Will the offense be better or worse this year?

[JoeyFlex5]

We had Caldwell at the helm for the play offs, so in that regard it would be about the same.

Just a little more finely tuned.

i know exactly what you're saying and i agree, but... ive been saying since the day we traded Q that we will be fine without him, and as i said i think our offense might be as good as it was in the playoffs, but not better for the simple fact that Q was playing out of his mind, it will be light years better than it was in the regular season, but unless doss or thompson is way better than i expect(and i think doss is going to be AWESOME) then i dont know if we can SURPASS what we did in the playoffs, for the simple fact that we dont have that beast that will out man anyone in the league and wont be denied a reception. Q can be replaced but its not like we can upgrade over the presence he had on the field, i think we'll be able to match the playoff performance in alot of aspects, but not necessarily be better.

[ellicottraven]

Hey look, as much as we want to bemoan the trading of Boldin ( I was one that couldn't stop grieving at his loss initially too), I think this new crop of receivers are going to be more dynamic this year.

My gut tells me that Deonte will win the job of 2nd receiver and Pitta will play slot much like Boldin did last year... Throw in Jacoby on 4 WR sets and you have sliced the top off any defense there is out there. Couple that with Joe's arm and the rest will be a history repeating itself with Joe hoisting the Lombardi all over again!

[PolishRifle]

I think this is the most loaded we've been in our franchise. Normally i would be worried about how this team's chemistry will be considering there are so many new faces but all i'm hearing is positive things from Raven camp so we should be fine. You won't believe how good Joe can be with an offseason with Caldwell. we will definitely be better. Can't wait.

I am not worried at all about team chemistry. There are plenty of veterans like  Flacco, Suggs, Ngata or Rice, who know what a Ravens team feels and plays like. Not to mention, that it's Harbs, who in the end sets the tone for the team as the HC.

I like Lewis and Reed, who clearly were the stars on this team for a long time, but at some point we start giving them too much credit for the teams success. It wasn't until 2008 when we improved from being just a playoff team to a legitimate SB contender and that has much to do with Rice, Joe and most of all John Harbaugh (who still gets very little respect).

[CapoRocky]

Very few of us expect Flacco to continue the incredible run that he had in the playoffs (11 TDs and no INTs).  Still, I can see Flacco coming out and tearing up the league with his golden arm.  I'd much rather see a balanced running attack where teams dread Pierce coming into the game rather than look forward to a break from a steady diet of Rice.  Don't forget that the running game sets up the big pass plays. The big change will be the maturation of Smith and the steady improvement of the rookies.  Jones is the wildcard who can burn you deep or run one back for a touchdown. 

[Ravensfan23]

i know exactly what you're saying and i agree, but... ive been saying since the day we traded Q that we will be fine without him, and as i said i think our offense might be as good as it was in the playoffs, but not better for the simple fact that Q was playing out of his mind, it will be light years better than it was in the regular season, but unless doss or thompson is way better than i expect(and i think doss is going to be AWESOME) then i dont know if we can SURPASS what we did in the playoffs, for the simple fact that we dont have that beast that will out man anyone in the league and wont be denied a reception. Q can be replaced but its not like we can upgrade over the presence he had on the field, i think we'll be able to match the playoff performance in alot of aspects, but not necessarily be better.

 

But you have to realize that although he played great in the playoffs, Joe still only completed about 58% of his passes. There were atleast 3 times he missed Torrey wide open deep down field in the Denver game, so how much better would the offense had looked if Flacco completed say just 63%?

 

The why I think they will maintain and eventually surpass the playoff performing offense is because Caldwell will be a higher emphasis on using the short passing game to set up the deep passing game. That means higher completion percentages. That means those yards and point that were left on the field in the playoffs probably won't be now. Remember as good as the offense was, there were still long parts of games were the offense didn't seem to move. Also the entire 2nd half and overtime of Denver. It was a Peyton Manning turnover that gave the Ravens great positon at the 50 and 4 striaght runs to tie the game at 28. Then 70 yards on one play to JJ. Then the first half of the AFC Championship game the offense had trouble moving, and the second half of the Super Bowl, although I don't put that on the offenses shoulder much. Also I don't expect the offense to be unstoppable because you can't score every time. But they did look stagnant at times which wasn't good imo.

 

My point is, as good as the offense played in the playoffs, I actually think they were just straching the surface. It was still Cam's scheme for the most part and Caldwell just made do with it. Now it's the same system, but Caldwell has a better understanding of what his guys can do and what his QB does best. That's scary imo. I expect huge things from the offense this year. I think for some it's hard to wrap our heads around that the offense could be even better then the playoff version because we're not used to that type of offense, but sky's the limit imo.

[Ravensfan23]

Hey look, as much as we want to bemoan the trading of Boldin ( I was one that couldn't stop grieving at his loss initially too), I think this new crop of receivers are going to be more dynamic this year.

My gut tells me that Deonte will win the job of 2nd receiver and Pitta will play slot much like Boldin did last year... Throw in Jacoby on 4 WR sets and you have sliced the top off any defense there is out there. Couple that with Joe's arm and the rest will be a history repeating itself with Joe hoisting the Lombardi all over again!

 

I think we all have to understand that what made Boldin the MAN, doesn't necessarily have to be the role of others. Boldin's game was to out muscle guys for the ball. So that's what he did. He just didn't create much sepeartion and that was ok for him. However now the plays that are designed for quicker, shiftier guys to come open fast, they will imo. DT, Doss, Reed, and others have much more brust then Q does at this point. So I completely agree about the WRs being more dynamic.

 

As for Pitta, I honestly don't think his role chances from last year. I just think we'll see him targeted by Joe more. We actually ran quite a bit of 2TE last year, but Dickson was used more as the blocking TE and when he did get out into routes, he just wasn't targeted much. Now I think without Q, he will be targeted more. I don't think we'll have a true numbering system for our WRs. I think we'll have packages. I look at the Packers offense as a example of how things will be, but not exactly. The Ravens actually have one of the most versatile offenses in the NFL and I'm glad we finally have a OC who knows how to use it.

 

I think Torrey and Pitta will be the main 2 guys. But after that, you'll see a lot of guys lined up at WR and TE. There won't be a #1 or #2 imo. It'll just be, which weapon do we feel will attack this defense best.

[hawkprey]

i know exactly what you're saying and i agree, but... ive been saying since the day we traded Q that we will be fine without him, and as i said i think our offense might be as good as it was in the playoffs, but not better for the simple fact that Q was playing out of his mind, it will be light years better than it was in the regular season, but unless doss or thompson is way better than i expect(and i think doss is going to be AWESOME) then i dont know if we can SURPASS what we did in the playoffs, for the simple fact that we dont have that beast that will out man anyone in the league and wont be denied a reception. Q can be replaced but its not like we can upgrade over the presence he had on the field, i think we'll be able to match the playoff performance in alot of aspects, but not necessarily be better.

If we're talking about the offense as a whole, yes it can be as good as it was in the playoffs. The run game was exceptionally bad, averaging 3.9 yards/carry. It shouldn't be too tall a task to better that this regular season. The passing game was great, but it was also played in cold or windy weather 3/4ths of the time. And you generally see a larger crop of bad defenses during the regular season. So everyone doesn't have to be exactly as good to replicate that run. 

 

And for as good as Boldin was for us, people seem to forget that a lot of passes intended for him were dropped or batted away. We only remember the catches because they looked impressive by virtue of him not getting much separation.

[Alexir]

Tough to answer.

I think the running game will be sooo much better. Splitting carries between RR and BP. However, we don't know too much about who will be across from Torrey and Q 's resume speaks for itself. We will miss him.

Play calling will be better.

So, 2 upgrades and one "downgrade" makes me think slightly better or about the same

[usmccharles]

id like to see pitta just take over for boldin, with his skill set i think its easily possible for him.

[frangecko112]

Only four words are needed to answer this...

 

no more Cam Cameron

[jaege]

Three words; Caldwell over (the idiot)Cam.


How can it be anything but better?

[theFRANCHISE]

With the reigning Super Bowl MVP and a full season under new offensive guru Jim Caldwell, is there any doubt as to whether this offense will be better this year?

 

I mean, even a regression compared to their playoff run would be better over a season-long stretch than most teams in the regular season.

[CARavensFan]

Three words; Caldwell over (the idiot)Cam.


How can it be anything but better?

 

Technically that is 5 (including what is in the parenthesis) lol

[jaege]

Technically that is 5 (including what is in the parenthesis) lol

"the idiot" is a given, I just include it for completeness.

[callahan09]

Better than in the regular season, worse than the post-season (how could it not be, though, really).

[wayne]

If another WR steps up, our offense will easily be better b/c it's much faster with a whole off season to implement his philosophy in Caldwell.

[Ravenslifer]

Better... Caldwell is going to put players in the best possible situation to succeed, play to their strengths, and most importantly, adjust when needed.  You can't replace the big game play of Boldin, that's just who he is and not many players can do that, but you can take really good players like Doss, Thompson, Williams, Dickson, etc. and put them on the field in positions to succeed.

[WestminsterJim]

Hey, you older fans out there. Remember Lenny Moore? What you think of Ray Rice running more down the field routes a la Lenny Moore to make up for some of Boldin's lost productivity? 

[cobrajet]

As others have said, our defense should get us better field position and probably more time of possession.  I see that alone wearing down opposing defenses which will help out offense. I was not a Cam fan, so obviously I believe Caldwell will improve us offensively. I also believe Castillo will get the optimum out of our run game this season.

[PurpleCityLights]

Our offence will be better because we no longer have the " Master of disaster " as the teams OC.

[MTRavensFan]

Sure, Caldwell's an improvement, but it's stability on the OLine rather than last year's musical chairs that should help all of the other positions play better.

[HoldingCall]

I was sad when Boldin left but in reality, great QB and OC will make any WR looked good.  Our offense will rise this year with a different identity.......

I appreciate your enthusiasm but any great QB cannot make any WR look good. Without quality WRs the CBs and Safeties will ruin your Sunday.

[ravensdan]

I appreciate your enthusiasm but any great QB cannot make any WR look good. Without quality WRs the CBs and Safeties will ruin your Sunday.

 

 

Of course a great QB can make average receivers look good.  See Drew Brees - Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, Lance Moore, even Colston. 

[The Oakland Cathedral]

Of course a great QB can make average receivers look good. See Drew Brees - Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, Lance Moore, even Colston.

Colston is a very good WR in his own merit. A QB can make a WR's job easier but it's still up to the WR to catch the ball regardless of how good the QB is. Also, since when has Devery Henderson looked good?

[Militant X 1]

You can't deny that losing Q will have an impact on the offense.

 

However, Torrey Smith has another year of experience and he really showed flashes this past year. Pitta is also another year wiser. Jacoby is a burner, and the coaches have high hopes for Streeter and Doss.

 

RR is RR and Bernard Pierce looks beastly.

 

Joe looks confident under Jim Caldwell and the offensive line should continue to gel.

 

Do you think the offense will perform better or worse this season? What are your expectations for them, scoring or yardage per game wise?

 

the same thing was said about losing players like Mason and Heap and the offense done fine without them.  they will do the same without Boldin imo. 

 

~Mili

[Tornado700]

I don't know if the offense will be better. It should with a new coordinator. Our D will be better though. Can the Ravens repeat. Yes, I think so.

[ravensfan2430]

Caldwell alone makes the offense better. 

 

Boldin's production may be hard to replace, but Doss and Deonte look good so far. I'm not that worried.

I agree.. Caldwell, like Pagano, was as important to our offense/defense as almost any one players was...

[K-Dog]

WORSE !!!!!!!!!!
No Vonta.

 

I know I am being overly dramatic.  I know we will be fine.  Leach was one of my favorites and I am just bumming about it.

I will get over it...

[beanfigger]

WORSE !!!!!!!!!!
No Vonta.

 

I know I am being overly dramatic.  I know we will be fine.  Leach was one of my favorites and I am just bumming about it.

I will get over it...

 

I feel your pain.  I loved how great it felt every time he got the ball because it was pretty rare, and it often led to something positive.  I loved the bootleg pass to him off play action the other direction that always seemed to kick start our drives when we needed to get something going.  I know our rookie will be a great receiver, but I think we will lose a little of element of surprise.  Leach used to be wide open, and I doubt that happens as much with Juice.  On the bright side, Juice is an all around talent, and our production won't be downgraded significantly, if at all.  It's our heartstrings that are suffering after this move.

[GrimCoconut]

I feel your pain.  I loved how great it felt every time he got the ball because it was pretty rare, and it often led to something positive.  I loved the bootleg pass to him off play action the other direction that always seemed to kick start our drives when we needed to get something going.  I know our rookie will be a great receiver, but I think we will lose a little of element of surprise.  Leach used to be wide open, and I doubt that happens as much with Juice.  On the bright side, Juice is an all around talent, and our production won't be downgraded significantly, if at all.  It's our heartstrings that are suffering after this move.

Yeah, I liked how we got Leach involved in those plays where he ran or he caught the ball. It was fun to see him truck a guy after catching or running the rock. Loved it. I'll definitely miss him.