With a tough stretch of games glaring at the Ravens over the next couple weeks, Sunday’s game against the Broncos was virtually a must-win. And if the first snap of the game was any indication of how the game was going to play out, the Ravens had to like their chances of handing the Broncos their first loss. Jarrett Johnson blasted through the line untouched and absolutely leveled Kyle Orton, reminding fans of the similar hit Bart Scott put on Big Ben a couple seasons ago. That hit started a day of the most dominant and inspired defense the Ravens have played all season. They held Orton and the Broncos to just 200 yards of total offense, but most importantly kept standout wide receiver Brandon Marshall from hurting them down the field. The Ravens came out hungry and ready to play, and as a result, improved their record to 4-3 heading into Cincinnati next week.
The POG
The entire team dominated every facet of the game from start to finish, so there’s no possible way I could just pick one player for this award. The offensive balance was remarkable and the defensive pressure was suffocating, but the stats tell the real story. The Ravens offense was an eye-popping 11-for-18 on third downs against the league’s top-ranked defense, and they didn’t turn the ball over despite the Broncos owning a plus-7 turnover differential. In their previous six games, the Broncos had outscored their opponents 76-10 in the second half. The Ravens changed that fortune rather quickly by taking the second half kickoff to the house and continued the 24-7 outscoring onslaught to end the game. The defense only allowed the Broncos to cross into their territory three times the entire game and they only stepped foot in the red zone once.
The “Oh, S***” Moment
To be continued next week…
The “Way to Step up, Young Man” Award
Lardarius Webb may have made one of the biggest plays of the season, but it wasn’t without a little motivation from a seasoned veteran. Ray Lewis pulled Webb aside in the locker room at halftime and told him that he was going to run back the second-half kickoff for a touchdown. It was an unlikely prediction at the time considering the Broncos had only given up 10 points in the second half all season. But Mr. Motivator did what he does best and Webb responded with a 95-yard run back, the first touchdown of his career. Not only did Webb’s touchdown put the Ravens up 13-0, but it ended the second half invincibility that the Broncos seemingly had up to that point. You picked a good time to step up, Mr. Webb.
Last night, Bart Scott continued to talk smack after the Ravens defeated the Jets 24-23.
Image Courtesy of the Baltimore Sun
When asked about how he felt to Rex Ryan being the head coach of the Jets, Scott said, “I love it. He was always the head coach.” Scott continued, “He was head coach of that football team last year, whether you guys know it or not. He kept that team together. The defense leads that team over there, and he controls the defense.”
Bart was always an advocate for Rex as the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens and has always been outspoken about everything.
In fact, even with the Ravens I have felt that Scott needed to replace that non-existent filter between his head and his mouth. He’s a fiery guy, but sometimes he goes too far. Remember this is the same guy that tossed a referee’s flag into the stands.
Now that Ravens’ training camp has wrapped up and we’re half way through the preseason, BSR decided to get the inside scoop on the team by an expert and fellow blogger.
We decided to ask Joe Barnes of EbonyBird.com to fill us in on the 2009 Ravens…
Image Courtesy of the Baltimore Sun
With training camp coming to a close, what are your expectations of the 2009 Ravens based on their camp performance?
I see a season similar to last year’s campaign. Joe Flacco looks solid, the defense looks solid, every position is pretty deep, and things are looking good. With that said, it is possible that the loss of Bart Scott dooms the defense, but when has the team not replaced a linebacker well? If you want a record, I’d say that looking at the schedule, anywhere from 9-7 to 12-4 seems possible, and most likely with playoffs.
Who were you impressed with?
I was most impressed with rookie Lardarius Webb. He was always buzzing around the field, whether it was rushing the quarterback, picking off a pass or making a tackle in between the trenches on a running play. At the beginning of camp, I thought that the secondary might not be good enough to survive against some QBs like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Phillip Rivers, etc. but seeing the depth behind Fabian Washington and Dominique Foxworth, including Webb, has made me think otherwise.
Who were you disappointed with?
I was disappointed with Mark Clayton more than any other player. He just never was on the field. While I understand that they don’t want to risk an aggravation of the injury, it seems like he could be more involved with the team and have a bigger presence in camp. At least he was running routes the last week of camp, but it seems like he might not be in good enough shape, like McGahee last year, and Joe Flacco needs him to have a very good season this year.
What is the team’s biggest flaw?
For me, the team’s biggest flaw is the lack of speed with their top receivers. Flacco’s got an arm, we have all seen that, and Yamon Figurs, Jayson Foster and Justin Harper all have breakaway speed. The issue is getting them on the field enough to have them make an impact with their speed. Derrick Mason, Mark Clayton, Demetrius Williams and Kelley Washington will probably get most of the time on gameday, and none of them have exceptional speed. Mason is great on cutbacks, Clayton great with mid-distance passes, but none could beat a safety 40 yards deep. It’s not a huge flaw, but it’s important for the offense to figure out how to get the speedsters on the field.
What is their strongest point?
The strong point of the team is the defense, in general. The line is great, led by Haloti Ngata. Rookie Paul Kruger looks good enough to start for a lot of teams at DE, but the Ravens’ line is good enough that he’s just depth. The linebackers should be one of the best groups in the league, yet again. And the secondary, led by Ed Reed and strengthened by the return of Dawan Landry and signing of Domonique Foxworth looks to be great as always. This defense is just too good.
The NFL released the preseason schedule for 2009 yesterday and Baltimore learned that they will host the Washington Redskins on August 13.
While I think the preseason is a complete waste of everyone’s time and money, the Ravens did it right. They bring in Washington early and host the New York Jets on August 24.
Since fans have to pay full price for these garbage games the teams might as well bring some excitement to the stadium and hats off to the Ravens for doing just that. Games against the ‘Skins are always fun and bringing Rex Ryan, Bart Scott, Jim Leonhard back to M&T Bank Stadium will be entertaining for some fans.
The Ravens will travel to Carolina and Atlanta for their other two preseason games.
The Ravens have had quite an eventful off season this year. But should we be worried about their future? In my mind there are a lot of question marks the Ravens face going into 2009. In Ozzie we trust though, right.
Looking to the list above I can tell you two losses that I’m not worried about. Both of them went to the Jets. Bart Scott was way over paid in New York and Jim Leonhard was a good fill in for Dawan Landry, but is nothing more than that. Don’t worry about these two Baltimore. Players like this come and go in this town, they get their big deals (and good for them) but you won’t hear their names again.
They are the Jamie Sharpers, the Duane Starks, the Ed Hartwells, and Adalius Thomases. Highly paid, but they’re system guys. You take them out of the Ravens’ system and you’ll see the kind of puzzle piece players that that they really are.
What I am worried about is Domonique Foxworth, a cornerback that Atlanta and Denver seemed to give up on and a guy the Ravens lovingly tossed 27 million dollars to. How is this guy going to do matched up one-on-one with Hines Ward twice a year? Because he certainly doesn’t seem to be the second coming of C-Mac.
The Ravens have also run Samari Rolle out of town. “Honestly, I don’t want to play in Baltimore anymore because I feel I’m not wanted,” Rolle said. The 32 year old cornerback has caught a lot of heat from some fans because he’s been burned a few times. I’ve always challenged that by wondering whether Ed Reed left him high and dry trying to make the play of the week. Though you’d never hear him say that. Last year he thought Fabian Washington came to replace him, now its Foxworth.
And what about Matt Birk? The Ravens obviously couldn’t afford to give a center $37.5 million dollars. But they were able to give a 32 year old 12 million over 3 years. I’m not saying that signing a 6 time Pro Bowler is a bad idea, but I’m just a little skeptical.
Finally, Mr. Baltimore, Ray Lewis, is back. Unfortunately for him, no star on his helmet. The length and terms of the deal have not been released yet, but Ozzie told the press that Ray can “retire as a Raven.” We’ve heard all kinds of rumors about the deal. Despite his history here, I just hope the Ravens didn’t break the bank on a 34 year old tattered linebacker.
So what do you think? Are you still following Ozzie blindly, or are you starting to feel a little uncomfortable like me?
For years in Baltimore, the purple and black clad faithful have clamored for one thing: a quarterback whose jersey they can feel safe purchasing. After years of amending Zeier, Grbac, Banks and Boller jerseys with duct tape and magic marker, Ravens fans have found their man in Joe Flacco.
“Now get ‘im some weapons!” their cries echo through the talk radio and message boards.
Don’t get me wrong, the Ravens have never had a wideout even worth sniffing the early rounds of any fantasy draft. It would be nice to see a Reggie Wayne or Andre Johnson streaking down the sidelines of M&T Bank Stadium, surely. However, when you take a look at the AFC North in 2008, it seems apparent that sticking to their guns may be what keeps the momentum of the surprising 11-5 2008 season going.
In an interesting case of perception vs. reality, regardless of its reputation of a hard-nosed, mud-faced, cold weather division, the AFC North is pass-happy.
In 2008, despite an injured Carson Palmer and a no-show season from Chad Johnson, the Bengals still threw the ball 55% of the time. The Browns chucked it on 54% of their snaps. The Super Bowl champs? Well, even though their reputation, like the Ravens, speaks to three yards and a cloud of dust, the Steelers actually passed the ball 52% of the time.
The Ravens, in fact, are the only team honoring the North’s reputation as The Other Black and Blue (with the original mantle going to the NFC North, naturally). Baltimore passed the ball just 42% of the time, which is remarkably low not just for the AFC North but for the modern era of the NFL. Granted, this is largely in part to having a rookie quarterback at the helm (by comparison, the Atlanta Falcons’ rookie Matt Ryan and threw the ball 46% of the time, which also can be traced to having one of the best rushers in the game in Michael Turner). Still, the Ravens’ meal ticket was the three-headed monster of McClain, McGahee and Rice. Now, in ’09 the attack may break down differently (I’d like to see more touches for Rice), but philosophically, the Ravens are the lone wolf (or bird) in their division when it comes to old school football.
So what does this all mean? Well, for one, Cam Cameron might as well be using be using Brian Billick’s old stationary, which reads “Former Offensive Pass Guru Turned Woody Hayes Enthusiast.” Secondly, and more importantly, it means that in the AFC North there is a clear rift in the economics of moving the chains.
While this year’s free agent market is a thin one, there are still going to be pass-catchers on the market. The temptation, and the pressure, will be there to ink a commodity name wearing a number in the 80s. If the Ravens are unable to sway a receiver from the open market, the pressure will intensify to grab one in April’s draft. With an especially deep receiver class the temptation will certainly be there to select one in the first two rounds. But we’ve been there before. Taking receivers early means big money, and more importantly big expectations (anyone seen Travis Taylor lately?)
Nobody is claiming that Derrick Mason is a spring chicken, but he is extremely reliable. Like Marvin Harrison before him, the man has made a heck of a career of turning around and catching the football consistently. His ability to stay healthy and limit drops on the safe routes has been and will be crucial in Flacco’s development. For now, the inconsistently explosive Mark Clayton will have to be the Big Play Guy. There may be better number three guys in the league than Demetrius Williams, but there are certainly worse. All in all, it’s not an outstanding corps of receivers, but one you could survive on. Throw a late round pick into the mix, a dollop of Heap and a dash of Yamon Figurs for good measure, and you have a pretty good pass-catching group for a team that never passes. You can’t get A’s in every subject in the NFL. Somewhere, you have to sacrifice resources. With the Browns and Bengals, hopelessly trying to pass their way to the top of the North, they are sacrificing not only their ability to control the clock by running the football, they are exposing themselves defensively.
The other thing that this lopsided offensive mindset in the AFC North means is that there is an absolute premium on the ability to defend the pass. The priority on inking Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis, and/or Bart Scott is noble, but it is clear that to win in this division you had better be ready to defend the past. With Chris McAlister unceremoniously shuffled out the back door and Samari Rolle not far behind, the Ravens most pressing rebuilding needs to happen in the secondary. The amount of free agent d-backs worth their salt will not be great, and rookie corners have a hit-and-miss record. This makes the decision to let breakout safety Jim Leonhard slide into the free agent pool a frustrating one. Granted, there won’t be a penny leftover if the Ravens are able to re-sign Lewis, but with everyone else attempting to air it out, wouldn’t it make sense to specialize in stopping the pass?
Warren Buffet once said, “You cannot buy what is popular and do well.” In a division where teams are overpaying due to demand for receiving, I’d heed Mr. Buffet’s advice.
It has become clearer over the last few days that in order for the Ravens to bring back Ray Lewis it is going to cost them. Signing Lewis back, at 33 would leave less money for younger players like center Jason Brown and linebackers Terrell Suggs and Bart Scott.
General manager Ozzie Newsome is a very smart football man, and he should do what any smart GM would do and that is to follow the blueprint of the Pittsburgh Steelers. By letting go of older players when their contract runs out and using that money to bring in younger, fresher talent at the position. The Steelers have let go of fan favorites like, Rod Woodson, Carnell Lake, Levon Kirkland and Joey Porter only to replace them with what is always a perennial top 5 defense. The Ravens are not unfamiliar with this practice either, and have replaced veterans like Adalius Thomas, Ed Hartwell, Sam Adams, and Will Demps without missing a beat.
Baltimore has in many ways already modeled themselves after the Steelers. Stop the run, suffocate the quarterback, and create turnovers on defense. On offense run the ball, go for the big plays in the air, and let the QB manage the team to a victory.
Now Newsome and Coach John Harbaugh, should look to April’s draft for their next man in the middle. With the team picking 26th there will definitely be an immediate starter available, either at middle linebacker or cornerback. With the Ravens history of excellent drafts, this year should not be any different.
While it may hurt fans minds to accept, Ray Lewis is not worth a huge contract at 33. He also is not the second coming of Cal Ripken Jr. who the Orioles had to keep because he was the only player that sold tickets, a problem the Ravens do not have. The NFL is a cutthroat business and one player is never above the team. Just look down south in Tampa Bay where the Buccaneers just released the franchise’s best defender of all time. Derrick Brooks might be the best player to compare to Lewis, they each have been defensive cornerstones on their respective franchises for the last decade and both helped lead their teams to super bowls. Look for their busts to go into Canton around the same time. Tampa just released Brooks yesterday, the Ravens don’t even have to be the bad guys this weekend, they are not cutting the beloved Ray Lewis, just allowing him to move on to greener pastures for the rest of his hall of fame career.
The defense will still be very talented, surrounding a new middle linebacker with Haloti Ngata up front, Ed Reed in the deep secondary and veterans Suggs and Scott if they manage to re-sign both. Not bad players to learn from coming into the NFL for your first season. With a new defensive coordinator in town the timing could not have been better.
There are talented run stoppers in this year’s class, most notably, Ray Maualuga of USC and James Laurinaitis from Ohio State. You know who the Ravens selected 13 years ago when they had the 26th pick of the first round? I do and I bet Mr. Newsome remembers that one as well.
Yesterday, Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome said that they plan to keep Terrell Suggs off the free agent market for the 2009 season. If you’re like us, you’ve got to be wondering what the Ravens are doing and how they’re going to do it.
I know. “Have faith in Ozzie.” Right? He’s never steered us wrong.
The Ravens cut Chris McAlister two days ago adding 8 million dollars in cap room. If the Ravens tag Suggs it will cost them $10.2 million (120% of his contract last season). The last player that they tagged twice signed a seven year deal the following season. He was one of the highest paid cornerbacks in the game, his name was Chris McAlister.
The Ravens did sign a one year $1 million deal with defensive lineman Dwan Edwards and an undiscolused deal with Brandon McKinney.
But what about 13 year veteran linebacker Ray Lewis or their star center Jason Brown? The clock is ticking in Baltimore a lots of the puzzle pieces are flying through the air. Where will they land?
Listen up people, forget about what you’re hearing and reading every where else. Let me set the record straight for you.
I turned the radio on yesterday and listened to the talk radio personalities talk about these elaborate plans that Terrell Suggs had developed about a “package deal” for himself, Bart Scott, and Ray Lewis to stay in Baltimore.
We broke this story before most of the local Baltimore media, and we’re not going to BS you with a story that gets you excited about something that is a lie. We’ll quote Suggs and tell you the truth.
Yes. Terrell Suggs did use the words “home discount” in his interview with Zig Fracassi and Jim Miller of Sirius NFL Radio. Suggs said, “Hopefully we all can stay, definitely, on a home discount.”
Yes. Suggs did mention staying in Baltimore next season. “We really don’t want to see too many more of us walk away from the city of Baltimore,” Suggs said.
Yes. T-Sizzle did say that he wanted to play along side of Ray Lewis and Bart Scott next season. “To line up and see somebody [different] behind me in my case, or lining up seeing somebody different in Bart’s case, line up with somebody next to you and it’s not one of the greatest defensive players of all time, it’s going to be kind of weird,” Suggs said.
His comments did not mention specifics, it is important to remember that Suggs does not speak for Bart Scott or Ray Lewis. He is the youngest of the three. Ravens fans, remember that Suggs came to training camp last season far later than the rest of the team because of a disagreement with his contract.
Suggs was franchised last season and if he truly wants to stay with Scott and Lewis he will more than likely be franchised again in 2009. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said that he will not franchise Ray Lewis. If Suggs is franchised again this year he will have to make 120% of his 2008 salary of $10.2 million.
It is all entirely possible and definitely worth be excited about, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves with this information.
“We really don’t want to play without one another because we’ve been playing together for so long,” Terrell Suggs told Zig Fracassi and Jim Miller of Sirius NFL Radio.
Suggs said it would be “weird” not to line up with Bart Scott, who he said has been like a big brother to him, or one of the greatest defensive players of all time in Ray Lewis.
“We’ve already seen one of our other brothers walk,” Suggs said in reference to Adalius Thomas leaving Baltimore to go to New England last season.
“Hopefully we all can stay, definitely, on a home discount,” Suggs said.
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