merryjman

Wouldn't call these "bold" predictions so much as "obvious" predictions. Assume Sarah was being facetious here. There aren't going to be any 1st round tackles worth taking at #6, so clearly we'll have to get one later. The top positions are all defense, excepting 2 QBs and a RB, and we have 5 RBs and a franchise QB; obviously our pick will be a DE/LB/CB. And Ozzie loves drafting corners, we need one, and Jalen will be gone by #6.

It's so weird that there aren't any OLBs at the top of this draft class. In my opinion, that's what we need the most. Also weird that some draft sites list Jack as an OLB - clearly a mistake, right??

No brainer. Brown is cheap and fits in with the recent "sign 35 receivers and see who stands out in camp" strategy they've adopted. Put some others on special teams and cut the rest of em loose.

Still hoping to see Daryl Smith come back. Poor guy has been underrated his entire career.

$10k fine for watching his daughter in a once-in-a-lifetime performance. I get that there are halftime rules and all, but it seems really petty to fine a guy for a reason like that.

Dream pick right here ! Mosley + Jack = our vrsion of Willis/bowman . I hope jags go Bosa or Ramey .

what good is having a Willis/Bowman if you don't have an Aldon Smith / Ahmad Brooks??? I'd much prefer a pass rusher at this point.

11 minutes ago, WNC-Raven said:

A month ago I would have never thought we would be in this positions as Ozzie typically waits for bargain signings and the draft to fill our holes. We may have to draft an OT to back up Monroe in the draft but we have our starter until he proves otherwise. Monroe is good when healthy so we may need a back up plan. Not a primary plan. Ravens are great at finding talented Guards and pass rushers in the draft. CB is going to be tough. Very few rookies can come in and start at the NFL level right away and there are not many options in FA. I bet we draft one and pray someone decent gets cut as the rosters develop. Remember there are still cuts to come and Ozzie is patient.

I totally agree with what you said about Monroe. He took a while to figure out the scheme, but once he did he was good. I am hoping that he is not truly injury-prone and was simply unlucky to get two lingering injuries in a row.  After all, the same exact thing happened to KO (remember his back issues in his first two seasons?) and his play suffered then, too.

A long shot, but I also wonder if the Ravens aren't letting talk generate about LT just to make people think they want to make a move there, when they really don't? Seems like this sort of thing happens a lot with all teams leading up to the draft.

1 hour ago, respecttheRaven said:

I really don't think Wallace meant that Bridgewater was a bad QB....just that he didn't fit his style of play, the long ball. Flacco fit's better, that's all. But as we all know the media will blow this thing up, as they do with everything. Anyway, Welcome to Baltimore Wallace, Watson and Weddle!!! I am SO excited!!!! I can't wait for 2016 season!!!!

I agree. When he said "good quarterback" I think he mostly meant "a quarterback who can get me the deep ball;" i.e. a good quarterback for Mike Wallace, which Tannehill and Bridgewater definitely weren't.

57 minutes ago, bioLarzen said:

He went to the wrong rosters: neither the Phins nor the Vikes have a QB who can utilise his main strength: speed. You can be the fastest WR around if your QB can't throw deep enough.
He was like a prime RB without a good FB and O-line.

Which is basically what Wallace was saying in that interview they quoted. Basically, "yes I get paid a lot, but the idiot offensive coordinator here doesn't know how to use me right, and that noodle-armed QB can't get me the ball on nines anyway."

1 hour ago, EdBallhawkReed20 said:

I'm more concerned with the Joe Flacco issues that have not been addressed. Joe Flacco needs to be able to get the ball to speedy wide receivers. I would rather have TD's than defensive pass interference calls. Get the ball there Joe. If Laquon Treadwell falls back far enough considering he didn't run at the combine. Get him in the 2nd round.

I agree with this too. I love Joe, and he can definitely get the ball downfield, but he's not terribly accurate. That miracle throw to Jacoby in Denver was a serious underthrow, for example. So was Jacoby's touchdown in the super bowl. I feel like the last time I saw him hit a fast receiver in stride was like the second game of Torrey Smith's rookie year.

1 hour ago, WNC-Raven said:

I am of the opinion that the FO is working to shore up the offense in FA so we can take the best defensive players available in the draft. They may keep Monroe, bring in a vet that can play T or G and have Hurst and Urshcel as backup/rotating players.

Agree. It's obvious most of the best players at the top of the draft are defenders. No idea what's going on at LT, but if (a) they have reasonable faith Monroe can stay healthy, and get a LG/LT backup other than Hurst, and (b) get one more fast receiver, then I think they can justify going all D in the draft's first few rounds. Especially since rush-by-committee seems to be winning out over feature-back. 

17 hours ago, ellicottraven said:

The past 3 seasons have clearly showed us that Flacco is incapable of carrying this team all on his own. It is imperative that we have a impregnable defense and a whole lot more help on offense for this team to get back to the promised land. So, Ozzie and gang, make it happen. Give this offense weapons so we can be successful. A great O-line, RBs, TEs and WRs is what we really need right now. Otherwise I don't see us getting anywhere.

I agree with you that Joe can't do it alone. However, it appears that this draft is going to be better for defense. And I think that if the current receiver/TE corps can stay healthy, we might already have enough weapons for Joe, provided the O-line stays stout. Maxx and Crockett could be a great pair; Perriman has a good shot at justifying his draft position, and people like Aiken, Campanaro, Brown, etc. have a chance to show they're worth keeping.

Daryl was one of my favorite players over the last couple years, but it's hard to deny that he's lost a step too many. If we're being honest, Ray Lewis was in the same boat his last couple years, but no way were the Ravens going to release an icon. In both cases, however, we lose a lot of on-field intelligence and film study. If they can re-sign him later for less money, I really hope they do.

Shame. I like Canty a lot. Hopefully they'll do again what they've done the last two times: re-sign him later for less money.

1 hour ago, surfdude said:

Look I'm all about people getting "theirs" BUT Flacco and his agent got a little greedy IMO. Flacco can't stare into the camera and say he wants to win and them sign a contract that really doesn't do anything for the team. A lot of speculation was saving 7 - 12 million this year 6 isn't all that much relief. I understand that good QB's are very important and rare and most will end up getting paid 20 million plus, but why all the highest paid bonus and highest paid? Plus I lost a little respect for Flacco showing his signing bonus check to Cap and Juice and laughing about it. Thought he was more low key and humble then to do something like that guess I was wrong. One should never brag or show off to those less fortunate.

First, calling an agent greedy is like calling the an air raid siren loud. That's his job: to get his client paid. Second, Flacco gets $3M more than the franchise tag number, so by no stretch is that exorbitant. QBs cost a lot now, that's all. Third, people are allowed to joke and mess around with their friends, and that doesn't make them braggarts. Especially if those friends are also soon to be millionaires themselves.

I like what Hensley said: No, he's not elite; yes, he's really good; no, there's nobody better than him available; yes, it's way better to overpay someone you can trust and who fits than to gamble on an unknown quantity. Very well-put.

Plus, just like last time he's the first of what are sure to be lots of restructures and new contracts, so pretty soon he won't be the highest paid anymore, just like last time.

IDK if it's possible but if we could sign Roddy White, K.O, and Justin Tucker...I mean, we could hold the talks with Justin Tucker for after the June 1st cuts to save more money, sign K.O and White now. And, as usual, get a couple of under the radar signings, draft for our defense to get better, perhaps some OL depth...I can't see anything wrong, just how unlikely it is I guess lol

I would love to see KO stay. Now that Flacco's deal is done and Tucker is tagged, that's definitely going to be their priority - to convince him to stay despite the promise of better money elsewhere. I'd rather see them do that than try to get a free agent like Roddy or Mario Williams or whoever.

team player but the fo needs to be smarter with everyones contracts from now on so they do not get themselves in a position of awful backloaded contracts

Wrong on all counts! This was designed to be a 3-year contract all along; both Flacco's agent and Ozzie said so. The backloading is what kept our salary cap manageable for the first 3 years, and that's what the extension does too. So this was actually the smart way to pay the Super Bowl MVP the money he demanded.

Tucker may not be the best, but he's up there, and definitely worth keeping at $4-5M per year. Remember that we got to the playoffs the first time on Matt Stover's leg. And do I really need to bring up the names Steve Hauschka and Billy Cundiff to remind everyone how painful it is not to have a superstar at K?

2 hours ago, bioLarzen said:

TBH, I don't see Aiken receiving a 2-nd round tender. As Ozzie made it quite clear in the year-end presser, they really view him as a backup WR, not a starting one - and I just donb't see Ozzie second-round tendering a backup player, even if he had ample cap space - which he hasn't.
That said, I still expect Aiken back in purple.

Agreed. Aiken was the yards leader by default, because our #2 receiver was my uncle Joey who runs the 40 in 15 seconds.

2 hours ago, 20306cab said:

Unfortunately choked in that game and hasn't rebounded yet. If a 91 rating is your best year in an eight year career, and 84 is your career average, then average joe isn't even average. Let's face it, if it wasn't for a wing and a prayer heave three years ago in Denver, he might not even be here. The bottom line is, he's got as many rings in eight years as Dilfer had in 12 games. He ain't worth half of what he's making. How come everyone in the NFL understands that, except Ravens fans?

If you're going to cite statistics, why are you leaving out that he tied Joe Montana's record playoff performance of 11 TDs and no interceptions? In fact, I'd rephrase your statement to "If 84 is your career average in a run-first offense whose star receiver is Torrey "go deep" Smith, then just imagine how Joe would do with 2 or 3 quality receivers and an offensive scheme to match." And I'm no Flacco fanboy, I just think he's better than most people give him credit for.

1 hour ago, purpledown said:

by no means a Tom Brady or a Patriots fan, but the reason the Pats keep winning is because of Bradys willingness to defer his money so the team can get and keep its young players. Wish our player would do the same.

Yes, but the whole point of the article is that Tom Brady is not getting paid less over that restructured time span, just extending the terms of the contract so that the cap hit is less.

21 hours ago, purpledown said:

put this down, the Ravens will regret losing Upshaw. He isnt a rah rah guy but he does his job. My guess he will be in Steelers colors next season.

I agree we should keep him if we can, but I don't think we can. I just think teams with lots of cap room can pay Upshaw more than he's really worth.  Look at how much money Ellerbe and Kruger got when they left.

I'm not ready to give up on Monroe yet. He's got the right mentality and work ethic for Bmore, and I think (believe?) that he just got really unlucky with two injuries in a row. He was drafted in 2009 so it's not like he's over the hill.

Now, if we can't keep KO, maybe then think about another guy on the left side. But I'm not convinced it should be how the #6 pick gets spent. I say pass rusher all the way.

2 hours ago, bioLarzen said:

KO's offer and the expected rework of Flacco's deal cannot possibly be connected: KO's offer has been made already, while the Flacco-talks haven't even begun. So, the possible extra cap space gained by the reworked Flacco-deal cannot be the base of the KO-offer. No sane GM would take such an extra cap-space for granted until the contract is signed and sealed.

TBH, I cannot comprehend how any kind of serious offer to KO could be possible - I mean one that would even make KO think about it seriously. Seriously baffling. If the offer was, indeed, anywhere close to competitive and KO accepts it - which is, although improbable, Ozzie cannot afford to disregard as a possibility - the Flacco deal will have to be redone, the "going on with Joe's current cap figure" will no longer be a bossible, let alone a viable option.

Well, I guess that's why I'm not the Ravens' GM and Ozzie is

I think that this offer to KO is definitely connected to the Flacco negotiations. They're essentially telling Linta that he's being held to his comment in 2013 that Flacco's was essentially a 3-year contract, because if KO accepts their offer they will not be able to pay Flacco at his current cap hit. Which is smart, because Flacco is not worth a $29M cap hit. So it's a way to insert some leverage into a place where they had very little - the only leverage they really had before is that Joe's injury  status is a big question mark. And it makes Ozzie's remark (that they're going to make moves regardless of Flacco's status) truthful; i.e. Ozzie is putting his money where his mouth is.

Plus, if the Flacco negotiations fail, it would be better to know that before the draft. It's not like Ozzie would be afraid of losing Flacco - he won a super bowl with Dilfer, after all.

Besides which, KO is a monster and the Ravens would be fools to let him go without at least an offer. And I think what Harbaugh said about it is good: the Ravens have a certain atmosphere and mentality that KO is a part of and buys into, and if he's willing to stay in that environment for a little less money - like Yanda did - that's a win.