EdTheMythicalOne

Buck might not even be getting many carries or snaps if it weren't for injuries. He was behind the depth chart with Forsett and Taliafero in front of him. I like our three pronged attack. All should be back next season. Forsett has a knack for finding holes and picking up extra yards you don't expect him to get. Taliafero is good at finding the hole and hitting it hard and should be the goal line/short yardage guy. Then you have a great third down back in Allen who can run and catch. The younger guys can use this time with Forsett on the roster to prove they should have the starting job, or to show the Ravens they should get another guy in the next couple of drafts. Gillmore is no surprise to me. Been saying it since we drafted him that this guy would be a sleeper beast. He's not fast. Who cares? He's huge, he's strong, he has softer hands than you think, he can get open, AND he can actually block. I was predicting a pretty big year for him. This secondary has switched around a bit. Hill is solid at safety, Webb is shifting to safety, Smith is still iffy and I am not really impressed with Kyle Arrington. It is a patchwork for sure. If we can get some pressure with that terrible OL of the Browns then I don't think McCown will torch this team again. I know this is supposedly and offensive game now in the NFL. But I still say along with Ray that "Defense wins Championships." We were spoiled by having such good defenses for a long time in Baltimore that these last couple of seasons have been a shock. You don't realize the value of a good defense until you see a BAD one. A good defense can win you games and Championships. A bad one costs you games.

Here are my five questions: 1) Are the refs blind or do they only have tunnel vision for the Ravens? I know I might be sounding like a whining homer here, but some of the calls this year have been absolutely atrocious. It'd be one thing if you also got some in your favor and it was consistently terrible for both teams, but it isn't. 2) Will somebody catch the freaking' football? It doesn't really matter who plays under center if nobody can get open and on the odd chance that they do get open, they drop the dang ball. 3) Speaking of catching the ball, will the Ravens go Twin TE and also feature a "heavy" package that includes Jusczcyk along with that formation? Seems like the only guys with reliable hands are Gillmore, Williams, "Juice," and Buck Allen. I think they need to split out Juice more and get him open on short routes. He's not really a YAC guy and when he gets screens and all he's not all that effective. But he's great on that 5-7 yard little swing pass and he can sometimes bowl over a defender. 4) Did the Ravens defense finally wake up, or was that just a terrible Rams offense? Todd Gurley had been tearing up most of the league and he's not even completely healthy yet. What a great talent. I hope he stays healthy for his NFL career because he could be something really special. Rare blend of true speed, power, and when healtier...he's got moves too. Case Keenum was running the offense, but this isn't exactly Joe Montana we're talking about here. 5) Does your chewing gum lose its flavor on the bedpost overnight?

While the wideouts we are playing are relatively young, they aren't exactly rookies. Kamar Aiken is 26 and in his 4th season and he's showing why he was expendable. He didn't carve out a slot with the Bills, Bears, or the Patriots. He's got questionable hands and isn't exactly electric. He'd be a decent complimentary player as a 3rd wide out. Clearly not a #1 or #2. At this point it would be a little bit of wishful thinking to ponder him becoming anything more than what he is. He can work on his hands. His partner in crime right now is another veteran in Chris Givens who is actually a year younger than Aiken, but is going into his 5th year. He spent all of his prior time with the Rams and simply got lost in the shuffle as others stepped over him on the depth chart. So far I am not impressed. He's not getting open and with the game on the line and time running out he was too busy jawing at his former teammates instead of hurrying back to the line of scrimmage for a spike to kill the clock. Again, five years in the NFL is enough time to show what you've got. Then there is the one year wonder Marlon Brown. I thought he was going to be a good weapon in the redzone and be a good possession guy. Only problem is dude can't get open and he also has the dropsies. He's in his third season and time to cut bait and go with somebody new. Now there is recently added to the roster Jeremy Butler. He's the only rookie really in the mix right now and he's just starting to get playing time. He's busting his butt on the practice field and forcing the Ravens to take notice after missing his entire time up to this point with an injury. He's showing some promise and I think he should start grabbing snaps away from Givens. Then there are the Tight Ends. Flacco was already in good sync with Gillmore and I think he showed he was in good time with Williams. Unfortunately Boyle is hurt and probably done for the year, but he was the third stringer anyway. The other young guys are on the shelf (Perriman and Campanaro) so it isn't like Flacco is missing time with them while he's out with his injury. I get what you were trying to say, but I don't really think it is an issue. I don't really expect to see some of these names on the roster next season. I could see the Ravens keeping Aiken and Butler. Bye bye Brown, bye bye Givens.

I am so glad Brandon Williams wasn't just a hype machine. Seeing the youtube video of him doing the handstand was really impressive. A guy that weighs in around 330-350lbs being strong enough and athletic enough to do that sort of thing is amazing in its own right. Drafting him made losing Ngata no big deal. It was clear in the last couple of seasons that Ngata has lost something and wasn't the same guy he was in his earlier days. The game of football starts in the trenches and when you win at the point of attack you put yourself in good position for great things to follow. Williams pretty much shut down Gurley single handed. Another "Guy" flying under the radar was thought to be just another "Guy" is DE Lawrence Guy. He's getting starter snaps and really responding well. He is second in tackles on the D-Line only to Williams and he's tied for second on the team with 3.5 sacks. Since the Ravens use a 3-4 set up your DE's are more run stoppers anyway and the rush comes from the outside backers. Anything you get from the interior line is gravy. So there are two parts of your D-line that are checked off. Now you need a replacement for Chris Canty. That could be either Jernigan or Carl Davis if either of them step up. We're set at line backer on the inside with Smith and Mosley for another season, but the Ravens need to look for Smith's replacement soon. One big area of need are replacements for Suggs and Dumervil. We're also set to lose Courtney Upshaw. Upshaw is solid, but he's not the type of player we need for this type of defense. He's pretty good edge against the run, but he usually doesn't get home as a pass rusher. Then there is the secondary. Looks like Will Hill if he can lay off the drugs is the answer at one safety spot and we're still looking for his dance partner. Is that a healthy Matt Elam or Brooks next year? Maybe it is Lardarrius Webb? But that means you need to have a healthy Jimmy Smith and another good corner.

Jensen didn't intentionally trip the guy. In fact, the player didn't even trip over him. Jensen went out for a cut block and missed, and the defensive guy actually places his hand on Jensen and hops over him as Jensen is bouncing up off the turf. I don't know about you, but whenever I would dive for a play in baseball or get tackled or dive playing football, the natural instinct is to bend at the knees. Nobody planks when they fall to the ground unless they are knocked out. As for the cheap shot, there actually is something very wrong with it because the NFL outlawed it. So on a play where the officials can see enough to call three separate penalties on the Ravens, how come they missed the one that caused the personal foul call against the Ravens? They also called a block in the back and a holding penalty as well? Seriously? Then there is the ticky-tack defensive pass interference on Jimmy Smith that went for the longest play of the day for the Rams. Then one of our guys gets completely mauled on a pass and there is no flag. When the commentators; who usually don't show a lot of love for the Ravens when it is a national broadcast, are questioning flags not being thrown then you know something isn't right. NFL needs to do something about this. Officials are directly determining the outcome of games on MISTAKES. Everybody makes a mistake, but when you have an officiating crew that blew the call in the Jacksonville game that is the SAME CREW as the one that blew a call in a game a couple of years ago against the Browns that also cost the Ravens a win...then those guys don't deserve to have jobs in the NFL anymore. Clearly they can't do their job properly.

Josh was actually playing very well before he got injured, but I think the Ravens have a chance in this game. The Browns offensive line is atrocious and allowed 22 sacks of McCown in the games he played and Manziel got sacked 14 times. That's 36 sacks in 10 games! Not only that, but the ground game for the Browns has been pretty bad as well, and if the Ravens do nothing else on defense, they clamp down on the run. The main weapon the Browns have on offense is a TE that is tearing it up and that is one key weakness on the Ravens. Our LB'ers can't cover TE's for some reason and the secondary doesn't help. The Browns secondary isn't all that great either. Tayshaun Gipson leads the team with 2 picks, and the only other member of the secondary with a pick is a back up safety. Karlos Dansby is tied with Gipson for the team lead in picks. The Browns also don't have a pass rush. So, even with a banged up O-line, a back up running back, and a back up QB, I think the Ravens have a shot to win this game. What a train wreck the Cleveland franchise is. A few years ago (2007) they were 10-6 and it looked like things were turning around. Then boom goes the dynamite. Seems like they had a season like we're experiencing now with everyone getting hurt. The Browns were actually on a 4th string QB who wasn't even on the roster when the season began. Jamal Lewis got hurt, their leading WR Braylon Edwards got hurt, their best OL got hurt, Josh Cribbs got hurt, and plenty of defensive players also were injured. But, you can overcome injuries...if your front office isn't a complete disaster. With as bad as things are with the Ravens this year, I feel confident that the team will bounce back next season and soon we'll be atop the division. I have no such faith in the Browns. It is unfortunate that one of the model franchises in the NFL is so horrible now.

He was released awhile ago. Seems to have lost his fire and is a flop. I know the Ravens need help, but nobody else is chomping at the bit to get him.

Let's hope Clausen is a real pickle for us if he ever has to step onto the field for anything. Here's the deal though, he's familiar with Trestman, he'll have about another half season in the system, he'll be practicing it daily. Matt Schaub will likely get another big off season deal and if he manages to look good in the remaining games he might get another crack at a starting gig. If not, he'll likely be looking at another 2-3 million deal to be a back up. If Trestman keeps his job, perhaps Clausen keeps his as the back up to Joe. Draft a guy later in the draft who has some upside. Clausen can be the emergency guy and if Flacco goes down again you can adress the situation then. I am sure there will be another slew of veterans or cast offs from other teams we can get. Not like you need another franchise QB, nor could you afford him.

Jimmy Clausen was recently released and has familiarity with Trestman.

Instead of looking for a wide out with the first pick which has gone just oh so swimmingly with this franchise, I think it is time to look for the best pass rusher you can find either at DE or OLB to replace either Suggs, Dumervil, or Courtney Upshaw. Suggs and Dumervil because of age, and Upshaw because he's not really a rusher, he's more of a run stopper and I think this is the last year of his rookie contract. The Ravens aren't going to spend money on him nor should they. If there isn't one slated to go at the time the Ravens pick, then it is time to look for a franchise LT if there is one in the draft. Monroe is always banged up and we might not be signing Osemele who also has his fair share of injuries. Draft your LT, play him at LG until Monroe's contract is up just like they did with Ogden years ago. If there isn't a pass rusher or LT, then look for a stud shut down CB if there is one. The Ravens are playing around with moving Webb out to safety anyway and who knows if Jimmy Smith will ever look like he did before he broke his foot. If no players like that exist, trade down and get a couple of picks.

I haven't seen anything out of Schaub yet to prove to me he isn't the same guy his last season in Houston and the horrible time he spent in Oakland. Not saying he can't be decent, but the deck is stacked against him. He can't throw a deep ball. So he has to work underneath stuff and intermediate routes with the 3rd and 4th string wideouts that can't get seperation, with a patch work offensive line, and the ground game is relying on the 3rd and 4th string running backs. I'm looking for a lot of dink and dunk passes to Maxx Williams, Crockett Gillmore, Kyle Jusczyczk, and Buck Allen. Schaub is also prone to panicking under pressure so....good luck with that with this offensive line we got going on now. Time to see if the defense was waking up out of its coma or if it was just that we were playing against the lame Rams and Case Keenum.

I was somebody who early on in the off season when Schaub was signed was pointing out his recent past and even posted an article that a scout had written that said that Schaub had lost the little bit of zip on his passes that was just enough to let him get away with some of the passes he would attempt. Whether it is age that has sapped it, or an elbow injury (yes, he was playing through something in his elbow, but it wasn't disclosed which makes me wonder if it was really an injury or an excuse), he showed his propensity for picks in training camp and in the pre season as well. I think he's Trent Dilfer right now. He can manage a game for you, but don't ask him to win it for you. Despite the depletion of the QB position, RB position, and the O-line being banged up the Ravens have made a few personnel moves. WR: Joe Morgan has been waived. WR: Chuck Jacobs has been promoted to the roster from the practice squad. WR: Chris Matthews has been signed; cousin of Hall of Famer Reggie White. Rumors are that the Ravens are interested in Jason Campbell for QB; but he's supposedly interested in retirement. Ravens are also supposedly trying to get Bryn Renner back for a practice squad body and also another QB to add as the back up to Schaub. Better get somebody soon because you got a game coming up this weekend and Schaub could get hurt.

Right, they just picked up West a couple of weeks ago and they still have Magee on the practice squad if anything else goes wrong. Forsett has never been "the man" for any team and this broken arm is a fluke injury. The offensive line and playcalling has been suspect this year but his numbers weren't really all that bad this season. I don't think Allen did anything amazing. His rushing average isn't all that great. The catches out of the backfield were good, but that is supposedly what he's known for. As far as drafting a RB, no need to grab one in the first round unless we're looking at another Todd Gurley. Just grab somebody in the 3rd or 4th round and take your chances. You still have Forsett, Taliafero, and Allen next season. There are plenty of other glaring needs for this team. Franchise WR, Franchise LT, possibly a starting G, a starting C, Both outside linebacker spots since Suggs and Dumervil are getting old, and yes, we still need help at corner and safety.

The play calling on offense has really been suspect this year. We're predictable at times, we try to get too cute some times, and when we find something that is working we for some reason abandon it and go to something else that fails. The Rams had no answer to the quick screens and quick outs to Allen. We ran it about three times in fairly short periods of time and Allen made the first guy miss every single time and picked up 7 yards or so. You find something working that well I would say you run it over and over again until the other team proves they will and can defend it. They start putting a man on Allen and then that opens up something for another player. I can't really say the same for the defense. The players aren't getting home enough on the pass rush and I doubt any of our coverage schemes call for leaving a receiver to be open 40+ yards down the field. To me that's blown coverage. Why can't Justin Tucker make a 50 yard field goal in Baltimore?

That win we should have had against Jacksonville and being 4-6 makes a whole world of difference. I don't think the Ravens could win the division since the Bengals are 8-2 and the Steelers are 6-4. But....the wildcard implications are huge. Consider this... In the AFC East New England is running the table at 9-0. But second place is the Bills at 5-4, and the Jets are 5-5. In the AFC South the Colts and Texans are tied for first with 5-5 records and the Jaguars are next at 4-6 (Should be 3-7 which again, makes a huge difference for them). In the AFC West the Broncos are up top at 8-2, but in second place is the Chiefs at 5-5 and Oakland is 4-6. So at 4-6 you could say the Ravens still had a fairly legitimate shot of making it as a Wild Card team. But with so many injuries now and being at 3-7, it doesn't seem very likely anymore.

Flacco's turnovers were costing us the game. The leg injury didn't happen until the very final drive a few plays before the game winning field goal. I admire him trying to finish out the game, but let's not say that he was playing the whole came like this and that was why he was throwing the ball all over the place. He's had games like this before where he throws the ball nowhere near anybody and then throws idiotic interceptions. I am not saying everything is his fault. He's had his receivers drop easy passes on him and not contest throws and give up picks as well. I actually put A LOT of blame on the coaching staff. We're supposed to have all of this talent. So either we do have this talent and the coaching staff isn't making the most of it, or the players we have really aren't all that talented and we have to question the people that put this team together. Ozzie has been the most soild part of this organization and we've had a revolving door of offensive and defensive coordinators. Somebody is losing their job this year and I don't think it is John Harbaugh. He'll get some slack because of his track record and the injuries. Some coaches are gonna lose their jobs though.

I know the Ravens said they wouldn't "give up" this season before the Rams game, but now with Flacco out for the year, Forsett out for the year, Osemele banged up, Monroe banged up, Zuttah out for the year, Steve Smith Sr. out for the year...you might as well rest all of your banged up starters and let the backups and guys with potential futures play. I think the next few games with Matt Schaub at the helm could be pretty ugly. He looked pretty good in pre season, but he's coming off of a couple of bad seasons. He's also not going to have a great supporting cast around him. Back up offensive line, back up running backs, back up wideouts...it isn't looking good. This at least gives you a chance to get another long look at Buck Allen and the newly acquired Terrence West. The Ravens apparently wanted West in the draft but Cleveland snagged him before their pick. West played his college days at Towson for those that don't know. Time to just let the O-line rest. Let Hurts play LT, Jensen in at LG, and Urschel play C. Yanda and Wagner stay put. I expect the Ravens to make some moves because everyone they now have as backups are rookies. I think the defense played pretty well. The penalties were ridiculous today as well, but they stopped Gurley who had been running over most of the league. It was also against Case Keenum.

Steve Smith is the main weapon on this team as he's caught 36 passes.. It probably shouldn't be a shock to see that Justin Forsett is #2 in receptions on the team with 23 in a Trestman offense. Trailing him is Kamar Aiken with 18, then it is a tie between Gilmore & Juice for fourth with 13 a piece. Maxx Williams comes next with 12. The problem is that Aiken is extremely streaky and when he's cold, he's awful. Marlon Brown hasn't stepped up unfortunately. I want to see more of Ross though, he was making plays. Givens might help out with speed, but speed will only do so much. If you can't get the ball in the hands with the guy with the speed (either he can't get open or he can't catch) then it doesn't really matter. I think having a healthy Gimore back will help, but maybe they should start going with a lot of twin TE formations to get Maxx and Crocket on the field at the same time. Slot out Juice more out of the back field and force somebody to go out to cover him. One of the main problems with this offense has been the play calling and the bone headed decisions of Flacco at times. They get way too predictable at times and Flacco has to know when to tuck and run and make use of his legs or to throw the ball away. I know he knows better.

I see a lot of people don't like it when you tell it like it is. The refs had been calling close plays ALL DAY LONG. Whether it is right or not, that is how it was. As a player, you have to understand what is going on. Why don't we take a look at this: http://russellstreetreport.com/2015/09/22/ruling-on-the-field/analyzing-will-hill-holding-call/ This is an article that actually thinks it should have been a no-call. It states that some of the rules were questionable as it was hard to tell who actually initiated contact and to see if the TE was attempting to evade or not. But what is included are some videos of the play in question. The very top one, the first part of that video shows the whole play. Keep these things in mind: 1) The refs had been calling holding penalities on the secondaries all game long on both teams. They were calling a "tight" game so to speak. 2) The play is happening in real time, not slow motion. 3) Penalties are not reviewable. 4) You can't tell if Hill put his hands on Rivera first or the other way around, but what you can see clearly is that Hill has his arm fully extended first. 5) After the initial contact, which isn't where the call was made in my opinion, the players bounce off each other. Rivera (The TE) turns in, which I would assume is how the pattern was called. Right after he turns, Hill hits him again and the players jostle. Rivera is knocked off his route and Hill is able to sneak in under and get the pass. So in summation the first part of that play probably would not have gotten the flag. Two guys bump into each other. It is what happened right after that where I think the penalty was called.

I am not sure how much of a revelation of an article you can post when the problems with this team are glaringly obvious. Carson Palmer with his set of receivers is extremely dangerous. He's not very mobile so IF we could get to the QB and hurry him and actually, I dunno, hit the guy and sack him it might help. Of course our secondary has been atrocious again. Jimmy Smith isn't 100%, Webb isn't 100%, Arrington hasn't impressed me, Wright is a new addition and got torched. The safties should be better, but too many times they are not on the right page and give up deep WIDE open plays at the worst times. In the fourth quarter when you have a lead, there is no reason in the world why a guy should get behind you 40 yards deep down the field. On offense, anybody not named Steve Smith can't catch. Flacco is making it hard for anyone to defend his "elite" status when he's making throws college players would get benched for. Sure, let's throw the ball 45 yards down the field, off my back foot, and across the field. That should work. It made me wonder if somebody covering the Ravens should have a weekly, "What was I thinking" column. Each week they sit down with a player who made a impact play, whether it was good or bad, and let us get inside the mind of a pro football player. I sit at home and smack my head at times, "What was he THINKING?!" We could find out with a column like this. Maybe there was some "football" reason Joe is attempting these passes that the fans at home would not have any possible way of knowing.

Kinda hard to do that when the TE's have been banged up all year. Maxx Williams has been slowed by his ribs, Gilmore missed a couple of games so far, and Nick Boyle is a blocking TE. What I have seen them do and I want to see more of is using Juzczyck as a receiver more often. He catches darn near everything. He might not have speed, but if you need a few tough yards he can get them. He's not just a blocker back there at FB. The guy is a legit TE that is in the body of a full back. If he was 6'4'' he'd be a TE.

He's had thumb surgery. The reason why hasn't been reported yet. "His backup,Terrence Brooks, is also dealing with an injury of his own. Brooks has been ruled out after reportedly having surgery on his thumb. He also missed last week’s game." That is from this article here on this site: http://www.baltimoreravens.com/news/article-1/Whos-Playing-Whos-Not-vs-Cardinals/03a98cf7-e992-40d0-a3d9-b5bcb8a0ef83

My take is this; The Ravens might not be as terrible as they looked on offense against Denver and not as horrible as they looked on defense against the Raiders. They are somewhere in the middle and hopefully they find that consistency going forward. There are tons of things to chip away at negatively, but I want to focus on some positives going forward. Hurst looked much better at LT against the Raiders. He's a solid backup until Monroe comes back. Wagner looked better at RT too, so maybe he's just shaking off the rust. Rest of the O-line is solid as ever. Joe has shown that when given the time he can hit his targets, and the targets showed that if they get a good ball they can tack on additonal yards. Would like to see better decisions from Joe at times and to see him stop throwing off the back leg. If that is his option, tuck it and run it for a couple yards, check down, or chuck it out of bounds rather than severely underthrowing guys and possibly turning the ball over. Steve Smith is still a beast. Good to know. Aiken fumbled the ball on his first catch but was good after. Gillmore is as much of a stud as I have been saying he was all along. Disappeared when they doubled him, but that opened up Smith and Aiken. Perriman should be back eventually. Justin Tucker is still the man. There isn't a kicker in the league I'd want over him. Defensively speaking...At least Mosley is still all over the field making plays. Will Hill made a great play earlier in the game. Just need to find more consistency in the secondary and dial up a pass rush. Easy for me to say, right?

Sometimes is isn't about the loss, but how you lose those games. The game in Denver could have been won because the defense did a great job, but the offense failed to do anything at all. Joe Flacco threw some poor balls in that game and the O-line wasn't up to snuff. The Raiders game should have been a win because the offense was clicking all day long. The defense played like a leaking sieve. So 0-2 isn't the end of the world, but the team has looked wildly erratic and could have easily been 2-0.

There have been a few bone-headed blunders the Ravens have been making that cost them yardage and downs. Jernigan's penalty stopped the Ravens from possibly containing the Raiders and getting a punt and good field position into letting the Raiders march back down the field for points. Good teams don't make those mistakes. The defense looked horrible and I am sure they aren't as bad as they looked. No pass rush and a confused secondary that also is still dealing with lingering health issues because there is no way I believe Jimmy Smith is as healthy as he says he is; even though he's saying he's not 100%, I think he's about 80%. He can't cut and move on that foot yet. Webb is also not healthy. Whether he's got lingering back issues or the multiple knee injuries he's had are catching up to him, he's now serviceable instead of rock steady. Hopefully they get healthy soon and get things figured out. Team has too much talent to look as bad as they did against the Raiders.