missed a few games, but played well last season...He had over 3,000 yards and his TD's to INT's were rather impressive. Another year in this system with the same exact lineup will help him some...Watkins, Woods, McCoy, Karlos Williams, TE Charles Clay all lost a few games due to injury last year..I feel that they had enough time on the field and enough chemistry to come into Baltimore rather confident in week 1...I feel this offense is going to be tough to stop against any team.
Baltimore FWIW started last year healthy for the most part..Set Suggs aside...When the bulk of this team played together at home, they only won 2 home games. Week 10 through the end of the season was the injury epidemic with this team..So coming into this year with little reps worries me about the Ravens even at home....The Bills secondary might be a tad under-rated as well...How will Flacco and all the injury bug guys handle a Bills defense anchored by the secondary...Bills addressed some of the passing and rushing issues as well...How will two RB's from the Ravens feel coming in with a bunch of time off because of injury?....Will the Ravens offense be able to be a well oiled machine by week 1?...Or even running at half speed?.......I highly doubt it...I'd much rather play on a team who has been much healthier and who has played together almost all season in 2015...Timing is key in the NFL.
Week 1 we see a ton of rust from teams...Baltimore fits the mold of team that will be rusty for sure and they might even have to deal with the demons of season ending injuries mentally to start the year. Bills is an easy call here..Ravens won't be ready..Wait a week or two for Baltimore..Value will be had with the Ravens for a few games before they get it together and the odds makers adjust for this team who is rather strong all around in my opinion....The -2.5 Baltimore line is begging for Ravens money right now..I doubt we see this line go past 3...If this was a week 4 or 5 game..I could understand...I think they see the same thing I do here...Ravens need time.....Reports suggest the Bills also had some off season workouts with the offensive play makers...The Ravens still aren't 100%....Which team do you think will be more ready ?
Bills roll...+3 rated in as a 2.5** wager.