Seven things we learned (offense and defense)

[HoldingCall]

You told the truth and got those negs, but a QB cannot do it alone. And if the offense doesn't improve immediately they are going to see more injuries on defense because the defense spends too much time on the field. Other than the wrs and Joe, who on offense broke a sweat? That offense received an easy paycheck for their game work this week.

[Sami84]

You told the truth and got those negs, but a QB cannot do it alone. And if the offense doesn't improve immediately they are going to see more injuries on defense because the defense spends too much time on the field. Other than the wrs and Joe, who on offense broke a sweat? That offense received an easy paycheck for their work this week.

im going to be frank here. if our running game and o line were competent, we would have won that ame vs buffalo easy. boldin is a good player, but the most important thing outside of a qb is the o line.guss what? its the worst in the league. 

[HoldingCall]

im going to be frank here. if our running game and o line were competent, we would have won that ame vs buffalo easy. boldin is a good player, but the most important thing outside of a qb is the o line.guss what? its the worst in the league.

Your statement is true. It is also true that, if Joe didn't have any interceptions or if Rice had caught the touchdown pass the team would have won. Your statement and those I added are a part of the game and a part of the results. That said, the OL is the number one problem.

[Guest RBates]

You told the truth and got those negs, but a QB cannot do it alone. And if the offense doesn't improve immediately they are going to see more injuries on defense because the defense spends too much time on the field. Other than the wrs and Joe, who on offense broke a sweat? That offense received an easy paycheck for their game work this week.

Oh I totally agree with you its not just on Flacco.  

 

But as Flacco, you have seen it happen in Pittsburgh and New York were Qb's take huge contracts and their team falls apart. I just wish he and his agent made a  contract that will guarantee he flourishes in his career in Baltimore.  Meaning, you have to pay his help.  The one thing that he could've done that would have cemented his legacy as the leader on this team and the QB of the future was come public and say no matter what Torrey, Anquan, Pitta, Rice stay put. 

 

With so much money invested in the QB, CB, D-line, RB  we can't make moves to help him, so he has to figure it out.  

[Sami84]

Oh I totally agree with you its not just on Flacco.  

 

But as Flacco, you have seen it happen in Pittsburgh and New York were Qb's take huge contracts and their team falls apart. I just wish he and his agent made a  contract that will guarantee he flourishes in his career in Baltimore.  Meaning, you have to pay his help.  The one thing that he could've done that would have cemented his legacy as the leader on this team and the QB of the future was come public and say no matter what Torrey, Anquan, Pitta, Rice stay put. 

 

With so much money invested in the QB, CB, D-line, RB  we can't make moves to help him, so he has to figure it out.  

when flacco said  he wanted to "stick it to the front office" i lost a lot of  respect for him. he isnt good enough totakeat much money and make a team lacking in  quality overcome the odds.

[Hardbaugh]

Flacco whined that he needed more autonomy.... Flacco complained that he was worth top dollar and got it.  Flacco got his guy in as OC.  Flacco got the keys to the offense, problem is he wrecked the car.  This man is trying so hard to be an elite quarterback. He lacks the awareness and field vision the greats do.  Being great isn't a pay check it's performance and I know the Flacco apologists here hate to hear it but Flacco is in way over his head and the team will suffer for it.

 

 

Flacco had two interceptions dropped and was throwing into double  and triple coverage all day.  Quality quarterbacks don't do that consistently.  Flacco is an average quarterback, nothing more.

 

Flacco demanded so much money that the team couldn't afford to help him with weapons needing to get their cap in order for future seasons. .  It's the chicken and the egg argument.

 

Sorry it's all on Flacco.  He talks a good game but unfortunately for him they play it and employ statisticians.

 

I'd love for Ozzie to see if there's any suckers out there that would give the Ravens a draft pick and move on from the front offices mistake.

 

All the talk about learning from the 2000 championship, they are in worse shape in coming seasons with the Flacco albatross contract hanging over them.

[Puntit]

...

 

...

Will Juice, Furstenberg and/or Mellette play at all this season?

 

...

Mellette will not play at all this season -- he is on IR, not able to return until next year. He's a stash. So that answer is easy. As for the other two, the coaches have not seen enough out of either thus far to think they will be an upgrade over who we are putting on the field.

 

Furstenberg had just enough talent that they thought he was worth working with on the practice squad, but didnt really shine enough that they were overly concerned about risking waiving him to get there. He's likely a multiple year development project, like Cary Williams was. Maybe he pans out in a few years, maybe not. But I wouldn't hold my breath on him ending up playing this year, barring numerous injuries.

 

Juice's problem is he is coming from an Ivy League system where the player size is much smaller and the pace is slower, so he's going to take some time to develop before he is NFL ready. His biggest ding is that during the preseason he was ineffective at blocking, so not a great answer at tight end. And as long as you have Leach, the best fullback in the NFL, there's no good reason to put Juice in at fullback.  I expect Juice will start getting used later in the season, but he's not likely to be an impact player this year.

[Hardbaugh]

.  The one thing that he could've done that would have cemented his legacy as the leader on this team and the QB of the future was come public and say no matter what Torrey, Anquan, Pitta, Rice stay put. 

 

 

See Tom Brady doing taking less than market value, now that's a leader.  That's a champion!   Flacco isn't even close to his level, yet he's paid more.  Look at what Brady is doing with his nonames. ......Winning.

[Puntit]

See Tom Brady doing taking less than market value, now that's a leader.  That's a champion!   Flacco isn't even close to his level, yet he's paid more.  Look at what Brady is doing with his nonames. ......Winning.

Its easy to turn down millions when you spouse pulls in a hundred times that.

 

And frankly since the team didn't reinvest the money he left on the table in receivers, letting Welker walk in favor of the cheaper and often injured Amendola, Brady got taken for a ride, big-time.

[Hardbaugh]

Its easy to turn down millions when you spouse pulls in a hundred times that.

 

 

 

 

Not really a valid argument when both quarterbacks will make many times more than they'll spend in their lifetime.

 

 

Joe asked to be paid like a great quarterback and the team caved.   He just doesn't have the talent to make people around him better. Like the greats do.  He's average.

[Sami84]

Not really a valid argument when both quarterbacks will make many times more than they'll spend in their lifetime.

 

 

Joe asked to be paid like a great quarterback and the team caved.   He just doesn't have the talent to make people around him better. Like the greats do.  He's average.

id say hes abve average with the ability to in moments make huge plays downfield. but thats it.

[Moderator 3]

See Tom Brady doing taking less than market value, now that's a leader. That's a champion! Flacco isn't even close to his level, yet he's paid more. Look at what Brady is doing with his nonames. ......Winning.

You need to read the terms of Brady's restructure. Not only did he not take less money, the new structure guarantees him more than before the restructure. The Pats just kicked the can down the road.

[Puntit]

Not really a valid argument when both quarterbacks will make many times more than they'll spend in their lifetime....

I think its a valid argument. Its easy to walk away from money after earning a lot, and having a lot. Joe hadn't earned a lot (in terms of the NFL) before he signed this contract. Brady didn't turn down a dime on his first big contract either. He is several contracts deep at this point. To make the fair comparison he would have to have agreed to take less on his FIRST big deal. He didn't. He got paid the going rate. Not really any more of a leader. Exactly the same. We will see what Joe does a few contracts down the line before we canonize Brady.

[NaveSenrag]

What's the deal with Dickson? The guy can't catch the ball unless there's 10 yards between him and the nearest defender. Isn't the point of being a TE to make contested catches?

[MrPlankton]

At the very least, I seriously hope Joe woke up and said "I'm never throwing to Ed Dickson ever again no matter what.".

 

And my ignore list is getting some good use around this time.

[Tank 92]

What's the deal with Dickson? The guy can't catch the ball unless there's 10 yards between him and the nearest defender. Isn't the point of being a TE to make contested catches?

 

 

Alligator arms. That's why he he is not the answer at TE.

[arnie_uk]

At the very least, I seriously hope Joe woke up and said "I'm never throwing to Ed Dickson ever again no matter what.".

And my ignore list is getting some good use around this time.

if he starts thinking like that we are in trouble because then we may as well play with 10

[757RavensFan]

We lost the game by not going for it on 4th down when we were down 17-23 in the 4th quarter on their goalline.

No we didn't. We came away w/ points on that series. The way the Offense was playing, what makes you think we would convert on a 4th and 5. Heck on 3rd and goal, Flacco tried to throw a back of the endzone pass to 5'-7" Ray Rice in double coverage. Plus the defense was holding the Bills to 3 and outs the entire 4th Qtr. The defense did their part, but in typical Ravens' fashion, there was ZERO offense production when it counted.

[ravensdfan]

See Tom Brady doing taking less than market value, now that's a leader.  That's a champion!   Flacco isn't even close to his level, yet he's paid more.  Look at what Brady is doing with his nonames. ......Winning.

 

lmao

 

he didn't take less. He RESTRUCTURED his already inflated money. He already got his big payday.

 

Flacco is only a $6 mil hit this season. His payday is NOT affecting paying anyone else.

 

So we pay Boldin his $6 mil for one season ....now we don't have Doom, Canty, Spears, probably not Stokely or Clark after Pitta goes down. Oh and let's not forget D. Smith who has shined for us. Nope you can throw them all out the window. And what does it get us? We'd still only have Boldin & Torrey who can catch a football.

 

If Brown and/or Thompson doesn't go out with injuries the game probably would have gone very differently in the 2nd half. We were actually beginning to get something going when we had Thompson/Torrey on the outside and Brown picking up the middle.

 

Our woes are not about money. That has nothing to do with it at all.

 

Where are your posts about Rice's ridiculous money? He certainly isn't earning a dime of that contract.

 

You're just a Flacco hater who only shows up when he has a bad game. Or even when Flacco has a good game but we lose because he could throw zero INTs and it would somehow still be his fault.

 

Flacco played a bad game, made some bad decisions but if you think Flacco is the problem with this team, then you know absolutely nothing about football.

[Militant X 1]

A lot of things were learned today.... So let's start off with things that are really obvious

 

1. Joe Flacco = This generation's Troy Aikman.

 

He's average in the regular season, and will put up some of the worst games at the worst moments. But he will win enough games to get us to the playoffs.

 

 

In the big game, he'll step up. But he will play down to his opponents

 

 

2. The running game absolutely sucks

 I mean, what the hell right.

      All Pro RB in Rice

      Tons of Promise with Pierce

      Best FB in the NFL with Leach.

 

How are we faltering?

the entire post was great but these jump out at me!

 

~Mili

[TSizzle00]

I learned that the Ravens have no weapons and what weapons they do have are injured. The Oline is swiss cheese too.

[ravensfan160]

How about something positive? I learned that Suggs is once again a beast. According to Hensley from ESPN he had 17 tackles, 1 sack, and 3 QB hits yesterday. He and Ngata both have huge cap figures next year. Suggs is earning his spot on the team next year. I can't say the same thing about Ngata. They ran straight at him all day long.

[NaveSenrag]

How about something positive? I learned that Suggs is once again a beast. According to Hensley from ESPN he had 17 tackles, 1 sack, and 3 QB hits yesterday. He and Ngata both have huge cap figures next year. Suggs is earning his spot on the team next year. I can't say the same thing about Ngata. They ran straight at him all day long.

17 tackles? Is that a typo, or was the rest of the line really that bad?

[ravensfan160]

17 tackles? Is that a typo, or was the rest of the line really that bad?

That's what the article said. Seems high but than again when everyone else on the team is missing tackles it creates more opportunities for a guy like Suggs. A rush LB should never have that many tackles in a game. It indicates the rest of the team isn't doing their jobs.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/baltimore-ravens/post/_/id/1451/ravens-report-card-at-bills

[Cville-Raven]

I learned that the Ravens have no weapons and what weapons they do have are injured. The Oline is swiss cheese too.

Torrey Smith isn't injured

[allblackraven]

The only truth is - in a heavy contact sport such as football, rugby and rugby league, you win or loose on the line. It all starts from there. Fix your O line and you started your running game and gave your quarterback time to wait for open targets. Fix your D line and your opposition is forced to throw long passes. Sometimes you win by accident if you're bad in trenches but you can't have a winning season if you keep running into the wall and let other guys run all over you.

 

On that note, I don't think Gino's ability is in question. Looks to me it's all about his inexperience, which produces missed assignments. I'm also hoping our D line had just one of those whiskey-tango-foxtrot games - in first 3 weeks they showed us what they can do.

[rmw10]

I like that you pointed out Jimmy.  A lot of people are still calling for his head for whatever reason.  He's been fantastic this season outside of a couple of plays in the Denver game, where everyone struggled.  He's jamming guys at the line.  He's finding the ball.  He's turning his head.  He's not biting on the double move.  I know it's early, but it seems he's finally starting to put things together.  Anyone that still is saying that Jimmy is a bust has absolutely no credibility.

[The Raven]

I like that you pointed out Jimmy.  A lot of people are still calling for his head for whatever reason.  He's been fantastic this season outside of a couple of plays in the Denver game, where everyone struggled.  He's jamming guys at the line.  He's finding the ball.  He's turning his head.  He's not biting on the double move.  I know it's early, but it seems he's finally starting to put things together.  Anyone that still is saying that Jimmy is a bust has absolutely no credibility.

 

Jimmy Smith is straight up balling right now, and if it's not too bold to say, he may be playing better than Webb. I'm glad he's finally using his physical tools.

[NaveSenrag]

I like that you pointed out Jimmy.  A lot of people are still calling for his head for whatever reason.  He's been fantastic this season outside of a couple of plays in the Denver game, where everyone struggled.  He's jamming guys at the line.  He's finding the ball.  He's turning his head.  He's not biting on the double move.  I know it's early, but it seems he's finally starting to put things together.  Anyone that still is saying that Jimmy is a bust has absolutely no credibility.

The hit on Woods in the endzone that prevented a touchdown was very impressive. Past Jimmy would have given up on the play.

[izvoodoo]

I like that you pointed out Jimmy.  A lot of people are still calling for his head for whatever reason.  He's been fantastic this season outside of a couple of plays in the Denver game, where everyone struggled.  He's jamming guys at the line.  He's finding the ball.  He's turning his head.  He's not biting on the double move.  I know it's early, but it seems he's finally starting to put things together.  Anyone that still is saying that Jimmy is a bust has absolutely no credibility.

Stevie Johnson walked out of a game with negative yardage.  He had that impressive catch but he took Johnson (a gifted receiver) totally out of the game.