Baltimore vs. Carolina
Flacco and Smith Lead Ravens to 38-10 Win Over Carolina as Long Road Stretch Looms
Having played three of its first four games at home and look at four of their next five on the road, it was imperative that Baltimore got a win over a Carolina team that came into this game with an equal 2-1 record.
And the Ravens did just that, excelling on both offense and defense for the second-straight home game and cruising to a 38-10 win over the Panthers to improve to 3-1 on the season.
It was particularly satisfying for wide receiver Steve Smith, who was released by Carolina during the offseason after spending 13 seasons with the Panthers, who had seven catches for 139 yards and two touchdowns in business-like fashion, taking apart his former team.
"I didn't have anything good, bad or indifferent to say. I just played. At the end of the day, honestly they didn't deserve anything I had to say that would be derogatory -- and I didn't need to," Smith said after the game. "They didn't even deserve me to spin the ball on them. I just caught it and put it down and went about my business."
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“He was calm throughout. He was calm before the game. I asked him in the training room, before the game, I said, 'How are you doing? You doing OK?' and he said, 'Nope.' What does that mean?” Harbaugh recalled during his postgame news conference. “I think it means he recognized the gravity of the situation a little bit. And he recognized the need that he had to, like anybody, get control of those emotions. He did a great job of it."
Smith has gotten off to a tremendous start with his new team, accumulating 429 yards in his first four games. That’s the most in NFL history by a player who debuted with a new team at age 35 or older, breaking a mark set by Terrell Owens four years ago with Cincinnati.
The Panthers knew what they were up against, but they still couldn’t stop it.
“He did some really good things,” Carolina head coach Ron Rivera said. “And that’s who Steve is.”
Smith’s performance was just one of several solid days by the offense, including the offensive line, which didn’t allow any sacks.
Joe Flacco was 22-of-31 for 327 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. The first score was a 61-yard play to Smith. After Steve Smith caught another TD, it was Torrey Smith who caught the third one. In addition, Justin Forsett and Lorenzo Taliaferro each had rushing touchdowns and gained 66 and 58 yards, respectively, both filling in admirably for the Ravens’ depleted running game, having lost Ray Rice and then new No. 1 RB Bernard Pierce to injury for the last two games.
After the game, Flacco was quick to give credit to his line.
“We get the ball out, and those guys have been holding up big time when we do the play-action, when teams come after us and when we’re dealing with really good defensive lines,” Flacco said.
The quarterback added that it doesn’t hurt to have a playmaker like Smith to rely on.
“The most important thing is that he can catch footballs and score touchdowns and keep us on the field. It’s really simple. He’s a good football player. Anytime you bring in someone else who can play football, your team gets better.”
The defense did a good job of containing Cam Newton, allowing him to throw for just 197 yards with a touchdown. They also forced Newton into being one-dimensional, as he only ran twice for seven yards. Overall, Carolina was held to just 67 yards on the ground.
Brandon Williams recovered a fumble in the game’s only turnover, Elvis Dumervil had 1.5 sacks, and Terrell Suggs had the other half of that sack.
“[Newton] is a competitor, but we got to him a couple of times,” Suggs said. “You don’t want to have a team hitting you with both the run and the pass. If you can make a team one-dimensional, that’s always good.”
GAME RECAP
The Panthers started with the ball and drove into the Baltimore red zone, but a pass interference call on Kelvin Benjamin and then the combined sack on Newton pushed Carolina out of field goal range and force a punt.
After a scoreless first quarter, Baltimore got on the board early in the second with the 61-yarder from Flacco to Smith to make it 7-0 Ravens. Carolina then responded with its only touchdown drive of the game, coming from a 28-yard connection between Newton and Benjamin to tie up the score at 7.
Baltimore then scored on its next two possessions. Forsett had an 11-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7, and then on the following Ravens drive, Flacco actually fumbled the snap but recovered it himself and then found Smith in the end zone for the former Panther’s second touchdown of the quarter, making the score 21-7 at halftime.
The scoring barrage continued in the third quarter, as the Ravens got the ball to open the half and drove 80 yards in five minutes, culminating with a 24-yard pass from Flacco to Torrey Smith, opening up the game at 28-7.
The Panthers were able to get the ball to the Ravens’ 11-yard line on the next possession, but another miscue set them back. This time, it was a Netwon fumble that he ended up recovering after an eight-yard loss. At 4th and 11, Rivera elected to kick a field goal to make it 28-10.
Baltimore then scored again on its next possession, making it five-straight full possessions that ended with a touchdown (a short drive before halftime ended with Tucker missing a 57-yard field goal on third down). This time, Taliaferro punched it in from a yard out to extend the lead to 35-10. Tucker added a 30-yard field goal in the closing minutes to reach the 38-10 final score.
UP NEXT
The Ravens play their next two on the road, starting in Week 5 at Indianapolis. After an 0-2 start, the Colts beat Tennessee 41-17 today to even up their record at 2-2.