#20=DA MAN!!

us as fans dont wanna hear about any of our players being injured especially our 1st rounder...but i have trust in our staff that they know whats best for BP, i'd rather him be sidelined for caution during training camp vs the season. His learning curve is steep so he will only have a select few routes on his route tree starting off anyways.and marlon sounds alot like Webb last year with the back injury, i just hope it doesnt linger that long. but tbh i like marlon but he just doesnt use his big frame like we see other receivers do. AJ green is 6'5 and is arguably a top5 receiver, i would be estatic if waller turned out to be that type of player for us.

i really hope we become a better screen team...cuz too often we get beat by screens but can never really execute one. we need to study how denver always gets a big play from a WR screen and study how GB/NO get big plays from RB screens. Forsett could really do some damage.

Jimmy is right when he says we play alot of man-to-man...that in itself will result in a low number of picks, because when ur back is always to the QB, you can't get a break on the ball when they run the comebacks, slants, and crossers. I really do believe we could be more of a cover 3 team...almost a better one than seattle because we have the pieces to do it. Jimmy=Sherman, Webb=(insert cb, its the 3rd one in as many years behind browner, and maxwell), Hill=Bam Bam Cam, Lewis=Earl, Arrington=lane, CJ=wagner, D. Smith=Irvin, Suggs, Doom, b. Williams, Jernigan=bennett, mebane, avril, KJ wright. And i think our pass rush is better than theirs, so a qb throwing with a rush when we are in cover 3 looking at the ball should make for more pick opportunities. After all that i saw this...MAN IM READY FOR THE SEASON TO START ALREADY!!!!

every passed the conditioning test, we are returning 18/22 starters, Jimmy and Webb are healthy, we have upgraded our secondary, if only God will bless this team with good health throughout the year, i see big things coming form this team.

Today everyone reports to camp!! We can finally have articles with some substance to them!! Yeah although the suspension news helps the Steelers, i just cannot fell bad for NE, Brady blatantly destroyed evidence that could implicate him, or as he claims prove his innocence. Why would he destroy it if he had nothing to hide? anyways, that list of fines is ridiculous!!! So on top of flags u get fined? and i don't think it should be universal. it should be a percentage. because $17,363 for roughing the passer to someone like Suh or Justin Houston, is nothing compared to $17,363 to an undrafted rookie making the bare minimum. u get fined for face masks? I don't get that, because inadvertent face masks happen all the time and now that all face masks are 15 yard penalties every flag is gonna be a fine. The NFL is wrong for this!!!!

is it crazy that my top 3 defenders of all-time played on the same team for 2 years?? Prime time, Ed, and Ray!!! I was in heaven, only on defense tho...i couldnt stomach kyle boller. I wish we had a legit QB then because those years from 2002-2008 were the defense's prime years!! but everything happens for a reason.

the bengals have always given us fits when it comes to our offense because it took a while before Joe learned how to successfully beat the cover-2...and now the bengals have a balanced offensive attack with a creative minded hugh jackson to go along with that good D and its a tough day at the office for us. Thats why i believe our division is the best because just look at last year, the browns were actually division leaders halfway into the season. Each team held 1st place at some point or another. no other division can say that after half the season had been played. I hate the other teams as much as anybody but those are some of our best games. The only team i love beating more than division foes is that team of cheaters in boston!!!!

So when John Urschel left harvard they just become clueless huh? John please go teach them something please!!! And Yanda is the best linemen in all of football, i just hope his agent doesnt know that because it could price him outta here. Although Ed is my all-time favorite raven, Ray is the Best of the Best. He was the heart and soul and heartbeat of this team. But i believe it could very well be 1A and 1B. Sugar Ray and Quick. Congrats to Tomlin...looking forward to ending your season for years to come...just stay off the sideline!!!

Jimmy is arguably my favorite Raven behind Sizzle. Im a little biased from being a former CB myself, so I know how hard it is to cover the best athletes on the field all the while going backwards. Of course he is going against the best athletes in the world and he excels in that aspect!! Even as a rookie when he would get beat on double moves, i always said, once he gets in the film room and matures a little bit he will be a top corner in this league. I just pray he stays healthy from here on out. Cuz being a former CB i love to see CB shine especially ravens DBs, so ball out and get them picks and pick-6s!!!

i could care less about who has more yards, what i care about is who has more wins. if he can get pretty close to that 1266 this year that means we are pretty balanced and that makes us a scary team!!!

pitta has no incentive to make a decision to play or not this year because his contract is pretty much guaranteed. the team has said so already. So if his replacements ball out then he would be more inclined to sit out the rest of the year and comeback extremely healthy next year and make our offense deep and talented all across the board.

There is no way we would even go for him, that would be like having anquan and dee mase and TJ hoose-your-mama again...a bunch of possession receivers who cant get separation. and no one ever picks us to win the division. We are always the wild card team, which history says is mostly true, but what possibly could the other teams have over us as a complete team? I believe we are the most talented team in the divison on both sides of the ball and the best kicker in the league.

I believe he is actually healed because just think, he has already doubled his recovery time from the last dislocated hip. So i just believe they are being extra careful and cautious with him. We have 3 capable TEs that can hold down the fort for the 1st 6 weeks.

Is he a HOFer? yes. Is he 1st ballot...no. but if he continues to dominate for at least another 2 years, or until his contract runs out then yes i do believe he will be. add another SB ring and he's a virtual lock. Because you cant talk about the ravens defense over the past 13 years without mentioning Sizzle, it goes, Ray, Ed, Boulware, McCallister, McCrary, Suggs, Ngata as the people you have to mention when talking about ravens defense over the years. you take any of those players away in their prime and the defense becomes a little less dominant. His run support is so underrated. he never leaves the field...earlier in his career he wasntr too shabby in the coverage dept with a few picks. so when he finally hangs it up and after ray and ed give their canton speeches, suggs will be the next member to be inducted...MARK MY WORDS!!!!

It's not that Timmy misses tackles or has bad technique because he certainly does, but as #20 said, he literally just freelances at times. He won't hold his two gaps and instead will make a one gap move and shoot it to penetrate for the sack and lose sight of the ball carrier or he'll over pursue like a one gapper and take himself out of the play. That type of deal, which is a concern, but Clarence Brooks is an absolute beast with developing the defensive line and something tells me he can get Jernigan to calm down.

thanks!!

I really think unless Pitta is 100% that he needs to start the season on the PUP list. Given the emergence of Gillmore and the drafting of Maxx, we wont have to rush Pitta back and the production can still be there. Also, that will allow us to use those 1st 6 weeks to further evaluate our WR core and whenever Pitta is ready to play, he can take the least productive WR roster spot, Just my 2 cents

I think the issue he was bringing up wasn't about affording contracts for other players, rather it was about getting players to accept a deal that may be lower than Tucker's. I hadn't really thought about it, but it is an interesting thought.

 

For example, we just signed a veteran nickel/slot cornerback in Kyle Arrington for about $3M per year. Most would agree that in the current pass-happy NFL that a nickel corner is essentially a starter, so the question would be, if Tucker was making $5M as a kicker, how likely would Arrington, a virtual starter on defense, accept a deal that was $2M less than the kicker's?

 

I'm pretty sure that each position has its own market, but you can't help but wonder if such large contracts for kickers/punters might have an effect on the lower end of the market for other positions that see more significant playing time.

funny how just 2 offseasons ago, fans were calling for Castillo's head on a platter...now that the OL is our best unit on the team we now hear nothing about him until this article. when you come in and attempt to implement a brand new ZBS to players who are use to power blocking you will have some issues, i mean come on, an over matched, undersized center in gradkowski, a backup thats no longer on our team filling in for an injured KO, an injured Yanda, a lost in space Oher, and a 400 lb Mt. McKinney trying to stretch block was damn near laughable...but with a more athletic line and a full offseason of work our running game and pass protection improved drastically!!!! So i will give props to Castillo because we are quick to criticize, but never praise. Thanks for withstanding the backlash from us fans who really doesnt know what goes on behind the scenes!!! Hoping for more success this season!!!

IMHO i believe our roster will look like this barring injury, 7 on the active roster (SSS, Perriman, Aiken, Butler, Marlon *but he could be trade bait*, Waller, and Carter). I think Camp only stays if Carter is not ready for the NFL. But i could see Ozzie trading Marlon this offseason since he is in the last year of his contract. If Waller becomes a legit WR then he may be paired with Perriman for the future. No way do we keep both Carter and Camp they are essentially the same player, and if camp gets hurt in training camp then he's either cut or headed to IR, Waller may have a phantom injury that lands him on IR as well. This will be one of the most intriguing position battles in camp and i pray that every stays healthy and we get a daily unbiased update on each player. Pros/Cons please!!!

Tucker is not going anywhere, that may seem like alot of money but there are some players you pay top dollar for and that is tuck, if we have a chance to keep the best player at his position then why not pay top dollar?? We did it with JO, Ray, Ed, Ngata, and Suggs. So why would tuck be any different? His touchbacks and clutch near automatic kicks are a valueable part of our game. Our opponents are consistently having to drive the field because of field position.

Second rant, damnit Dallas and Denver!!! They have made it nearly impossible to keep a bonafide #1 WR beyond their rookie deals AND keep a competitive team. But I guess both teams will be rebuilding within the next 3 years so i guess they have to pay someone. But if Perriman becomes a top 5 WR then in 2019-20 hes gonna command 20 mil a year at the rate they are going now because next year Julio and AJ will top both dez and DT. We cant have a 22 mil QB, 12-15 mil WR, 12 mil G, two 10-12 mil DE/OLB, 12 mil CB...OMG i hate the freaking salary cap...lol...thank God we have the great and powerful Ozzie who knows how to draft because we would not be as competitive if not for his masterful offseason moves.

Rant over....56 days!!!!

that wasn't ray Lewis's final season. just sayin

yes it was it was the 3rd game of the season, right after Torrey Smith's  brother was killed. When bilicheat grabbed the refs and didnt get fined for that either. Thats the game he used to convince the league to extend the uprights of the field goal posts. 

my only concern with Timmy, is not his stamina because we do a great job of rotating DLmen, but his tendency to freelance, it could really hurt if he jumps a gap and they run right where he was suppose to go and Mosley/DSmith gets blocked by the guy that was suppose to block Timmy, then we have a free runner in our secondary, and we dont have too many sure tacklers back there if im not mistaking

I can almost bet that the broncos are trying to fully gauge DT value. cuz elway knows this is manning last season and if brock cant cut the mustard then it would be a waste to keep DT around for next year when he can build his team from scratch, becase most if not all of those DFA signins last year are FA after this season so they will have alot of rebuilding to do after this season. Maybe DT is a byproduct of having Peyton as his QB?? Then with Dallas, quite frankly, they dont trust Dez to invest a butt load of money in because with his temper he is one altercation away from suspension.

I know we have another 2 months before the season but I'm praying that DT holds out and sits out a couple games, or at least the 1st one so that we wont have to worry about him in Denver

Highly unlikely given what we know...

 

$13M is coming off the books, but you really aren't gaining anything from it. We still have $132M in contracts on the books for 2016 as or right now, meaning, at best, we've got $30M in cap space right now. That's before any other extensions are signed... KO, Yanda, Tucker, Hill, etc. That also excludes signing draft picks and any other moderate FAs. Signing Yanda, KO and Tucker, and draft picks would probably put us under $10M alone. By most of what I've read, having somewhere in the neighborhood of $10-15M in cap space to spend on FAs once its all said and done next season, which really isn't much at all when you consider there will be plenty of teams with north of $30M to spend. We will likely be in the bottom third of the league in cap space once again, which isn't a problem, but that's just the way the league works when you're actively trying to win every year.

 

Additionally, the major thing fans seem to ignore is that its not just about signing FAs or extending players because you have the cap space in one season. If we're going to extend Yanda and/or KO, the FO has to make sure they can afford that player in 2016... and 2017, and 2018, and 2019, etc. Anybody can afford to sign anybody for one season... you can just move money around to do that. Its extending players for 3-4 years that is costly.

 

Ultimately, the FO will ask itself "do I want to invest $15-20M per season in cap space for a couple of guards". Even in an increasing salary cap, that's still a significant number for interior lineman, particularly on a team that is notoriously great at developing interior lineman.

 

We had the cap space to sign Torrey... we didn't. We had the cap space to keep Ngata... we didn't. Just because we have the cap space to retain a player doesn't even remotely indicate that we certainly will.

That is true about the future years, and I believe our FO is the best when it comes to right player, right price and knowing when to let a player go. I was sad to see Ed play for another team, but Oz knew it was time to retire him, but he insisted on playing but it couldnt have been for the ravens, and same with torrey, he was a class act and beloved in the community but his production up until this point can be replaced. So im not saying break the bank for FAs or resigning our own. But i do feel that resigning both KO and Yanda is a luxury that we can afford. If we are good at developing interior lineman why cant we reap the benefits of those developments. Its almost like we are the breeding factory for coaches, linebackers, d-linemen, and o-linemen. You win up front, thats all im saying. That was the only part of my original statement that i actually was serious about. Yes going into 2016 as of now we have about 30mil, but factor in extensions and releases, because my prediction is that canty, webb (unless he just has a monster season), SSS, "Buck" Smith will all be released/retired. And each of those players besides "Buck" has another year on their contracts, so thats freeing up cap space, and with the draft pool, there is a set cap amount that is allotted to the draft picks which is i believe around 3-5 mil in cap space. ( not bad for a 4-5 year commitment). yes i am thinking like a fan but also as a realist. We are going to have to start keeping our own that we develop if we are going to ever find a suggs/dumervil replacement, a Webb replacement, a "Buck" replacement, without going into full rebuild mode. We cant waste Flacco's prime the way we wasted Ray and Ed's with Boller.