Former Raven Cut

[kris21054]

Lo. Neal was cut by the Raiders... worth bringing back in or not?

[PuRock]

[quote name='kris21054' date='19 August 2009 - 09:58 PM' timestamp='1250733488' post='221380']
Lo. Neal was cut by the Raiders... worth bringing back in or not?
[/quote]

Cut? Neal was a beast for us last year. Did his talent really disappear like that? I'd bring him back. Then we can use McClain as a RB more. Plus Neal would help keep our running game at its best.

Side Note = This drops McFadden down a bit on my fantasy ratings. I was really hyped about him since Neal would be blocking for him.

[BloodRaven]

Maybe he just wasnt [i]fast[/i] enough for Al "Ricky Bobby" Davis.

[theFRANCHISE]

Normally, a player his age wouldn't even get a second look, but this is arguably the best blocking FB in the past 10 years here! I'd say YES. Besides, he already knows the playbook and I'm sure Cam Cameron would LOVE to have him around to block and give the backfield even more versatility with the other backs we've got.

[J-man]

[quote name='BloodRaven' date='19 August 2009 - 10:05 PM' timestamp='1250733951' post='221389']
Maybe he just wasnt [i]fast[/i] enough for Al "Ricky Bobby" Davis.
[/quote]

I was thinking the SAME exact thing.

[Alexir]

We didn't sign him in the offseason why would we sign him now. I love Lo. Neal but McClain is a FB. If McClain wants to run the ball he can do it behind Ngata in goal line situations. I hope he finds a team though.

[smashmouth]

Im surprised..! But I think were moving in a diffrent direction this year. McClain is a do it all fullback, He can block,catch and run the ball. and having 2 feature backs and a do it all fullback were just too loaded to carry another again this year. Im thinking were wanting to carry a extra WR,CB and TE. Were able to do this by not having Stover and Neal, that auto eliminates 2 extra guys that we really dont need.

[tweety]

[quote name='smashmouth' date='19 August 2009 - 10:33 PM' timestamp='1250735601' post='221405']
Im surprised..! But I think were moving in a diffrent direction this year. McClain is a do it all fullback, He can block,catch and run the ball. and having 2 feature backs and a do it all fullback were just too loaded to carry another again this year. Im thinking were wanting to carry a extra WR,CB and TE. Were able to do this by not having Stover and Neal, that auto eliminates 2 extra guys that we really dont need.
[/quote]
I will actually agree with you here, save O'Neal for a team that needs depth at the position. We Don't.

[neepo13]

WOW. Was he hurt? I mean even if, Lo Neal isnt as versatile or fast as you'd like, he's a great leader for a young offense like the Raiders that is in need of veteran leadership. Jeff Garcia is only one guy and he can only do so much.

[bigZ2222]

i would say bring him back we have alot of qbs that were not going too carry so we have room he was a huge part of the success in are running game and with pass protecting hes just a monster nuff said

[smashmouth]

[quote name='neepo13' date='19 August 2009 - 10:38 PM' timestamp='1250735919' post='221409']
WOW. Was he hurt? I mean even if, Lo Neal isnt as versatile or fast as you'd like, he's a great leader for a young offense like the Raiders that is in need of veteran leadership. Jeff Garcia is only one guy and he can only do so much.
[/quote]
Come on now, were talking about the Raiders here. They have no clue what to do! I thought for sure McFadden and Neal were going to carry OAK to a decent year. He seem like a perfect fit to me.

[tweety]

[quote name='bigZ2222' date='19 August 2009 - 10:40 PM' timestamp='1250736041' post='221410']
i would say bring him back we have alot of qbs that were not going too carry so we have room he was a huge part of the success in are running game and with pass protecting hes just a monster nuff said
[/quote]
Even with the cut of those QBs we are still crunching making the 53 man roster.

[PuRock]

[quote name='Alexir' date='19 August 2009 - 10:21 PM' timestamp='1250734886' post='221395']
We didn't sign him in the offseason why would we sign him now. I love Lo. Neal but McClain is a FB. If McClain wants to run the ball he can do it behind Ngata in goal line situations. I hope he finds a team though.
[/quote]

One of the main reasons why McClain stood out as our best running back last year, is because when he ran he had Neal blocking for him. You can guarantee that McClain will be no where close to what he did last year (assuming he was given the ball as much).

Plus he is a great leader. Especially for a young backfield. I would love to have Neal back on. He helped define the three headed monster, but gets little of the credit.

[JO_75]

He was CUT???? When Neal signed with the Raiders all the buzz was that McFadden could have a good season with Neal blocking. This is crazy, oh wait it's Crazy Al running Oakland so what do you expect? Neal could have done ALOT for the Raiders, pending they started Jeff Garcia and benched Russell.

I certainly wouldn't mind re-signing him but only for the Veteran minium and a 1 year deal. I know we are going young but here's what I'm thinking and just bare with me on this. We drafted Michael Oher to help strengthen our young offensive line. Gaither will get his money soon. I already believe Willis is going to return to his 2007 form and really do good. If our o-line can get better, just think what Neal could do and it would give us that extra blocking and to give McGahee or Rice the extra block needed for a TD. That's just my thinking, this could really give us a good running game but I'll still be alright if we don't decide to re-sign him.

[justifythegame]

[quote name='PuRock' date='19 August 2009 - 10:52 PM' timestamp='1250736764' post='221415']
One of the main reasons why McClain stood out as our best running back last year, is because when he ran he had Neal blocking for him. You can guarantee that McClain will be no where close to what he did last year
[/quote]
agree with you 100%

[theFRANCHISE]

According to FOXSports' Jay Glazer via Twitter, Lo-Neal injured his hamstring. He didn't say if it's anything major, but he did hint that he's thinking about his future. So maybe retirement is on the horizon... (Still praying for a comeback with the Ravens!)

[Sizzle]

I gotta be honest we dont need him. While he still could contribute when McClain is running because all he had to do is bust some guys face running north, i dont think he would fit in other situations. I dont know why the raiders cut him tho....... i think he would have helped some young guys with his overall professionalism and hard work. When guys on your team don't know the feeling of being a winner a guy like Neal could have helped.

[LosT_in_TranSlatioN]

Get him now! The only reason he was cut was because their current FB, who's returning from injury, was impressive during Training Camp. He's also more than a decade younger, though the move still seems to make little sense, in my opinion.

[Alexir]

[quote name='PuRock' date='19 August 2009 - 10:52 PM' timestamp='1250736764' post='221415']

One of the main reasons why McClain stood out as our best running back last year, is because when he ran he had Neal blocking for him. You can guarantee that McClain will be no where close to what he did last year (assuming he was given the ball as much).

Plus he is a great leader. Especially for a young backfield. I would love to have Neal back on. He helped define the three headed monster, but gets little of the credit.
[/quote]


Oh I totally agree. I am not in support of using McCain as a Running back. I also thought it was stupid on the coaches behalf to not have Rice or McGahee run behind Neal at all last year. Everytime they went in McClain blocked.

[Ed_Reed_Pick_Six]

[quote name='PuRock' date='20 August 2009 - 03:00 PM' timestamp='1250733635' post='221384']
Cut? Neal was a beast for us last year. Did his talent really disappear like that? I'd bring him back. Then we can use McClain as a RB more. Plus Neal would help keep our running game at its best.

Side Note = This drops McFadden down a bit on my fantasy ratings. I was really hyped about him since Neal would be blocking for him.
[/quote]
I was thinking that myself with regards to McFadden. As for bringing him back, he's been a fantastic player; but he's really getting on and McClain is a good FB, even if he is used like a HB... I'll sit on the fence! Lol

[William Murderface]

The only reason i would want to see us bring him back would be so i could see him catch some passes then rather than trying to run into space find the nearest defender and run right over him. That never got old.

We really dont need him. We made a committment to mcclain as the FB and we really dont need him (Mcclain) at HB as we have two great HB in Rice and Mcgahee (whos healthy and looking good this year).

[PIG 20]

Why not? You could literally get him for nothing and lets say something does happen to McClain. At least we have a guy who knows this offense and has a ton of experience at the FB position.

You know he wanted to come back to the Ravens anyway. I understand the age thing but like I said, its an easy and very inexpensive pickup that could pay off at some point in the season.

[Ed_Reed_Pick_Six]

Could be an option, I'm sure its being explored by management.

[ravensfan160]

I think it will come down to roster spots. We have a lot of young(although unproven) talent at RB, WR, and DB and we can't keep them all. I think Ozzie would rather save a roster spot for a promising young guy who might not clear waivers if we try to put him on the practice squad as opposed to a guy like Neal.

[Alexir]

Signing Neal just takes up a spot on our roster. It looks liked Edgar Jones has been taking snaps at FB so no thank you. Signing Neal might mean that one of the running backs doesn't make the team.

[Ravensfan23]

I know i will be in the Minority here and that is ok by me. IMO Lo Neal was a shell of his former self last year with us. Now that speaks to just how great he was in his prime, because last year he played well, but not as great as many here makes it seem.

Lo Neal missed a lot of blocking assignment last year, he didn't have the same pop behind his blocks as he use too. Now on the positive side, he did a lot for a young offense. He did show signs of that vintage Lo Neal, but it was just inconsistent.

The Ravens didn't bring Lo Neal back because he honestly would have been just taking up a roster spot. Lo Neal was only brought in last year because the Ravens new they couldn't really rely on a rookie in Rice, and a injury prone McGahee, so McClain would take on more RB duties.

Well this year the Ravens have both Rice and McGahee healthy, and McClain will only be running the ball in short yardage, and 4th quarter grind out situations. Yes having Lo Neal to block for McClain would be great in those situations, but do you waste a roster spot for 4-10 plays a game?

The Ravens are going to a more open style unpredictable offense. Lo Neal as a backup FB just doesn't fit. McClain as a FB gives the Ravens' the option of spliting Rice/McGahee out wide, and having McClain as the single back. That puts more pressure on the defense.

With McClain as the RB, the Ravens will probably use Edgar Jones as the lead blocker, in that situation the Ravens could put more pressure on the defense by having 3TE on the field instead of a true FB. Lo Neal is a FB and FB only.

LeRon McClain is the Ravens FB, and he will do a great job this year. Having Lo Neal on the roster is like having Stover. I think there name is bigger then their production. If you absolutely need one of them, yes they could help you out to a extent, but overall it just not a good fit.

If Lo Neal is healthy enough to play, i hope he can catch on to a team. However he just doesn't fit well with the Ravens right now IMO. We had the chance to bring him back before the season even started. I haven't seen anything bad in our running game that would sugguest that the Ravens change their minds on Lo Neal.

[CorvusCorax]

It's sad to hear about LoNeal getting cut. However, I think we don't really need him at this point. We needed O line blockers, we got that now. There's other positions that we could concentrate on. Besides, I think McClain will still be used offensively.

[SIZZLE4PRESIDENT]

GET NEAL BACK!!

[Ravnet]

I don't see any plausible reason why we would sign Neal.

My opinion earlier in the year was that Neal should have been resigned, irrespective of his age, because of how well he did in 2008, but the Ravens CHOSE not to bring him back, and they know better than anyone else.

To bring Lorenzo back now would be subtraction by addition because Neal is totally one dimensional and only blocks, while McClain will be used as a rusher quite often, and we've based our entire playbook around a FB package with Le'Ron being the focus and not Neal.

To sign Neal now would probably require an overhaul of the plabook, which isn't a good thing three weeks into August.

Anyway, I don't understand why the Raiders would possibly cut this guy considering how much they run, so I'm inclined to just call Al Davis a flaming moron once again.

[mikefiggs52]

Lorenzo Neal just got released by the oakland radiers. I think the ravens should sign him. Personally I don't know why they let him go in the first place. With him playing fullback Leron mcclain can run the ball more. And I always like that three headed rusing attack with Mcclain, Mcgahee, and rice. What do you guys think?