Italian Raven

31 minutes ago, 757RavensFan said:

Zutta was out bc they thought he was concussed.  He passed the concussion protocol and came back in to play.  

ah ok.. thank you!

I realized I posted in the wrong thread btw .. I had too many of them open and messed up.
My bad mods 

Jeey.. I didn´t expect them to play here this "soon"
I´m thrilled.. and so is my #20 jersey. Hope I don´t have to sell a kidney to attend the game tho

Congrats to them.. they simply out-coached us.

GOOD
Dixon and Juice´s elusiveness.
The use of Waller in the red-zone. 

BAD 
Jimmy´s injury.
Zuttah. I was watching the game in German, as I moved to the würstels´ land, and didn´t get to understand why was Urshel replacing him at one point (maybe I was too tired to even see an eventual injury)

UGLY:
Joe checkdowns as 1st-2nd option.
At this point it´s hard to tell whether our offensive inconsistencies are caused by the playcall, Joe being scared/conservative or a mix of both.

Watching a few Toledo (Kareem Hunt) tapes and my eyes are stuck on RT Elijah Nkansah (jr).
If he declares early he can turn into a valuable late draft pick and a nice insurance for the run game.. I don´t have a good sample of games to watch so I really didn´t see many deep kicks in passing situations, but it looks like he has a good, square base (Toledo Oline allowed the fewest sacks in the MAC).

I really like Hunt, too. I´m afraid he won´t last until the end of round 4 though. Patient but explosive runner and doesn´t lose speed after contact. He´s the MAC´s Fournette.

In addition to the consistent, disciplined, players´execution I would praise the coordinators. I´m not a Pees fan but he couldn´t adapt to this game any beter, Props to my boy Marty´, too, for listening to my pre-game hints

I´m pretty confident in the next game. NE D ain´t the same without J.Collins and C.Jones. Plus, Rob´s injury will limit their passing game to Bennett and a few slot guys, which means more men in the box for us. It should all work to our advantage. 

I think the key in this game will be our ability to get the ball out quick. They don´t have great cover LBs and if we run more crosses/slants with our TEs it might turn to our favor. I really hope Joe starts to take some risks downfield,too. Those checkdowns are getting sooo predictable. We have such sudden WRs, no way you can´t get anything going by running some rab routes. 

On 27.11.2016 at 3:46 AM, Ravensfan23 said:

I'm not saying i'd take Fournette, definitely would love to have him, i'm more of a Cook fan personally. However to the people who say it's pointless to select him without a great oline or with the oline we currently have, you guys do realize that Fournette wouldn't be a 1 year rental right? It's not like oline can't be addressed in the same draft that Fournette is selected. I think if he's there and the Ravens feel good about him you pull the trigger. 

I don´t think us "not-Fournett-lovers" are against the LSU RB and addressing the Oline and the in this draft at all, but rather against spending our highest picks on O while there are such talented OLB and CB top tier players. We simply aknowledge that a 4th-5th rounder wouldn´t help us boost the line enough to make the Fournett pick worth it, therefore would just go D with the first 1-2 picks. 
Afterall we saw it, that´s the side of the ball that keeps us on the run for a playoff spot almost every year. This is the year to replace Doom and Suggs in the long term and find a true #2 CB. I hope we´ll take full advantage of it.

Personally, I´d grade the ideal draft this way
 
RD 1 Top CB/OLB on board + RD 2 top CB/OLB on board + RD3 Oline competition + RD 3 (comp) falling defensive playmaker + RD4 Oline depth/WR
> 
RD 1 Fournette/Cook + RD 2 falling defensive playmaker + RD3 defensive player at a position of need + RD 3 (comp) Oline competition + RD4 Oline depth/WR
>
RD 1 Fournette/Cook + RD 2 starting Olineman + RD 3 falling defensive playmaker + RD 3 (comp) defensive player at a position of need + defensive player at a position of need/Oline depth/WR

With our Oline lacking some high caliber C and depth at G, and assuming we´re drafting between #15-25, I´d go with any of these pass-rushers or corners before Fournette:
McKinley, Lawson, Humphrey, Jones, Tabor, Wilson

I totally agree with Joey and those who said that without an O-line he wouldn´t be able to express his potential, which would limit the pick´s value.
 

On 17.11.2016 at 9:55 AM, LosT_in_TranSlatioN said:

I've watched UCLA for years. I remember Takk coming in and not thinking much about him. Then I watched him get into the backfield on what seemed like every play vs. Colorado and went to the tape. He has some refining to do.. But my god he has a hell of a first step, and pass rushing moves, and he's good vs. the run. He'd honestly fit like a glove in our defense and was tailor made for it. 

 

 

I don't think he makes it to us lol. Scouts will look at his athleticism and want him really badly. 

Yeah his versatility, first step, motor, awarness in option plays and the ability to close those pursuite angles scream of an early first rounder to me. His athletic abilities will also likely improve his stock.
He doesn´t have that beautiful Barnett-like shoulder dip nor he uses his hands perfectly, but man... he´s relentless.. he really does play like a Raven.
I really wouldn´t be surprised to see him drafted in the top 20. 
 

Another guy that I wouldn´t mind double-dipping for is Ejuan Price. He´s a sort of Eric Striker and will likely end up in the 4th-5th mainly because of his size but his bending and leverage as a pass-rusher are crazy.

On 3.11.2016 at 11:34 PM, Dewy101 said:

if I could compare edge rushers with their NFL counterparts I see

Myles Garrett=Julius Peppers

Derek Barnett=Terrell Suggs

Charles Harris=Dwight Freeney

Carl Lawson=Justin Houston

really like the comparisons.
I´d have also said Barnett is the new Suggs. Pretty sound all-around player. Not an awesome, natural bender, but can play both the phases efficiently.
Garrett reminds me a tad more of Clowney than Peppers at a first glance but they´re equally imposing, physical freaks, so I´ll take it as well.
Only one I´m not sure of is Charles Harris.. I didn´t see the array of arm swings and moves typical of Freeney but it´s been a while I have´n´t watched Mizz playing, so I might be wrong.

One other impressive, crazy explosive, do-it-all OLB is Takkarist McKinley.. he´s also used as a Mike in some subpackage blitzes..He probably has the best first step after that Garrett monster  
The good thing is that the UCLA guy, Lawson, Charlton are all very different players.. they all bring something different to the table and I´d be tremendously excited if we brought in any of them. A combination of one of those and a good inside lineman (Pocic comes to mind) in round 1-2 would be a huge upgrade for the trenches. 

The Good
AFCN lead
a win against the Steelers is always a win
young players stepping up
Special team finally playing at notoriously high levels

The Bad
Joe´s lack of awarness.. he just doesn´t see blizes coming and keeps running into OLB´s lanes without throwing that ball
Coordinator´s playcall.. we can´t expect individual plays to pay off day in and day out (Wallace long TD reception, the blocked punt).. if we can´t get to opposite QBs with a 4-men front how are we supposed to force them into mistakes with a 3-men´s rush? we could´ve had Myles Garrett and Carl Lawson on our roster but that wouldn´t have helped much

The Ugly
AFCN.. incredible how young and talented these teams are and still find a way to look this ugly
Phantom penalties that could´ve costed much.. LG was head ´bumping´the whole evening.. I don´t know how you can let that happen 

Correct (for now):
2012
RGIII - always had the feeling he would bust, although I have to admit I'm really not in love with watching QBs tapes and didn't do much research back then
Dont'a Hightower - it was sad watching him go to NE
2013
Sharrif Floyd
Kiko Alonso (I don't really know if this is a good pick.. certainly not a bad one, talent-wise) - I always loved watching him shooting the gaps and making splash plays in the backfield
2014
Dee Ford - always thought he was a massive reach
Timmy Jernigan - one of my fav Ravens picks since I watch college  
Jarvis Landry - was very high on him.. I had some struggles saying who I liked better between him and OBJ.. maybe I liked the first one a tad better
DaQuan Jones - always loved his versatility alond the Dline.. thought he'd be a great 2 gapper and so far he played pretty good imo

Wrong:
2012
M.Kalil - I thought he would have close to no problem making the jump to the pros
Upshaw - thought he'd be a much better pass-rusher
Frank Alexander - sure, you can't expect much from a 4th rounder but I would have overdrafted him.. let's say by one good round
2013
Jarvis Jones - I had always seen him as a Clowney kind of player and thought he'd make a much bigger impact
Matt Elam - watching tapes he even desplayed some good man coverage skills.. I thought he'd be by far the best S in the draft because of his all-around versatility 
Kevin Minter - I had much higher expectations for him
DJ Swearinger - I was in love with his competitiveness.. the guy was naaasty in SC
Damontre Moore and Sam Montgomery - like Alexander, I thought they'd be some day 2/early3 steals
Alex Okafor - with Swearinger, probably my favourite player in the draft
2014
Anthony Barr - I wasn't 100% sold on him.. I thought he was more likely to bust than burst
Dominique Easley - I thought he'd be the ultimate DT.. like with Alonso I can't decide whether to seriously list him between my misses or not
Xavier Su'a Filo
Jaylen Watkins, Ka'deem Carey and TJ Jones were my favourite mid-late picks.. none showed up

18 hours ago, ravensnick said:

He's a junior, but don't forget Josey Jewell. He's a monster.

oh how can I forget bout him I've been watching him since his sophomore season.. I even think I had mentioned him on this thread once.
That guy really does everything.. he's not M.Jack but he's talented, no doubt.
I start to lose some of my last year's hype on King, honestly. Sure he plays the ball just as good as anybody else in college and it's not because of his lack of INT (I don't get fooled by stats) but I fear quick WRs might get too easy separation on short routes. He looks like opening his hips a tad early.. I didn't watch a big sample size of games this year and is certainly more of an impression than a well thought conclusion but I wouldn't sure bout spending a top 20 pick on him as of now. 

I know we're sort of stacked at TE but maaan, George Kittle is a great athlet and blocker. Really like him. Iowa is so full of talented seniors this year; another guy that should end in the top 100 is Jaleel Johnson (DT). Quite explosive and forces tons of plays on the outside. 
 

22 minutes ago, BmoreBird22 said:

This offense is still putrid, even with a coordinator change. 

I don't think it's a secret that the Ravens lack a ton of depth and talent overall, but Flacco does deserve a ton of blame. 

When he steps into throws and sets his feet, he looks incredible. However, it's a major issue that he's not setting his feet and he's frequently throwing off his back foot. Many times it looks like he's using his upper body only to make throws instead of using his legs and hips. 

I was super hopeful that the ACL tear would allow him to relearn his mechanics, but they look worse than ever. He's relying way too much on his arm talent.

Yeah much fault on him and the O-line.. our inside LBs also played some poor zone coverage.
I don't know if it's Joe unlearning the mechanism or he just forgets how to do things properly because he's scared of getting hit.. either way it's all too depressing to describe and he hasn't been Joe "cool" for a while. Shame, because we did start to get something going on the air in the first half.

Only 2 small, good things from his game:
1) Judon first 2 sacks (got to credit him for beating his man, although he was a backup and Geno held the ball for way too long)
2) we're 1 step closer to a talented player, coming April 

The (very) bad: we can start to figure out what our team will look like if we lose B.Williams through FA. A below average team who will find tougher times stuffing the run as well... Pierce looks like a good surprise but can he handle all of those double-teams and still turn effective? 

On 18/10/2016 at 9:10 AM, allblackraven said:

Smoot has good quickness and some moves but he needs to get a lot stronger for the NFL.

I think so, too.. However, my main problem with him is his pads. He has a good motor and is indeed a natural pass-rusher but he stands too high when playing the run and is often washed off the play. With often I mean on way too many plays. I just don't know what is "fixable"/coachable.. he reminds me a bit of Gregory (not career-wise of course, none wishes a player to bust that way. More like phisically and considering their skill set).
Btw guys, did you see my boy Carl? 7 hurries this saturday.. never seen such explosive spins and burst off the LOS since.. idk, Mack maybe.
Too bad I couldn't find any Evan Panfil (Purdue) tape..idk, maybe it's just too early. He looks to be a consistent pressure-machine on stats. 
 

7 hours ago, blitzking33 said:

I second this. If we end up losing this season, we need to go after Fournette. Bring some fear back into this offense, because after SSS retires, there's nothing scary about us.

RB will definitely be a need, I just don't see it being as pressing as OLB, tho. Assuming Fournett will go in the top 10, maximum top 15, and we're to select between him and a Myles, Laws, King, J.Lewis I'd still go with any of these latter ones. Afterall, you can have a good running game with a functional Oline and balanced playcall, while there's no way you get into a QB's brain with Judon and Z.Smith (we can't consider Suggs and Doom as serious options any longer; only hope is Kaufusi, who I'm pretty high on as a pass-rusher). RB that early is a luxury and I'm not sure we can afford it with all our voids.  

On an unrelated note; I've just realized the Browns will end up with 5 draft picks in the first 2 rounds.. I know the Browns are the Browns but even with such a heritage this high number of picks will now or then produce something. 

7 hours ago, rmw10 said:

And who doesn't love tacos?

Indeed  Although, I'd take chips over tacos any day of the week

Given the need at DE I'll add Taco Charlton to the conversation.
He's quite growing on me. Very fast, light footed with a good rip. I haven't seen much of him nor of any other prospect so far but the guy reminds me a lot of Shane Ray, just a taller version.

1 minute ago, jimmypowder said:

jets

I'm not too sure that their front 4 doesn't kill our poor O-line.
Hope we'll be able to get the ball out quick.

man.. I never faulted Flacco for a loss, nor I will hand him the whole fault: ZERO pass-rush, sth close to no depth at CB (and lack of a true #2), Oline which keeps been devastated by injuries.. but he showed very few awarness on few occasions. He missed Dixon and Wallace totally alone in the end-zone, overthrowing by 10-15 yards, he missed Aiken on that 3rd down that would've given us around 20 sec from inside their 15; on the last rollout Pitta was totally alone in the red-zone (at least given that camera angle). Even on that first completion on Perriman, Wallace was uncovered going for a post (I believe). We were almost handed a game by dumb late penalties and still gave it away.
I guess we'll be drafting at least 2 pass-rushers next April. For our luck this class has plenty of those.

Just embarassing.. we made their D look like Minnesota's for 3 quarters.

The Good:
Orr, really sound player in both the fases. Patient tackler and good awarness.
Jernigan. The guy is intimidating. He, B.Will and Pierce are a good reason teams hardly convert 4&short.

The Ugly:
Geeez.. can we do something different than run-run-screen? it's frustrating.. anyone could stop us.. seriously
We have NONE bringing pressure on the outside.. we just can't keep bulling with the same 2 guys inside, hope the QB holds that football for too long and eventually falls into our arms (maybe Carl Lawson man? a man can dream)
Individual mistakes (Perriman's first quarter incompletion, CJ's fumble, some Flacco underthrown passes)
Those injuries that have us shuffle things on the O line
Special Team.. lead blockers (Juice, Levine) have been doing a very poor job this far

For as bad as we've been playing we could easily be 1-4, if it wasn't for some stupid opponent mistakes/penalties that we took advantage of. If we don't fix that playcall we're a mediocre team at best.

On 11/6/2016 at 2:33 PM, Italian Raven said:

My take is:
1)I don't believe the Ravens, who badly needed defensive playmakers, drafted an OT if they weren't sure they couldn't start him day 1. We have to consider that two QBs went overdrafted at #1 and #2, which leaves us with one of the 5 highest rated prospects in the draft. For what we know Stanley could have even been a top 3, at this point. This leaves us with a new starting LT, while our former is unable to switch position; Monroe is too soft and injury prone to play G. Thus, he's a waste of money.
Also, I don't believe our #1 pick is going to play out of position, not even for 1 year. Not only he doesn't fit inside because of his style (Tunsil would've been better in this case) but Harbaugh also made it pretty clear: "have you ever seen him playing inside? no". 
The 4,4M that we retain by cutting him now are much needed, as we must extend B.Williams and try to keep Wagner before the end of the season.
2)Same goes for Forsett. It's 2,3M savings for a guy who was never meant to be a bell cow. In such a crowded backfield, with RBs that complement each others well, that's a too high price to ignore. Kendrick Lewis is in the same situation: crowded position, below average play,  and almost 1M savings.
3) I don't get why everybody keeps listing Reynolds within the top 53 players on the roster. There's no way he can contribute after switching to a completely new position, nor he will help as a gunner or in any way on ST, which Waller will.

If i just stopped before to mention K. Lewis I'd be 3 on 3 right here  

On a side note, I didn't really expect Sheldon Price to make the cut, nor I expected us to bring 7 CBs through the beginning of the season..sure something will happen but as of now that's a surprise.

3 hours ago, Mt. Crushmore said:

Nice breakdown, I agree with most.

One thing that you mentioned about my team that I think is important is units working together well. This is a pretty big thing that I think can get overlooked in this game. 

For your team in a few years, the D is obviously fine, but a 36-year old Jay Cutler doesn't inspire too much confidence IMO.

Thanks for playing and being active!

ahah yeah.. I don't know bout Cutler either, I guess my very next picks would've been: NT, slot CB, 2nd QB in no specific order.

Now one of this season's main goals is to see how the rookies we've drafted are going to play and IF they're asked to play the same role we had planned for them.. just can't wait for this preseason to kick off

wow, so we're at it, finally
Sorry for my late absence; I've been busy with my last semester's exams..like some others did on the discussion thread I wanted to thank everybody for having me again this year, especially Crush (who put so much time in the game) and everybody who lent his own picks or made them on someone else's behalf, in order to keep it fast.

This said, this evaluation part is a very interesting initiative (and a very clear, organized spreadsheet).

HC: Bill Belichick (Crush)

I don't think @harfordravenfan and I are particularly far with Harb and Zimmer, but Bill is the best game manager/mind in football. There isn't much to be said. 

OFFENSE: 

• QB: It's pretty much between Cam and Brady/Lynch.. I'd still give the edge to the latter due to the presence of BB. In the short run, despite the suspension and age, that's a crazy good combination. In the long term I'd rather have Cam.   
• Oline: I'd say Crush team's again, with @Jaybirds following.
• Skill positions: that's quite a jump in the dark. I might sound biased but I think that in few years, even with Gates retired and the need for a pass-catching TE, mine is still a young group whose members complete each others very well.
   

overall- I think @Mt. Crushmore has this one.

DEFENSE:

• Dline: mine. Short is not meant to play all of his snaps at 1t and I guess that if I kept playing for a few more rounds I'd have certainly added a NT to rotate in there. He can play a good amount of that, tho (around 60%) and the combination of so many pass-rushers at once is going to be a nightmare for any QB. Crush linemen do mesh well together and aren't too far.
• LBs: I think I maintain the edge again. Davis and B.Williams are great tacklers and both play very solidly in cover situation, whether it's zone (the former) or press-man (the latter). They're also in the mid 20s and team capitains. Floyd will play only between 20-40% of the snaps but providing versatility either rushing the passer or dropping in the zone.
• Secondary: Gillmore and Diggs are perfect for my team and Graham provides great experience and versatility, but I think my lack of depth is weighing in much here. So I'd go with Crush secondary. The latest addition (Skrine) can play both inside and outside and he made the scale speak in favour of Crush. The other secondaries are also balanced (Jaybirds' is very close), but then I remember that there's BB on one side, improving the overall performance, and there's almost no doubt left. 
  
  overall- I like my D the best, always in complete honesty and trying to be as less biased as possible

ST: 

Mine. Possibly the best P in the league (or top 3 at least), who will definitely help my D by having the opponents' O start from uncomfortable situations, and an above average K.
 

TEAM: I think I started to draft with a philosophy and kept it pretty straight, adding some functional players here and there.. like @regz1997 said (thanks for the trust bro :D), my D will put the O in comfortable situation where that functionality may come into play and put up points regardless from the talent on that side.
Overall, the most complete team in the division is Crush's, no doubt, but I think my team can play at high level against any team in the league both now and in few years. 

@usmccharles and @NFLfan123 have been skipped, putting @RaineV1 OTC; cc: @52520Andrew, @Mt. Crushmore and @Dubs