4 Reasons Why This Isn't Our Year

[cursona pirate]

[quote name='Romo Ravens' timestamp='1324427319' post='916923']

Cam's gotta go. Say it with me.. maybe they'll listen to us
[/quote]
Cam's gotta go!
Cam's gotta go!
Cam's gotta go!
[img]http://content.boards.baltimoreravens.com//public/style_emoticons/default/ravensquote.gif[/img]

[RavensAllTheWay]

[quote name='I*Bleed*Purple' timestamp='1324341601' post='914265']
Here's a few more:

-Any of our corners not named Webb get abused.

-Joe Flacco isn't "the" guy. I've been a huge supporter of him until now. I'm not saying he is a BAD QB, I'm just saying he doesn't have the "it" factor. He's average to above average. I was hoping he would make that jump to "Elite", but I think after 4 years it is safe to assume he won't make that leap at all. Cam might be a part of it, but I simply can't ignore the facts. Cam doesn't under- and overthrow his receivers.
-Ray Lewis. As much as I'm gonna get blasted for this...he just isn't a 3 down back anymore. His speed is fading fast. I love him for everything he did for this organization and this city, but I believe his age has finally caught up with him.

I know most of you will take offense, but I'm sorry. I've finally taken off the purple shades, and that's how I see it. It doesn't mean that I don't think we are a good team, but we aren't ready for the Superbowl.
[/quote]
I keep saying this because I believe it. QBs aren't fuly developed and in and out of their prime after four years. That's not me wearing shades. That's just how it is.

Brady, Brees, Ben and other great QBs didn't have consistent 4,000 yard seasons that early. Ryan and Sanchez haven't thrown for 4,000 yards yet, although Ryan looks to be on the way this year. Many have pointed out how Flaccos numbers in his first 3-4 seasons are comparable to those other guys first 4. And while Brady and Ben got SBs each in their second years in the league, Joe hasn't held us back nearly as much as the pundits want us to believe, and you don't get rid of a guy who is slowly but very surely attaining the Steelers' number, I mean we got them twice this year with him at QB, and he led us 92 yards as we all know. You don't get rid of a guy with that potential. That's something to take seriously. And just because he has missed quite a lot of throws this season, doesn't mean he always will and he won't get better. In fact, I heard people complain about Romos accuracy over the last few seasons up until this season, but this seems to be his breakout year.

[bmore187]

Flacco this season.......18 TDs 17 giveaways.......terrible

[RavensAllTheWay]

True but he has 17 TD passes to 11 INTs. As long as he stops fumbling, the turnovers will come less and less.

[RavensAllTheWay]

If it's not our year in the AFC, who's is it?

[ravensfan520]

[quote name='frozen joe flacco fan' timestamp='1324350042' post='914812']
You're all wrong! Please don't insult my intelligence. Joe Flacco didn't miss a chip shot field goal that took the wind out of our sails. Joe Flacco is much better than the 14 year journeyman QB who guided us to our 1st SB victory. Joe Flacco threaded the needle through double coverage on his 1st TD pass last night. Joe Flacco wasn't playing Corner Back, was he? Jimmy Smith will be a fine CB in time but it will not happen overnight and he was burned repeatedly last night. The Ravens should have brought in a bona fide CB as soon as Dominque proved he wasn't healthy. The Chargers had something we lacked --- a solid game plan. Their goal was to stop two players and they did it effectively --- they stopped Ray Rice and Terrell Suggs. That was the ball game, folks!!!! When that happens, others on the team need to step up and make plays. Our offense and defense are too dependent on two players. Sad but true. I was totally unimpressed with Lee Evans and Anquan Boldin. Ask yourself this ---- Why was Joe Flacco able to complete passes last year to two "Go To" receivers named Heap and Mason? Could it be that they ran better routes and found seams in the defense/ Who is Joe Flacco's "Go To" receiver this year? Is it a rookie wide receiver, named Smith? As I used to tell my youth football team players, "never assume your teammate will make the tackle; he might not." If it is to be, it is up to me. Those are ten of the shortest but most important words in the English language. Cundiff has no business playing with a left calf injury. Its up to the coaches to know that. Joe's performance last night was lackluster but it wasn't entirely his fault. The Chargers were a desperate team last night and there is nothing more dangerous than a desperate team. Maybe the Ravens organization will wake up and take note of some of their fans' comments. Notwithstanding the above, I still believe we are going Indianapolis. This loss may have been a god send and was definitely a wake up call. Go Ravens!!!
[/quote]

So who's fault was the 2 int... and the underthrown ball to rice and Evans that should have been picked... is that the coaches fault... whose fault for the completion percentage he has this year... I just don't trust that Flacco will ever become a better than average qb... he doesn't have the it factor that you need to lead a superbowl caliber team... against the chargers our defense was horrible but our offense didn't do anything either... I have never been a Flacco fan... he may be tall, have a strong arm, but an offense can't win on that alone... it starts with the the qb and every elite team in football has a a qb that performs when it matters and performs against all odds. We don't have one... you can't always blame the offensive cordinators if they were the total reason for success wouldn't all the qb's under McDaniel be as good as Tom Brady and have winning seasons every year... or Mike Martz or what about the Browns... shouldn't McCoy be playing like Favre... he's not the coach but your can't say his hands not dipping in the cookie jar. sometimes and I think more than not its the players responsibility to perform and the coaches are only guides to get them there its up to them to make it work... they are professionals... but Flacco has to prove me wrong by leading an offense into the superbowl and or winning it before I change my mind. We made it this far on a top teir defense and running game every year we just need that qb that can get us over the hump.

[OUravensfan]

And the question to all the Flacco haters, who should we get instead. Oh and keep in mind that QB may take a year to learn the system, find a rhythm with our receivers. And what if that guy can't get it done, that's like a 3 or 4 year setback. Let's take the first step, drop Cam after this season and see if Flacco does what Brees and Rivers did without Cam. We still need to get him a big play receiver that is big, tall and physical. Look at Dalton, all he does is lob the ball up to Green and Green catches it. Joe hasn't had that luxury, instead we are 4th in the league in drops.

[Mahatma_Sloth]

[quote name='Militant X 1' timestamp='1324421149' post='916786']

we said that with the titans...
we said that with the jaguars...
we said that with the seahawks...

and now...saying it with the chargers? to me..that is unacceptable! all of these [i]"it's just one game"[/i] statements have added up to 4 games. can this team bounce back? we'll see the next 2 games won't we?

~Mili
[/quote]
lol jesus christ man calm down 10-4 is not bad at all even though you will only accept 16-0.... wow

we were 10-6 the year we won the superbowl with an o that doesnt even compare to this one now

now relax, your boys are tryin hard

[Mahatma_Sloth]

ppl should nitpick more on this thread.... really

its not like we are still setting franchise records with all the ppl u f'ers hate

waaaaa i hate cam i hate flacco i hate harbs waaaa 10-4 and our 4th consecutive playoff birth is not good enough for me waaaa i wanted 16-0 and first seed then maybe i would have a shred of faith in my team.... but not cam waaaaaa

[frozen joe flacco fan]

Based on my view, I would say the 2nd interception was Joe's fault. I'm not sure about the two consecutive passes to Lee Evans. He does not appear to have the speed that he is supposed to have. He is an unproven WR in Baltimore. What he did in the past in Buffalo doesn't count. Yesterday is history and tomorrow is a mystery. He is the one who needs to prove himself, not Joe. Joe has proven he 's a winner. No QB in the history of the NFL has won more games in his 1st 4 years than Joe Flacco. He's tied with Matt Ryan with 42 victories. Dropped passes in critical situations have killed a lot of our long drives this year and poor red zone efficiency due to predictable play calling. I don't see Joe calling his own plays. I think we'd be better off if he did. I appreciate your honesty but it is patently obvious you are not a Joe Flacco fan. You probably will never be a Flacco fan even after he takes us to the Super Bowl this year. IMHO, Joe Flacco is the most underrated QB in the NFL. He is not in the elite class [u][b]yet[/b][/u] but is clearly one of the top ten QBs in the league based on his track record of winning. Only 12 starting QBs make it to the playoffs each year and Joe will be one of them again this year. Who else will make it? Some pretty good QBs like Sanchez, Ryan, Rivers, Tebow, Palmer, Vick, Romo, Freeman, Newton, Fitzpatrick, Orton, Stafford, Hasselbeck and both of Archie Manning's boys will not make it. Joe Flacco has the ability to lead us to The Promised Land if our coaching staff develops winning game plans and if his receivers get separation and hold onto the balls. We have gotten as far as we have with a good, solid defense and a vastly improved offense.

Brian Billick would love to be the OC for the Ravens right now and to call the plays. He was known as an offensive genius and guided us to a SB victory w/o a great QB with all due respect to Trent Dilfer. Oh yeah! He also had Kyle Boller. Remember Offense sells tickets, Defense wins games and Coaches win championships. Good luck, Coach Harbaugh! The buck stops here on your desk!!! There is no such thing as the status quo in any business and Pro Football is a business. An organization is either getting better or getting worse. I think the Ravens are getting better. I cannot explain some of our losses to less talented teams but there are no perfect teams in the league. It does seem that we play our best football against teams we know better like our Division foes and teams with better records. I think it has to do with a lack of preparation against the teams we don't play every year and emotional letdowns. We'll see!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[I*Bleed*Purple]

[quote name='Mahatma_Sloth' timestamp='1324454425' post='917142']
ppl should nitpick more on this thread.... really

its not like we are still setting franchise records with all the ppl u f'ers hate

waaaaa i hate cam i hate flacco i hate harbs waaaa 10-4 and our 4th consecutive playoff birth is not good enough for me waaaa i wanted 16-0 and first seed then maybe i would have a shred of faith in my team.... but not cam waaaaaa
[/quote]

Wow, that was constructive and really added to the conversation/debate!
I don't think people are upset that we have 4 losses. I think we are upset at who we lost to. Tennessee just flat out beat us. Maybe you could make the same argument for this last game. But those other 2 games....SERIOUSLY?!?! We are upset because this team is too inconsistent to be 13-1 or 12-2 like they SHOULD be at this point.
That being said, in reference to the comments and doubts I expressed concerning Flacco earlier in the thread, I would really like to give him a year, maybe two WITHOUT Cam Cameron. I guess we'll just have to see what happens.

[PurpleCorsair]

[quote name='Mahatma_Sloth' timestamp='1324454029' post='917141']
lol jesus christ man calm down 10-4 is not bad at all even though you will only accept 16-0.... wow

we were 10-6 the year we won the superbowl with an o that doesnt even compare to this one now

now relax, your boys are tryin hard
[/quote]

Uh...the 2000 Ravens were a 12-4 wildcard...

[SuggsPackage]

[quote name='Mahatma_Sloth' timestamp='1324454425' post='917142']
ppl should nitpick more on this thread.... really

its not like we are still setting franchise records with all the ppl u f'ers hate

waaaaa i hate cam i hate flacco i hate harbs waaaa 10-4 and our 4th consecutive playoff birth is not good enough for me waaaa i wanted 16-0 and first seed then maybe i would have a shred of faith in my team.... but not cam waaaaaa
[/quote]
Hahah thank you for this, that was awesome.

[Guest RBates]

[quote name='Romo Ravens' timestamp='1324426954' post='916912']

He's extremely inconsistent this year, but I'm blaming the shortened offseason and the worst OC in the league (in my opinion). I don't know why he's turning the ball over so much and making stupid throws like he did in San Diego. This whole season has just been weird.
[/quote]
I know he has the potential im just not seeing it. He turns over the football way to much for my taste. Minus that though, he is a beast.

[Guest RBates]

[quote name='ravensdfan' timestamp='1324426524' post='916904']

Well LOL @ both of you. Now, some might over praise Flacco I'll give you that. However, if he was all this bad as you two would like to have everyone believe, we would not have made the playoffs every single solitary year since he became our QB. I don't know if you noticed, but our D has not been the immovable object it once used to be over the last 3 years, so don't even use that excuse. Has it been good? Yes. Stifling? Nope. It has improved this season (well, except for a few performances here and there) but it has not been a D that can be lived on.

I guess some people just have either short memories or will just hate on any QB that isn't the type of QB they personally would like to see. We are lucky to have Joe Flacco @ the helm. He isn't a Tom Brady or an Aaron Rodgers. He might never be but you never know. Tom Brady would not survive the AFCN. Period. It is a different breed of QB we need here. Flacco is good for this team. And you don't need stats to prove that or a game here and there.

Playoffs every single solitary year since 2008. What's the common factor there? Flacco took over @ QB.
[/quote]
Look im down on Flacco right now, just like every fan should be at this point. The Man turns over the ball way to much. I don't care about making the playoffs riding a top five D every year. You are in denial about this guy, he has looked average at best all season long and i am still waiting for him to take that next step. On the bright side- he is saving us a ton of money on his contract, there is no way he should be looking for top dollar.

[Guest RBates]

[quote name='Romo Ravens' timestamp='1324426954' post='916912']

He's extremely inconsistent this year, but I'm blaming the shortened offseason and the worst OC in the league (in my opinion). I don't know why he's turning the ball over so much and making stupid throws like he did in San Diego. This whole season has just been weird.
[/quote]
I have to agree with you. Flacco is starting to scare me. He may be a liability at this point.

[cobrajet]

I agree with what you have said for the most part. I think basically you lost confidence after Sunday night and I think most of us did. That was a real butt whipping that San Diego put on us.

I think Billy is hurt though and it is affecting his game. There is no shame in that, players get hurt. Since his injury is clearly hurting his game, we should seriously look into bringing in another kicker. We can't afford to take any chances here, the missed field goals are costing us valuable field position.

[Guest RBates]

[quote name='1/28/01' timestamp='1324428066' post='916932']
Ha, you need to make up your mind. You were singing his praises all over this board for two weeks and now he is a game manager again. I am not saying hes great, stinks, can lead us to the SB, is a game manager or needs to be cut here. I just think people need to stick to what they say and not be so "flippy floppy". Its not a good look!!
[/quote]
You are right i was singing him praises. He has the tools to be awesome at QB no doubt. It's just every-time he gets the chance to show the world what i have been singing him praises about he chokes. Which makes me think that he is incapable of running this team. You have to be calm under the bright lights that is the mark of a good player. Flacco looks scared. Overthrowing RR wide open for an outlet pass in your fourth season with no pressure on you........cmon man. He turns over the football way to much 11 picks and 11 fumbles, he leads the league in fumbles. I have no patience watching him work out kinks in week 15. Why does he over scramble to get sacked? Stand in there and throw the ball! smh

[Militant X 1]

[quote name='Mahatma_Sloth' timestamp='1324454029' post='917141']
lol jesus christ man calm down 10-4 is not bad at all [u][b]even though you will only accept 16-0[/b][/u].... wow

we were 10-6 the year we won the superbowl with an o that doesnt even compare to this one now

now relax, your boys are tryin hard
[/quote]

smh!

~Mili

[Ravenslifer]

I'm sure the Giants were saying the same thing in 2007 when they walked into the playoffs with a guy who hadn't posed a qb rating above 80 his entire career.

[PuRock]

[quote name='Mahatma_Sloth' timestamp='1324454425' post='917142']
ppl should nitpick more on this thread.... really

its not like we are still setting franchise records with all the ppl u f'ers hate

waaaaa i hate cam i hate flacco i hate harbs waaaa 10-4 and our 4th consecutive playoff birth is not good enough for me waaaa i wanted 16-0 and first seed then maybe i would have a shred of faith in my team.... but not cam waaaaaa
[/quote]

Love it! I approve this message.

[frozen joe flacco fan]

You Flacco haters are all a bunch of fickle hypocrites!!!! You sing the team's praises when we win and you blame Joe Flacco when we lose. All Joe has done so far in his young career is to win 42 games in 4 years and the season isn't over --- that's not bad. All the other stats you Raven maniacs quote are meaningless because statistics are for losers. Tim Tebow completed 2 out of 8 passes in a game this year and won it because he's a gamer just like our QB. So why does Skip love Tim and hate Joe? Who knows? Stop the Skip Bayless nonsense talk and support Joe for a change! Assuming we win our next two games, our final record will be 12 -4. It will not be easy but I believe we will get it done. Quite frankly, our defense is not as good as it was in the SB year but our offense is better than it was then. Football is a team sport and this team hasn't played its best football yet. Aren't three of the four teams we lost to still in the hunt for the playoffs? Are you winners or whiners? Instead of complaining about Joe, buy a ticket to the Cincy Bungles game and cheer the Ravens on to victory. I absolutely despise the Steelers but I have to give the Steelers fans some credit for travelling the way they do.,

[PuRock]

[quote name='frozen joe flacco fan' timestamp='1324485594' post='917358']
You Flacco haters are all a bunch of fickle hypocrites!!!! You sing the team's praises when we win and you blame Joe Flacco when we lose. All Joe has done so far in his young career is to win[b] 42 games in 4 years and the season isn't over --- that's not bad.[/b] All the other stats you Raven maniacs quote are meaningless because statistics are for losers. Tim Tebow completed 2 out of 8 passes in a game this year and won it because he's a gamer just like our QB. So why does Skip love Tim and hate Joe? Who knows? Stop the Skip Bayless nonsense talk and support Joe for a change! Assuming we win our next two games, our final record will be 12 -4. It will not be easy but I believe we will get it done. Quite frankly, our defense is not as good as it was in the SB year but our offense is better than it was then. Football is a team sport and this team hasn't played its best football yet. Aren't three of the four teams we lost to still in the hunt for the playoffs? Are you winners or whiners? Instead of complaining about Joe, buy a ticket to the Cincy Bungles game and cheer the Ravens on to victory. I absolutely despise the Steelers but I have to give the Steelers fans some credit for travelling the way they do.,
[/quote]

And that's more wins than any other 4 span window in the Ravens history. It is pretty good considering our defense hasn't been as stellar either.

That's why I take the Harbs and Flacco criticism with a grain of salt. Its not them, its the fans expectations.

[frozen joe flacco fan]

Bingo!!!!

[Twistidfunk]

[quote name='frozen joe flacco fan' timestamp='1324485594' post='917358']
You Flacco haters are all a bunch of fickle hypocrites!!!! You sing the team's praises when we win and you blame Joe Flacco when we lose. All Joe has done so far in his young career is to win 42 games in 4 years and the season isn't over --- that's not bad. All the other stats you Raven maniacs quote are meaningless because statistics are for losers. Tim Tebow completed 2 out of 8 passes in a game this year and won it because he's a gamer just like our QB. So why does Skip love Tim and hate Joe? Who knows? Stop the Skip Bayless nonsense talk and support Joe for a change! Assuming we win our next two games, our final record will be 12 -4. It will not be easy but I believe we will get it done. Quite frankly, our defense is not as good as it was in the SB year but our offense is better than it was then. Football is a team sport and this team hasn't played its best football yet. Aren't three of the four teams we lost to still in the hunt for the playoffs? Are you winners or whiners? Instead of complaining about Joe, buy a ticket to the Cincy Bungles game and cheer the Ravens on to victory. I absolutely despise the [b]Steelers but I have to give the Steelers fans some credit for travelling the way they do[/b].,
[/quote]


they don't travel. They are already there. You see, in the 70's and into the 80's when US Steel went belly up people left the "rust belt" in droves. They then multiplied and christened all there youngin's with terrible towels. It is like a brainwashing cult. What you have 30-40 years later is 3 more generations of terrible towel waving fans that have nary a trace of association with the City of Pittsburgh.

5 years from now those fans will have no idea who Jerome Bettis was....

[frozen joe flacco fan]

Thanks for the feedback! Great observation!! It seems like you see a lot less of them at games in Baltimore though!!

[Jarvis Pittman]

For everyone saying we need an "elite" qb and that Flacco isn't the answer I have to ask you. What do those teams with elite qb's have in common? They're defense is not very good. Baltimore has a good defense because of one reason. The Ravens run the ball. They are a physical football team. Having a good run game brings in a good defense. Having a big passing game takes away from the physicality of the team. Flacco isn't Aaron Rodgers. He isn't Drew Brees. He isn't going to do what those qb's do. They like to score early and often because their defense can not be trusted. Flacco does what he needs to do to win. He has the most wins in the NFL since he came in the league and has now been able to make it to the playoffs four straight years. Aaron Rodgers didn't even win a playoff game before last year. Drew Brees hadn't done much before his Super Bowl run. It took Peyton Manning how many years to win a Super Bowl? Don't forget that he has the worst, yes worst, playoff win loss ratio in the league right now. Flacco has proven that he can put the team on his back and win some games. Just look at what happened in Pittsburgh this year. Does he make mistakes? Yes. Can he improve some parts of his game? Yes. You don't make it to the playoffs four straight years without having an "it" factor.

As for Cam Cameron, he is either really good sometimes, or really bad. If he can remember that the Ravens have one of the best backs in the league, things will go a lot better. He can't keep trying to air it out when it is obvious that the receivers arent getting separation. Let Rice be Rice and let Flacco do what he does best. Win games.

The defense has been pretty steady all year long, except this last effort against San Diego. One game out of 14 doesnt define a defense or a season. Jimmy will get better. This is Cary's first year starting too. They are going through some growing pains. Let's see how they bounce back this week and moving forward. Teams won't be able to chip Suggs as much as long as Williams and Smith show that they can bounce back and play great football.

Semper Fidelis

[Mahatma_Sloth]

[quote name='PurpleCorsair' timestamp='1324456512' post='917150']

Uh...the 2000 Ravens were a 12-4 wildcard...
[/quote]
cool so if we win out we will be 12-4.... good omen

[Mahatma_Sloth]

in 4 years Flacco has more wins than any qb ever except Ryan who is tied with him and some of you want to get rid of him and the oc?

[AsianRice]

4 reasons this is or isn't our year:

1) Fans
2) Fans
3) Fans
4) Fans