Had Lee Evans hung on to a late toss from Joe Flacco in the end zone, the Baltimore Ravens may have been the team taking on the New York Giants on Super Bowl Sunday rather than New England.

He didn’t and they weren’t. So it’s on to 2012, when an offense full of up-and-coming stars like Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and Torrey Smith will partner with a better-than-solid but also aging defense, whose stars Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are getting close to the end of future Hall of Fame careers.

So do they have enough to make a run in a division that also includes Pittsburgh and fast-improving Cincinnati? Tony Lombardi is the founder of 24×7.com blogs and the lead writer on the site’s blog dedicated to the Ravens. He thinks if the team catches some breaks they can pick up where they left off. Lombardi shared some thoughts with Zoneblitz. Here’s what he had to say:

Zoneblitz: What are your thoughts on the development of Joe Flacco and his future as quarterback of the Ravens? – What kind of impact will adding former Colts head coach Jim Caldwell have on Flacco and the Ravens’ offense?

Tony Lombardi: Flacco’s productivity during his first four years as a Ravens rivals that of many of the game’s greats. That said, he took a step back overall in 2011 as accuracy declined 5 percentage points (62. 6% v. 57.6%) and his passer rating tumbled from 93.9 to 80.9, just 0.6 ahead of his rookie season.

But at the end of the day Flacco does win games and his win total after four campaigns is as good as any in NFL history. He’ll benefit from the Ravens coaching staff addition of Peyton Manning’s former quarterback coach and Indy head coach Jim Caldwell.

Zoneblitz: It appears as though Ray Rice is going to be franchised. Is this the right move? Can he buck the short productivity lifespan of running backs and what are the team’s plans for depth at the position with Ricky Williams retiring?

Lombardi: Franchising Rice is the right move for the Ravens, particularly when his contractual demands are said to be knocking on the door of Adrian Peterson’s bloated contract. Peterson is a greater talent and let’s not forget that he was a beneficiary of circumstance. As part of an attempt to land a new stadium deal in Minnesota, Vikings’ owner Zygi Wilf wanted to lock up Peterson long-term. And while the deal may have been a good business move overall, it was a bad contract and mirroring that is just wrong for the Ravens on many levels.

Running backs are relatively inexpensive to replace. That’s not intended to discredit Rice’s ability but it’s just the nature of the game. One only needs to look at the top six backs this past season, none of which was a first round pick and none remotely close to earning AP dollars. It just isn’t practical in the salary cap era. It would not surprise me at all to see the team franchise Rice again in 2013 and then move on to the post Rice era.

As for Ricky Williams, the club seems to be willing to go with second year back Anthony Allen as Rice’s backup with former Miami Hurricane Damien Berry in the wings – a 2011 practice squad player. But don’t be surprised if Williams “retirement” isn’t just a veteran ploy to circumvent the offseason conditioning program, offseason training activities and part of training camp. My gut says that even the club sees his return as being a decent possibility.

Zoneblitz: I was impressed with Torrey Smith. Is he a good complement to Anquan Boldin? And what do you think of the rest of the offensive skill players?

Lombardi: Torrey Smith’s rookie season was very impressive particularly since he arrived as a raw prospect with average at best route running skills. Let’s not forget that he also was stripped of the opportunity to develop a rapport with Joe Flacco since OTAs weren’t in the mix last season given the labor strife.

Smith is a good complement to Boldin but look for the Ravens to make another play at wide receiver either in free agency or more likely the draft.

As for the other skill players the team has a couple of capable young tight ends in Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta. Dickson has the ability to stretch the field and has top end speed for the position while Pitta is a very capable navigator of defensive soft spots and has the hands to match. I’d call him a poor man’s Dallas Clark.

Zoneblitz: Recent reports indicate that Matt Birk likely will play another season, but Ozzie Newsome also announced plans to add another center. And Ben Grubbs is a free agent. How do you envision the Ravens addressing this position and how is the team set at offensive line?

Lombardi: This will be a major offseason challenge for the Ravens. Birk is likely willing to give the club another year at the hometown discount but those plans are not etched in stone. I look for Ozzie Newsome to make a few moves on draft day to stabilize the interior of the offensive line but he won’t overpay. It would be a surprise to see the Ravens extend Grubbs Marshal Yanda-like money.

The team needs to be mindful of the investment they’ll have to make at some point at left tackle. Bryant McKinnie has another year on his deal and he was decent in 2011. Beyond that, the guess here is that the Ravens future left tackle is not on the roster. 2009 first round pick Michael Oher has been somewhat of a disappointment since a solid rookie season and he’s considered to be a right tackle at best.

Waiting in the wings is promising tackle Jah Reid but like Oher, he is best suited at right tackle. Look for the team to try Reid at left guard in place of Grubbs but the better choice there could ultimately be Oher.

Zoneblitz: Terrell Suggs was defensive player of the year, but Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and some of the other defensive players are getting up there in years. Is this defense set up to continue playing at a high level in 2012?

Lombardi: Ray Lewis continues to defy Father Time but clearly his skills have eroded and the team really doesn’t have a successor lined up. No one will fill Ray’s shoes and he continues to be the club’s de facto leader. Therein lies the real value in Ray Lewis.

As for Ed Reed, his numbers were off but he clearly influenced opposing quarterbacks who, other than Philip Rivers last year, didn’t do very well against the Ravens. His menacing presence as a center field ball hawk affects the game in a plus way for the Ravens. He’ll provide similar value in 2012.

As for the balance of the defense, Lardarius Webb and Jimmy Smith are budding stars in the league and let’s not forget that once again Baltimore was home to the league’s Defensive Player of the Year in Terrell Suggs. Look for Ozzie Newsome to provide a pass rushing counterpart for Suggs this offseason. New coordinator Dean Pees, an accomplished defensive play caller under Bill Belichick, is expected to seamlessly fill in for the departed Chuck Pagano who moved on as the skipper in Indy.

Zoneblitz: It looks like Chris Carr won’t be back and safeties Haruki Nakamura and Tom Zbikowski are free agents as well. How are the Ravens set in the defensive backfield in 2012?

Lombardi: Cary Williams has been a pleasant surprise and along with the aforementioned Smith and Webb, the Ravens have three very capable corners. A wild card in the mix is Danny Gorrer who played very well in limited action. The departure of Carr will allow for more playing time – he’s earned it.

At safety Bernard Pollard was a great fit on many levels and his cover skills as a Raven were far better than advertised. Depth at safety is a bit of a concern. This forecast here calls for the return of Nakamura but a parting of the ways with the disappointing Zbikowski.

Zoneblitz: Baltimore finished inches from the Super Bowl. But Pittsburgh remains tough and Cincinnati appears to be on the rise. Are the Ravens the power in the AFC North and what do they have to do to make another run deep in the playoffs?

Lombardi: The Ravens will need some of their young players to step up in order to be considered the AFC North power. I see the Steelers taking a small step back in 2012 and the Bengals a step forward. To fend them off promising players like Pernell McPhee, Paul Kruger, Jimmy Smith, Ed Dickson and Jah Reid will have to take their game to new levels – and so will Joe Flacco.

Zoneblitz: What would you like to see the Ravens do in free agency and the draft?

Lombardi: The Ravens don’t make flashy free agent signings. That’s not their style and with somewhat limited cap flexibility, it’s hard to expect anything from the Ravens on day 1 of the free agency period. Ozzie Newsome is very patient and willing to wait for the market to morph into a buyer’s market late in free agency. The areas of offensive line, linebacker, a No. 3 wide receiver, kick return and even competition for kicker Billy Cundiff come to mind.

As for the draft, the Ravens will always trust their draft board and choose the best player available. But if that BPA happens to be a pass rusher, receiver, interior offensive lineman or linebacker, Ozzie Newsome will be a happy man.

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