New York Jets quarterback Kellen Clemens became the latest young quarterback to receive a rough welcome into the National Football League by the Ravens? vaunted defense this past Sunday.
The second-year signal-caller out of Oregon completed 19-of-37 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown. But he couldn?t lead the Jets to a victory,
The Ravens had two interceptions ? the last by Ray Lewis in the end zone ? and sacked Clemens four times in his first start en route to a 20-13 victory at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Clemens? experience against the Ravens is typical of most quarterbacks seeing the first significant playing time of their career.
San Diego’s Philip Rivers, Oakland’s Andrew Walter, Tampa Bay?s Chris Simms, Pittsburgh?s Ben Roethlisberger, Tennessee’s Vince Young and Cleveland’s Derek Anderson are all among many novice quarterbacks who were pounded by the Ravens before walking off the field with a loss.
“They were everything they were talked up to be, that’s for sure,” Clemens said. “They’re very talented. Ed Reed flying around back there in the secondary and Ray Lewis and their defensive line are very talented. They made a lot of plays and they held us pretty much in check for most of the game.”
The Ravens now have their sights set on another up-and-coming quarterback: Arizona?s Matt Leinart. The Arizona Cardinals? first-round pick in 2006 out of the University of Southern California is in his second season and his first full year as a starter. The Cardinals are 1-1 following their 23-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, and will visit M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
Leinart has shown the inconsistencies typical of a young quarterback this season. After completing just 14-of-28 passes for 102 yards a touchdown and two interceptions in Arizona’s season-opening loss at San Francisco, he went 23-of-37 for 299 yards, a touchdown and an interception against Seattle.
Ravens linebacker Bart Scott said it’s important for his team to keep constant pressure on opposing quarterbacks. On Sunday, the Ravens allowed Clemens to gain confidence as the game progressed, and it almost cost them. However, Lewis prevented the Jets from scoring a game-tying touchdown by intercepting a pass that deflected off the hands of receiver Justin McCareins in the end zone to secure the victory.
“This is a great defense, but [the Jets] get paid also and they made some plays at the end of the game to make it close,” Scott said. “Next time, we’ve got to show that killer instinct and put teams away when we’ve got them down and buried.”
