If you are a Ravens’ fan, wasn’t it an awesome feeling to see the balanced attack that Baltimore put forth in their romping of the Cleveland Browns this week? This season, we’ve experienced the high powered offense that has opponents thinking they’re playing in Foxboro, and in previous years we’ve had the pleasure of enjoying history-setting defensive showings, led by team leaders Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs. But, it wasn’t until this past Sunday that fans have seen the two sides click, putting together an output unlike any other that fans in Baltimore have been able to brag about since the Colts were in town over a quarter-century ago.

While it might be a little brash to compare the 2009 Ravens to anything that the New England Patriots or the Indianapolis Colts have accomplished offensively in the past five years, there is nothing wrong with getting excited about the chance to see a fire lit under an offense that has always had a bad habit of dousing the flame at the most inopportune times. The game against the Cleveland Browns showed that Flacco, and all of his offensive buddies, are for real, and the days of defensive domination and offensive frustration are out the window for a long, long time.

1. Derrick Mason made it known that he’s not ready to call it quits just yet.

Mason, who, as we all know, briefly retired from the NFL for a few months during the off-season, has not seemed to have lost a step.

We have been witnesses to the passion Mason still brings to the table, whether it was his appearance at training camp or his public defense of Baltimore’s wide receivers when put under fire from big-mouthed, make-up wearing, clothing designing, talentless, national media pre-madonnas. But Derrick has silenced the critics with his on-field actions as well. With his performance in yesterday’s game, Mason is actually averaging more yards per catch than he did last year, and is on pace to eclipse the 1,000 yard plateau that many analysts use to determine the success or failure of a wide receiver’s season. Mason also put himself in the NFL history books, making his 800th career catch. Congrats to Derrick for achieving such a milestone in his illustrious career.

2. Joe Flacco is proving time and time again that he knows how to play at an NFL level.

This one wouldn’t take a genius to figure out. Beginning last year when, even as a rookie, Flacco didn’t make many mistakes, he has been making all the right moves to develop into a franchise quarterback. Joe threw for almost 3,000 yards last season, which is more than respectable for a rookie quarterback who began the preseason with the impression that his time to shine was still a year or two in the future. This season, however, a more mature and battle-tested Flacco is on pace to throw for almost 4,200 yards! Compare that to Peyton Manning, who threw for 4,000 last season as the leader of the prolific Colts offense. Flacco’s passer rating is nearly 20 points higher than the league average, sitting at 101.4, a number that is currently 6th best in the NFL. His poise and knowledge of how the game is to be played has helped the Ravens’ offense put points on the board throughout the game, giving the defense a cushion and the fans a chance to breathe a sigh of relief.

3. Will the team use their early division lead as motivation? John Harbaugh will make sure of it.

The great thing about Harbaugh at the helm is that he doesn’t let his players forget about what’s most important. He realizes that the game that the Ravens should be concerned with is not in three weeks. It’s not the match ups against Pittsburgh toward the end of the year. Instead, the focus of every single player should be the opponent they play this coming Sunday (or Monday). In the past, Baltimore may have had a hard time against a weak Browns team. Bottom of the barrel teams are the most dangerous opponents because they are playing for one thing – respect. Those are the types of opponents that good, not great, teams may accidentally overlook. Harbaugh realizes that a loss to the Browns, Chiefs, or Lions impacts the Ravens’ playoff chances just as much as a loss to the Patriots, Steelers, or Colts. Every game is a life or death situation in the NFL.

So, will first place be a motivating factor for Ray Lewis’ defense and Joe Flacco’s offense? You better bet every dollar that John Harbaugh is making sure it will be; Nobody in the organization wants to let this opportunity slip through their fingertips.

4. Why are some fans calling for Willis McGahee to be named the starting running back?

I read some fan comments recently on a few Ravens’-based websites, calling for Willis McGahee to replace Ray Rice as the number one running back on the depth chart. McGahee’s performance has been outstanding this season, as he has scored touchdowns with ease and is looking much like he did before he hurt his knee. However, part of the reason McGahee has found new success is because of the role he is playing for this football team. His workload has been reduced from what it had been in previous seasons because Harbaugh feels that too much time in the game will induce more problems for McGahee’s health. It’s also tough considering McGahee to be a standard “backup”, mainly because of the two running back system that so many NFL teams, including the Ravens, are utilizing.  Ray Rice has shown that he is capable of being a featured back in this offense, and he deserves time to prove himself even more as the season continues. Each running back understands his role on the team, and each is completely content with what they are being asked to do to contribute. There is no reason for Harbaugh to fix something that isn’t broken; I hope the fans that are calling for a change can see that it would do more harm than good to force McGahee to do more than he is capable of, especially when Rice is as good of a second year player at his position as any.

5. The Ravens’ new, effective offense makes the Patriots seem a bit less scary.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has been thinking lately that Joe Flacco may be able to counter any Tom Brady-led scoring drive this Sunday when the two meet head to head in Foxboro. The last time the Ravens faced off against New England was back in 2007, which was the infamous “undefeated” season for the Pats. While Baltimore had Brady and his pals up against the ropes for most of the game, the Patriots, for the 5,943,652th time that season, held on for the victory.

Now, Baltimore is looking to redeem themselves. With a much more powerful offense, and a defense that proved on Sunday that they aren’t as bad as they seemed when Philip Rivers posted nearly 500 yards of offense against them, the clash between AFC powerhouses seems a bit more balanced on paper. If you are a fan of either of these teams, and are not looking forward to the game on Sunday, you’ve got to be kidding yourself that you enjoy watching NFL football. Bring on the Pats!