Reserve tight end Daniel Wilcox caught two touchdown passes, and the Baltimore Ravens spoiled Jim Mora's head coaching debut by cruising to a 24-0 preseason victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night.
Just like last year, the Falcons couldn't generate much offense without Michael Vick at quarterback. Vick left after the first series, and backup Matt Schaub went 12-for-24 for 108 yards and two interceptions.
PHOTO: AP
Vick did, however, avoid injury, which made this outing a success compared to the last time he faced the Ravens.
In Atlanta's second exhibition game last year, Vick scrambled out of the pocket and broke his right leg when tackled by Baltimore linebacker Adalius Thomas. The Falcons were 2-9 before Vick returned Nov. 30.
On this night, Vick never got the chance to display his arm or scrambling ability. After handing off twice to Warrick Dunn, Vick dropped back to throw on third down and was nabbed by safety Will Demps, who received virtually no resistance after blitzing up the middle.
"It was hard to judge my performance on just three plays," Vick said.
Despite the result, Mora still got a kick out of standing on the sideline -- even if it was in the midst of a steady downpour.
"Besides the score, I'm having fun," he said at halftime. "It's fun because I'm involved in the offense, defense and special teams."
Ravens quarterback Kyle Boller went 5-for-9 for 56 yards and a touchdown before giving way to backup Kordell Stewart in the second quarter. Boller did not throw an interception, and his quarterback rating of 111.3 more than doubled the 51.8 mark he compiled as a rookie last year.
The game remained scoreless until Boller capped the 95-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Wilcox with 4:44 left in the half. Boller went 3-for-6 on the 13-play drive, and reserve running back Chester Taylor twice made first downs on third-down carries.
Baltimore went up 14-0 when a pass from Schaub deflected off the hands of Michael Jenkins to Fred Weary, who returned the interception 49 yards.
Bears 13, Rams 10, OT
In St. Louis, Lovie Smith's head coaching debut, and his homecoming, was a bit on the sloppy side.
The Chicago Bears overcame 19 penalties for 160 yards in their preseason opener, a 13-10 overtime victory over the St. Louis Rams. The opening drive was short-circuited by four penalties and the Bears had been hit for 105 yards by halftime.
Ahmad Merritt returned the overtime kickoff 87 yards to the 7 to set up Paul Edinger's 25-yard winning field goal on the next play.
Smith was the defensive coordinator the last three years for the Rams, helping them reach the Super Bowl in 2001, and received a nice ovation during pregame introductions. He was hired by the Bears in January to replace Dick Jauron following a 7-9 season.
The Rams also stumbled with 12 penalties for 80 yards. Plus they had the only two turnovers, including a fumble after a reception by Dane Looker with 2:30 left in regulation to give the Bears the ball at the Chicago 29.
There were five penalties on the Bears' tying drive, four against Chicago. The drive was capped by a 1-yard pass from backup Jonathan Quinn to Gabe Reid with 10:04 to go. So the Bears actually gained 118 yards on the 88-yard, 10-play drive.
The Rams were without Marshall Faulk, who rarely plays until late in the preseason, and offensive tackles Orlando Pace and Kyle Turley. Pace is a contract holdout and Turley hasn't practiced since Aug. 1 due to a herniated disc in his surgically repaired back, although he attended the game in street clothes.
St. Louis' makeshift line, a concern heading into the game, did a good job in pass protection and Marc Bulger was hit only twice. He was sacked once, by Hunter Hillenmeyer, to force Jeff Wilkins' field goal on the last play of the first quarter. A third line starter, guard Adam Timmerman, started despite being bothered by a stinger in his neck and shoulder in recent days.
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