Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
TV Schedule: Sunday, Sept. 29, 1:00 p.m. ET, CBS
Stadium: Ralph Wilson Stadium
Weather: Low 58, High 74
Line: Baltimore (-3.5)
The Baltimore Ravens have entered the 2013 season as defending Super Bowl champions and it must feel good to have everyone trying to do what you just did, but the Ravens haven’t been extremely impressive yet this season. The defense was slaughtered in week one against the Denver Broncos, but has allowed just 23 points in the past two games combined. The offense has been a bit pedestrian this season, averaging just 308 yards per game and just 77 rushing yards at that. Ray Rice suffered an injury to his hip in week two and he has just 72 yards on 25 carries with one touchdown. Torrey Smith is leading the receiving game with 16 catches for 269 yards — a main reason why Joe Flacco has had some success.
On the other side of the field, the Buffalo Bills are led by a rookie quarterback in E.J. Manuel who has this team sitting a 1-2 with the Ravens coming to town on Sunday. Manuel hasn’t had extremely impressive numbers, but the rookie has been calm, cool and collected during the first three games — even he has led the Bills to just one win. Manuel has 689 passing yards with four touchdowns with his favorite target becoming Stevie Johnson. The sixth-year wide out has 17 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns this year while helping Manuel ease into the NFL. C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson lead the fifth-best rushing offense in the league, combining for 322 yards but only one score.
Defensively, the Ravens are not what they once were even a season ago. Losing many key players from the defensive side of the ball has proven to be a bit painful, but with a 2-1 record through three games after losing half of their defense has to make John Harbaugh happy. The Bills have one of the worst units in football. Buffalo allows over 155 yards per game on the ground which could be a good sign if Ray Rice returns to play.
PREDICTION: Ravens 30, Bills 20
Related: Ray Lewis Wrong To Question Off The Field Leadership On Baltimore Ravens’ Roster
Baltimore Ravens’ Jacoby Jones Suffers Embarrassing Injury
Buffalo Bills: E.J. Manuel Goes Through Growing Pains
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also reach him at .
