Stafford, Johnson Too Much For Ravens
BALTIMORE -- Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson appeared in midseason form against a Baltimore Ravens defense still in preseason mode.
Stafford threw two touchdown passes, and Johnson had five catches for 111 yards to help the Lions cruise to a 27-12 victory on Friday night.
Stafford went 12 for 17 for 184 yards in four possessions. He failed to produce a score in three drives last week against Cleveland, then came up empty in his first two series against Baltimore before guiding touchdown drives of 93 and 70 yards.
"We got into a little bit of a rhythm," Stafford said. "When we kind of figured out what they were doing, we went out and executed."
That 93-yard drive took only five plays, three of them completions to Johnson for 83 yards. On the last one, Johnson made an excellent catch over cornerback Jimmy Smith in the end zone on an 18-yard score.
"We see that same coverage out there, our mouths start to water, we get hungry," Johnson said. "They were blitzing a lot so we left their corners, their DBs, on an island. That's what we look for."
Covering Johnson is no easy task, as evidenced by his numbers last year: 96 catches, 1,681 yards and 16 touchdowns.
"You're talking about a person who should probably be running track, but he chose football," Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis said. "He's a mismatch for a lot of people. The bottom line is you've just got to make him earn his check. Today, he earned his money."
