Baltimore Sports Report » Bart Scott

Bart Scott’s middle finger is another reason Ravens don’t miss him

Zach Wilt — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:22:24 +0000

Throughout the years, the Ravens have been forced to make transactions and lose fan favorite players, but they have excelled at replacing them. A strong defensive core has always been at the heart of the Baltimore organization and no matter where the guys in the Ravens system seem to go, they are never as success on other teams as they were donning purple.

Look at Adalius Thomas’ career in New England, Jamie Sharper’s career in Houston or Duane Starks career in Arizona. All of those guys were on Baltimore’s defense in 2000, one that is looked at as the best in the franchise and among the top in NFL history.

Over recent years, Baltimore has lost a few key players from their roster to the New York Jets. After the Ravens second ranked defense took them to the AFC Championship in 2008, they lost their defensive coordinator Rex Ryan as he accepted the Jets head coaching vacancy to replace the recently fired Eric Mangini. Ryan took with him a talented and beloved Baltimore linebacker Bart Scott and a safety that helped keep together Baltimore’s shaky secondary, Jim Leonhard.

Ryan’s Jets went to back to back AFC Championship games in 2009 and 2010, but this year failed to make the playoffs after an abysmal 8-8 season. As for Scott, or the Mad Backer as he became known in Baltimore, he’s currently being investigated by the NFL for making an obscene gesture toward a photographer as he cleaned out his locker on Monday after the Jets season fell flat with a loss in week 17 to the Miami Dolphins.

Scott’s on-field talents were always on display in Baltimore, but his emotions sometimes got the best of him. Remember when he hurled a referee’s flag into the stands during a dramatic 27-24 loss to the New England Patriots in 2007? As the Pats scored with a minute remaining in the game, Scott was flagged for two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties that killed the Ravens chances of tying and handing the Patriots their only regular season loss.

I am critical of the Ravens when I feel it is necessary, but I also try to give them credit where it is due. After the NFL lockout, the Ravens decided to part ways with veteran tight end Todd Heap and receiver Derrick Mason. I found these decisions to be crazy, ignoring the Ravens past history of replacing talent with the next man up. After Mason was traded from the Jets to the Texans and later cut by Houston, I admitted I was wrong. As for Heap, I’ve completely forgotten about him with the talents of the Ravens tight end tandem of Dennis Pitta and Ed Dickson.

Zach Wilt is the Founding Editor of BaltimoreSportsReport.com and host of the BSR Podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @zamwi or send him an email: zach@baltimoresportsreport.com.

Playing In Ray’s Shadow

Dave Gilmore — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:52:08 +0000

I think of the future quite a bit. Especially when it comes to sports. If you play Madden long enough or daydream far enough, you see the Baltimore Ravens existing without Ray Lewis.

It’s odd to watch the Ravens play without number 52. It’s not glaring if you miss the pre-game introductions, and sometimes you don’t notice it immediately. In late 2005, you could flip on a game and conveniently forget Ray was out for the season for a couple plays. Then something feels off. The rhythm of the defense changes. The run-stopping happens deeper and deeper in the secondary. The intensity drops a few degrees. Tight ends get a little more brazen coming across the middle and quarterbacks start to relax their eyes downfield. For the first time in 57 games, it’s doubtful we’ll see Lewis on the field for Baltimore’s pivotal division game against Cincinnati. It’s going to happen eventually. Let’s use Sunday to mentally prepare, and think about who could possibly dream of stepping into Ray’s shoes one day.

Inside linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens will go down in the league’s history as a “legacy position.” Everyone who is put atop the depth chart is going to come under immense scrutiny and pressure to fill Lewis’ shoes. Hell, everyone who puts on a Ravens jersey in some way is under pressure to deliver on Lewis’ legacy.

Playing the “mike” linebacker for Baltimore is going to be akin to playing quarterback for the Cowboys, running back for the Steelers, or linebacker for the Bears. The franchise just isn’t right when its legacy position is out of sorts. Think of how demoralized you would be if the Ravens trotted out a dude in Ray’s old spot. The reason they retired great players’ numbers isn’t just to honor them, but to spare anyone else the burden of donning those expectations literally on their back. It’s tricky business following a great act.

Part of keeping the legacy position in tact is succession planning. The Packers weren’t taking a flyer on Aaron Rodgers. They knew what they were doing. The guy who succeeded Brett Favre had to succeed. You can’t wait until the legends are ready to retire before figuring out who will step up to the throne. The Ravens have had some outstanding talent playing alongside Lewis at points in his career when he was far from retirement. Jamie Sharper, Peter Boulware, Edgerton Hartwell, Adalius Thomas, Bart Scott, Jarrett Johnson and Terrell Suggs have all lined up next to Lewis. Hartwell and Scott in particular were extremely formidable inside linebackers in their primes. Unfortunately, their primes were too close to Lewis’, and keeping so much money tied up in the middle of the defense just isn’t possible in today’s NFL.

The next Ray Lewis may not be out there, but his successor is. However, Lewis’ successor almost certainly isn’t wearing purple at the moment. If Lewis sits on Sunday, Ravens fans will be in for a healthy dose of Dannell Ellerbe and Brendon Ayanbadejo, two sparkplug players who are (Ayanbadejo) and will likely be (Ellerbe) NFL journeymen. Whereas Lewis was picked in the first round, both his backups came to the league as undrafted free agents. Jameel McClain, another undrafted free agent who plays alongside Lewis in the middle and has been above average if not unspectacular as a complement to 52. Now in his fourth year, if McClain is hiding Lewis-like impact on the defense, he hasn’t shown many signs growing into Ray’s massive shoes.

The odds of nabbing another Lewis from another NFL team in free agency are slim. Certainly, there are talents that slip through the cracks, but legacy positions are almost always filled through the draft. Part of the legacy is that the fans and the franchise have belief that the pupil will step in and is capable of becoming the master. While this April’s NFL Draft was exceptionally weak at inside linebacker and lousy with excellent outside backers, the 2012 draft is shaping up to be the inverse scenario. Baltimore could find its successor in the middle to late first or second round. It’s impossible not to fantasize over which player this might be. Recently, I’ve been thinking about some of the possibilities.

Manti Te’o, a junior at Notre Dame, is to the Irish defense what Lewis is for the Ravens. At 6’2″, 255, his build resembles the future Hall of Famer who was told by many he was too small to play up the middle. Te’o's polynesian ancestry could also be a factor in forming a kinship with the Ravens’ other defensive star, Haloti Ngata (Ngata’s parents are Tongan and Te’o went to President Obama’s high school in Hawai’i). Te’o's physical tools are impressive, but like Lewis he plays the game between his ears better than almost anyone else at his position.

General Manager Ozzie Newsome loves to bring in fellow players from the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Bama native has found some gems from the Tide in Jarrett Johnson and Le’Ron McClain and there is a potentially bright one playing for Nick Saban as we speak. Dont’a Hightower, another junior, checks in a bit more upright than Teo at 6’4″ 260. However, the leader of the SEC’s toughest defense hits like a Raven already. While his lateral speed may force his NFL career to the outside of the tackles, he’s a force to be reckoned with in college football’s most NFL-ready division at the mike. Hightower is a great talent, but he may not even be the most complete linebacker on his own squad. Senior Alabama linebacker Courtney Upshaw has been a staple of those nasty Kirby Smart defenses and will come into the NFL and start. Just check out this pop from the Capital One Bowl. Who does that remind you of? You know Ozzie has seen every frame on these two and may be searching for signs of Lewis in these players.

Can you picture any of these three players donning the black helmet and suiting up on say, opening day 2013? Perhaps the next Ray Lewis isn’t coming from South Bend or Tuscaloosa. Maybe he’s lurking down in Chapel Hill in senior Zach Brown. Maybe he’s alone in some weight room in Chestnut Hill, in the form of Boston College junior Luke Kuechly. Perhaps he’ll come from the good fortune of a draft pick trade like Lewis did. Perhaps he’s a high school senior somewhere in Florida, as Lewis once was.

Wherever he is, he doesn’t have long. So much is asked of those who walk in the shadows of giants. Ray lewis is a legend, but he’s not immortal.

At least, as far as we know.

Dave Gilmore lives in Baltimore and writes “The Win Column” for Baltimore Sports Report. He is currently working on a novel about college football. Find him on Twitter @dave_gilmore or visit his web site at davegilmorejr.com

Terrell Suggs says Derrick Mason is “the enemy”

Zach Wilt — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 17:29:59 +0000

Terrell Suggs is ready to take on his former teammates in New York in front of a national audience and 77,000 Ravens fans at M&T Bank Stadium. Today the Ravens linebacker showed up to his press conference donning a “Can’t Wait” t-shirt in honor of “his brother and mentor” Bart Scott. Suggs joked that he hopes Scott doesn’t sue him.

“It’s not as friendly as you think, it’s more personal,” Suggs told Aaron Wilson of the Carroll County Times.

When asked about his former teammate Derrick Mason, who was cut by the Ravens and signed to play with the Jets during the offseason, Suggs told Wilson, “He don’t wear our colors anymore, he’s the enemy.”

Shots have been fired. If the Jets can hear over the belligerent insults of Joe Namath, let’s see how the Jets respond.

Get ready for a week of smack talk between the Jets and Ravens

Zach Wilt — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 11:10:20 +0000

Get ready folks because I anticipate the smack talk between the Ravens and Jets to be heavy heading into their Sunday night matchup. So does John Harbaugh.

“It will be good laughs listening to what comes out of New York, and we will be looking forward to it because it is always funny,” Harbaugh said in his Monday press conference. The Ravens head coach grinned when talking about the chatter between the two teams. ”We don’t tell them not to say anything,” he said.

Though no talk between the two teams has yet been reported, Ray Rice did tell the media on Sunday that the Ravens will be ready for the Jets and specifically Bart Scott next week. ”Bart’s a character, but we’ll be ready for him.”

Harbaugh was confident that the Ravens will keep it fun and won’t cross the line. ”I’m sure our guys will have fun with it. I don’t think you will hear too much malicious [words] coming out of our guys.”

Ray Rice says Ravens will be ready for Bart Scott, Jets

Zach Wilt — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 13:00:12 +0000

After a dominant performance in week one, the Ravens fell asleep against the Titans and lost a very winnable game 26-13. Yesterday, they rebounded and cruised past the Rams 37–7 in a game that they dominated from start to finish.

With the New York Jets coming to town next week, the Ravens want to ensure their fan base that they will be ready for Rex Ryan and the boys and won’t be caught with their pants down.

“Big game [against the Jets], sort of like playing against our own defense.” Ray Rice told Aaron Wilson of the Carroll County Times. ”It will be a challenge for us.”

A number of Ravens have migrated north to for the Gang Green including one of the biggest smack talkers of the them all, Bart Scott. “Bart’s a character, but we’ll be ready for him.”

Who Are The “Bizarro Ravens” Of The AFC?

Dave Gilmore — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:00:36 +0000

When fans and analyst refer to the NFL’s “parity,” they are usually talking about a balance of competition among the league’s 32 teams. One of the things I appreciate about the NFL so much is actually its parity in the most basic sense. 32 divided by two, divided by four, divided by four – a perfect equation for a mathematically balanced grouping of teams. With this harmonious balance, you begin to see patterns develop. The divisions, while different in the details, fall into similar dynamics. Each one is kind of a bizarro version of the next, like on “Seinfeld” when Elaine found the other group of guys to hang out with. So, who are the Ravens’ “Feldman” in the other divisions?

AFC East
If you did not see this coming, my congratulations on being rescued from that mine you’ve been trapped in the last three seasons. The New York Jets might be the Ravens North. If you ask a Jets fan, they will tell you that the Ravens are the Jets’ weird cousin. Either way you choose to view their relationship, the teams’ trajectories have been intertwined since Rex Ryan assumed the head coaching duties in Jersey in 2009. Aside from the former Ravens that Ryan has chosen to employ (Bart Scott, Jim Leonhard, Derrick Mason, etc.), the Jets and the Ravens both operate with the same basic moving parts. You have the star-studded defense that both teams are famous for, but the offenses have more in common than you’d think. Flacco and Sanchez are at similar developmental points in their quarterbacking careers, and both squads rely on a one-two punch of young and veteran running backs. Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer comes from the same coaching tree as Ravens playcaller Cam Cameron, who coached under his father Marty. The working parts are obviously comparable, but these two teams also have a very similar relationships with their rivals. Until they put them in the ground convincingly and repeatedly, the Jets will perpetually be looking up to New England as Baltimore will be to Pittsburgh. There is no more fitting team you will find as Baltimore’s counterpart within another division.

AFC South
Since departing the Ravens after coaching the linebackers from 1999-2001, Jack Del Rio has done a nice job of creating a less successful little version of Baltimore down in J-Ville. If there is a comparable back to Ray Rice in the league right now, it’s definitely Maurice Jones-Drew. There are some other interesting Baltimore connections in northern Florida as well. For one, Baltimore lost out to Jacksonville in the 1995 expansion sweepstakes that allowed the Jaguars to exist in the first place. Incidentally, before he moved the team to Indianapolis, Robert Irsay was allegedly very close to moving the team to Jacksonville. Offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter was also Terrell Suggs’ head coach at Arizona State. In addition, you can find former Ravens Dawan Landry and Tony Moll on the Jags’ active roster. The Ravens are obviously stronger contenders within and outside of their division, but if Jacksonville improves with Blaine Gabbert under center, perhaps they will evolve into a closer the Ravens and have the Colts become their Steelers. One can dream.

AFC West
Another squad that has become a Raven refugee camp of late has been the Kansas City Chiefs. Current Chiefs Kelly Gregg, Le’Ron McClain, Jared Gaither, and Terrance Copper all arrived in KC directly from Baltimore. Under Todd Haley, the Chiefs have taken a similar path as the Ravens, ramping up the passing game while coming to terms with the fact that they must run the ball to win. Safety Eric Berry is as special a player as Ed Reed was in his second season, and the 3-4 the Chiefs adopted in 2009 shares many concepts with the Ravens’ base scheme (as evidenced by Kelly Gregg’s signing). Lest we forget, Chiefs GM Scott Pioli is technically an Original Raven, having served as the team’s Pro Personnel Coordinator in the team’s inaugural season after coming over from Cleveland. After meeting in the playoffs last year, it’s clear the Chiefs and Ravens are coming in to 2010 at similar levels of expectation. Both will need to upend the division favorite (San Diego and Pittsburgh) and stave off two other crappy teams.

We’ve identified the Bizarro Ravens of the other AFC divisions. The Jets, Jaguars and Chiefs all work from a similar ethos as Baltimore. Next week, we’ll find four teams in the NFC who share some purple and black DNA.

Derrick Mason to sign with New York Jets

Zach Wilt — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 21:05:19 +0000

Less than 24 hours after missing out on free agent wide receiver Malcom Floyd, the Ravens have let Derrick Mason slip through their finger tips as he plans to sign a one year deal with the New York Jets. Mason tweeted on Saturday, “Jet fuel is full time to fly.” Numerous sources have confirmed that he will sign with New York.

Jet fuel is full time to fly!!!!!less than a minute ago via Twitter for iPhone Favorite Retweet ReplyDerrick Mason
deemason85

To the Ravens, this is another crushing blow. After putting all of their eggs in the Floyd basket, they missed out when he signed back with San Diego. Their backup, 37 year old veteran Derrick Mason now chooses to leave his former team and join Rex Ryan, Bart Scott and the Jets. Baltimore is missing a speedy and proven wide receiver, time is running out and cap room is not on their side. This could be their biggest loss of the offseason.

Why are Kelly Gregg Jerseys on Sale?

Ross Gore — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:41:12 +0000

In the wake of the Albert Hayenesworth trade, Dan Steinberg reported that The Redskins were willing to sell Haynesworth jerseys for $9.99. Out of curiousity I logged onto the Ravens Team Store to see what “Sale” jerseys were available. My search was filled with the usual suspects: Kyle Boller, Jamal Lewis, Bart Scott and Chris McAlister. However, one “Sale” jersey seemed out of place: Kelly Gregg. While Gregg was cut from the team this week, we heard from Jason LaCafora as recently as yesterday that “the Ravens are hopeful to re-sign … DT Kelly Gregg“. Drastically pricing down his jersey and attempting to re-sign him seem very much at odds with one another. If I am reading the tea leaves correctly I wouldn’t expect Gregg back with the Ravens this season.

Bart Scott is Right, “The Ravens don’t operate like the Ravens anymore”

Zach Wilt — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 13:30:55 +0000

Even during the offseason the New York Jet’s linebacker Bart Scott finds ways to take jabs at his former team, the Ravens. In an interview with Metro New York, Scott said that “the Ravens aren’t loose anymore,” like they were in his playing days in Baltimore.

“Harbaugh changed everything,” Scott said. “The Ravens don’t operate like the Ravens anymore.” While Bart is clearing just stirring the pot and I hate to give him any credit for actually thinking through his ridiculous insult, he may actually be right.

During Bart’s days Baltimore was one of the most feared defenses in the league. They wore down even the best running backs and slammed their opponents quarterbacks into the turf. The Ravens were always the bad boys of the NFL and they won a championship with that underdog, us against the world mentality. In a lot of ways, that is gone.

Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs chimed in on Bart’s comments, but in my opinion he didn’t really address what Bart was actually talking about.

“Really Bart, we have fun,” Suggs said in an interview on the NFL Network. “That first year, we had that change and it was kind of weird, but you don’t think me and Haloti Ngata don’t have fun? I’m the loosest guy in the NFL.”

Having fun in the locker room is one thing, but the hard nose, bad boy Ravens that I believe he was referring to are gone. If he was simply talking about playing Celine Dion in the locker room, Suggs has that covered. But I think Bart was referring to the product on the field and John Harbaugh has stressed cleaning up that image.

And in that way Scott is correct. “The Ravens don’t operate like the Ravens anymore.”

Cinderella’s Dance Shoes

Gregg Cobert — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 13:07:30 +0000

Well the madness of March is upon us as the tournament kicks off today at 12:15. In the immortal words of Bart Scott, “CAN’T WAIT!” I am looking forward to the close games, buzzer beaters, and upsets as they destroy my bracket and rip it to shreds. So who are some teams that could spring an upset to outperform their seed.

Morehead State (24-9): Hailing from the Ohio Valley Conference, Morehead State is an in state rival of their first round opponent, Louisville. The crazy part is that both teams met two years ago when Louisville was a 1 and Morehead was a 16. Morehead played them close for about 30 minutes in that game before falling to the high powered Cardinals. It is also quite possible that Morehead will have the best player on the floor in senior Kenneth Faried. Faried is the all time leader in rebounding and was on the floor the last time they played in the tournament.

Oakland (25-9): Oakland ran roughshod through the Summit League this year and are making their second straight appearance in the Dance. Oakland is a high powered offense that has scored in the 100s multiple times. One reason I like the Golden Grizzlies is that Rick Barnes coaches Texas. No one gets less out of more than Barnes. Also, Texas has been up and down heading into the tournament. Keith Benson leads the veteran Grizzlies with 18 points and 10 boards a night. I think that the experience of the Grizzlies will topple the youth of Texas.

Richmond (27-7): After coming in third in the Atlantic 10 regular season and winning the tournament, the Spiders come in on quite a roll and have a lot of buzz to spring the ever popular 5/12 upset on the Commodores of Vanderbilt. They have a great inside-out combination with Justin Harper and Kevin Anderson and a senior laden team as Coach Chris Mooney hopes to advance further than last year after they lost to St. Mary’s.

Missouri (23-10): I like the Tigers style of playing basketball as it is not typical. Coach Mike Anderson was a player on Nolan Richardson’s national championship Arkansas team that preached “40 Minutes of Hell.” Anderson learned his lessons well as he has implemented those same principles at Missouri. The full court pressing Tigers are never far out of any matchup but they open with a Big East foe in Cincinnati. If they win, they would play the winner of UConn/Bucknell. Quote from avid UConn fan, Josh Conrad, during the Big East Tournament, “I hope we don’t get a pressing team because we will not be able to handle it very well. We’ve struggled this year against it.” To which I replied, “So a team like Missouri.”

Utah State (30-3): That is quite the gaudy record for another 12 seed and they truly scare me because I think Kansas State can really make a run to the Elite Eight. For Kansas State, I love Jacob Pullen and his beard and I especially love Frank Martin. If you look in the dictionary under intensity, you see a picture of Martin’s facial expression and him about to lose it. As for Utah State, they come out of the WAC and are tournament veterans and Coach Stew Morrill seems to regularly pile up wins but can’t seem to get it done in the Big Dance.

Arizona (27-7) & North Carolina (26-7): I list both these teams because I think both of them can make long runs in the tournament, and both are led by amazing underclassmen who could pull a Carmelo Antony and Syracuse type run from 2003. Derrick Williams (Arizona) and Harrison Barnes (North Carolina) are two of my favorite players to watch this year. Both are not afraid to take the big shot at the end of the game and both have had to work hard to get better this year. Williams was freshman of the year last year and has improved his game so much that he has gotten some national player of the year buzz this year leading Arizona to the Pac 10 regular season title. He is so strong and has an awesome jump shot from deep. As for Barnes, he was the first preseason All American. Unfortunately, he did not live up to the immense hype, but he stuck with it and kept going. By January, he was finding his stroke and helping to lead the Tarheels along with Kendall Marshall on a strong run to the finish to win the ACC regular season. Last weekend, Barnes exploded for 40 points against the Clemson Tigers in the ACC semifinals to lead them to the title game in an OT victory. He had huge shots at the end of the game and had 14 points in the extra session.

Enjoy the Madness!