steelcityraven

Two things that have plagued us over the past two or three seasons surfaced once again. Look at our loses over the past several years... and you will see two or three themes: 1. Penalties 2. Injuries 3. Cannot get off of the field on 3rd down! These are three issues (and at least 2 that are controllable) that we continue to allow to happen. 1. Penalties continue to kill us and we are not good enough to put ourselves in a hole on either side of the ball 2. Injuries... IDK but it seems to happen to us way more then other teams... is it a preparation thing? is it a training thing or over training? What is going on. I get it all teams have injuries but we seem to lead that league every year in games missed. 3. Getting off of the field on third down... its the same things as not being able to close teams out at the end of games. We are too passive and pay for it - when it counts the most... over and over again~

The Ravens had a breakout half for the offense. Not a breakout game. The first half was hard to watch. The 2nd half showed signs of life and TBH we should have had at least 3 more points... if Joe don't throw that pick in the 2nd half.

5 THOUGHTS IT GETS HARDER FRO HERE BUT 1. Sizzle looks like he has found the fountain of youth. He is playing inspired and his play is lifting the rest of the defense. 2. We need to continue to feed Perriman and Waller...They both looked dangerous last night and we saw glimpses of who they can be. Feed them 3. Flacco needs to get his confidence back. IDK if it is the knee... of if he is getting hit too much or a combination or what the deal is... but even when he had time.... he looks a little gun shy. 4. Dixon showed flashes... hope he continues to grow with more playing time. 5. We have some budding stars on this team (Waller, Dixon, Stanley, Judon, Pierce, and Z. Smith) all seem to be poised to take their games to the next level. If we can get Perriman in the mix and KC to develop... I think it is a good nucleus of young players to add to the handful of veterans that we already possess (BWilliams, CJ, Jimmy, Suggs, Yanda, Doom, Wagner, Tucker, Weddle, SSS and Wallace)

Again.... I said it last week and I will say it again. Congrats to Dean Pees who had the defense playing great. I have been very outspoken against Pees and his Defensive philosophy but I will give credit where it is due. Dean did a remarkable job over the past two weeks and I am not sure what the difference is (Tavon Young?) but I am sure that something is clicking. Lets hope he can keep it rolling vs the Cowgirls.

Get Waler going tonight!

WOw... Tell me how much time DOOM has missed in his career... he had a severe enough injury that he needed to have it surgically repaired. He rushed back faster the he should have in an effort to help the team... only to aggravate the injury. The last thing he should do now is rush back... that is the text book definition of insanity... "doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result".... Doom is the real deal.

Why cant we run Juan Castillo??????

5 takeaways: 1. Still way too many penalties. We are still giving away way too many free yards- fortunately the sqeelers were worse at it then we were but we still have not fixed it 2. Tavon Young, Michael Pierce and Judon continue to impress. Keep feeding them. 3. As great as our Defense played.... I still don't think Pees knows how to finish a team off. II know that feels like harsh criticism for as well as they played but the facts remain the same... we struggle to close games out- we had a 21 point lead in the 4th quarter (at home) and held on for the win. We need to stomp a team out when they are down... not get passive 4. Congrats to Dean Pees on a great game. I have been one of his biggest critics... and still think he needs to get better at closing teams out...but he certainly seems to have Pittsburgh's number. So Congrats...Pees 5. Worried about Dixon... BONUS.... We need to feed Waller more... he is a difference maker!

The Vikings OC (Norv Turner) has just resigned. I think with Norvs success elsewhere.... he may be able to boost our offensive production enough to change that win total prediction?

I struggle with the comment that we shouldn't expect trades bc we don't look like a super bowl contender. We have not been healthy. We have been without SSS, Suggs, Dumervil, Stanley, CJ, Yanda and more. When we were healthy we were 3-0 since the injuries we have been 0-4 but those are some giant injuries. IN fact for the most part those are our top guys. Our guys are now expected to be back after the bye... we should be at full strength or close to it and we are only one game out of 1st place in the division. The sqeelers are banged up... the Bengals look bad and we can still control our own destiny. A win vs Pittsburgh and a healthy unit moving forward could go a long way to righting the ship. A little help (even for depth better then Hurst or help at S ) and we could legitimately make a run. Once you get into the playoffs... its all about who is peaking at that time! Yea... I have an issue with that statement.

We need to let these young players lose a little more. That is something that Harbs never does but it is time to let the likes of: 1. Tavon 2. Dixon 3. Judon 4. ZSmith 5. KC 6. ALewis 7. Stanley (although that was the play with those two all along) 8. Waller 9. Campanaro 10. CMoore 11. Perriman 12. Huff There is a dozen players that we need to get more involved. Stanley -Lewis and Tavon have already been showing that they can help this team. C Moore and Campanaro can add to the weapons that we are missing on offense but they can only do that if they are on the field and getting reps. Perriman needs be force fed a little. As does Dixon Waller is a mismatch and needs to be utilized. I know that means that Joes friend Pitta may get less reps but Waller is the type of athlete that this offense is missing. Judon and ZSmith are showing that they can play. that is not saying that they should surpass Suggs or Dum but they should be getting a healthy rotation. KC should also be working in that rotation. He can play all 4 LB positions and ST... he is athletic and has a high motor and we could take advantage of that in situations all while letting him get his feet wet and developing. Finally... Huff will be an upgrade over Webb and much cheaper moving forward. He is more athletic and makes us more versatile in our defensive backfield. That is a dozen players (nearly a quarter of our line up) that we need to get more out of and who could add some spark for us on both sides of the ball.. I hope to see a lot more of them over the second half of the season.

I think Huff looked much better at S then Webby did. The problem with webb is his $9 million plus contract. If he can at least contribute on ST we can get something for that money... but wow? SMH he is clearly not the answer at S... His pursuit angels are horrible. He looks timid too often and I have seen him look lost more then I have seen him confidently make plays this season.

Kamar is the # 4 and possibly the # 5 WR in our lineup and with Campanaro ready to come back- the best thing that Kamar can do for us is provide trat bait to help us in an area of need. 1. SSS 2. Wallace 3. Perriman 4. CMoore and now with Camp ready to return that moves Kamar well down the lineup and that is not even considering that Waller can play both WR and TE. I know they mentioned keeping Kamar incase SSS retires next season but why cant we take another WR in the middle of the draft to replace him (it would be cheaper and he would have a better chance then being our #4 or $ 5 WR). I really don't think too many teams are very interested in KAMAR...our WR corps is disappointing so far and Kamar is 4th or 5th in BMORE... that don't have me believing that teams are beating down our door trying to get him... but if a team like the Bills or Jets or Chargers think they can help them make a run... I say take him and let us get something we can use for him bc being 5th in the line up or worse... we are not going to be much out of him with him here?

Perriman was a reach bc he struggled with drops but no one and I mean NO ONE doubted his raw skills and unique skill set. he is big and fast and I don't mean a little fast - he is hold your breath fast. He doesn't get to top speed as fast as some other guys but he is tall and rangey and when he does run... he can leave anyone behind. We will take the drops and coach him up on that (look at Will Fuller in Houston. the kid can fly but he drops more then his share- still I would love to have him) but we need to utilize Perriman to his strengths and not ask him to be something that he is not (he can grow into that). Perriman's skillset is unquestionable... if we are not getting much out of him then it is bc we are not putting him in positions to be successful. We need to force feed him a little and we need to utilize him to his strengths. He was not a reach bc of a lack of skills (Laquann Treadwell was considered a reach bc he ran a 4.6 something and couldn't create separation- we see how that is playing out) Perriman has the skill set to create mismatches and to stretch a defense.... and he is big enough that we should be using him for fades and slants in short yardage..... We cannot deny his unique skill set we just need to force feed him a lot more then we are! Heck Kamar Aiken almost had a 1000 yards rec last year when we force fed him.... and his skill set is nowhere near Perrimans! Get him the $#%* ball!

You're wrong! Castillo has had to shuffle the O-Line because we are hurt. Finding the right pieces hasn't been easy either, but not all the blame should go to the coaches. Players should be hold responsible as well. We have no swagger. We are not the bully we once were because we don't play smash-mouth football. Plain and simple. Castillio has a lot of depth to work with. We really do have two quality OLs. Wagner, Yanda, Zuttah, A Lewis , Stanley (Alex Lewis can play T and Yanda can slid to T if needed) Hurst, Ducasse, Jensen, Urschel (Jensen can play G or C as can Urschel) That is more then most teams can say about the quality of their OL. We are not getting the most out of them and the only season we really did was the year that Kubiack took over. Castillo has to answer for that. As far as losing our identity and no longer being physical. I am with you on that. I think we try to play to much finesse on offense and the bend but don't break (except in the fourth quarter) style has completely emasculated this team. Take the leash off and let these guys play Ravens football and start getting after teams again!

start with a commitment to the run. If we commit to being balanced and keep the defense guessing... then we will have more success... but we are so predictable right now! change the playing calling up a little - and commit to being balanced

The Sqeelers can be run on and run on between the tackles. They are fast but not physical in their LB unit. That means that the outside stuff will be less effective then running it right at them and grinding them down. They are also vulnerable in their DBackfield. They can be beat with speed (This is where Perriman can have his breakout) and on the out routes. They are stronger underneath and across the middle bc of their team speed but we need to give Joe time bc this requires more of the 5 and 7 step drops (that require time) and Pittsburgh will get after you. Would love to see Perriman have his breakout game vs them much like Torrey Smith did starting his career in BMORE! (If we give Joe the time and Marty uses Perriman right- I like his chances vs Pittsburghs DBs).

I think part of that learning curve is going to mean that HARBs utilized him to his strength. Perriman needs to be used on the go routes more . He need more vertical / deep attacks - not jus the slants and outs that make up the largest percentage of the routes that he is running. He is a speedster but doesn't get to top speed right now... and needs to be allowed to run routes that will catch him in stride more. Double moves are fine but the quick hitters don't allow him the chance to get going and get to top speed where he is most dangerous!

First off... the sqeelers are not as good as everyone thinks. Which is why they have been blown out of a few games and we have not. All of our games are close win or lose. The sqeelers have an elite QB in Ben but also an egotistical one that forces things and turns the ball over a lot trying to look good. He cant be trusted and he hasn't played a full year in who knows how long They have an elite RB who also can not stay on the field. LBell is super talented but he is also super fragile and I will be surprised if he makes it through the game vs us much less an entire AFC North schedule (even after missing weeks 1-3) They have an elite WR in Antonio Brown who they have allowed to become their offense at the expense of others \ Sammie Coates, Wheaton, Eli Rogers are not developing bc Ben only trusts Brown. They have an average TE in Jessie James They have a below average OL... but utilize a quick passing game to keep the OL from being exposed. When they have to pass deep and need 5 and 7 step drops Ben becomes very vulnerable. They have an average DL who can be run on and has no depth They have fragile ILBs who are athletic but cannot stay healthy and are not physical. That is why KO would kill them. They have good OLBs but very one dimensional and screen passes kill them. (go back and watch the Eagles and Patriot games vs the sqeelers) They have very poor DBs who play the run well but cannot play the pass well consistently at all. They have a sub par kicking game. (I will take Tucker and Koch) over their ST every day of the week. I will take our DB's over theirs every day of the week. I will take our ILB and OLBs and our DL over them. I will even take our OL over their. I will take our TE over them and our WR corps as a unit is probably not far off from theirs as a unit. THey got us at RB and QB but I will take Harbs over Tomlin every day of the week. I do think that Haley and Butler are more clued in then Morningweg and Pees however! I am not that impressed with Pittsburgh. In fact... I think that if you can give any of their top 3 a bad day they will lose (look at the Dolphin game)!

Soft.... it is a fragile mentality. We have one bad thing happen and we lose confidence. We face a little adversity and we begin to doubt. I said for a long time now... Pees has no clue how to close a team out. He is the only coach in the NFL to get passive in the 1st quarter bc we have a lead. We have not had a killer instinct since he got here. We have not been feared since arrived. He killed out killer instinct. SMH

Well.... It looks like the last chance for ELAM. I hope he makes the most of it. I think he played okay as a rookie and showed some signs of getting better. I think the addition of Leslie Frasier will be good for Elam. It is now or never. My money is on Elam taking the next step. Not sure why but I just feel like he gets the game mentally... and he has had some time to grow into the position physically. Best of luck Elam... pulling for you!

Listen... I am as unhappy with the way the past several weeks have unfolded as anyone. However.... this is not the end of the world. We are in all likelihood going to be tied for the division lead after Sunday. From there we control our own destiny. We knew that we had Flacco, Suggs, SSS, Pitta, and more coming off of serious injuries. We knew that at least one if not 2 rookies were going to stat on the OL.... we knew that Perriman has not played yet and was going to need a little time to get his feet under him. We knew that Dumervil had surgery just before the season. We have not been blown out of any game yet (the sqeelers have 2x) and we have had our chances in every game. We just went through a coaching change in the OC and we should be starting to get our feet under us. It sux when we self-inflict wounds knowing that we cannot afford to give anything away right now but we knew the beginning of the season that we would see a little bit of a learning curve. IF we win this week. Beat the Ben-less sqeelers coming off of our bye (and we get healthy) and then the Browns on Thursday night... we are sitting at 6-3 and in pretty good shape. By that time the rookies should be comfortable, that team should be more healthy and we should be more comfortable in our offensive identity. The schedule gets tough down the stretch on paper but we have not faced horrible teams in the first six weeks either. WE beat the Bills who are 4-2 (and beat the Patriots). We should have beat the Raiders who are 4-2 and leading a strong division. We should have beat the 4-2 Deadskins. Blew a game vs the 3-3 NY Giants and then beat the browns (rivalry) and Jags (who is better then their record). Lets jut get healthy and take care of business. Harbs is going to have to earn his money now! But I still like our team and our chances!

blindbat.... I think we in RAVENNATION need to be more realistic. Joe is not an ELITE QB but he is maybe the best game manager in the NFL. When we ask him to manage the game (in the closing minutes of the game- in the playoffs, etc.) we get glimpses of how well Joe plays. When we try to turn him into Drew Brees or Tom Brady we see the bad with the good. The good news is that we don't need him to be Tom Brady. We have won a super bowl with him being a great game manager (dinking and dunking with some sprinkles of long ball... making the smart decision and not turning the ball over). When we let Joe do what Joe does best we are hard to beat. But when we try to turn him into a Fantasy Football all-star.., we get the 3 and outs and the turn overs etc. Let Joe be the best game manager in the league. Sprinkle in a few long balls and keep the offense balanced so that we can keep defenses off balance. Kubiack seemed to get this and look at the results. (of course he did it with an average Brock Oswiler also and a way over the hill Peyton Manning....

I think we do lack big play makers on offense SSS is our biggest and he is almost 40 years old. Outside of him the rest of the offense is solid but not superstars..... one thing that could help us make the big plays that are being made against us is: ... Trade Dean Pees to whatever team are playing against. We will get more big plays and he ensure that we get that big play at the end of the game that wins the game for us!

While the injuries have not been the IR type that we saw way too much of last year... They are becoming a concern again. We you lead the league in turn overs... that needs to get addressed. When you lead the league in dropped passes... someone has to be accountable for that. When you lead the league in penalties.... someone may lose a job. When you lead the league in injuries... you get a new field surface. When you are still at the top of the league in INJ... it may be time to address the strength and conditioning regimen!