Stifling stops against the run. Relentless pressure on the quarterback. A struggle just to make a first down. It was the kind of defense expected when the Baltimore Ravens play.
Only this time, it happened to them.
The Ravens (4-2) pitched the wrong kind of shutout Monday night in a 12-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars when they went an entire half without getting a first down. They didn't have a drive lasting more than three plays until late in the third quarter and finished with 146 total yards, 229 yards less than their season average entering the game.
Ravens star running back Ray Rice carried just eight times for 28 yards, compared to 30 carries for 105 yards for the Jaguars' Maurice Jones-Drew. That disparity didn't sit well with Baltimore linebacker Terrell Suggs.
"It baffles me," Suggs said. "They fed their horse. We've got to feed our horse. But don't forget to give credit to Jacksonville."
"I don't really know what the game plan was," Suggs added. "But when I have a Pro Bowl running back and I see he's not getting his touches, I'm going to feel a certain way about it. He's a good guy, he wants the ball, and I think we should feed him. Ray Rice, he's a phenomenal player, and you've got to use your phenomenal players.
"I've got to question how many catches Anquan (Boldin) had. We've got guys on this team who can do some great things. We got to use those guys. It's that simple."
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco completed two consecutive passes for negative yards, one that he caught himself. He threw for just 137 total yards and expects to take the brunt of the blame for this miserable performance.
"They look at the quarterback when things are good, and they look at the quarterback when things are bad," Flacco said. "We weren't playing consistently on offense. It's going to get better. We're a young team. We need to make sure when we're not on our 'A' game, we're not this."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
