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I hear that Larry Fitzgerald guy ran a 4.7

'When asked which team he felt the best connection with during this year’s meetings, Iowa defensive back Desmond King told me the Baltimore Ravens seemed like a perfect fit for him, likening his connection with their staff to the relationship he has with his Hawkeye coaches.' (draftwire) So they did meet, seems like, just not recently. I also misunderstood the article at first glance.

I think everyone is a little off base where Joe Flacco is concerned. The problem is with the term "elite". We, as Ravens fans, need to drop the term completely from our vocabulary. He's not elite. Neither are the QB's for most NFL teams. What we need to consider; where Joe ranks in terms of current QB's in the league, compare his career path, and weigh the pros and cons. -Joe Flacco is the only QB in the AFC to start (and win) in a Superbowl in the last 14 years that wasn't either Tom Brady, Big Ben or Peyton Manning. Considering Peyton did it with 2 teams, that leaves 11 AFC teams that haven't hoisted the Lombardi trophy in that span. Oddly enough, the last AFC team to do it prior to Brady, Ben and Manning was...the Ravens...in 2001. Get this; you have to go back to 1984 to find an AFC team that won the Superbowl that wasn't the Patriots, Steelers, Broncos, Colts or Ravens. 32 freaking years since the LA Raiders won!!! Joe Flacco has a proven record in the playoffs. He also managed a crucial drive this year, in Pittsburgh, that realistically should have won the game (and possibly division) if the defense had not Crap the bed. -With Peyton Manning retired, Big Ben considering retirement (and honestly, Flacco is kind of owning Big Ben recently), that leaves Tom Brady as the QB to beat in the AFC. And Joe has beaten Brady twice in the playoffs IN Foxboro. We have owned the Steelers recently (6 of 9 since 2013 with a playoff win in there). With the rag-tag crew of receivers we had this year, he beat Ben once, was within a score of Brady, and lost to Ben by an outstretched arm. To me, you can't put a price tag on composure, which Flacco has against these guys. If Tom Brady were to win this year, and then retire along with Big Ben, who would be the Ravens main competition in the AFC? -Ravens fans are used to making the playoffs, and we've gotten spoiled. How consistent is Dalton in the Playoffs? The Texans? The Chiefs? Not a whole lot of winning in that group. Flacco has had an inconsistent support system around him, and the carousel of OC's has got to stop for him to develop into the passer he has the potential to be. I think what a lot of fans fail to realize, is that Joe has put our team in the position to win a lot of games, and our defense has let us down. Granted, more consistent play from Joe could potentially negate our less-than-stellar secondary, but if your QB scores a go-ahead TD with less than a couple minutes to play...and you can't stop their team from scoring...that's hardly the QB's fault. You can argue all you want that Joe makes too much money, that he's not consistent enough, etc. But when it comes down to brass tacks, there's only a handful of consistent QB's in the league, and an even smaller class of QB's that are consistent when it matters...in the playoffs. Given the option, there's only 4 or 5 QB's in the league I'd consider over Flacco. Brady, Rodgers, Brees and (possibly) Derek Carr or Matt Ryan. Other than that, every team is struggling with inconsistency at QB...and have no hardware to show for it. Andrew Luck? Andy Dalton? Ryan Tannehill? Tyrod Taylor? Come on guys, our position is a lot more solid than 80 to 90% of the league. We are a couple key guys away from being back on top while it looks like the Bengals unraveled this year, and it looks like the Steelers are headed that way. Take a deep breath my friends. The AFC north is ripe for the taking, and we are poised to be that team. Peace.

He turned 27 in November so he doesn't quite need the cane yet. Can never tell with kickers, their confidence and form sit on a razor's edge. Tucker has the benefit of having a great (and consistent) support team, which he credits all of the time. He also has a good personality for it, in my opinion. I'm just going to enjoy it

Daeshon Hall apparently doing well, sort of gets forgotten since he played opposite Garrett

Ko was almost certain to get us a 3rd on contract alone, pro bowl nod and all pro status should seal the deal

I'm hyped for Perriman and Dixon. I think both guys are going to be great for this offense.

Just FYI, Tom made $28.7M playing football for the Patriots this year. Cap hit and what he actually gets paid are two different things.

And Matt Ryan played the same for years, too, until he got a good OC and tore up the league this year.

What will the Ravens do with Mike Wallace? Really? Given that he's the only legitimate NFL receiver we have on the team I hope they are smart enough to keep him.

Being actually healthy instead of coming off an injury when you clearly are not healthy is the first big step. Flacco got that injury too late in the year to be fully recovered in time for the season and that was a big deal.

That would be quite the scenario... I like it a lot. Problem is I really do think Desmond King goes higher than most people think. I wouldn't be surprised if he was a late first round.He is a player despite what his measurables say. From PFF: King has been a phenomenal player for Iowa’s defense all year. He allowed 19 catches for 233 yards on 46 targets, with only 77 of those yards coming after the catch. He allowed one touchdown and picked off two passes while breaking up eight others. He was also one of the best run-defending corners in college football, finishing with an 82.4 run-defense grade. I would be ecstatic. I don't know why I am so high on Harris but I wouldn't be surprised if he was taken 8 spots ahead of us. He is one of my favorite players in this draft. Right behind Foster and Hooker.... Honestly both of those guys look like the second coming of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed respectively. I don't remember a free safety in the last few drafts that has the range, speed, and hands of Hooker and Foster is just a monster. I know he likely won't leave the top 5... But I thought Mosley looked phenomenal coming out... Foster looks like the best inside linebacker to come out since Keuchly.

It's important to have depth and the chance at finding starters are better the more picks you have- but like you said theres only 53 spots. And do we wants starters or stars? That's why we just need to walk that line and balance out with a little bit of both. Stack some picks but don't hesitate to package them and move right back up if there's a guy there we really covet go after him!

So true. And I get negged just for agreeing with your assessment. Lol The pettiness.

I think Joe will improve this year, last year the knee may have played a role in his happy feet pocket dances, but we need to RUN the ball, it's the only way to help Joe on third downs, so sick incomplete on 1st down , 2 yd run on 2nd down, and 3rd and long, let the big dogs up front do some paving , try to get 3rd and 2 or 3 , that will help Joe...

And now you should see the idiocy in your post.

Idk how to get everyone to see it, yet I feel like everyone should look into this because it shocked me. http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2017/1/25/14374698/what-if-cowboys-had-listened-to-espns-mel-kiper-and-todd-mcshay-in-the-last-7-drafts In this article is a ranking of teams drafting 1st round prospects from 2010-2016 and who nailed their picks, it uses AV (approximate value) to determine the rankings. The ravens.....are 32 on the list. That's last folks..... We nailed Stanley so this ranking should change as long as he lives up to his potential and as long as we nail our 1st round pick this year.

Sounds about right. He would be ~32-33 by then which is roughly when those guys start to decline (looking at guys like Vince Wilfork, Casey Hampton, Kyle Williams, Sam Adams, etc). He's in his prime

i'm excited we will be tied for 1st place entering the season.

I guess the only player that deserves an extension/restructure would be Yanda, but then again how many years are left for him? He's got 3 yrs left on this contract and I don't know if he plays beyond that. As for Jimmy, you are basically asking him to take a pay cut with the possibility of earning it back right? Good idea for the Ravens, but not necessarily for Jimmy when you think about it. I would like Flacco to take a pay cut and earn all of his money back through incentives too, but it ain't happening! If it did and he played like he did the past couple of seasons, we would save a bundle of incentive money!

Well I was most excited about ORR . I truly believe he was right on the verge of taking that next step into stardom. You just can't get anymore unlucky than that. I think I'm most excited about seeing what Kenneth Dixon becomes. I think he has a breakout year and becomes our bellcow. I also have a strange feeling ozzie might take Dalvin Cook if he makes it to 16. Mixed feelings about that but if we bolster the line and get back to a run first mentality it could do us wonders. I also think Ozzie uncharacteristically makes a splash in FA for a big name FA receiver such as Jeffrey or Marshall.

I'm not sure what games you have been watching as you say 2-3 calls that officials largely missed over a season. I could think of 2-3 in one game.

No one is talking about reviewing every play. That's why it makes sense to link replay-ability to coaches challenges, which by their nature are limited in number. Also, the idea that fans don't want to spend more than 3.5 hours watching football is bunk. If that were the case every single game would be on at the same mid-day time slot with people only tuning in to watch their own team play. The NFL knows that's not how fans watch football. People start at noon eastern and can (and millions do) literally have games on or playing in the background until the final whistle of Sunday Night Football -- thats 10 hours. And then they tune in again for MNF which, aside from the Super Bowl, tends to have some of the year's highest Nielsen ratings. ESPN doesn't spend a billion dollars to secure exclusive rights to a game every week because they expect just the fans of some dinky small market teams to tune in. They know they have a captive national audience every Monday. Also, if it were true that only the fans of the teams involved tune in to watch the games, and they don't watch multiple games a weekend, then the entire concept of "flexing" crappy teams out of prime time slots wouldn't have any logic. I'm sorry but this idea that people only want to be entertained for a couple of hours one day a week just doesn't hold any water. If that were the case the NFL wouldn't be an mutli billion dollar, vastly expanding business.

Regarding point 1 - I'm not sure it would make a different. Those guys know their role. They play within the system. When a player goes to NE, he knows he's not going to be "the guy", or a super star. The players that last on that team understand one thing: Win, even if it means I won't be a superstar. It's attitude, culture.

I wondering when does the statement " You can't teach an old dog new tricks start to come into play? Joe's played practically the same the last 4 years. Yep. Prior to the injury, he was the same. I hope he somehow does learn "new tricks" in 2017. I would love to see it. But I doubt it.

I wondering when does the statement " You can't teach an old dog new tricks start to come into play? Joe's played practically the same the last 4 years.

We do play a 3-4....

He is the only backup T that we have. Another olineman in the first 4 rounds would not shock me.

Mink's interview with DeCosta on the home page was interesting, and I feel like it once again shed a lot of light on what we're looking to do. The first question was about how to get Flacco back on track and DeCosta immediately pointed to the OL and getting bigger and more physical there. That probably means a no go for Wagner. He also pointed out the run game, and when asked about the possibility of Cook or Fournette, he kind of deflected back into that scat back description rather than one of those guys. WR is what we thought. They want a guy to complement the speed we already have in Wallace, Perriman, and Moore. He said we're looking for a guy that can play inside and out, run good routes, make tough catches, and be a reliable target. That sounds like a perfect description of Pierre Garcon to me, but of course, it doesn't have to be him. Brandon Williams was strongly highlighted as the main priority. Whether they want to pay him as much as he could possibly make is the real question, but there's no doubt they want him back. He was kind of mum on CB and didn't go into a strong explanation of the wants there. He pretty much said they hope they can get one in the first 2 rounds but I'm sure he'd say that about every position. I'd assume he's probably telling the truth though. This could be the obvious smokescreen here, but judging solely off of his words, pass rusher doesn't seem to be a huge priority. DeCosta seems to really believe in Judon, and to a lesser extent, ZDS. I can't see them being comfortable with only those guys, so that's why it seems like a smokescreen, but interesting to hear again from the other guy in charge.

Nice sentiment by DeCosta, and the Ravens may make what would otherwise be a reasonable offer, but Williams will be relatively overpaid by someone else. We should let him walk and hope he earns us a 3rd round comp pick in return (as KO has). Pierce is a solid replacement, and actually has more burst up the middle to put pressure on the QB. If for some reason he can't do the job, you know Ozzie & Co. have their eyes on another great NT that none of us have even heard of who will plug right in, just like Gregg, Williams, and (hopefully) Pierce.

I would love to have Brandon back. He's a baller but we all know we can't afford to keep everybody especially with the multiple holes we have to fill.

What excites me is the last season is over. Growth of past two draft classes and another decent pick this year.

Three seconds left in the game. Down by three or less. Ball on our 45. Just sayin'

Perriman was a surprise but at the end of he first, the sure fire talent starts to dwindle and you have to take some risks on players you think can develop. I haven't given up hope on Perriman. In his private workout he ran a 4.24 and 4.28. He literally is 6'2, +210. That alone makes him intriguing, but the thing about his college tape was that it wasn't that he just had bad hands, he just lacked discipline and concentration. Watch his huge plays, he made some miraculous catches that don't indicate bad hands. He had the same problem that he showed this year--his legit first year, which was drops on short throws and seam routes because he starts focusing up field or on the defender before completely reeling in the catch. If he can work on that then he will be lightning. His catch and runs v the Dolphins and Bengals give a lot of hope. He is so fast and big that he could take slant and crossing routes to the house on a regular If we feed him in year 2.

I think this is a bit harsh. Have we had some big misses? (Elam, Brown, etc) YES....MOST experts say we had an EXCELLENT draft last year. Stanley, Young, Dixon, Lewis, and Judon were all key contributors. Jury is still out on guys like Correa, Kaufusi, Moore, Henry, etc.

If Wagner leaves the offense is most likely screwed. It'd be very hard to replace him as most teams are looking for OT's and there are very few out there.. RT's are just as important as LT's these days and retaining one of the better ones in his prime has to be the biggest priority of free agency. Adding a starting OT to the long list of other needs would be a deep hole to dig out of.

I dont think the Front Office is as confident in our running backs as you guys are.

Jones would be the ideal pick depending on who is there. I would personally have a real tough time picking between Jones and Barnett so that's one scenario where it wouldn't be a clear decision. Jones would finally give us that quality CB across from Jimmy and make it easier on the pass rush and help stop Tom Brady from killing us on short routes. I'd love him here in Baltimore. I know people like to be chicken littles here suggesting we'll never get him because now that he's getting hype here (well deserved, IMO) that he'll be out of reach but I don't buy that this early in the process. Look at all the top CB taken and you will see many things in common as they are typically amazing athletes. I'm not saying Jones isn't but it's a fact that I can't ignore and in a draft with so many quality CB it's very easy for there to be a big variance on who's the top CB. This could mean that yes, Jones goes higher than currently projected or it could mean another CB goes before him.

Jabrill Peppers doesn't have a single turnover in three seasons... What...

Sorry NFL, selling my PSL after holidays. Your combination of arrogance and intransigence is ruining the game especially for the fans. You had a great product but you lack vision and leadership. Your part time officials have cost my team 2 games and who knows what chances to salvalge the season before the injuries. Your weak response is to offer a Mea Culpa on Mondays and continue counting your receipts instead of addressing the issues which confront the NFL. Im back to the college game for any number of reasons. Hope you somehow get the message that serious change is needed.

C'mon, man. You really think Brady would take a pay cut out of the goodness of his heart or for the betterment of the team? This is the Patriots, after all. Perhaps not all of Shady Brady's compensation is counted in the cap: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/report-patriots-pay-a-brady-owned-company-run-by-suspect-partner/

Agree, Patriots don't have a great pass rush but their secondary makes them look like they got pass rush That's because all of their guys have been playing together for years. Only two players have been on different team (Eagles) for a short time and they have a secondary General: Devin McCourty. (7 years). Which brings up again two questions. 1). Do Ravens suck that bad a player selection? 2). Or are the coaches doing a bad job?

I know no one likes the idea that Correa practices and plays hard but the Ravens need some nasty back in the defense. No one fears us like they used to. We need his mean streak on the field.

The rating will also get more positive as Perriman improves.

Testaverde

Our best player on defense? You can make the argument, I know Weddle and Mosley were amazing. He certainly proved that he was very valuable to this team. Makes me happy to see the Jimmy trolls vanish.

My thoughts exactly. Although im a little surprised theyarent even giving him a look at OLB...

@Saxxin, you realize they had 15 combined sacks from Dumervil, Jernigan, Sizzle last yr. Mostly from Sizzle. Great pass rush helps a 2ndry. Who knows Dum still might be cut. They need another franchise edge rusher. Ryan Anderson is nice but if they are projecting him out as Upshaw no thanks, we dont need an edge setter, we need sack artists. What about 1st round selections at 16 like Barnett,Solon Thomas, etc Or rnd 2 selections like Mckinley,Smoot,Devonte Fields, Tj Watt etc. I know ozzie love Bama, but get the best players. Outside of Julio,Cooper,Mosley. Not many Bama guys turn into studs

Bama had the best defense in college football. VT didn't have too many other weapons to rely on so it shouldn't come to much of a surprise. Ford playing with us in the slot would be great.

Just like you greatly disliked Bosa and thought he'd be a bust, as well as hating Stanley and expressing numerous times your distaste for Ramsey? I respect your difference in opinion but you don't seem like any authority at all on the draft. It doesn't sound like you know what you're talking about. Furthermore, @rmw10 and @allblackraven were the first two guys to really discuss Williams just like I was one of the first to talk up Allen.