Pennington Released

[FerrariFan87]

Since the Jets will now be set at QB this year with the acquisition of Brett Favre, they released veteran QB Chad Pennington. Personally, I think Chad is an instant upgrade at the QB position and would love to see the Ravens bring him in here to compete... your thoughts?

[theFRANCHISE]

To be honest, I'm still not sure that Chad Pennington is fully-recovered from his nagging shoulder injury of two or three seasons ago.

Though I'll agree that he'd probably be an instant upgrade at the QB position, I'm not sure that he'd be the right fit for this team.

Had this occurred a few months ago, I might not be as wary, since he'd have time to get used to the playbook and build chemistry with the team, etc.

Given the timing, though, I'd have to trust my gut and say it wouldn't work. Not at this moment, anyway.

I say, wait and see what Boller does with this first game tonight, and go from there. I know people will say they know what to expect from Boller, but I'd rather have a "veteran" who is familiar with the players on this team and this (new) system, than someone who has to start fresh when the regular season is only a month away.

It's not to say that Boller is "better" than Pennington necessarily, it's, again, an issue of timing.

[wun22]

No...I don't think its a good pick up...one of my best friends is a Jets fan, and Chad has given them as many headaches as Boller has given us.

Since 2000 he only has 1 complete season under his belt. He has a seriously muffed up rotator cuff, too many question marks with this guy...

Plus, I like the QB competition we have going on right now.

[Samari]

We should sign him as a veteran presence because Boller won't cut it in that regard (or for that matter, in any regard).

[catty112]

I don't see why people keep seeing that bringing in a vet QB is going to mentor our young guys. Im sorry but I honestly don't see it happening ( with certain exceptions obviously) in the pros. Besides how good of a mentor is a guy going to be when he knows less about the playbook than they do? Yeah he has more experience and could probably show the young bucks a thing or two but thats it.

I don't know why but Im going to give Boller one more year before I bust out my pitchfork and run him out of town... jk hahaha

[FerrariFan87]

I don't think a cerebral QB like Pennington would have any problems learning this system, seeing as he would have about a month of camp/preseason games. If Boller struggles tonight, we really need to consider picking him up...

[RavensIQ]

Pennington is ok but Favre isn't? hmmmm I'm worried about our fans.

[Bazard]

NO I BETTER NOT EVER SEE CHAD IN A RAVENS UNIFORM HE SUCKS NO ARM U THOUGHT BRIAN BILLICKS OFFENSE WAS BAD I DON'T WANNA SEE WHAT CHAD WOULD LOOK LIKE HERE!!!

[Bazard]

With the tackels we have out tonight Kyle Boller is going to get killed going against the 1st team.

[Corvus]

I'm comfortable with all 3 of our current QBs and I know the organization is too.

And I honestly don't see the huge difference between having a eteran presence like Pennington on a team and not having one. Kyle provides a veteran prescence to Joe regardless of what you guys may think and I'm sure Joe is taking advantage of everything Kyle knows about the NFL level. He definitely hasn't had the greatest success but he has been there and done it as a rookie and knows what its like. And of course, Troy got to learn from Steve last year so I'm not worried about the "veteran presence" issue.

[RavensIQ]

NO I BETTER NOT EVER SEE CHAD IN A RAVENS UNIFORM HE SUCKS NO ARM U THOUGHT BRIAN BILLICKS OFFENSE WAS BAD I DON'T WANNA SEE WHAT CHAD WOULD LOOK LIKE HERE!!!

Guarantee you Pennington is better than Boller. Pennington would have a been a Pro Bowl Caliber player if he never injured his knee.

I still think we should have taken Leftwhich when we had the chance last year instead of signing boller to a 1 year extension. And if Boller didnt take that extension, I guarantee you Leftwhich would have been our Opening Starter this year.

[theFRANCHISE]

Pennington is ok but Favre isn't? hmmmm I'm worried about our fans.

Without starting up another massive Favre thread, the reason why Pennington is a better option than Favre to some is the upside factor.

Favre, at the age of 38, isn't bound to get any better.

Pennington, meanwhile, is 32 and still has room to improve.

We already know Favre's hit the peak of his abilities and is on the tail end of his career, while Pennington is still a question mark there.

I'd prefer the question mark, over the certainty of someone who can't get better and can only get worse. As for how much worse Favre will be, that remains to be seen.

Again, age might be nothing but a number in any other profession, but it makes a big difference in such a physical sport as football.

[RavensIQ]

Pennington, meanwhile, is 32 and still has room to improve.

McNair was 33 when he came here...

Favre doesnt have any room to improve cuz he as good as a QB can ever get he doesnt need to improve. He is #1 in almost all categories as a QB...EVER. but anyway you can't make an argument Pennington over Favre cuz obviously the jets took favre and released chad for a reason....

[lowrider]

Pennington really wouldnt be that much of an upgrade than the quarterbacks we have. Hell why not, lets pick up pennington and put him at offensive tackle. haha

[Bazard]

Guarantee you Pennington is better than Boller. Pennington would have a been a Pro Bowl Caliber player if he never injured his knee.

I still think we should have taken Leftwhich when we had the chance last year instead of signing boller to a 1 year extension. And if Boller didnt take that extension, I guarantee you Leftwhich would have been our Opening Starter this year.

ok well Kyle and Pennington went head to head twice both times he lost and that game was won on quarterback play.

[Bazard]

Pennington really wouldnt be that much of an upgrade than the quarterbacks we have. Hell why not, lets pick up pennington and put him at offensive tackle. haha

he would be a major downgrade

[BaltimoreBulldog]

I would take our 3 QB's over Pennington anyday. Pennington has a long injury history and is really no better than Boller if you ask me. I dont think we need his "veteran" prescence because i think Boller can offer that to the young guys since he has been in the league for awhile now. Pennington is another washed up 1st rounder and I dont think we need him on the roster

[MDmid14]

I would take our 3 QB's over Pennington anyday. Pennington has a long injury history and is really no better than Boller if you ask me. I dont think we need his "veteran" prescence because i think Boller can offer that to the young guys since he has been in the league for awhile now. Pennington is another washed up 1st rounder and I dont think we need him on the roster

Agreed. Let Pennington head to Chicago or Minnesota. The Ravens need to move beyond veteran QB's and start building with the three we have. Even if Chad turned in a good season, we still can't expect too many years from him. Boller is enough of a vet and a good place for Troy and Joe to start learning from. They need to study his career and see why he hasn't panned out the way we thought...then just do the opposite. haha joking fo course.

[MDmid14]

I still think we should have taken Leftwhich when we had the chance last year instead of signing boller to a 1 year extension. And if Boller didnt take that extension, I guarantee you Leftwhich would have been our Opening Starter this year.

hahahaha I can guarantee you this wouldn't be the case. Though Byron has the heart of a Lion and not a bad a QB, I'd take Boller anyday. Leftwhich isn't as explosive as Boller can be and in some big games (see Green Bay, Minnesota and New England) Bollers arm carried us where Byrons wouldn't have been able to.

[Conrad The Crazed]

NO NO NO....A THOUSAND TIMES NO !!!!! Chad Pennington would be a complete disaster here. His arm strength is sub-par for an NFL QB, and he's simply an average signal-caller. We've run the 'average veteran QB' experiment drill here in Baltimore enough!

What is it about our great organization? It seems ever since the lunatic 'Cut Trent Dilfer Experiment' we've been completely cursed at the QB position. Kyle Boller was an attempt to draft a franchise QB that blew up in our faces. Amazingly, he is still on our roster (do you honestly think any other team would have kept him around THIS long?). If we were serious about drafting or signing the QB of the future, I can't understand why we blew ANOTHER #1 pick on a QB...this time from a Division II league...the very next season after drafting a former Heismann winner? Sure I understand that Troy Smith may not be 'The Guy' for the next 15 years, but what the heck is going on? Why are we perenially doomed to mess up the QB position? Or stated another way...how can we be so awesome in selecting talent on Defense, but bounce around like drunken june bugs when it comes to finding a capable QB?

No, please lets just let Pennington move on to the Vikings and back up Jackson. We've got 4 QB's on the roster already, and it makes no sense to bring in veteran talent now, because our O-line is in shambles. Our best hope for 2008 is to start Troy Smith and let the man show us what he's got as a QB who can throw on the run....something whoever starts at QB for us this year is going to be doing alot of.

I've got a good feeling about Ray Rice though. Even with the O-line in its current state, I think he gives us a capable 'X-factor'.

[theFRANCHISE]

McNair was 33 when he came here...

Favre doesnt have any room to improve cuz he as good as a QB can ever get he doesnt need to improve. He is #1 in almost all categories as a QB...EVER. but anyway you can't make an argument Pennington over Favre cuz obviously the jets took favre and released chad for a reason....

If the Ravens were to acquire Pennington, the team would be getting him in his 9th season in the league. Steve McNair was going into his 12th season when he came to Baltimore.

That's 8 years of experience versus 11 years. Two years can make a big difference, regardless of age. That's why I say Pennington would have more upside RIGHT NOW than Favre.

It's not an argument over whether Pennington is a better player than Favre all-time -- it's the fact that Pennington has more upside and has room to grow in the offense (RIGHT NOW), whereas Favre would essentially be slowing down.

You may say that Favre "doesn't need to improve"...but that doesn't mean skills can't deteriorate.

Favre may be one of the best QBs to ever play, but that doesn't mean he'll be performing at a Pro Bowl level forever. Once you're at the top, there's nowhere else to go but down. If you consider 2007 an exception, that decline has been in play since 2005.

Pennington's injuries ARE a concern, hence why I said I'd be gun-shy in picking him up. However, had Pennington been acquired back in February or March, at least he'd have time to learn the offense. As of right now, he shouldn't even be an option, unless Boller struggles tremendously or in the event of an injury.

[die_hard_raven]

Bad idea, when he was healthy he was always accurate and didn't turn the ball over much.. but since he's been injured he never returned to form. I could see someone picking him up to mentor a young team but not to start and lead a team. Can't throw the deep ball and can't stay healthy. Not very mobile at all.

[bossman419]

if we do pick him up it would be really hard to carry 4 qb's. so either troy or kyle is cut, not a good situation

[Tiz]

No

[foreversunny23]

considering how there is a month to go before the regular season i think it is too late for us to get another QB. Pennington does not have the arm strength. that means he cannot spread the defenses out. McNair's arm strength was questionable but Pennington just cannot throw deep.

[smashmouth]

No Way, if we was going with a vet QB it should have and probally would have been Favre.It has been set in stone That the Ravens will have another year at 25th + in the passing attack.

[bscott57]

Unbelievable that the same Favre thread haters are on here talking about how Chad Pennington would be a better fit or that is something we could look into. If we were to pick up Pennington and the Jets got Favre we would be the laughing stock of the NFL, we need a QB but we should pick up the only guy in the NFL to have caused his teams loyal fans more pain than we have suffered through the Boller days (and maybe the Bears with Grossman). So we as potential playoff contenders passed up on Brett Favre and when Chad Pennington gets cut for him to be the starter there we should look into picking up a proven bust??? Where is the logic at all in that, everyone here is too worried about the "future". To quote Mike Golic "I am tired of hearing people talk about the future, there is a future that is important and that is this season, a lot can change in 12 months in the NFL". Unbelievable.

[Bleeding Purple]

I don't think that we need to take another chance on a QB coming in from another team. We didn't need Leftwich, we didn't need Favre, and we don't need Pennington. We have three quarterbacks that will compete for the job, and that's all we need this year. Besides, he's reportedly talking to the Dolphins.

[Purple Punishment]

We cant keep wasting money and/or draft picks for QB's. We have 3 very capable quarterbacks that have not even hit the field yet under the new offense. We need to see what our guys can do out there before making a move to get another guy in here. I never seen anything spectacular from Chad Pennington. So lets see what Boller, Smith, and Flacco can deliver, because Im sure one of those guys can get it done.

[smashmouth]

If the Ravens were to acquire Pennington, the team would be getting him in his 9th season in the league. Steve McNair was going into his 12th season when he came to Baltimore.

That's 8 years of experience versus 11 years. Two years can make a big difference, regardless of age. That's why I say Pennington would have more upside RIGHT NOW than Favre.

It's not an argument over whether Pennington is a better player than Favre all-time -- it's the fact that Pennington has more upside and has room to grow in the offense (RIGHT NOW), whereas Favre would essentially be slowing down.

You may say that Favre "doesn't need to improve"...but that doesn't mean skills can't deteriorate.

Favre may be one of the best QBs to ever play, but that doesn't mean he'll be performing at a Pro Bowl level forever. Once you're at the top, there's nowhere else to go but down. If you consider 2007 an exception, that decline has been in play since 2005.

Pennington's injuries ARE a concern, hence why I said I'd be gun-shy in picking him up. However, had Pennington been acquired back in February or March, at least he'd have time to learn the offense. As of right now, he shouldn't even be an option, unless Boller struggles tremendously or in the event of an injury.

Pennington is on the downside of his playing time IMO, I highly doubt He will get any better, but maybe with a better system then the jets run, I doubt they have the best or even a "good" system there, so Maybe but highly doubtful..