good_n_purple

Our problem is our development with our WR's. We can never develop receivers which is why we always have to rely on bringing in a aging vet that has something "left in the tank". Bring in coaches that is know for their development of receivers. The route running for a lot of our guys is horrible. When you see guys like AB, Julio, OBJ and even Edelman, their route running is really good. I just think the coaching is mediocre in that department. It's been that way for a long time.

We need to steal an obviously successful receivers coach. Throw money and titles at him. And no, not someone out of the Harbaugh Rolodex.

"Baltimore invested three draft picks" to improve the pass rush. What we saw was opposing QB's having all day to pass... especially in the 4th quarter with the game on the line. Not much of an investment as it turned out.

Yup...no return on investment. I don't know what they were thinking with Correa. Let him stay in his natural position. It's not his fault the coaches/scouts did not see the need for an inside LB. Kaufusi was a dud in training camp until his injury. No moves, just bull-rush which probably worked in college. Pros? Not so much.

Judon is encouraging but needs to work on his strength, and as a lot of rookies do probably hit the wall in a long season.

  4 hours ago, good_n_purple said:

Wow. I was thinking the same thing. Seems like holding not being called is a conscious effort. I see a lot O-linemen with their hands on the outside of defensive player pads, but no calls. Reminds me of how they used to conveniently not see the Colts O-line do it constantly when Peyton was the "It Boy", but now it is everywhere.

Well, you had two "it" boys in that game.  In the nightcap, a crucial 2-point conversion by "non-it" boy Alex Lewis was (correctly) called back for holding.  There is holding on every play.  Really depends on the Ref's judgment.  If it were a challenge-able offense, the game would last 5 hours.

No doubt. Totally depends on the ref, but it seems like there is a behind-the-scenes agenda from the league to look the other way.

Steve has highlighted some issues the league needs to address regarding commercials. I only know what I see though, and despite trying to cultivate youth interest I think there is a gap in the demographics. My son is 24 and zero interest in the NFL, and none of his friends do either. I can't say if this is an aberration, but you would think at least a percentage would follow the sport.

This game is not easy on officials but it is not as hard as they are making it either.
Watching the GB-Dallas game and these guys just will not call holding on pass plays. They have already missed four in just a couple of minutes near the end of the second half. The officials have been terrible for most of the playoffs.

Wow. I was thinking the same thing. Seems like holding not being called is a conscious effort. I see a lot O-linemen with their hands on the outside of defensive player pads, but no calls. Reminds me of how they used to conveniently not see the Colts O-line do it constantly when Peyton was the "It Boy", but now it is everywhere.

To paraphrase an oldie "Thank God and Greyhound he's gone".

  5 hours ago, good_n_purple said:

  18 hours ago, whobilly said:

We likely will be adding Correa to the list next year. A 2nd round pick who is a special teams player at best.

Frustratingly he hasn't even done that! I mean really? The playbook is too big for him? Ugh...I would love to know if the success rate of the scouts who push these picks is looked at. If the someone advocates for a loser after loser maybe he should be seeking opportunities outside of the Ravens organization. Accountability is good.

You do realize Correa switched positions, right? So, by your logic the Browns shouldve just dropped Pryor year 1.

So, thats what you would have advised them to do right? When he couldnt get on the field his 1st year of learning a new position - hes just a bust. Bet youd love to have Pryor here now.

Do you like having Jimmy Smith now? Didnt do much of anything years 1 and 2 bc of injury and poor play. Bust right!

Go play fantasy or Madden.

Fact: Arthur Brown, Fact: Sergio Kindle, Fact: Dan Cody. After the stellar results from these high picks forgive my incredulity regarding Correa. A 2nd round draft pick should not be a healthy scratch. Either it is poor coaching or the inability to grasp. If he is a Will or Mike figure it out and get him on the field. Not everyone can step in from day one obviously, but I expect highly paid football professionals to know what they have drafted. So far Correa is suspect based on the info available no matter what YOU say. And you can keep your bullying to yourself dude. Don't be a jerk.

  2 hours ago, sizzlingdoom said:

We hired Roman! Don't know if this just sounds too obvious but I think this is a great thing for the run game. I know a lot of you are probably hoping he replaced Castillo but I'm sure Harbaugh kept him around. I think this is a great hire and a step in the right direction. I just really hope we dont waste that first pick on Cook. Fornette would be tempting. Alright. This is a step in the right direction

Roman is great with scheming formations for the run game. We grab a premier center. Throw in a more experienced Lewis at guard and our line will go. Dixon and west are both good backs. Id take Fournette only if he was there at 16 because it is value, but I wouldn't trade up to make it happen. 

Make Roman work with what we have and earn his money. Cornerback please.

  1 hour ago, Purple Dawg 96 said:

Draft picks have nothing to do with why the Ravens are not in the playoffs! The Ravens have a birds eye for talent and are respected around the league in doing so! Wish they get some Ohio State Buckeyes tho Lol but If you question Ozzie and Co. "KICK ROCKS" please! I know one position that needs to be upgraded and we wouldn't have these problems!

Really? We've been SO bad at drafting for a while. How on earth can that have nothing to do with us missing the playoffs?

Agree! There is a talent vacuum on the team. How did we get here? Poor drafts. What do teams depend on to play at a high level? Playmakers! What are the Ravens devoid of since Ray and Ed left? Playmakers. Seems like a simple equation.

I have no doubt in my mind that Mr. Biscotti is doing everything in his best judgement to make this team succeed.

We the fans are always way more impatient than the ownership. That's probably the fundamental reason most of us would be crappy at running an NFL team. Cause we've seen what changing the FO every other year does to a team from Browns. 

That's why I was actually relieved by Biscotti's press conference. Despite his cool demeanor, it seemed he too was growing weary of the same recurring issues year after year. Now there should be at least a fire under Harbaugh&Co's collective arses.

That said, I don't have much fate that Harbaugh will change enough to save this team. I believe that the issues since our SB win have been more profound than not having good enough OC or being short a solid WR. Harbaugh's head coaching philosophy has led us to having a team of "safe" great character players, who are easy to coach for Harbaugh and won't question him, but also have relatively low ceiling and not much talent or passion (there are, of course, exceptions). We have not taken risks with talented players or "bad boys" or players who might have some character concerns but are fierce in their game. We have lost our edge, our competitiveness (especially now with Smith Sr. gone), our fire, our nastiness. 

This is just one manifestation of Harbaugh's coaching philosophy, but one of the most evident ones. And that won't most likely change as long as Harbaugh is the HC.

Yanda is the only guy on the team with talent and an "edge".

  12 hours ago, whobilly said:

We likely will be adding Correa to the list next year. A 2nd round pick who is a special teams player at best.

there are so many names to add to that list.

Matt Elam
Perriman
Arthur Brown
Upshaw
Cody
Ed Dickson
Kindle
Jah Reid
Brooks
Carl Davis
Maxx Williams
KC

All 1rst, 2nd, and 3rd round picks. Not only are none of them even close to sniffing pro bowl talent, but most of them can't even contribute to a win or stay in the league. This is just the past 7 years. Coincidentally since Harbaugh put in his wonderful influence of drafting "high character and high IQ football players" GREAT. Don't know why this AWFUL staff is still "leading" the Ravens. It's discouraging at best. And yeah, awesome time to raise ticket prices. I laughed so hard out loud when I saw that and couldn't wait to read the comments

Ha! Man...it looks bad when you line them all up. Remember Dan Cody? I think we just scratch all "Cody's" off the draft list.

  12 hours ago, whobilly said:

  13 hours ago, Crusader said:

The future of the Ravens are riding on the next few drafts since they have little cap space with their "market" paid QB. Another reason I like SSS, when he got paid he never let off the gas peddle.

So Ryan Fitzpatrick or EJ Manuel is the answer I'm guessing?

What is that suppossed to mean? LOL nice argument. Bottom line is Joe played better than maybe 4 or 5 qbs in the league this year. There are only 2 qbs that have a higher annual salary. He needs to pick it up big time. And not a good signing by the front office. Discussion over

There is no doubt Flacco has vastly underperformed his contract. I have no idea how those names pooped out. Perhaps to demonstrate the futility of acquiring QB talent. Lets face it though. Joe is not willing to put in the work to become "great". We have heard time after time since his super bowl year how he refuses coaching. Joe seems to be more interested in adding to his family than watching film, doing the reps, and most of all listening to his coaches.

We likely will be adding Correa to the list next year. A 2nd round pick who is a special teams player at best.

Frustratingly he hasn't even done that! I mean really? The playbook is too big for him? Ugh...I would love to know if the success rate of the scouts who push these picks is looked at. If the someone advocates for a loser after loser maybe he should be seeking opportunities outside of the Ravens organization. Accountability is good.

  19 hours ago, OriolesMagicPlease said:

  21 hours ago, sizzlingdoom said:

Please , o please tell me how I've given I've given up and turned my back on the team. By pointing out facts?? If I gave up and turned my back, I wouldn't be here posting. I just wouldn't give a damn. But I do as much as any of our fans. And discussing our teams flaws with other fans is FAR from turning my back and giving up on the team. I sleep with Ravens gear, I wear it ( in CA), and I'm on their site everyday of my life. I love the Ravens. Just discussing our serious problems with other knowledgeable fans. If there were one or two of us with these feelings it would be one thing. But it looks like at least half the users on here know there are serious problems at the helm. Where there's smoke there's fire. I'll never give up on them. But will I discuss our issues with fellow fans when I want to, yeah. why not?

I didn't state that you personally have given up on the team. You seem a bit defensive. But there are those who have and they are the "fans" I was talking about. I enjoy reading all the different opinions, even if I don't agree with them and even if I think some people have forgotten that football is just a game for entertainment and have lost perspective.

It is a game for entertainment. But there's a lot that goes into this "game". They are real people playing this game, that get injured as real humans, sometimes in a fashion so badly people don't even want to talk about it. And it's a game that a lot of fans invest a lot of time and money into. To some it's just a game that they might occassionally turn on just whenever the games on and it's fun to watch. But to others it means a whole lot. So why can't they voice their opinion? Or abandon a team if they invest a lot into them, then they don't believe in what that franchise is doing for years? Everyone can do whatever they want. One of the best parts about this country

And there you go. Fans should be able to express their opinions freely. But! Just like anything other subject if you give an opinion be ready for the counterpoint and don't get butt-hurt about it.

True...just a game and you already mentioned the investments of time and money, but the biggest investment for a lot of folks is the emotional one.

  21 hours ago, OriolesMagicPlease said:

All fans should express their opinions. But there is a difference between being frustrated and totally giving up on your team. Being a passionate fan can be really painful, but turning your back on the team in the bad times means you really weren't a real fan to begin with.

And there is also a difference on turning your back on the team and calling them out on their BS. I will never turn my back on the Ravens, but I'm starting to turn my back on Harbaugh and his bunch of friends he has hired as coaches, because Harbaugh has abandoned the Ravens identity.

I truly don't think Harbaugh seriously looks for coaches beyond the rolodex he has from 1989 on his desk.

Look the idea of adding another RB that has game-breaker status sounds nice, but it is far from a necessity. This team has talent up and down the roster. It is time to get the most out of it. Just saying, a RB like Leonard Fournette would be a nice addition, but even he lacks that break away speed. Then you have more backs than snaps too, not a great move. Good running attacks that break the big plays, mostly do it by wearing down the defense, not just blazing by them every play. T West and Dixon need to be utilized more. Period.

Juan Castillo needs to surrender control of the run game, that much is certain. He is great at teaching the pass protection and was really the big reason for his initial hiring, going from memory.

Not sure if Roman becomes the guy to fix the run game, but with his success in running the ball, it would be difficult to pass him up, if the Ravens are serious.

Just focus on filling the secondary will more younger talent, 2-3 CB's and 1-2 S. Not all drafted players will work out as expected. Time to put the same need for several years in a row, behind them.

WR is not a need at all either. Another nice item on the wish list at most. These young WR's on the team either need to be given a fair chance to develop and see snaps to do so or move on from them. Joe can definitely work on throwing his WR open and beating coverage with timing, something he used to do and disappeared of late. Someone gotta show Joe how to pump fake defenders out of their shoes and look off defenders. All misdirection basically hinges on the ability to keep a defense guessing so that means Joe also needs to learn to sell hi fakes much better. This will also open the PA and bootlegs. Sitting in shotgun too often does not benefit the offense.

You mention the purpose for hiring Castillo as being to hone pass protection skills, but that is not how I remember it. I would have to go back and look but I seem to remember his hire was to introduce the zone blocking scheme because Moeller was questionable. And of course he was on Harbaugh's short list because he was with the Freakin Eagles staff at one time.

  1 hour ago, Utah_Raven said:

Whoever is in charge of scouting WRs for the draft needs to be fired right now.

You obviously missed the entire point of the article...Nobody is getting fired...

Well not exactly true. The main cogs responsible for running the team were let go...the asst. offensive line coordinator, and the strength and conditioning coach. See! All fixed!

  18 hours ago, metalraven said:

Ya. Another running back is what we need. That way we have 3 good RBs that'll barely touch the ball. THAT'S the answer. Phew - now my confidence is restored.

Exactly. I was worried. Thank goodness for Harbaugh..............................................

Obviously the game changer we were looking for! Of course the best way to cure a suspect O-line and iffy coaching is to get another RB! Sheesh....

  17 hours ago, The Greek said:

hope this does not end up as having too many cooks in the kitchen as hey say.

Ravens have 29 Coaches and Assistants listed. New England has 16. Pittsburgh 16, Bengals have 20. Does that constituent bloated? And is that why prices are really going up?

Don't know about the correlation to ticket prices but the number of coaching staff is definitely way high. The "just try everything" approach may account for some of it.

it was nice to hear that bisciotti has noticed the crappy qb play, poor drafting in the early rnds and avg. coaching and has made them all accountable moving forward. i am going to support all the decisions that have been made thus far and see how it all plays out next season and if we miss the playoffs im sure steve will make the right moves. go ravens!!

No one can say Steve B. has a hair trigger. Accountability at the coach and player level has just not been evident. So, now that the GM an HC seats are appropriately heated we have to wait for the leopard to change it's spots. I'm doubting it but oddly enough have been wrong before.

  19 minutes ago, RaRaRavens said:

  1 hour ago, sizzlingdoom said:

And to all of you chastising us fans that are speaking our minds.....What do you want us to say?
"Good try team. Get em next year. We were so close. Darn. Maybe next time...????"
SORRY. maybe if this was the first year of this non sense, that would make sense. But now, we're missing the playoffs more often than we make them. That doesn't sound like the Ravens to me. Not running the ball and not finishing teams with our D doesn't sound like the Ravens. Counting on starting defenders that can't even make the worst team in the league(Wright), o yeah, that's Raven football. It'd be one thing if we added and played a player like that on our offense, but the RAVENS DEFENSE??? Same old story every year now for years with the same old crap coming out of Harbaugh's mouth. Says what needs to be said, but does nothing about it.
ALL of us here love the Ravens and are very passionate about them. Some of us are just very upset about the way things have been run in the organization for years now. And we're not afraid to talk about. We all have the same intention and hope. Winning. Something we used to do a lot of

I agree with most of your posts 100%! It's so refreshing and supportive to read that at least someone thinks the same about the current situation of our team. Unfortunately you'll get downvoted to oblivion for your critical point of view by naive, shortsighted fans living in their pink little bubble.

 

I don't even know what to bring out in your comments, but this time one thing in particular stuck with me and I think is the root of all the problems for us - this team has derailed from the Ravens Way. This is for the most part the doing of Harbaugh. Him and his "high character and high football IQ guys" like you said it. This is all great, but without talent these guys won't be enough for a playoff caliber team. 

 

For the past 5 years now FO has played it safe by drafting those high character and football IQ guys. Now the result is that we have bunch of average or maybe slightly above average good guys on this team who LITERALLY NOONE is afraid to play against. About 10 years ago most teams any players were still AFRAID the entire week before they had to play against the Ravens. Now, there is absolutely nothing dangerous or frightening about playing us - not talent wise, nor character wise. Even when the Ravens of old would lose, they would make you hurt along the way. Now our guys pretty much roll over dead when things are starting to go badly or some player personally starts imposing their will on them.

 

I know, times and rules have changed and I'm knot saying to punch someone's teeth in, but run someone on over with a purpose at least, if it seems they are feeling to comfortable against us. Instead, we have "high character and high football IQ guys", safe guys. If Harbs has a choice between a very talented guy who might have some character concerns and a "high character guy" with slightly above average skills, there isn't even a question in his mind. And this is how we get stuck with roster of talentless players.

 

So go back to the Ravens Way. Draft explosive, dangerously talented guys, even when they might have some character risks. Draft players who play intimidatingly, even when there's a risk they might pick up some flags. Draft players who play and compete with passion and fire until the bitter end and then some, even when they don't rank at the top tier of football IQ. Suggs would have never drafted and opposed fear into QBs if we had considered "character concerns" when drafting him. Or does anyone question about the decision to sign Smith Sr., even though he might cause a stir and rub some people the wrong way? NO!

 

Until we start taking some risks by drafting talented players and competitive players, we will be pretty much the punching bag of the league. And that's mainly the doing of HC Harbaugh in the recent years.

 

tl;dr

 

Sick and tired of Harbaugh and the FO drafting a safe team of "high character and high football IQ guys" with no dangerous talent or explosive competitiveness. If they don't start taking some risks, we are not going anywhere.

RIght on. you nailed it. We need more guys like SSS and Q on offense, and more guys like Pollard on D. Special teams should be littered with these type of players. We need to draft talented bad boys, not mathematicians. And if we have serious needs in the offseason, we probably shouldn't fill them with players that aren't good enough to play anywhere else. The type of team that we want and used to be, is what attracted me to the Ravens in the first place from afar. It's brutal how much they've gotten away from that, players....and staff now

Good assessment! The players are the critical ingredient in this goulash, and right now the team is without guys who are "pissed off for greatness" . Playmakers! We need playmakers, not choirboys & nerds. I agree that Harbaugh has homogenized the draft process via his "vision" of the players he wants to coach. That being said there is also something fundamentally wrong with the management and coaching of this team. Coordinators aside, when "easily correctable" problems show up week after week its a sure sign of bad coaching.

  On ‎1‎/‎5‎/‎2017 at 2:07 AM, sizzlingdoom said:

Worst coached season in franchise history. Here's an idea, let's bring them all back though even though they cost us a legitimate chance at another ring. Wake up Steve

Steve is a business man, can't vouch for his football knowledge, given his lack of action as Harbaugh continues to wreck his once revered franchise.

All I can say is his patience is far greater than mine. Harbs and his "we have to get better" would be gone. Get better somewhere else.

How can the Ravens look so good against Miami, the season looked promising, then el-floppo. Did the Ravens get too cocky?

Miami is a pretender. Their defensive backfield is worse than ours, and once you figure out Ajayi you have it made.

I think they are all gone, Maybe not Zuttah. Dumervil sounds like he wants out anyway

Zuttah is gone.

Just bring back Jim Zorn

Yes please...seems so simple. But Jim's last interaction may have left a bad taste.