Is Justin Boren A Good Option?

[RavensWin09]

all i know is we picked him up as an undrafted FA but i've been hearing his name pop up a few times. is he pretty good?

[Alexir]

Has potential, if we got to let's push him out of the nest to see if he can fly. He's better than Cousins lol

[izvoodoo]

Certainly for depth.

[Ravensfan23]

Boren has a lot of potential and he showed as much the preseason and limited time in the regular season. I wouldn't feel comfortable pushing him out of the nest just yet, but he's definitely quality depth.

If the Ravens can seal the deal with Mathis, it'll probably be a 3-4 deal placing him in his mid 30s. Boren could very well be strong replacement.

He's very similar to Yanda as far as playing style. Tough, nasty, block to the end of the whistle, a guy who will win more because of grit and determination, then skill and technique.

Another interesting guy is Cam's big brother Cecil Newton Jr. He's said to be a big physical center who has a good combination of athleticism and toughness. He's a guy who could be a perfect fit to either start or be a quality backup at center.

[BMORElegacy]

He's a very solid guard prospect. He fights with tenacity. I remember his helmet coming off on almost every play last preseason because he would just maul people. But like many of you have already said, I don't think he's ready to start just yet.

[BloodRaven]

Has similar physical tools to Jason Brown and Marshall Yanda, natural solid build and leverage, average athlete. I like his versatility but he's still unproven at this point.

[The Raven]

I see many people comparing him to Yanda, and I would echo that comparison. He plays with an absolute meanstreak. I've also heard his name mentioned as being a potential center. His problem is pass protection, but as far as run blocking goes, he is ready.

[BMORElegacy]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1331858112' post='1023751']
I see many people comparing him to Yanda, and I would echo that comparison. He plays with an absolute meanstreak. I've also heard his name mentioned as being a potential center. His problem is pass protection, but as far as run blocking goes, he is ready.
[/quote]
He's definitely built to play in the interior of the line. He's what I'd call solid lol

And I agree. He's ready to run block.

[Irish Raven]

Young determined mauler and he did himself a lot of favours last pre-season

Not ready to be declared a starter in the league yet but with a good pre-season he could certainly win a roster spot for himself and get bumped from the practice squad
I like him

[Militant X 1]

at first glance...

i thought the thread topic said; "it's just boring!" lol!

~Mili

[EdReedFTW]

[quote name='Alexir' timestamp='1331850626' post='1023623']
Has potential, if we got to let's push him out of the nest to see if he can fly. [b]He's better than Cousins[/b] lol
[/quote]

I have a ham in the fridge that pass blocks as well as cousins too. Possibly better.

[Purple Punishment]

My washing machine has faster feet than Cousins

[BloodRaven]

[quote name='Purple Punishment' timestamp='1331874652' post='1023905']
My washing machine has faster feet than Cousins
[/quote]

Stephen Hawking has better footwork than Cousins.

[izvoodoo]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1331876630' post='1023915']

Stephen Hawking has better footwork than Cousins.
[/quote]

Christopher reeve beat him with a swim move.

[Ravensfan23]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1331857387' post='1023745']Has similar physical tools to Jason Brown and Marshall Yanda, natural solid build and leverage, average athlete. I like his versatility but he's still unproven at this point.[/quote]

Yes he is unproven, but one of the biggest things I like about Harbs and his coaching staff is, they'll give an unproven guy a chance to show what he's got even when live bullets are flying.

You got guys like Ellerbe and McClain who went from undrafted to starter in their first and second years. You've got Albert Mac, who never even played ILB but was given a chance to start there last season. Cary Williams and Danny Gorrer who were given opportunities, reports are that Allen and Berry will be given opportunities to take the #2 RB spot.

So with that said, I wouldn't be surprised if Boren was given serious looks at LG, especially if we can't lock up Mathis.

[GrimCoconut]

[quote name='Ravensfan23' timestamp='1331903726' post='1023997']


Yes he is unproven, but one of the biggest things I like about Harbs and his coaching staff is, they'll give an unproven guy a chance to show what he's got even when live bullets are flying.

You got guys like Ellerbe and McClain who went from undrafted to starter in their first and second years. You've got Albert Mac, who never even played ILB but was given a chance to start there last season. Cary Williams and Danny Gorrer who were given opportunities, reports are that Allen and Berry will be given opportunities to take the #2 RB spot.

So with that said, I wouldn't be surprised if Boren was given serious looks at LG, especially if we can't lock up Mathis.
[/quote]
This is exactly how I feel. I feel that even if we don't sign Mathis we will be OK. I really like Boren & I think he has a lot of potential. We as fans have no idea how far he is in development like any other player on our team. Boren could be a secret weapon lol.

If we miss out on Mathis I am not opposed to giving Boren a chance. Then if he doesn't look ready get some veteran stopgap like we normally do.

[RavensWin09]

his toughness and energy was a given. he played at big blue and the horseshoe

[baltravens]

[quote name='GrimCoconut' timestamp='1331904352' post='1024003']
This is exactly how I feel. I feel that even if we don't sign Mathis we will be OK. I really like Boren & I think he has a lot of potential. We as fans have no idea how far he is in development like any other player on our team. Boren could be a secret weapon lol.

If we miss out on Mathis I am not opposed to giving Boren a chance. Then if he doesn't look ready get some veteran stopgap like we normally do.
[/quote]
I agree.
IMO Boren will be on the roster come the season opener at least backing someone up. I am excited too in seeing Mathis as a possible signee shoring up our interior offensive line. The real sore spot is relying on Birk because he lacks that push for a center he had in his younger days.

[The Raven]

I did some research on his scouting reports after college, and I'm less confident in his abilities. Obviously, that was in college though. The headlines were that he's not very mobile, he has issues sustaining blocks, and pass protection is bad. I also read that he is not good in getting a push in short yardage situations. Whether these things remain true or not is unknown, but in our blocking scheme those deficiencies would be exposed greatly.

[BloodRaven]

He had some severe conditioning issues at training camp, almost passing out at one point. I hope he's picked up his work ethic in the offseason because he could be asked to start.

[The Raven]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1332084652' post='1026567']
He had some severe conditioning issues at training camp, almost passing out at one point. I hope he's picked up his work ethic in the offseason because he could be asked to start.
[/quote]

He's strong and a good run blocker but as of now he's just not athletic enough or in shape.

[Ravensfan23]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1332085041' post='1026573']

He's strong and a good run blocker but as of now he's just not athletic enough or in shape.[/quote]

That's what offseason strength and conditioning programs are for. I know it seems like ages ago, but there wasn't a true offseason last year with the lockout. That really hurt the first and second year players, which made up a lot of the Ravens team last year.

So there is a chance that a guy like Boren can progress tremendously from what we saw last year. Now there is also the rule of thought that the Ravens pursued Mathis so aggressively because they don't really like what we have at currently.

One way or another I think its way to early for us to say if Boren is or isn't ready.

[The Raven]

[quote name='Ravensfan23' timestamp='1332182512' post='1027942']
That's what offseason strength and conditioning programs are for. I know it seems like ages ago, but there wasn't a true offseason last year with the lockout. That really hurt the first and second year players, which made up a lot of the Ravens team last year.

So there is a chance that a guy like Boren can progress tremendously from what we saw last year. Now there is also the rule of thought that the Ravens pursued Mathis so aggressively because they don't really like what we have at currently.

One way or another I think its way to early for us to say if Boren is or isn't ready.
[/quote]

This is very true, but his problems with athleticism and conditioning date back to college when he was on a strength and conditioning program. Also, there are gyms, facilities, and training programs all over the world and in the U.S. he could have went to during the lockout. The Baltimore Ravens training facility is not the only one he can use. I'm not ruling out that he can improve, because he most certainly can. But by looking at his history, I am uncertain.

[Ravensfan23]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1332188818' post='1028115']


This is very true, but his problems with athleticism and conditioning date back to college when he was on a strength and conditioning program. Also, there are gyms, facilities, and training programs all over the world and in the U.S. he could have went to during the lockout. The Baltimore Ravens training facility is not the only one he can use. I'm not ruling out that he can improve, because he most certainly can. But by looking at his history, I am uncertain.
[/quote]

All ol in college football are put on strength and conditioning programs, that isn't something that should be held against Boren imo.

I won't sit here and pretend like I followed Boren from Michigan to Ohio State to The Ravens, however from what I've gathered about Boren's years in college is that he never had any conditioning issues. From what I've read Boren was very durable. The conditioning issues came when Rich Rod started changing things, the new conditioning regimen was just the final straw in a long line of things that forced Boren to transfer.

As for his lack of athleticism, I don't think that's the issue, his consistency seemed to be more of an concern during college. In the preseason, Boren did a really good job of pulling and getting to the second level of the defense. He did a really good job in the run game but needed improved footwork in his pass blocking.

imo Boren definitely has what it takes to be a starting OG especially in the ZBS the Ravens adopted last season. Will he be a long term answer or a stop gap? That's a question that will be answered with his work ethic.

I'm not saying Boren will be a starter in September, but he will definitely be interesting to follow from April until final rosters are set.

Also another point on the conditioning thing, I can't see a undrafted free agent with work ethic concerns sticking around with this team. So for his stake, I can only hope he shows up in shape and ready to compete.

[Radinho84]

it is the same with boren as it was with williams and harper and all those guys. some guys in here thought they are the next big thing and look what happened.

i don´t say that he cannot be great. he had one year behind birk and now at least one more to learn...