In a season with no unbeaten teams left, the Baltimore Ravens have as good a case as anyone that they’re the best team in the NFL.
Led by 133 yards and two touchdowns from running back Ray Rice, the Ravens dominated the Broncos today, winning 31-17 and improving their record to 4-1.
The game wasn’t even as close as the score would suggest; Baltimore jumped out to an early 17-0 lead and started to coast after Rice’s second touchdown made the score 24-7 in the fourth quarter.
The Ravens’ running game dominated throughout, racking up 233 yards on 47 carries. Willis McGahee chipped in with 67 yards on 10 carries, and even Joe Flacco managed 20 yards on the ground, including a one-yard touchdown run.
Although the Broncos’ defense was overpowered all day, Denver has to be happy that quarterback Kyle Orton had yet another big game. Orton completed 23 of 38 passes for 314 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Orton is still on pace to shatter Dan Marino’s record for passing yards in a season.
Broncos receiver Brandon Lloyd also had a huge game with five catches for 135 yards and two touchdowns. Lloyd now has 589 receiving yards through five games, putting him on pace for 1,885 yards this season. Jerry Rice’s NFL record is 1,848 yards in 1995.
But huge numbers in the passing game haven’t been enough for the Broncos, who fell to 2-3 today. And a big game running the ball was enough for the Ravens to improve to 4-1.