Could This Potentially Be The Best Ravens Secondary Ever?

[Ravenslifer]

If I were to talk about the greatest secondary in Ravens history, 2 years come to mind: 2000 being the obvious one, and 2006 being the other choice. In 2000 we had Rod Woodson, C-Mac, Duane, and Kim Herring in the secondary. 2006 it was Ed, C-Mac, Samari Rolle pre-decline, and Landry. Herring and Landry were good those years, but I definitely think Pollard has them beat. Webb had an outstanding year last year, and I expect him to continue getting better. Jimmy I thought really came on as the year progressed, and I believe he will be a lot better with a full offseason. And Ed is Ed - as long as he's on the field, our secondary will always be dangerous no matter who else is out there. Not to mention, Cary had a great season last year and I expect it to continue, and I feel like we're so deep with Danny, Chykie, Asa, and even Considine and Cook if we need them. I hate looking ahead and making predictions, but given where our secondary was even 2-3 seasons ago, and where it's heading, I believe there's a chance we might not only boast the best secondary in the NFL someday, but the best in Ravens history. Thoughts?

[SecretAgentMan]

Your forgetting bout Asa

[GrimCoconut]

Yes, I believe it is.

Webb and Smith are future Pro Bowlers in my eyes. Williams has a lot of potential and I think he will be a damn good CB, though I am concerned he could be a one-year wonder and may have benefited from Pagano's schemes due to the aggressive pass rush we employed. I like Chykie Brown a lot and think he's talented and I want to see how he develops. A-Jax looks like he has some very good return ability and has good CB skills, too and he may be insurance in case we can't keep Cary. Gorrer--well, I really like him and he surprised me. Graham is a good special teamer.

[Ravenslifer]

[quote name='Mr. Irrelevant' timestamp='1335925280' post='1069557']
Your forgetting bout Asa
[/quote]

Fixed.

[RavensWin09]

yes and it only made me more confident during pats game. seldom did i see a pass to the Wr's. Jimmy's main problem is double moves. i believe his film study is helping a lot and i could see it on the field. he and webby are already better than 9/10 of the leagues duos at corner and they've only had a combined 3-4 years experience.

[rheebrosinc]

Best Ravens secondary ever? maybe, but they are on a great start. But what I do know is that the Ravens have the one best secondary in the NFL. Most of the players are young as well, which means they can only get better.

[1/28/01]

On paper? Yes!!!

[CalvinSmoke]

They have the potential to be extremely good but we'll see. Our secondary will be tested by different types of receiving options this year, and our D-coordinator will be kept very busy from week to week. One thing i like about our secondary is that they are very disciplined and balanced. They make tackles, Webb was actually leading our team in tackles for the first few games of the season.

[BloodRaven]

I hear Asa didn't surrender a TD in 3 years.

[hawkprey]

Pollard is an average strong safety. I'm pretty sure he was on the Texans secondary that was almost the worst in history. That said, strong safeties are more run coverage guys and not really a big part of the secondary, so yeah, we could have the best Ravens secondary yet. However, Ed needs to be somewhat healthy for most of year (instead of in 2009 or some of 2011 form), Jimmy needs to improve, and Cary needs to take the next step as well. I think those are reasonable expectations. I hope Ed really takes Thompson under his wing and Thompson proves to be his successor with little dropoff. Then our secondary can get better every year.

[gabefergy]

Pollard was a very good player for us last season. Yes, he was terrible on the Texans but he was used to his strengths here and not asked to do too much besides zone coverage and run support. He is the perfect fit on our team with Ed being versatile and able to cover so much ground.

[Yatagarasu]

If Ed Reed was in his prime and before the neck issue, then OMG. Don't even think about passing.

Sadly, Ed Reed is not his young self and Pollard is a great box safety that can lay hits and run support.

However, we do have three strong and young CBs in Webb, Williams, and Smith. Also, the depth behind the CBs is strong with Gorrer, Brown, Jackson, and Graham.

However, the depth behind the safeties is unproven.

However, this could be the deepest secondary ever.

[The Raven]

[quote name='BloodRaven' timestamp='1335930803' post='1069590']
I hear Asa didn't surrender a TD in 3 years.
[/quote]

Really? Think we have another [i]potential[/i] Lardarius Webb on our hands?

[BloodRaven]

[quote name='The Raven' timestamp='1336196130' post='1072403']
Really? Think we have another [i]potential[/i] Lardarius Webb on our hands?
[/quote]

He could be, he has more upside than Chykie Brown and has two things that are rare in a 3rd day CB:

1 Athleticism with great quickness out of breaks and closing speed.
2 Good instincts, he diagnoses and reacts on the ball fast.

He isn't as highly regarded because of concerns about his size (5'10" 191), unpolished fundamentals and the strength of competition he faced coming from a small school. Fun fact: He bench pressed 1 rep more than C Peter Konz.

[ellicottraven]

[quote name='Ravenslifer' timestamp='1335924696' post='1069552']
If I were to talk about the greatest secondary in Ravens history, 2 years come to mind: 2000 being the obvious one, and 2006 being the other choice. In 2000 we had Rod Woodson, C-Mac, Duane, and Kim Herring in the secondary. 2006 it was Ed, C-Mac, Samari Rolle pre-decline, and Landry. Herring and Landry were good those years, but I definitely think Pollard has them beat. Webb had an outstanding year last year, and I expect him to continue getting better. Jimmy I thought really came on as the year progressed, and I believe he will be a lot better with a full offseason. And Ed is Ed - as long as he's on the field, our secondary will always be dangerous no matter who else is out there. Not to mention, Cary had a great season last year and I expect it to continue, and I feel like we're so deep with Danny, Chykie, Asa, and even Considine and Cook if we need them. I hate looking ahead and making predictions, but given where our secondary was even 2-3 seasons ago, and where it's heading, I believe there's a chance we might not only boast the best secondary in the NFL someday, but the best in Ravens history. Thoughts?
[/quote]
You may be right on this one. On paper this looks like an incredible assembly of talent. A lot however depends on how well they communicate with each other on defense. I feel that communication overcomes a lot of talent deficiency, but in our case there is abundant talent so it could turn out to be an incredible secondary.

Another point to note is the loss of Suggs on the pass rush. Whether we step up and keep pressure on opposing QBs' will have a lot to do with the performance of our secondary. If QBs' have a lot of time to find targets, it does not matter how talented and good our secondary is, we will get passed on. All in all, I believe we have a great secondary!

[Ravenseconbeast]

Yes.

But the key is this : prevent injury

If Reed, Webb, Jimmy, Cary can all stay healthy, this can be the best secondary. Hope they do. With loss of suggs, we'll need all the help we can get

[Ravens Lover]

Not yet, I still go 2006 at this point, but it could easily become the best, there is so much potential with this group

[cursona pirate]

With suggs gone it will be even harder to become as good as 2000. Espically with all the rule changes to help the offense.

[edreedfromtheu]

If they stay healthy... ABSOLUTELY.

Reed still has it... it's just a matter of how motivated depending on if the offense finally starts to carry its weight.

Webb... amazing.

Cary Williams held his own last year, even being matched up on the other teams best receiver plenty of the time. The only question is... can he now do it when he actually has some expectations.

Jimmy Smith... horrible injury on the first play of the season. Came back later in the season to show why the Ravens drafted him. He doesn't look nearly as fluid as the other two corners... but he's definitely got the size to be a perfect stopper for those jump-ball type receivers.

And you always need that banger. The guy who will come up and pop a runner or a lead blocker. Bernard Pollard... perfect finishing touch. I still laugh at those who said Zbikowski should be starting over you last year. And even if the guy had no other skills... seeing him ruin the Patriots every year is just fine with me. The Ravens didn't win it all last year, but we can take pride in knowing Pollard made sure they didn't have a healthy Gronkowski for the Super Bowl!

[edreedfromtheu]

[quote name='Corvus Amplus' timestamp='1335938611' post='1069639']
If Ed Reed was in his prime and before the neck issue, then OMG. Don't even think about passing.

Sadly, Ed Reed is not his young self and Pollard is a great box safety that can lay hits and run support.

However, we do have three strong and young CBs in Webb, Williams, and Smith. Also, the depth behind the CBs is strong with Gorrer, Brown, Jackson, and Graham.

However, the depth behind the safeties is unproven.

However, this could be the deepest secondary ever.
[/quote]

I'm glad you brought up Gorrer. I love that guy, and just hope he gets some time on the field instead of letting another team get one of the Ravens huge steals. Love the potential of Gorrer!

[organizedchaos007]

yes, without a doubt. Webb is ridiculously good, Cary turned on the lights last year, but honestly, I saw that from him the preseason before last he made acouple plays and you looked at him like hmmmmm, kids got potential. Then you have Jimmy, who I think, is gonna have a HUGE year this year and take Cary's spot. Gorrer showed hes a very very good backup, and provides awesome depth. Bringing in Pollard IMO is one of the best free agent pickups I can remember. He has been a perfect addition to our secondary.

[PurpleReign92]

Cary,Danny and Asa need to grow into a roll for us the 2000 Ravens secondary already came established... I don't know how good these guys were in college but some college players show us what they have to offer but when your competing with guys in the National Football League it is a whole nother ball game!

[Militant X 1]

can we just watch "this" defense come into "their own" INSTEAD of always trying to compare them to previous Ravens defenses? just wondering!

~Mili

[cobrajet]

Webb is turning into a shut down corner. He could end up being the best CB in Ravens history. I was worried about him after that knee injury, but those fears were put to rest last year. Webb is my favorite "Young Raven." I have a feeling that Danny Gorrer is going to be an up and coming star.

[GrimCoconut]

Since it's on the subject, nobody has even mentioned Cary Williams signing his tender. Lol. I know it's not big news, but it's something.

I'm not so sure we will work out a long-term contract, though. From the article I read on BR.com, it sounds like we haven't had any discussions since we signed Webb and it seems like the talks have gone stale. I like Williams a lot, but I won't be surprised if he is gone next year or even traded this year. (Note: I don't think we DO trade him, just that I wouldn't be surprised and it's a testament to our depth more than anything). We are stacked at cornerback, and while I know the adage "you can never have enough corners" I can easily see us trade Williams for a pair of picks if the right team came knocking with the right deal.

I love our depth with Gorrer and Brown. While some may have forgotten, Brown showed a lot of promise last year in the preseason but never cracked the line-up. I still believe in him, though, and I believe we do have plans for him. I love our new addition of Jackson, as well as our special teams guy in Graham. Let's not talk about Smith and Webb.

Can't wait to see what this secondary does. They will need to be on their game because of the loss of Suggs. That's a big reason why I believe we will keep Williams unless a very, very good deal comes because we will need corners who can disrupt routes due a [i]possible[/i] loss of pass-rush.

[Gordo52]

I think it is.
Remember the Corey Ivy, Fabian Washington, Frank Walker days? .....We have it so good now.

[RavensDE]

It's so hard to seperate one unit from another. If we get pressure our secondary will look better. If we have coverage our pressure will look more efective. We have a tone of talent that has shown itself and we seem to get the most from our players lately but I have a few concerns.

Losing Pagano to Indy was big blow considering he had been the DB coach previously. That said we don't usually miss a beat with coaching changes.

We are thin at safety if something happend to Reed (god forbid) but I think we have the players to move around.

Wow those are my only real concerns. I should have just said "YES" all along. This looks like the best talent in the secondary we have ever seen on this team.

[RavensDE]

[quote name='Ravens<3' timestamp='1336435319' post='1073696']
I think it is.
Remember the Corey Ivy, Fabian Washington, Frank Walker days? .....We have it so good now.
[/quote]

Hey those guys were soldi Ravens. Okay Frank Walker was terrible, Corey Ivy had no speed, and Fabian Washington just couldn't stay consistent but they all played well at times. Frank took the flag when he was beat. Corey was physical and played better than himself. Fabian Washington looked like a great player for a while despite the fact that he couldn't tackle.

I'm in agreement that those days are over but I hate to throw our old players under the bus like that. We are in a great spot but this organization does a good job of using guys to the best of their ability and Ivy was a gamer. He'd have no place on this roster but he was a good player for us in the Nickel.

[Yatagarasu]

Well, we're going to find out how good his secondary is because we got a full schedule against some really pass happy teams.

NYG - Eli Manning with Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz
PHIL - Michael Vick with Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson
DAL - Tony Romo with Miles Austin and Dez Bryant
WAS - Robert Griffin III with Pierre Garcon and Santana Moss
PIT - Ben Roethlisberger with Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown
CIN - Andy Dalton with A.J. Green and Marvin Jones
DEN - Peyton Manning with Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker
KC - Matt Cassel with Dwyane Bowe and Jonathan Baldwin
OAK - Carson Palmer with Darrius Heyward-Bey and Denarius Moore
SD - Philip Rivers with Robert Meachem and Malcolm Floyd
NE - Tom Brady with Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd
HOU - Matt Schaub with Andre Johnson and Kevin Walter
CLE - Brandon Weeden with Greg Little and whoever

I feel confident with our current CBs.

Imagine if we had to fight against this schedule with Foxworth, Carr, Washington, Walker, and Ivy. It would've been a tough season.

I'm happy that we invested in Lardarius Webb, drafted Jimmy Smith, found Cary Williams, brought in Corey Graham, and groomed Danny Gorrer. Also, we got players like Chykie Brown and Asa Jackson, who have potential to be solid CBs. We're going to need all the CBs we can get to try to shut down these pass happy teams.

[usmccharles]

[url="http://rotoworld.com/player/nfl/4967/cary-williams"]http://rotoworld.com/player/nfl/4967/cary-williams[/url] hip surgery

This has me a little worried, i know he says no pain...but anytime theres surgery involved i get nervous.