After most of the day had passed without anything more than rumors involving Raven activity, I assumed there would be no big moves made today. But the Ravens made one of the biggest splashes at the start of the free agent signing period by trading for WR Anquan Boldin and quickly extending his contract for another 3 years and $25 million. Only $10 million of Boldin’s contract is believed to be guaranteed. In return for Boldin and a 5th round draft pick, the Ravens sent this years 3rd and 4th round draft picks to the Arizona Cardinals.
The move fills a need the Ravens had for a big, physical play-making WR. Boldin is not a huge vertical threat, but his size and ability to work the middle of the field will be a huge plus in the Ravens passing game. It remains to be seen how Boldin performs without other huge talents at WR around him but, his skills and size should make attacking cover 2 defenses easier. Those defenses have given the Ravens particular trouble in recent years, especially the defense played by the Indianapolis football team.
The question is, what do the Ravens do next. With Boldin and Donte Stallworth in the fold, and assuming that at least Mark Clayton is coming back, will the Ravens tie more money up at receiver and bring back Derrick Mason? Or do they try and get a young vertical threat in draft? Or both? I am curious to hear your thoughts on the Ravens next move to upgrade the passing attack.
This is a great move. Boldin and Stallworth on the outside, Mason and Heap on the inside should stretch defenses and make Rice and McGahee even more effective. Now we should use the first round pick for defensive help. How about this safety that people are saying is a young Ed Reed, move up and take a shot at him.
I am curious to see if they re-sign Mason. Boldin takes the pressure off the Ravens needing to bring Mason back and it takes away some of his leverage. Might be harder for Mason to have his contract demands met in Baltimore. Plus it looks like Clayton will be back and I wonder if the Ravens still try and draft a WR. It is possible they try and trade Clayton and bring Mason back.
Also, I don't see the Ravens trading up in the first round. I would not be surprised if they move down to try and get a pick back. Maybe not out of the first, but further back if the right deal is there. And losing Justin Bannan and potentially Dawan Edwards could have the Ravens looking at taking a d-lineman with their first pick.
I think Mason is out officially now. He's getting other offers and I think bringing in Boldin solidifies the Ravens intentions at WR.
I'd love for them to bring Washington back if they could swing it.
I think they will re-sign Steve Mason but at their price and for one year. He definitely loses some negotiating room with this signing.
This is a great trade! Boldin & a 5 for a 3 & 4… Are the Cardinals stupid? Boldin even up would have been good. Boldin then signs for 4 years and $28 mil… Now sign Mason as your possession receiver and you have a decent 3 in Boldin, Mason and even though I don't like him and think he's an overhyped Mark Clayton, Stallworth. Still like to see the Ravens draft Golden Tate though as they still need to get younger. Still need a dominant pass rusher. Maybe sign Aaron Kampman from the Packers.
Ravens did good on this without giving up their 1 & 2… Now for the bad news…. Ravens are looking at signing 38 year old bum, Todd Collins! A stupid move! You don't let Troy Smith and John Beck go for this clown Collins… Like the Orioles, the Ravens take a step forward only to (possibly) take two backwards… I just hope Randle El & Fred Smoot aren't on their radar since they were cut by the Deadskins…
signing Collins would be like signing, Pinover, assinine. But if they do, it would be because of Zorn. So here we go with the good ol boy syndrdome. What do you have to say about that STD? Zorn was n't one of Hardballs boys but is he coming in with GOB syndrome?
Ravens2488, I am excited about the trade as well. Joe has some better targets now.
And if the Ravens are interested in Collins, that could be a sign that Troy Smith may get traded.
I think the writing is on the wall for Smith. By only offering a 5th round tender, I think a team desperate for a QB, and there are many of them, will jump on Smith. I think he's thrown like 50 NFL passes, but somehow his value has seemingly increased. I think he's as good as gone.
Hello Todd Collins…I'd rather have Cary Collins…kidding!
Who gives a rat's behind about Smith. He had his chance, He was beat out by Flacco and your boy Boller. If he thinks he can go somewhere else and start, let him keep believing. He is a 2nd stringer maybe, more likely 3rd string.
Delhomme is looking for a team, already getting $12mil not to play. His name means The Man in French, we could surely use The Man on the Ravens. His motto could be, the ladies pet, the mens regret….where have I heard that before?
Also Pilson, you touched on it in your article a little, they say that Boldin is the most physical receiver in football.
I'm guessing "Radio" (9InchNails on here) is anticipating getting back here to B-More in the next 2 years cause right now thats what the Ravens are built for…
STD – If you don't like being around me then back off and don't hang around "The ladies pet & the men's regret"…
I anticipate a 30 June return to B'more for two weeks. Already looking for O's tickets and a SF taco date.
"The ladies pet…are you a fur coat?
2488…You're the man. Who doesn't like hanging around with the man who beat the man?!?
Nails,
No problem on the Tacos or the Orioles tickets. Don't sneek in town without warining the brothers when you get here, like last time.
Not tryng to avoid my taco eating SF bruthas. Was avoiding, in this order, IRS, parole officer , Ravens 2488, Will-o and the ex-wife. You have been warned 30 JUNE -09 JULY.
30 JUNE -09 JULY
30 JUNE -09 JULY
30 JUNE -09 JULY
OK. Maybe we'll have a BSR night at the ballgame. By 30 June, we should be able to score half-priced tickets right behind the O's dugout.
OK, I've used these pages to bust on a lot of the Ravens moves over the past few months, but this one is genius. Boldin is a legitimate, bonafide NFL receiver. Not a "guy with potential", this guy consistently puts up 1,000 yard seasons in spite of spending most of his career as a #2 receiver. He's not the super vertical guy, but he's head and shoulders above anybody the Ravens have ever put on the field, including Mason. He's got size, physicality, and a nose for the ball. Bravo Wizard of Oz, Rico Suave, and Johnny Poitician. A+ for this move.
This move indeed was genius and it will lead to this genius move. Trade down and get that 3rd rounder back add depth at TE and Safety positions. I eventhink he trades out out the 1st round altogether and adds two 3's and a 4th rounder. Sheer genius. He must have a hotline to Phil Savage…
So here's my question to all BSR Ravens fans…Does Boldin give the Ravens a chance to make it to the big dance in 2010?
Maybe not the big dance but they will be there for Cardinal Gibbon's lst homecoming dance.
On a serios note, we have to do something about getting a pass rush and stopping the pass. Until then, no big dance.
On a side note Big Ben must be dumber than Mike Tyson. Sexual assault charges again!!! What an F'ing dumba$$. When will this guy learn?
Look at Big Ben. He's the freaking Missing Link. This guy is ruining the good name of the Steelers.
While this may not be the only thing the Ravens need to compete, that will not be the impression of the average fan. This move raises the bar, along with the Stallworth pick-up (although I still see him as an older Mark Clayton) raises the espectation bar on two guys – quarterback Joe Flacco and Head Coach Johnny Politician. Flacco will be measured by much higher standards now that he has these two guys. Johnny Politician will be expected to BEAT good teams instead of the media boasting about his record when the club is a favorite. Two guys are squarely on the hot seat now, Harbaugh and Flacco, rightly or wrongly.
The move that had to be made.
Too bad it wasn't made a year ago.
Walter re signed with Houston. I would've liked to have grabbed him as well.
Detroit gave 11 million guaranteed to Burleson. The Ravens gave 10 million guaranteed to Boldin.
This proves my point about good teams being good and bad teams being bad with our without a cap.
Very good point Mark. How have the Redskins faired without a cap so far?
If this move was made a year ago, Boldin would not have signed a long term deal, that is part of the genius of it. Now, if we had Boldin last year, would we have beat Indy?
How so? Boldin would've gotten a new deal this year or last year if a trade was made.
The Ravens would've ponied up the money if they made the deal last year. Zona was asking for too much and no team would part with too high a draft pick.
I'd still like to see them re-sign Mason… he's a valuable asset to this team on and off the field. They can still draft a WR to help for the future, but this team is about winning now!
I think if you add Mason to this group they're pretty solid. I just wonder what the Ravens intentions are, they haven't put a whole lot of effort into bringing him back.
I'd like to see them sign Mason as a possession receiver ala Wes Welker but I have a feeling they will sign T.O. on a 1 year, $1.2mil deal… I don't know but I just have this feeling, like the feeling I had when "Radio" was dating that one legged blind woman. She somehow got her eyesight back, saw "Radio" and ran like Carl Lewis…
Like "STD" called him, Johnny Politician needs to go though… Man would it have been great to have Rex Ryan as head coach….
Will-O – Were you able to clear up the hemmorroids?
STD – Guess you won't sit on gas station toilets anymore. I told you you could catch stuff that way. What's the doc's diagnosis?
Mason is as good as gone. In that Boldin is a younger, stronger version of the same type of receiver, I don't see a fit for Mason anymore.
This move now raises the expectation levels of the fans. Johnny Politician will not be able to sneak into the playoffs on a Steelers off year with some lame 9-7 record and 1-6 against playoff teams. He will be expected to actually WIN games against quality opponents.
The bar has been raised, Johnny Boy. I hope you can live up to it.
STG you need to revise you Harbaugh hater stat to 2-6 against play-off teams since they did actually win a play-off game last year.
JP,
It is 2-6 if you count the playoffs. They beat SD early in the year when Nerd Turner inexplicably ran on 4th down after moving through the Ravens secondary like a sieve, then ran off consecutive losses to the Pats, Bengals, Vikings, Bengals, Colts, and Packers.
Additionally, Johnny Politician is 0-3 against the Colts and 1-4 against the Stillers with his only win against former Oriole Kenny Dixon as the starting QB.
All I hear is how he beats the teams he "supposed to beat". That's great. When Detroit, Chicago, Oakland, Cleveland, and the Chiefs stand in their way of a championships, they should be in good shape.
I am taking another route…let Mason go to the Fish or where ever resign Clayton and concentrate on a TE. Heap is getting older and has been a head case, one good season, two bad ones.
T.O. won't sign here for $1.2, are you drunk?
Radio, yes I am drunk… Its Saturday night, I'm home by myself, an adult beverage in one hand and pack of Skittles in the other. The TV blares with no discernable picture flickering into the night. My heart is pounding, my eyes are watering and a barely lit Pall Mall dangles from my lips. The air is thick, the walls creak, a lone mouse sits in the corner munching on a Fruit Loop that missed the garbage can. I'm sweating profusely but a cold draft streams up my back. My dog, shy, innocent and unaware of the strange hissing noises emanating from my stomach, sleeps silently on the floor.
Now to your point, thats all T.O. is going to be offered if he's offered anything, $1.2 mil. Mark my word…
Drunk dialing is acceptable, but please refrain from drunk posting. Although, you are infinitely more coherent when drunk posting.
I vote this early contender for BSR Post of the YEAR!!!
Come on Pilson, you just busted on me… Trust me, I may not be correct or I'm very passionate in my sports posting but my postings can be amusing…
BTW, I don't really drink…
I kid because I care. You are welcome to amuse as much as you like.
This is a very good move but more still need to be made for this team to make a push to the dance. I agree with above statements, they need to re-sign Mason and possibly still go after another WR in the draft. Also have some serious d-back issues that need to be tightened up. To this date, the front office have given the faithful reason to be optimistic about the upcoming season, lets see how they do in the draft.
Ravens2488 quit drinking after he woke up one morning with cheetos stuffed in his nose and ears after a date with a very manish looking pickup at the local VFW. I feel your pain brother.
Pole – But remember the "Model" that I went out with for 6 months?
I think they only went and got Boldin after Walters asking price went up. Nate Burleson signed the day before for $25 mil and the Ravens figured Walters would ask for me.
The thing that bothers me with the Ravens is that it looks like they are waiting for the free agent garbage to be left for them to pick through. Dansby, Cromartie (even though he was a trade), Rolle would have looked good here…
What are the Cardinals doing? They lost alot of good players, Warner, Boldin, Dansby, Rolle, etc…
Cardinals are getting rid of their BIG price tags and rebuilding??? Let face it in the dividsion they play in, a couple of junior college transfers gets them into the play-offs…parity??? Is it just me or does Big Ben look like those registered sexual offenders that you see on the tube after they get busted? Maybe that's the way they mate in Pencildelphia??? Maybe Ben should negotiate some trim in his next contract, so he doesn't have to assault females?