Yanda At Tackle?

[Ravenoid]

It takes a few years to learn to be an NFL tackle. Yanda worked at guard and was forced into the right tackle spot. As I watched him I remembered how Gaither struggled his first season and he came out as a highly reguarded tackle that gave up no sacks in his senior year. Gaither had a lot of trouble his rookie season with the speed rush as did Yanda this past season. I believe our coaches no what they are doing on this and Yanda might work out great. I can remember Flacco getting more heat up the middle between Chester and Birk late in the season. I did see Yanda improve drastically later in the season. He might be a lot more than we think. I'll trust one of the best offensive line coaches in all of football on this one.

[Ravenoid]

[quote name='gregreid5' timestamp='1301015426' post='658473']
I did a mock draft on another message board and castonzo somehow fell to 26 so I took him. I like Yanda MUCH better at guard. He struggled this year against the steelers
[/quote]
WOW! They were out of their minds. Castonzo is a better prospect than Ryan Clady was when Denver picked him the same draft we selected Flacco. I was hoping Ozzie would trade up for Clady. Castonzo is a no-brainer, strong and moves like a cat. No way will he be there when we pick. If you can convince the NFL Draft Gods to somehow allow us a good deal to trade up for him or, like Dez Bryant, drop to us? If Dallas hadn't made the deal we would have had Dez Bryant. Can you believe it?

[Suggs Package]

I used to think that Yanda sucked at RT and he was overrated, but after looking at old games and stats lines, He's exceeded most people's expectations at RT. I think he's a full-time starter at RT. Chris Chester, meanwhile, sucked. We had way too many sacks and pressures coming from the LDE and LILB in 3-4 alignments. Chester also got schooled from players like Geno Atkins in 4-3 fronts. He also wasn't effective at run blocking. Birk could have helped out more as well.

Chester is versatile and athletic, but still isn't strong enough to play Guard full time. I think he is most valuable as a jack of all trades, including being a blocking TE and Center.

I would like to see the Ravens give Harewood a chance at Guard. I'm curious to see his potential there.

[Bltravens]

[quote name='Ravenoid' timestamp='1302169100' post='662865']
WOW! They were out of their minds. [b]Castonzo is a better prospect than Ryan Clady[/b] was when Denver picked him the same draft we selected Flacco. I was hoping Ozzie would trade up for Clady. Castonzo is a no-brainer, strong and moves like a cat. No way will he be there when we pick. If you can convince the NFL Draft Gods to somehow allow us a good deal to trade up for him or, like Dez Bryant, drop to us? If Dallas hadn't made the deal we would have had Dez Bryant. Can you believe it?
[/quote]
ummm excuuuuuuuuuuuuse me?

[Ed_Reed20]

[quote name='Suggs Package' timestamp='1302200464' post='663013']
I would like to see the Ravens give Harewood a chance at Guard. I'm curious to see his potential there.
[/quote]

He played tackle in college and was still considered raw for as an NFL prospect. He'd be learning a whole new position if the team moved him to guard.

[RavensAllTheWay]

I don't remember him destroying Hali at all. I remember Hali getting a good deal of pressure in that game (mainly first half). Most of it was from beating Oher, but I remember him beating Yanda on the right as well.

Yanda at RT is not good for the rest of the O line, as it only creates more holes for us to fill.

[RavensAllTheWay]

[quote name='hawkprey' timestamp='1299889398' post='652271']
My hopes are still on Harewood turning into a pro. But Yanda should to much better with some quality help on that side.
[/quote]
What I'm thinking right now is Harewood-Grubbs-Birk-Yanda-Oher.

This makes the strong side of the line the right side. We could develop more running plays to the right, as opposed to the left where we usually run. And since the weather gets colder and our offense generally weakens in December and late November, we can save them for late in the year.

I obviously don't know too much about Harewood and it's certainly risky putting a 2nd year man who spent all of last season on IR (if I'm not mistaken) at LT in a tough division, but the guy is 6'7" 360 lbs as opposed to Ohers 6'4" 313, and we may end up resorting to him with the Gaither uncertainty and the possibility of not addressing the position before the season starts.

Also, I'd like to find a replacement for Birk, but unless we find a standout before the next set of offseason activities, that replacement should be groomed for a little while before he sees significant playing time.

[codizzle]

Harewood at lt... Smh

[justifythegame]

[quote name='RavensAllTheWay' timestamp='1302209241' post='663079']
What I'm thinking right now is Harewood-Grubbs-Birk-Yanda-Oher.

This makes the strong side of the line the right side. We could develop more running plays to the right, as opposed to the left where we usually run. And since the weather gets colder and our offense generally weakens in December and late November, we can save them for late in the year.

I obviously don't know too much about Harewood and it's certainly risky putting a 2nd year man who spent all of last season on IR (if I'm not mistaken) at LT in a tough division, but the guy is 6'7" 360 lbs as opposed to Ohers 6'4" 313, and we may end up resorting to him with the Gaither uncertainty and the possibility of not addressing the position before the season starts.

Also, I'd like to find a replacement for Birk, but unless we find a standout before the next set of offseason activities, that replacement should be groomed for a little while before he sees significant playing time.
[/quote]
Why would you put Oher at RT and Harewood at LT? It is generally understood the 2 most important positions that many teams consider is QB and LT. Thats why so many are first round guys. You would rather take a 5th round project and tell him to protect Flacco's blindside over Michael Oher...the guy who we traded up for in the first round and will be a 3 yr pro..? The logic makes no sense. You can put anyone at RT if you are desperate even bounce out interior lineman or get guys off FA. Your offenses ability is as limited as the guy who you have playing LT and putting Harewood there makes no sense.

[RavensAllTheWay]

[quote name='justifythegame' timestamp='1302216206' post='663125']
Why would you put Oher at RT and Harewood at LT? It is generally understood the 2 most important positions that many teams consider is QB and LT. Thats why so many are first round guys. You would rather take a 5th round project and tell him to protect Flacco's blindside over Michael Oher...the guy who we traded up for in the first round and will be a 3 yr pro..? The logic makes no sense. You can put anyone at RT if you are desperate even bounce out interior lineman or get guys off FA. Your offenses ability is as limited as the guy who you have playing LT and putting Harewood there makes no sense.
[/quote]
Production depends a lot on who's playing LT, but I wouldn't say it's only as good as the guy playing it.

I know it's the most important position up front, but Oher is a beast at RT and we also have to remember that Gaither was a 5th rounder, who we asked to replace JO. Two years later, he was among the elite LTs before getting taken out by the injury bug time and time again.

We have left side rushers like Woodley, Mathis, occasionally Mario Williams and others on our schedule next year. I like Oher going against those guys as opposed to Yanda or someone other than Gaither.

[Clutch Ravens]

[quote name='Ravenoid' timestamp='1302169100' post='662865']
WOW! They were out of their minds. [b]Castonzo is a better prospect than Ryan Clady [/b]was when Denver picked him the same draft we selected Flacco. I was hoping Ozzie would trade up for Clady. Castonzo is a no-brainer, strong and moves like a cat. No way will he be there when we pick. If you can convince the NFL Draft Gods to somehow allow us a good deal to trade up for him or, like Dez Bryant, drop to us? If Dallas hadn't made the deal we would have had Dez Bryant. Can you believe it?
[/quote]

You what?

Castonzo is no where near that level of prospect and I would happily ignore every tackle in this class (bar Tyron Smith) for a slew of defensive players.

Tyron Smith is the only one of those guys worth taking in the first. If this class were as talented as the last 3 years guys like Carimi, Costanzo, Solder and Sherrod wouldn't even be sniffing the first round, but because of teams in desperate need of offensive tackles they'll go much earlier than players of their talent level should.

This year is definitely NOT a good year to draft a Tackle if you want an immediate starter.

[Ravenseconbeast]

[quote name='Clutch Ravens' timestamp='1302225411' post='663167']
You what?

Castonzo is no where near that level of prospect and I would happily ignore every tackle in this class (bar Tyron Smith) for a slew of defensive players.

Tyron Smith is the only one of those guys worth taking in the first. If this class were as talented as the last 3 years guys like Carimi, Costanzo, Solder and Sherrod wouldn't even be sniffing the first round, but because of teams in desperate need of offensive tackles they'll go much earlier than players of their talent level should.

This year is definitely NOT a good year to draft a Tackle if you want an immediate starter.
[/quote]

So what do you suggest we do to address our O-line? I sure as hell wont keep Oher on LT and put Yanda in RT again. They barely hold up. We need to address the issue this year and now.

[baltravens]

[quote name='Ravenseconbeast' timestamp='1302278069' post='663283']
So what do you suggest we do to address our O-line? I sure as hell wont keep Oher on LT and put Yanda in RT again. They barely hold up. We need to address the issue this year and now.
[/quote]
I second that!
I think that this draft is fine to address our tackle issues, but I understand that the Ravens' staff wants to get all the value they can out of the 26th pick. I could foresee Ozzie making some draft-day deals where we would trade out of our first round selection. In Ozzie We Trust.
Don't get me wrong, I am the biggest proponent on this board for picking up a tackle in the 1st or 2nd round.

[Bltravens]

[quote name='Ravenseconbeast' timestamp='1302278069' post='663283']
So what do you suggest we do to address our O-line? I sure as hell wont keep Oher on LT and put Yanda in RT again. They barely hold up. We need to address the issue this year and now.
[/quote]
We sure as hell can find a RT in the mid rounds.

[justifythegame]

[quote name='RavensAllTheWay' timestamp='1302224737' post='663165']
Production depends a lot on who's playing LT, but I wouldn't say it's only as good as the guy playing it.

I know it's the most important position up front, but Oher is a beast at RT and we also have to remember that Gaither was a 5th rounder, who we asked to replace JO. Two years later, he was among the elite LTs before getting taken out by the injury bug time and time again.

We have left side rushers like Woodley, Mathis, occasionally Mario Williams and others on our schedule next year. I like Oher going against those guys as opposed to Yanda or someone other than Gaither.
[/quote]
A beast RT while nice to have is not a big deal, which is why a lot of good offenses even get by with mediocre RTs, especially if you have a really good HB who runs inside and in terms of pass protection the QB will see the pass rush coming from his right side.

Mario Williams plays RE.

Gaither was not a 5th rounder (thats just what we lost). He was the first guy we took from the comp draft, he would've been a first rounder had he played and entered the draft. And he learned behind Ogden its not like we drafted him to just go and start but being the largest player in the NFL did help him land the job.

[mgridda]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1299881524' post='652139']
I'm gonna start by saying that Yanda is a all pro, all universe player at guard. After this season, he proved himself probowl worthy as RT. Just watch the wild card game, every time Hali was lined up on Yanda, Yanda DESTROYED him. Even in pass pro. I think he pancaked him once, but I cant find the clip. So, to my point, do you think we could actually draft a guard like say, Pouncey, if we are unable to resign Gaither? This is just an idea folks, I too would much rather see Yanda at guard.

What do you think?

Our line could look like this:

Oher Grubbs Birk Pouncey Yanda

Of course, this would be last ditch if we were unable to resign Gaither. It would hopefully be an upgrade over Chester at RG.
[/quote]

Here's what PFF has to say about Marshal Yanda:

In naming him the starting RT of their All-AFC North Team:
[quote]Forced to play RT by circumstance, Yanda responded superbly. An excellent run blocker, the biggest surprise was how comfortable he looked in pass protection.[/quote]

and:

In naming him their starting AFC RT to the Pro Bowl:
[quote]Not a great year for right tackles, with Yanda kicking out to the spot for the Ravens and performing admirably. Just how good would Yanda be if he could consistently play in one position?[/quote]

and although Mike Pouncey is not his brother (but that does seem to be why he's (and Casey Matthews are) so highly regarded) here's what they had to say about Maurkice Pouncey (which I love throwing in the face of Steelers fans):

[quote]10 Worst Pro Bowl Selections

1. Maurkice Pouncey, C, Steelers

No. 23 in our center rankings, Pouncey wasn’t the worst run blocker in the world but had some pretty big struggles in pass protection where he has given up 22 quarterback disruptions. For some reason, with the Steelers offensive line struggling, commentators always found time to lavish praise on Pouncey while ignoring his general play.[/quote]

More than anything, I hate when a commentator starts unsubstantiatingly praising a player because I'm quite sure the only game that they sit down and really watch all week is the one that they're covering and it's ridiculously sad.

Chris Collinsworth was that guy for Maurkice Pouncey.

[nk02442]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1299881524' post='652139']
I'm gonna start by saying that Yanda is a all pro, all universe player at guard. After this season, he proved himself probowl worthy as RT. Just watch the wild card game, every time Hali was lined up on Yanda, Yanda DESTROYED him. Even in pass pro. I think he pancaked him once, but I cant find the clip. So, to my point, do you think we could actually draft a guard like say, Pouncey, if we are unable to resign Gaither? This is just an idea folks, I too would much rather see Yanda at guard.

What do you think?

Our line could look like this:

Oher Grubbs Birk Pouncey Yanda

Of course, this would be last ditch if we were unable to resign Gaither. It would hopefully be an upgrade over Chester at RG.
[/quote]


-100% wrong
-Yanda is a servicable RT when needed
-Last year was desperation for our OL
-Our runs favored the right side, which was pathetic this year. 74 should be at RT, he ****ck at LT
-Gaither or a quality Free Agent will be Key to our OL this year. 74 is at LT and yanda at RT, will we not make the playoffs and our run game/pass pro will be gargbage again. 74 is not smart enough for LT.

[Free Agent]

Since Yanda is an amazing guard, he should play there in my opinion. Then we should decide whether Oher should play LT or RT and move on from there.

[gregreid5]

Yanda looked good at RT for an emergency tackle, but he is not an all pro like so in here think. Hes a VERY GOOD RG and mediocre RT. The ravens need a RT but Sherrod is a wuss and would be a terrible pick. You dont go need in round 1. You need to pick the best player in round 1 or trade back and get more picks. Lots of guys I like in this draft in rounds 2-4.