In 2009, Ray Rice bursted onto the scene with 2,041 total yards. Ray Rice could easily top that number this season.
When you look at the Ravens' schedule, they have one of the easier schedules in the entire league. They will play 10 games against teams that finished in the bottom half in rush defense a season ago. Match those teams up with a Raven team that rushed for 114 yards a game a season ago, and you've got 10 potentially monster games for Ray Rice.
The addition of Vonta Leach is especially going to help. Leach has been given a lot of credit for the 1,000 yard rushing seasons of Steve Slaton and Arian Foster. Given the fact that both Slaton and Foster weren't expected to produce at the levels they did, it may be safe to say that a proven back like Ray Rice could produce enormous numbers.
When I say enormous numbers, I'm talking about 1,500 plus rushing yards.
The addition of Ricky Williams was critical for the Ravens as they needed a second running back behind Rice, but don't expect Williams to really eat into too many of Ray's yards. Ricky will likely receive 100-120 carries which is very similar to the amount of touches Willis McGahee got. Let's not forget that Ray Rice will also catch the majority of the catches out of the backfield since he is not a liability there.
As far as receiving numbers will go for Rice, the Ravens play nine teams that finished in the bottom half in pass defense last season. Talk about a favorable schedule.
Expect Ray Rice to catch around 80 passes this season, just like he did in '09. The Ravens receiving core has gone from average to mediocre faster than anybody could've thought. The Ravens lost two of their top three receivers from a year ago.
Todd Heap joined the Arizona Cardinals this summer, and Derrick Mason joined the New York Jets. Who does that leave to pick up the slack? You guessed it, Mr. Rice.
Ray Rice has a chance to put up massive numbers this season that haven't been seen since Jamal Lewis was wearing the purple and black. Not only would he lead the team in total yards, but he is in a position where he could potentially lead the league in total yards. Everything is in place for Rice, so don't be too shocked if he goes for 2,000+ total yards this season.
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