EdTheMythicalOne

What is a joker defender? I never heard that Phrase. A "Joker" defender is simply a defensive player you can move all around the field. I am not sure if you were a fan long enough to remember Adalius Thomas who would normally play DE, but would move to DT, OLB, MLB, and even lined up as a safety. It now seems to pertain to guys that can play SS/MLB or go from outside corner to nickel to safety. It is just a new buzzword term for the word "Versatile"

I didn't look it up. Didn't care enough to do so. Maybe if he played better as a Raven I might have.

In other news, earlier this off season Anquan Boldin had previously stated if he couldn't get another deal done in Detroit that he'd likely retire. Seems like that news has changed. He has decided not to hang them up yet and is now believed to be seeking a job close to his Florida home. Maryland isn't exactly close, but it is closer than Detroit. Boldin I think is a good fit for our team because he gives us that tough, veteran, possession receiver we currently lack and he is a red zone threat. He fights for contested passes which is also something our other receivers often get panned for not doing.

Sumari Rolle anyone? He was healthy but toasty.

Hard to do that with a guy that can't catch the football. It seemed like the tank emptied completely with Jacoby Jones when it did empty.

And the facts are: Was a very good return man while in Baltimore, probably had his best seasons ever. Was a decent receiver, not a great one. The playoff miracle catch was more of the deep safety forgetting his assignment and then falling down. It wasn't that Flacco launched a perfect pass, or that Jacoby blew off the LOS and beat his man. If my memory serves, Jacoby actually had to stop and wait for the pass. After 2012 he was not nearly as effective and he all but disappeared in 2014. He played for two other teams in 2015 and never caught a pass for any of them and he didn't play in 2016. Patterson has almost completely vanished as an offensive weapon. He is a kick returner only whereas Jacoby Jones was a KR & PR. Nothing confusing about those facts.

That was more a broken coverage on the defense than it was anything special Jacoby Jones did. I am not saying he was worthless, but we got that one season out of him and he was gone...and I think he's better than Patterson is at WR.

I've watched NFL Network's combine coverage and the drafts and I can't stand all of the yuk-yuk that goes on. Every once in awhile you will actually get some decent insight on a player. I watch their NFL total access which seems to think there are only 3-4 teams in the NFL and it seems they are purposely targeting the LCD (lowest common denominator) with their antics. You have to love it when an "analyst's" opinion starts with, "Dude need to get PAID!" Why do you think this player can help team X? "Yo, dude is just a baller. You get this man here and he can do everything for you." Gee thanks. Let me go drink about 10 beers so I can join in the fun and understand all the gibberish. This is how I feel most of the articles on this site are written. They are written with (my opinion) a notion that the fans don't know anything about the players, the team, or the game of football. This is why I feel the message board community is so valuable because it allows for some more intellectual conversations. As for, "Well, all the other teams are ditching their message boards..." Since when did the Ravens become followers and not leaders? Since when did we want to become just like everybody else?

A healthy Claiborne is an immediate upgrade for this team and I hope we get him on a decent contract (for the Ravens) so that more money can be spent to address other glaring needs that we might not be able to address during the draft. I like Webb as a backup and if he comes back I think that is a good move. Even with Smith and Claiborne I think the Ravens need to draft some more CB help high in the draft. It seems like these days it is only a matter of time before Smith or Claiborne gets hurt and we need some more talent in house just in case that happens. Take one high and then try to get a sleeper in the draft later. We certainly do need a pass rusher especially if we can't sign somebody to help us out at least until one of the younger guys steps up and shows they are ready. We still need some MLB help because I am not so sure Correa is the answer. It is his job to lose coming into the season though. We need more O-line help at C or RT. We could also use more help at WR...a big, tall, possession guy that can actually catch the football. Zuttah would be okay as another year stop gap, and RT we might have the answer in house. If that is Alex Lewis then we need a LG and I think we should sign Tim Lelito. Under the radar move, has been a solid run blocker and if he gets beaten out he also plays RG/RT/&C. At LE/LDT (the spot vacated by Lawrence Guy leaving) I think we've got the bodies in camp to step in. We've got a glaring hole left by the Dumervil cut and we also need to find a replacement for Suggs because he's not going to be playing for too much longer.

Even the best in the game get shut down in some games. They aren't always putting up 150 yards with 3 tds in every game. But look at the overall body of work and the numbers tell you the story about Pitta. He was consistent before and after the injury. You see what you want to see and I will see what I want to see. If he's not getting open then he's not making all those catches. The offense as a whole was ineffective and I would argue that any catch that gains you positive yards is helpful. I agree that the younger guys need to step up and claim the majority of snaps, but until they do then Pitta is not a bad option to have as a fallback plan. You know what you have with him and you can trust his hands.

You're talking about two completely different things with the kicker situation. You are talking about a guy getting nervous and cracking under pressure and that's the mental aspect of the game. It has nothing to do with whether the kicker is playing "faster" or "stronger." We drafted Boller because we actually whiffed on our chance to get who we really wanted and Billick panicked and went after a guy that had no business being drafted in the first round. Pulling up Brady is like pulling up the rare instances of a UDFA turning into a consistent pro bowler or Hall of Famer. That is an extreme outlier and not the rule. If you want to go with Brady as your example; and I accept your premise, which I don't, that just proves my case even further that this is an exception to the rule. It is not a common thing.

1. Doubt we would be able to retain all three. 2. Signing Barwin seems counterproductive to what we are trying to do at that position. 3. I'm not sure Mangold is an upgrade over Zuttah at this point. Retain all three? We don't have any of them yet. So we need to obtain before we retain. They are trying to improve at OLB. Connor Barwin is better than anyone we currently have on the roster for that position. His drop off last year was because the Eagles tried to make him a 4-3 end and move him away from his previous and very successful fun as a 3-4 OLB. This move would be hardly counterproductive. A healthy Mangold is better than Zuttah and that is the only question in the equation. How healthy is that ankle? Let's not forget that Zuttah was all sorts of banged up last year as well.

Think you should update this to let everyone know that Guy signed with the Pats for 4 years and around $20 mil.

I will miss him if this is truly the end of his Ravens career but there is a chance the Ravens will bring him back...if he's willing to take a lesser role in the defense. Some other team out there might be willing to give him a chance at a starting job, but who knows. Webby was the man at CB before all the injuries and he was looking pretty good at safety about half way through the season. If we can bring him back I will be happy.

Tim Lelito who plays swing guard, RT, and C.