Opinion: List of Ravens FO/Coaching moves that have historically hurt the francise...

[SecretAgentMan]

My point was, that you're wrong by saying that Boldin is a top 10 WR. You are putting him among players like Calvin Johnson, when you do that. That's not me putting words into your mouth.

 

Calvin Johnson

Brandon Marshall

Greg Jennings

Dez Bryant

Victor Cruz

DeSean Jackson

Vincent Jackson

Steve Smith

Julio Jones

Roddy White

 

Those are all WR, who are better than Boldin in no specific order and I haven't left the NFC yet. How is he a top 10 receiver?

I'll happily add to this

Demaryius Thomas

Percy Harvin (even with the injuries)

 AJ Green

Hakeem Nicks(even with the injuries)

Even his own injured teammate Micheal Crabtree

[PolishRifle]

I usually hate everything Preston says, and while I don't agree with everything in this article, I thought it was a pretty good one from him:

 

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bs-sp-preston-ravens-column-0910-20130909,0,5068052,full.column

 

I'm not from Baltimore, but I did make the mistake of reading a couple of his articles and Preston telling other people to have patience with the team is kind of ridiculous.

[RavensFanMvp]

I'll happily add to this

Demaryius Thomas

Percy Harvin (even with the injuries)

 AJ Green

Hakeem Nicks(even with the injuries)

Even his own injured teammate Micheal Crabtree

 

I think you could argue that Q is better than Steve Smith or Dez Bryant. And just because one person have a player in the top 10 and another don't, doesn't make either guy right or wrong.

Case in point... Some people have Joe as a top 10 QB, others don't. Who is right and who is wrong?

Bottomline, someone saying Q could be a top 10 WR isn't that far of a stretch. He has top 10 talent.

[rmw10]

I'm not from Baltimore, but I did make the mistake of reading a couple of his articles and Preston telling other people to have patience with the team is kind of ridiculous.

 

Yeah it's definitely contradictory to what Preston has said in the past, but I do think this was a nice piece by him for the most part.

[SecretAgentMan]

I'll happily add to this

Demaryius Thomas

Percy Harvin (even with the injuries)

 AJ Green

Hakeem Nicks(even with the injuries)

Even his own injured teammate Micheal Crabtree

Let's add more

Ex Teammate Larry Fitzgerald

Andre Johnson

Reggie Wayne

Randall Cobb

A healthy Sidney Rice

[RavensFanMvp]

Yeah it's definitely contradictory to what Preston has said in the past, but I do think this was a nice piece by him for the most part.

 

I stop reading Preston articles when he said that Lee Evans was a cancer in the lockeroom with the Bills. Then when someone pointed out that Evans was considered a well respected player in Buffalo, his only reply was, "I said that cause all WR are divas", or something to that effect. :34853_doh:

[rmw10]

For all of those criticizing the FO, would you rather be the Raiders or Cowboys? Be thankful for what you have. Not everything can be perfect.

[jaege]

I think you also have to include the fact that we seemingly had Boldin's replacements in house in Pitta and Doss.  Obviously Pitta got hurt, and I don't think anyone would have predicted Doss to play as poorly as he did.  It was a risk that seemed fool proof, but just didn't work out.

Half the fans here were predicting that Doss would play that badly. Look at any Doss thread.

[TwinRivers]

Not hiring back Hue Jackson and making him offensive coordinator.

[jaege]

Well I will give credit where credit is due... You aren't one of these cats that where the purple shades all day long Grim. I can respect that... And as far as giving the young guys a chance, I think it's a certain way of going about doing it. You don't just trade away your best WR and say here you go young man, the job is all yours.

Had they got rid of Jacoby, instead of Q, they caould have easily handed the 3rd WR spot to a young guy and see what he can do. Then if he excel in the 3rd receiver role, only then can you start thinking about getting rid of someone that's in front of him on the depht chart.

Huge mistake getting rid of Boldin, although I think our offense will still be efficient. Maybe not a top 5 offense had we kept Q, but still good.

That makes sense. Sure the Boldin trade looked and still looks like a bad decision. But weigh all the bad ones against the good ones and I think you will agree that the FO has been in the black overall for at least the last five seasons. Mistakes get made. No one claimed Ozzie was perfect, just far better than average. Remember, rings don't lie and Oz has two of them, working with the FO of the ravens.

[TwinRivers]

How many teams have won the Super Bowl without Anquan Boldin? Many.

[GrimCoconut]

Not hiring back Hue Jackson and making him offensive coordinator.

I can get behind this. I do wish Hue Jackson was still here.

[PuRock]

Yeah, I mean, I'm not trying to be a jerk or act holier than thou but some of the things I've read have led me to seriously question some people's sobriety. Elam's a bust, fire Ozzie, Harbaugh ruined the team, Boldin being discussed almost like he's Megatron, fire Dean Pees, Caldwell can't call well, Jerry Rosburg is to blame for Jacoby Jones getting hurt--I could keep going if I tried.

We're really jumping off the cliff here. I'll never fault someone for making a logical claim like Boldin having an awesome game and how we miss his production without Pitta. That's legit. Huff has some serious criticism but while even I was quick to throw him under the bus I'll understand if the coaches decide to keep trying him out there.

We're a patient organization. From Steve to Ozzie down to John. That's how we do business. It's going to irritate some people but I'm surprised that any fan of this football team would be surprised by our activity or lack thereof thus far. We're operating as we always have in years past.

If we're still struggling into week 5 I might be worried. There's a lot that goes into success in this league. It's not just skill and talent. A big part of luck is involved here and health.

People need to take themselves off of suicide watch. No need to stress out this much over football in week 1 of the regular season against a terrific QB with an awesome OL and some amazing WR who clearly took us by surprise with an awesome TE.

 

Just wanted to say, well put Grim.  Sadly, I think we are being trolled and can't compete against Boldintron and Cary Island.

 

It's one of those weeks where nothing goes right and things just add ammo.  But this team has a history of being one step ahead, the results may not be quickly realized.   

 

I'd still cut Boldin because it helps us more than just this one year, and helps us re-tool on the fly.  Sadly, in a day of twitter, ADD, etc, people can only focus on what's happening right now.  Forget that this team has a successful track record.  

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

Have we had an insanely large influx of people that just don't understand football? I'm used to the doom and gloom after a loss but this is going to another level. There are a lot of new posters that are just going crazy, and I'm pretty sure that's rubbed off on some of the veteran posters as well. It's pretty ridiculous.

I thinking that bc of the Super Bowl we've had an influx of bandwagoners who don't understand football and especially this team, as well as trolls who are simply here to spew irrationality and to stir the pot.

I'm all for everyone having their opinion and being able to share it, but if ppl are seriously saying this is a poorly run organization or that anyone should be fired bc of this one game - I can only assume they're either insane, purposely trying to be annoying and rub ppl the wrong way, or plain stupid.

For those who truly think this organization has been poorly run - are you ok with giving the Super Bowl win back? Bc we clearly didn't deserve it.

Those of you who feel that way. THIS IS NOT FANTASY FOOTBALL. Rarely does the "best team" win the Super Bowl. If it was all about week 1 performance why do they even play the next 15 games.

Why cheer for a team if you hate the way the team is run? Why root for things to go wrong just to say "I was right"?

Why does Peyton only have 1 Super Bowl? Why hasn't Brady won it in a long time? Why does Eli have more rings than Peyton?

All of you downers, I guarantee you also thought the season was over after the Denver game last year, and gave up on the team with all the injuries and performances like against Houston.

Not being overly optimistic is fine. Being "realistic" if your negative thoughts are factually based is fine. Downright bashing this team with no basis in reality is just stupid. You don't deserve to root for this team - you throw em away after a loss, yet you were probably front and center bragging about the bowl win and how big of a fan you are.

This 24 hour news cycle is ridiculous. There's a reason even the experts can never guess right - bc there's no way to know what will happen. All you can know is that we've been the most stable franchise for the past 5 years. We've been one of the most successful franchise since our inception. We've won a Super Bowl twice in 17 years while there's team who've been around for 50 and don't have even 1.

It's ok to point out a mistake, everyone makes them, Ozzie included. But don't sit here and act like you know better than the man - there's a reason the closest you'll ever be to an NFL FO is your lame fantasy draft.

Sports were always great bc of pride in your city and colors, loyalty, team work, discipline and hard work. And a majority of these boards understood that and projected it. Ppl disagreed but at the end of the there was always a common love and passion for the team.

Now it's more about drama - a bunch of little girls hoping that Kelly clarkson gets voted off so their favorite clay Aiken who they picked to win can move on to the next round.

Rep your team and be PROUD OF THEM (especially after a friggen Super Bowl which were darn LUCKY these men won for us) or go cheer for the cowboys - or better yet turn on the bachelorette or something. That should be enough drama for you all to get your fill.

Those of you who this is not in reference to - you know who you are.

[RavensFanMvp]

That makes sense. Sure the Boldin trade looked and still looks like a bad decision. But weigh all the bad ones against the good ones and I think you will agree that the FO has been in the black overall for at least the last five seasons. Mistakes get made. No one claimed Ozzie was perfect, just far better than average. Remember, rings don't lie and Oz has two of them, working with the FO of the ravens.

 

Oh no doubt... I stated that the FO rarely make huge mistakes in my 1st post in this thread... But guys getting offended that people are criticizing the FO tickles me... Look at the title of the thread... It's a criticize the front office type thread.

Regardless of popular beliefs, the front office is not above criticism...

[RavensFanMvp]

How many teams have won the Super Bowl without Anquan Boldin? Many.

 

How many teams have won the Super Bowl with bad receivers? Not many :34853_shakehead:

[TwinRivers]

_{I watched Ed Dickson play like a veteran in his rookie season. Others noticed him too. I work in DC and a few Skins fans said as a receiver he looked better than Heap at that time. He has it in him and apparently has to man up and accept his role. He definitely has it in him.}

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[beanfigger]

How many teams have won the Super Bowl with bad receivers? Not many :34853_shakehead:

 

I don't think our team has decidedly worse receivers than the 2000 Ravens, the 3 Patriot title teams, the Bucs team that won... That's 5 since 2000 off the top of my head.

[TwinRivers]

How many teams have won the Super Bowl with bad receivers? Not many :34853_shakehead:

True but I'd say losing a brilliant tight end as well as a #2 receiver who happens to be a top return man hurt more. Just my opinion.

[jimjim5]

I thinking that bc of the Super Bowl we've had an influx of bandwagoners who don't understand football and especially this team, as well as trolls who are simply here to spew irrationality and to stir the pot.

I'm all for everyone having their opinion and being able to share it, but if ppl are seriously saying this is a poorly run organization or that anyone should be fired bc of this one game - I can only assume they're either insane, purposely trying to be annoying and rub ppl the wrong way, or plain stupid.

For those who truly think this organization has been poorly run - are you ok with giving the Super Bowl win back? Bc we clearly didn't deserve it.

Those of you who feel that way. THIS IS NOT FANTASY FOOTBALL. Rarely does the "best team" win the Super Bowl. If it was all about week 1 performance why do they even play the next 15 games.

Why cheer for a team if you hate the way the team is run? Why root for things to go wrong just to say "I was right"?

Why does Peyton only have 1 Super Bowl? Why hasn't Brady won it in a long time? Why does Eli have more rings than Peyton?

All of you downers, I guarantee you also thought the season was over after the Denver game last year, and gave up on the team with all the injuries and performances like against Houston.

Not being overly optimistic is fine. Being "realistic" if your negative thoughts are factually based is fine. Downright bashing this team with no basis in reality is just stupid. You don't deserve to root for this team - you throw em away after a loss, yet you were probably front and center bragging about the bowl win and how big of a fan you are.

This 24 hour news cycle is ridiculous. There's a reason even the experts can never guess right - bc there's no way to know what will happen. All you can know is that we've been the most stable franchise for the past 5 years. We've been one of the most successful franchise since our inception. We've won a Super Bowl twice in 17 years while there's team who've been around for 50 and don't have even 1.

It's ok to point out a mistake, everyone makes them, Ozzie included. But don't sit here and act like you know better than the man - there's a reason the closest you'll ever be to an NFL FO is your lame fantasy draft.

Sports were always great bc of pride in your city and colors, loyalty, team work, discipline and hard work. And a majority of these boards understood that and projected it. Ppl disagreed but at the end of the there was always a common love and passion for the team.

Now it's more about drama - a bunch of little girls hoping that Kelly clarkson gets voted off so their favorite clay Aiken who they picked to win can move on to the next round.

Rep your team and be PROUD OF THEM (especially after a friggen Super Bowl which were darn LUCKY these men won for us) or go cheer for the cowboys - or better yet turn on the bachelorette or something. That should be enough drama for you all to get your fill.

Those of you who this is not in reference to - you know who you are.

 

 

In all fairness, what would a message board be without some serious criticism of all aspects of the team? Just because one doesn't like another to post anything negative, anything perceived as negative, or criticize the team just because they won a SB last year doesn't make the criticizer wrong. It's his prerogative and personal opinion. This is nothing but an opinion board, right?

 

If the FO and team was assembled to perfection, we would have more Division, Lamar Hunt, and Lombardi Trophies. Period.

 

The real truth is the team, coaches, and FO learn as they go, just like you and I!

 

What qualifies any of the posters on here as Football gurus, including my self?  I can say I have played organized ball for 9 years up to college, but I don't study the pro game, because I am not a pro. You have no idea of all the posters knowledge. Dissent is not a bad thing at all!!!

[RavensFanMvp]

True but I'd say losing a brilliant tight end as well as a #2 receiver who happens to be a top return man hurt more. Just my opinion.

 

I don't think losing Pitta and JJ is worse than losing Boldin... JJ is easily replaceable on offense (not as a returner though).

But I will say losing Pitta was huge. I watched that game 3 times already and I came away with the same conclusion... The offense executed well. We could have put 40 up on them or maybe more. Joe had great pass protection, he made the right reads for the most part, the WR's and TE's got open, pretty much the entire game... They just dropped passes or Joe misfired on a few plays.

Had Pitta been on the field, we would have put more points on the board, because Pitta would have reeled in some of those passes, which could have changed the outcome of the game. Not to mention that would have opened things up for Torrey to go over the top of the D, because they would have to try and slow down the short to intermediate plays.

Joe hit 8 different receivers in the game, 7 of them had multiple catches. Joe spread the ball around and did work, just like he did during his playoff run last year. The O is not the problem. The game just got out of hand too quickly in the 3rd qtr and the offense had to play catch up.

[RavensFanMvp]

In all fairness, what would a message board be without some serious criticism of all aspects of the team? Just because one doesn't like another to post anything negative, anything perceived as negative, or criticize the team just because they won a SB last year doesn't make the criticizer wrong. It's his prerogative and personal opinion. This is nothing but an opinion board, right?

 

If the FO and team was assembled to perfection, we would have more Division, Lamar Hunt, and Lombardi Trophies. Period.

 

The real truth is the team, coaches, and FO learn as they go, just like you and I!

 

What qualifies any of the posters on here as Football gurus, including my self?  I can say I have played organized ball for 9 years up to college, but I don't study the pro game, because I am not a pro. You have no idea of all the posters knowledge. Dissent is not a bad thing at all!!!

 

Well said Jimjim, well said :190048:

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

Oh no doubt... I stated that the FO rarely make huge mistakes in my 1st post in this thread... But guys getting offended that people are criticizing the FO tickles me... Look at the title of the thread... It's a criticize the front office type thread.

Regardless of popular beliefs, the front office is not above criticism...

 

Criticizing a move or two is one thing... Claiming the organization is poorly run (when Ozzie & Co are the most frequently mentioned as being the best) is ridiculous.

 

For every bad move, there are 3-4 great ones you can point to. And I think the FO has a ring for each middle finger they could show to those who think they do a poor job.

 

EDIT: Pretty sure the job of a FO is to create a team that can compete for a title. And I'm pretty sure we've been the best team in that department for a while now. So regardless of a few bad moves, this FO IS THE BEST IN THE WORLD! Saying the best in the world is not good enough is just plain stupid.

 

Being the best is not enough, we need PERFECTION... lol.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

In all fairness, what would a message board be without some serious criticism of all aspects of the team? Just because one doesn't like another to post anything negative, anything perceived as negative, or criticize the team just because they won a SB last year doesn't make the criticizer wrong. It's his prerogative and personal opinion. This is nothing but an opinion board, right?

 

If the FO and team was assembled to perfection, we would have more Division, Lamar Hunt, and Lombardi Trophies. Period.

 

The real truth is the team, coaches, and FO learn as they go, just like you and I!

 

What qualifies any of the posters on here as Football gurus, including my self?  I can say I have played organized ball for 9 years up to college, but I don't study the pro game, because I am not a pro. You have no idea of all the posters knowledge. Dissent is not a bad thing at all!!!

 

 

Negativity is welcome... human nature is that people disagree.

 

But when, as you admit, people who are not pros claim to know better than the organization which is widely acclaimed as the BEST at its job... and not just acclaimed as such, the # of wins, playoff appearances, and being in a position to win the super bowl every year is proof as well... it just sound stupid.

 

Have they made mistakes? Sure. I don't agree with everything and I criticize the team regularly as well. But I am not going to sit here and act like my opinion is fact. No one in the FO should be fired, bc theyre the best group in football. Not just my opinion, most experts agree.

 

Theres a reason when writing a scholarly paper you have to cite credible sources, experts in a field.... bc without it your opinion has NO CREDIBILITY.

 

Saying this FO sucks bc I wouldn't have done this... and look they lost game 1 of the season and that's proof im right; or I bet they do bad this 1 year proves theyre awful - while ignoring 5 years of unrivaled excellence - is just stupid as well.

 

So criticize individual moves - fine. But going to extremes of saying 1 or 2 moves that weren't good in one persons opinion makes them terrible at what they do is not criticism... its ignorance.

 

EDIT: and the biggest problem is, the criticisms were NON-EXISTENT before the loss. everyones a genius after the fact... and when we're 10-6 rolling into the playoffs, all these posters criticizing will either still be criticizing bc they are trolls, or they'll shut up and start cheering and claiming to have been on board all along. and that's the main issue with it. Its a 24 hour cycle, they win a game, theyre amazng. they lose a game and they deserve to be canned - what idiots.. they lost bc of these terrible moves. But is it the bc of the terrible moves when they win? (which they will do plenty of this year btw)

[TwinRivers]

Let's get real. Every time we have a bad loss this kind of thread goes up and people define the franchise by it's deficiencies. There's nothing wrong. We had a bad game. Denver reeling after destroying us in the regular season then taking a very tough and totally unexpected loss in the playoffs and then to lose their season home opener would have been crushing. My point is they are a contender and can beat anybody on any given Sunday. Couple that with our injuries and this is what happens.

 Dan Dierdorf described our win over Denver in the playoffs as "This is the prettiest win I have EVER seen." Since when has the Ravens been put in that category?

 This is a long season and many things will change in its' course. Our young guys will learn and half way through he season you will see them jell as is always the case.

 

[jimjim5]

....

 

EDIT: and the biggest problem is, the criticisms were NON-EXISTENT before the loss. everyones a genius after the fact... and when we're 10-6 rolling into the playoffs, all these posters criticizing will either still be criticizing bc they are trolls, or they'll shut up and start cheering and claiming to have been on board all along. and that's the main issue with it. Its a 24 hour cycle, they win a game, theyre amazng. they lose a game and they deserve to be canned - what idiots.. they lost bc of these terrible moves. But is it the bc of the terrible moves when they win? (which they will do plenty of this year btw)

 

I think a lot of people were just holding their breath. They probably feel that this team was playoff primed and would keep rolling with certain choice roster moves. The roster gut made them uneasy.  For the record,  I trust the FO and coaches will fix the issues, but at what level will we compete?? 

 

We may be counting our lucky stars that the AFC North looks weak all-around this year. it will give us time to correct issues.

[BALTIMOREFLACCO]

We won the SUper Bowl last year.....when will we gain trust? 

[Ravenslifer]

I don't think our team has decidedly worse receivers than the 2000 Ravens, the 3 Patriot title teams, the Bucs team that won... That's 5 since 2000 off the top of my head.

Those types of defenses don't exist anymore. The Bucs allowed 12 points a game, the Ravens 10. I'm not saying we need to be an all-time great scoring offense to repeat, but those teams won by running the ball - that can't happen in today's NFL. Eventually we're going to be facing another situation like Denver, where we're going to have to score our way to victory, and those drops will kill us again.

And the one thing Brady had during all of those runs was 1 dependable possession receiver, whether it was Troy Brown or Deion Branch. Right now we have a bunch of guys who haven't yet proven they're capable of that - that might change by the end of the season, if Stoke holds up, or Marlon Brown steps up, or the best scenario, Dennis comes back. We aren't going to win running the ball, there is too much offensive firepower out there. We have to be able to score at least when we need it, and most importantly, someone is going to have to step up and be that guy Joe trusts to get a completion when all else fails. If we get that, I think we can make a postseason push.

[beanfigger]

Those types of defenses don't exist anymore. The Bucs allowed 12 points a game, the Ravens 10. I'm not saying we need to be an all-time great scoring offense to repeat, but those teams won by running the ball - that can't happen in today's NFL. Eventually we're going to be facing another situation like Denver, where we're going to have to score our way to victory, and those drops will kill us again.

And the one thing Brady had during all of those runs was 1 dependable possession receiver, whether it was Troy Brown or Deion Branch. Right now we have a bunch of guys who haven't yet proven they're capable of that - that might change by the end of the season, if Stoke holds up, or Marlon Brown steps up, or the best scenario, Dennis comes back. We aren't going to win running the ball, there is too much offensive firepower out there. We have to be able to score at least when we need it, and most importantly, someone is going to have to step up and be that guy Joe trusts to get a completion when all else fails. If we get that, I think we can make a postseason push.

 

That's a different argument then you were making.  You're now saying that you can't win NOW without a strong receiving corp.  That's different then saying it's never happened.  I am leaning more towards agreeing with your argument that the passing game is far more important than it ever has been, and a team must be able to win with that.  I disagree that our passing game is as dire as you say.  You didn't even mention Torrey Smith when you were looking for a receiver as reliable as Troy Brown.  He is easily on that level, and I think he is superior to that level.  Our running game struggled more than our passing game in both the preseason and against Denver, so I don't even think the discussion of winning with just a running game is even relevant.  I honestly believe our passing game will be good enough to win many games this year, including in the playoffs.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

I think a lot of people were just holding their breath. They probably feel that this team was playoff primed and would keep rolling with certain choice roster moves. The roster gut made them uneasy.  For the record,  I trust the FO and coaches will fix the issues, but at what level will we compete?? 

 

We may be counting our lucky stars that the AFC North looks weak all-around this year. it will give us time to correct issues.

 

I think some peoples expectations were way too high, and now have gone the complete opposite way. They know the names we acquired and expected us to come out of the gates dominate. WIth as much turnover as we saw in the offseason, its going to take time, and a good amount of it, before we realize the potential this team has.

 

I see us as a playoff team, and we can stay around .500 through the first 4 games we'll be in great shape. Its just going to take a while for the defense to click, for the receivers other than Torrey to learn the offense well enough to play with instinct, and for Joe to be on the same page as them.

 

Our long tenured players on offense are all learning a new scheme, the o-line are all learning new coverage and blocking schemes, and the defense is learning to gel with so many new pieces. It was never going to happen overnight, and we were always at a huge disadvantage going into game - just some chose to ignore how difficult of a transition this would be.

 

At the end of the day I truly believe the right moves were made and we will be a playoff team, and true contender at the end of the year. Its just going to take time to get there. I'd rather be at our best in December/January, then peaking right now.