Baltimore Sports Report » Ray Lewis

Best of Tumblr: Please Stop Posting “Ravens” Porn

Dave Gilmore — Mon, 14 May 2012 13:00:50 +0000

A weekly wrap-up of the best stuff you may have missed on our excellent Tumblr:

A sweet multi-GIF of the Orioles’ 1-2-3 leadoff homers the other day.
Our impassioned plea to whomever is misusing the #Ravens tag on Tumblr.
Maybe the most liked/reblogged thing we’ve ever passed along. Guys, it’s cool (and true), but it’s just an ad for an airline.
Apparently “Hipster Orioles Girl” is actually (maybe?) the chick from “Twilight” and the O’s hat belongs to the dude from “Twilight.” zZzZzZzz
Happy belated Mother’s Day from Ray and his mom.

Welcome To Baltimore Jacoby Jones

Ross Gore — Wed, 09 May 2012 19:47:27 +0000

Today former Texans wide receiver, perennial fantasy football sleeper and major contributor to the Ravens playoff win last year Jacoby Jones, became the newest Baltimore Raven. For those who don’t remember Jones inexplicably tried to field a punt with Cary Williams bearing down on him in the second round of the playoffs last year. When Jones bobbled the punt it resulted in the Ravens jumping out to an early 7-0 lead over the Texans and an eventual win. Five months later Jones will enter camp trying to help the Ravens by not bobbling the ball but holding onto it.

Jacoby Jones fumbles a punt against the Ravens in the second round of NFL playoffs.

There is a lot to like about Jones signing. First, he is an incredible physical specimen: 6-foot-2 1/2, 210 lbs. and a 4.49 forty-yard dash time. Simply put, he has all the physical skills needed in a #1 wide receiver. Jones’ physical attributes shouldn’t be quickly dismissed despite his lack of production in Houston. When players with these skills/attributes “get it” they become stars. In past NFL seasons players like Miles Austin, Vincent Jackson and Brandon Marshall were all recent “projects” with similar physical skills who’ve developed into #1 wide receivers out of nowhere. More analysis on Jones and how he fits into the 2012 Ravens after the jump.

Miles Austin has similar physical tools to Jones and suddenly became a #1 WR in 2009.

Furthermore, by signing Jones the Ravens do not have to use their best corner, Ladarius Webb, on punt returns. Despite Jones’ bobble in the playoff game against Baltimore he is a proven commodity as a kick/punt returner tallying four return touchdowns in his first five NFL seasons. Thus, even in Jones does not breakout this year he’ll still add depth at wide receiver and on special teams.

It would be irresponsible to simply celebrate the Jones’ signing in this space. After all, its fair to describe Jones as an injury prone knuckle-head. Despite his physical tools he never surpassed Kevin Walter as the Texans #2 wide receiver. Jones’ best season for receptions was 2010 when he had 51 for 562 yards and three touchdowns. Furthermore, Jones has showcased poor decision making on and off the field including being arrested under suspicion of drunk driving in 2008. Still, there is plenty of upside with Jones to look forward to. The move also shows that the Ravens front office recognizes Joe Flacco’s strength as a down the field passer and are attempting to surround him with viable weapons.

Terrell Suggs Loss: 3.5 Points Allowed Per Game, 2 Wins

Zach Wilt — Thu, 03 May 2012 19:20:20 +0000

By now you know and have had hours to cope with the fact that Terrell Suggs will miss at least a good chunk of the 2012 season with an Achilles tear.

Suggs told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols that he will be back by mid-season. ”Definitely beginning of November,” Aaron Wilson tweeted. According to CBSSports.com, that’s a super optimistic timetable for recovery. Will Brinson reports that it’s at least a nine month recovery from a full Achilles tear.

Over at TheBigLead.com, Jason Lisk used some fancy statistics to research what this loss will mean for the Ravens this season.

Twenty-nine other players, via searches using the play finder at pro football reference, have been a first team all-pro on defense since the merger, and then missed ten or more of their team’s games the following season. A handful retired, and of course there was Jerome Brown’s tragic car accident, while the rest suffered injuries.

Lisk concluded that based on the information in this group, the average points allowed per game rose from 17.3 to 20.8 and the average wins per season dropped from 9.8 to 7.9.

He also points out that while some players, like Bruce Smith, Rod Woodson and Ray Lewis, went on to play at a high level, others like Bubba Smith, Keith Millard, John Offerdahl and Bob Sanders, were never the same.

Regardless, the Ravens will need someone to step up. They already lost Jarrett Johnson this offseason so the remaining candidates would be draft selection Courtney Upshaw, Pernell McPhee, Paul Kruger or even Sergio Kindle. It’s now or never for Kindle. If he can’t help the fill the void Suggs leaves behind, his already short lived NFL career is likely over.

I’m From Out Of Town: April 23

Patrick Guthrie — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:06:00 +0000

With the Nationals on a 10 game home stand and MLB.tv blacking out Orioles games, I didn’t get to see too much of the O’s this week. From what I did see, Brian Matusz got a raw deal due to some predictably poor defense in Anaheim, Wei Yin Chen had yet another very strong outing, and the offense looked great in some spots (Jones and Wieters) and rough in others (Reynolds hasn’t had a hit in nearly a week). But despite not seeing much of Baltimore this week, there is one thing I do know.

Cam Cameron is ruining Joe Flacco. How the hell is Joe supposed to build a successful career with shoddy schematics? No one will ever know how good Flacco can be until Cam’s parking spot is empty, and his playbooks are halfway through the shredder. This is how Ravens fans introduce themselves around here, and Baltimore was in the AFC Championship game last year.

At the same time, O’s fans acknowledge that there’s some talent on the pitching staff. Tommy Hunter won 13 games with Texas, Jake Arrieta’s stuff is cough syrup nasty, and Brian Matusz was once considered good enough that people still wonder what’s wrong with him. If Baltimore fans had their way, Cam Cameron would have had an appointment with Ned Stark’s barber months ago. Which leaves me scratching my own head as to why Rick Adair’s is still under an Orioles cap.

In one of the more unbelievable stats in all of baseball, the O’s rank 1^st in the AL East in Team ERA (3.64). But as amazing as that number is, it’s equally unsustainable because of how it’s happening. The starters are still rocking the boat enough to make you seasick (4.39 ERA), while the bullpen has been Dramamine and Pepto Bismol all in one (2.26 ERA).

Flat out, the rotation isn’t getting it done, and it’s been a while (OK more like a decade) since they have. If I’m Orioles management, I take a good hard look at the pitching coach. I’m not going to debate whether the staff isn’t listening to Adair’s messages, or if he’s just not sending them. But it’s common knowledge that the coach gets the axe before the players, and the numbers point to the whetstone.

Since Adair took over as the pitching coach on June 14 last year, Orioles starters have had the worst ERA in baseball (a jarring 5.95) by more than half a run. Good starting pitching is built on the fictional but helpful quality start stat (6 IP 3 ER or better). No team ranked in the bottom 11 made the playoffs last year. The Orioles were ranked 30^th (dead last) in that category in 2011, with 11 fewer than any other team in baseball. They are tied for 23^rd in quality starts this season.

Now, there may not be bonafide aces on this staff, but great pitching coaches have a way of making them appear out of thin air. Dave Duncan (who should get a royalty check every time Tony LaRussa’s name is mentioned) made a career of picking washed up hurlers like Kyle Lohse and Joel Pineiro off the scrap heap and restoring them into anything from competent to exceptional starters. Mike Maddux has transformed the Texas rotation from a punch line to no joke in just a few years. A good pitching coach is like a good accountant: he sees things that you can’t, and by the time he’s done, the numbers are much lower than you ever thought possible.

Speaking of Mike, maybe his brother Greg (arguably the smartest pitcher of all time) is getting bored with retirement, it wouldn’t hurt to kick the tires there. Maybe go the Duncan route and tap a former catcher (Chris Hoiles was a great defensive catcher). Orioles starters have shown flashes of talent (especially Arrieta), but they have struggled mightily with their lack of pitch efficiency and inability to get out of jams. A new pitching coach could help to clean up those issues. To be fair, Adair may not be the whole problem, but he’s certainly a part of it. And he definitely hasn’t been the solution. At this point, it’s just a matter of how much stronger the winds of change need to blow before they knock the hat off Adair’s head.

Who would you want to look at as a pitching coach? Tell me in the comments.

With the 29^th pick in the NFL draft (or the 23^rd…or somewhere else)

Meanwhile, there are only 3 more days until 32 kids make more money than any of us will ever see. Draft time. Peter Konz was the name that I had been seeing linked to the Ravens last week, and that has not changed this week. The Ravens need a true left tackle, but the 29^th pick is too late to get one. Instead, they’ll kill two birds with one stone by having Konz play LG until Birk hangs ‘em up, and then try to slide him under center.

Again, I can see why Dont’a Hightower is such a seductive prospect. He’s big, smart, and shows great initial burst on pass rushes. But the league is getting smaller and faster, and the first thing that I’d be looking for from a linebacker would be coverage ability. I’m not sure Hightower can cover NFL tight ends or slot receivers, and that might be his undoing.

If Baltimore does trade up (not a Ravens specialty, I know), I could see them going after Mark Barron, Michael Floyd, or Melvin Ingram if any of those three were to slide out of the top 15.

So, my bet would be on Konz if the Ravens stay put. If they move up, it could be for Hightower who is definitely good, but not “second coming of Ray Lewis” good. Or they could move up significantly and take care of some of the other needs they have. As for an ILB, the Ravens do have a good history with drafting troubled but talented linebackers out of Arizona State who had bad combine numbers. Burfict could be a steal if the team can instill some discipline into his game.

4 stupid MLB predictions one month into the season

1) Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Cole Hamels will be looking for someone to complete their golf foursome in October. I made this prediction on the podcast, and now with Lee on the shelf for an indeterminate amount of time, I’m sold on it. 3 good starters can definitely get you to the playoffs, but not when you’re shooting blanks on offense. Lee threw 10 innings of shutout ball in San Francisco, and LOST because the Phillies couldn’t put up one single run for him. Halladay’s last start: 7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, L. Larry Bowa speculated that the Phillies could go out and get a bat at the deadline. With what? Their formerly fertile minor league system was plucked barren in the Halladay, Pence, Oswalt, and first Lee deals. Keith Law ranks Trevor May as their best prospect, and he’s #76 in the top 100. I couldn’t be happier to say this: Philly will not make the playoffs

2) Stephen Strasburg will exceed his 160 inning limit in October. The Nats starting pitching staff looks to be about a week or two away from an SI cover, and with a bat at the deadline (whether from a trade or a healthy Michael Morse), they’ll either win the wildcard or the division. The two keys to the Nationals right now are Gio Gonzalez’s incredible shrinking walk rate (only 2 total in his last 2 starts) and rotation depth. If Gio continues this trend of not walking people, the Nationals have a 1 and 1a starter, with a very good 2 behind them in Zimmermann. Edwin Jackson has thrown a complete game shutout this year, and Ross Detwiler froze a boiling hot Marlins lineup in his last start. The offense is lagging, but it has much more talent top to bottom than the Phillies offense does, along with a better and deeper bullpen.

3) Matt Kemp is a cyborg sent back through time to save humanity. This probably has the biggest chance of coming true of all four predictions. Somebody prove otherwise.

4) Although it’s really more the fault of his terrible pitching staff, Bobby Valentine will be in Fenway Park one year at the most, and half of a year at the least. Buchholz and Bard aren’t getting any better, and the bullpen is a house of horrors. I know that Bobby V can turn a mediocre pitching staff into a great one (he did so with my Mets in 1999 and 2000). But with Beckett reverting to his pre-2011 form and the rest of the arms failing him at every turn, he’ll be booted from Boston and someone else will get thrown to the lions sooner rather than later.

NBA Playoffs time:

I want to get this article up at a decent time, so I’ll say this and expand on it later on my own site (patguth321.blogspot.com). The Knicks are a matchup problem for anyone in the playoffs right now with Carmelo riding a month long on fire streak and their great bench depth and scoring. But, I just don’t know how they get past a hyper-motivated Heat team.

Miami’s transition offense (best in the league) and killer bee swarm D (downright terrifying when they played the Knicks in February) prey on two big Knick weaknesses especially with Amar’e back in the starting lineup and no true facilitator on the offensive end. They’ll need to steal one in Miami this upcoming weekend to make it interesting, with the Garden registering on the Richter Scale for LeBron’s arrival next week.

Three things to watch:

1) Considering I have no hockey allegiances, good luck to the Caps fans out there in Game 7. As an objective observer, there’s nothing more entertaining to watch than a Game 7. As someone who has watched their teams play in one, I don’t envy you. There’s nothing more nerve wracking. It’s a white knuckle, fingernail chomping, whiskey neat kind of night. Enjoy Wednesday.

2) A 6 game home stand for the Orioles that appears to be smooth sailing. The O’s already swept Toronto and don’t have to see Romero this time around, and the A’s are terrible. They need to finish it over .500 with some dark clouds looming on the May horizon (road trips to New York and Boston followed by a brutal home stand of Tampa, Texas, and New York again). Beat the good teams and split with the bad ones is a good adage to follow, 4-2 should be the benchmark for success.

3) The Californians and Drunk Uncle. Hilarious.

See everyone next week with much more O’s/Draft analysis.

Ray Rice Won’t Be Cursed By The Madden Cover This Season

Zach Wilt — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:06:05 +0000

Breathe easy Ravens fans, Ray Rice was knocked out of the pool for the cover of Madden 13. I don’t consider myself a to be a very superstitious person, but I certainly buy into the Madden Curse. Last year’s curse on Peyton Hillis was so strong that it effected Peyton Manning and Sean Payton too.

You have to assume that a curse on Ray Rice could only do bad things to future hall of famer Ray Lewis.

Rice was edged by Aaron Rodgers in the Madden cover tournament on ESPN.com. Rodgers takes on Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson in the semi-finals.

Panthers QB Cam Newton and 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis also remain contenders for this year’s ~~curse~~ cover.

VIDEO: Ray Lewis Can Even Motivate Teams In The NIT

Zach Wilt — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:00:11 +0000

Seriously, he better never retire.

Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis showed up in the Stanford basketball team’s locker room before their NIT matchup against UMass to give a pep talk.

It must’ve worked, the Cardinal beat the Minutemen 74-64.

Ray Lewis’ Son Verbally Commits To Miami

Zach Wilt — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 11:57:55 +0000

Was there ever any doubt?

Ray Lewis’ son, who’s named Ray Lewis III, has given the University of Miami a verbal commitment according to a tweet from Comcast’s Brent Harris.

@CSNBrent
Brent Harris Like father, like son.. Ray Lewis III gave verbal commitment to #Miami.. as HS jr last yr, Lewis ran for 2,312 yards and 29 TDs #Ravens
Mar 21 via web Favorite Retweet Reply

So if Lewis III is a senior this year, that would mean that Ray would have to stick around for four more years to play with his son. It’d be awesome, but I don’t see it happening.

Baltimore Ravens 2012 NFL Draft Target: Luke Kuechly

Justin Ford — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 13:13:46 +0000

The Ravens have always employed the ‘best player available’ philosophy in the NFL Draft and there is no reason to believe they will waiver from that strategy this year. Over the next month and a half I will be posting about players I believe the Ravens are or should be targeting in the draft. Now, Boston College’s Luke Kuechly.

Luke Keuchly

POSITION – Inside Linebacker

COLLEGE – Boston College

HEIGHT – 6’3

WEIGHT – 237

- Kuechly is a technician. He Diagnoses plays extremely quickly and then takes decisive angles at the ball carrier.

- His production is off the charts. Last season he had 191 tackles, and in 2010 he had 183 tackles, 110 of which were solo. To put that in perspective last year Ray Lewis had 95 tackles in 16 games, Kuechly notched his 191 in only 12 games.

- Before the NFL Combine there were questions about his overall athleticism. Kuechly answered all his critics by running in the 4.5′s for his forty yard dash, and jumping 10 feet 3 inches in the broad jump.

- On tape Kuechly runs the seam well in pass coverage. He can turn his hips and run hip in man with all tight ends and even some receivers. He gets deep in his zone coverage drops, something most inside linebackers struggle with early.

- Kuechly is a true 3-down linebacker. This is a trait that is more and more valued due to the NFL becoming more of a passing league every year. You will not have to take Kuechly off the field, or adjust his position on 3rd downs like you would for some other linebackers in this draft, such as Alabama ILB Dont’a Hightower.

Summary:

Overall, Kuechly is rated by most the top Inside Linebacker in this year’s NFL Draft, and projected to go much higher than the Raven’s 29th overall pick. The Ravens are one of the last teams in the NFL to employ a true Mike linebacker, and Kuechly is a true Mike Linebacker. He may slide down draft boards due to the fact that certain teams with their defensive schemes could not maximize his abilities. The fear with Kuechly is that he is not a superior athlete, and when your job is to run down and tackle some of the best athletes in the world, it is an understandable fear. Ozzie Newsome has always been known to take value picks, people who get passed over due to character concerns, bad combine performance etc. If Kuechly is available at 29, I expect Ozzie to view this as a great value and pull the trigger.

Justin Ford lives in Carroll County Maryland. He has been playing and coaching football for 16 years and writes “Ford’s Forecast” for BSR.Follow him on Twitter – @JRFord0

Player Views On Bounties, Head Injuries Expose NFL’s Fatal Flaw

Dave Gilmore — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 15:35:20 +0000

Pro football is a grown man’s game. I mean that in the sense that, while they are coached and instructed, ultimately everything good and bad carried out on the field is done by grown men. They are free to choose any profession they want to seek out, and they choose to play football in the NFL willingly.

The NFLPA, as the players’ union, would obviously like there to be a unified front on player sentiments regarding the hot-button issues facing the league. In the most recent era, it has been lasting head injuries and the things that cause them, and in the most recent weeks, it has been incentives to injure opponents. Neither create a “safe working environment” by OSHA standards, but players seem to be much more comfortable with their own demise than someone profiting from it.

And that is the problem with the NFL today. There is not a unified front on the head trauma issue because the player pool is in a period of transition. What the league is transitioning to is a mystery, but there is a division between those willing to absorb the implied risk of a pro football career and those who claim to have been (metaphorically) blindsided. Current players bristle at a quick 15-yard flag or a fine for helmet-to-helmet contact. They feel the rules have been changed on them mid-flight. The liked the old way better. The way where the assumed risk was still the same, but the only ones suffering or profiting from a dangerous tackle was the tackler and tacklee themselves. Now, the NFL takes a bite out of the tackler’s paycheck, and the guys in the other jerseys get 15 precious yards. The players who are upset at the recent allegations of bounty systems among teams aren’t mad at the actions, they’re mad at the outcomes. Many are not calling for the game to be played differently. They simply want to absorb the good and the bad of their decision to play pro football like grown men.

The issue with the Saints’ alleged bounty system, or one suggested by Terrell Suggs, for example, is about institutionalizing something that exists invisibly and without compensation anyway. In an odd way, Gregg Williams is a bit of a pro-labor visionary. He wanted his players on the Saints to play physically, ruthless, and on the brink of reckless. Is there a defensive coach in the NFL who does not want the same out of his players? The implication of such guidance is of course, the higher potential for doing harm to your opponent. Perfectly clean tackles can injure players. Borderline legal hits, like what the Saints were dishing out to Brett Favre in his waning hours in the league, will almost certainly lead to injury on a long enough timeline. Without having a pay-for-injury structure in place, any defensive coordinator would look at the film of Williams’ Saints and be happy with the team’s physical effort.

But of course, the problem is in incentivizing the outcome, not the action. A bounty system rewards the outcome, an injured player, that nobody roots for. The backlash against Roger Goodell’s new, more draconian approach to player safety tells the same story. Players who publicly and privately rail against the perceived nanny state of the NFL do so because they want to control their actions and accept whatever outcomes come along for such play. In a way, James Harrison is sort of a libertarian icon.

The NFL, however, isn’t in a position to acquiesce to the free-sack-market whims of the James Harrisons of the league. Whether one caused the other is up for debate, but the wave of lawsuits from former players surrounding health is only going to continue to mount. Any relaxing on the enforcement of rules that connects even vaguely to player safety and head trauma is fuel for future potential legal action from the current roster of players. Many of whom, if you asked them now, want less intervention from the league. “Let things be decided on the field.” They’re grown men, after all.

But soon they will be old men. 15 yards will seem like a bargain if it meant one less health issue in their 40s. The couple grand they may have in the bank thanks to a few games they caused an opponent to miss will feel like blood money. The NFL’s problem is that there are two NFLs. There is a present, and a past. The present demands violence, money, and success. The past is just trying to survive. The present, at least now, isn’t helping.

Dave Gilmore lives in Baltimore and writes “The Win Column” for Baltimore Sports Report and b’s video game blog “Game Cache.” Find him on Twitter @dave_gilmore.

Rawlings-Blake Unveils Plan For New Baltimore Arena

Zach Wilt — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 12:20:16 +0000

The 1st Mariner Arena (if that’s what they’re still calling it) is a dump. I’ve seen concerts, circuses and sporting events there and can tell you that it doesn’t matter what form of entertainment is on the floor, the place is flat out horrible.

If Baltimore ever wants a chance to land an NBA or NHL franchise, they need to tear that place to the ground and start over. I’d be happy help with the demolition part.

Monday, Major Stephanie Rawlings-Blake released a plan for a new downtown arena with the help of both the city of Baltimore and the Maryland Stadium Authority. The plan would involve expanding the Baltimore Convention Center to allow for larger accommodations and (of course) sporting events.

The arena would be built adjacent to the Sheraton Hotel and over look the Inner Harbor.

There aren’t many more details about the project and a lot remains unanswered about when, or if, this new arena will be built. According to Rawlings-Blake’s press release, the next step if for the city and state to lay out the financial information for the proposal.

I hope that this isn’t a story that get lost in the shuffle or goes the way of MVP Lanes. I don’t know that Baltimore could support another professional sports franchise, but expanding the Convention Center and bringing in better concerts and events would be great for the city.