The main thing that has been troubling the Ravens' this season

[RaRaRavens]

I have seen one thing during this whole season that is causing all of our problems -

 

the players aren't motivated. They aren't ambitious, determined, "hungry", driven. They don't want to win as bad as the guys on other teams do. And sometimes it seems as if they don't want to win games at all.

Ngata, Rice, Dickson, J. Smith, the whole O-line and many others seem to have gotten what they wanted - SB ring. And now they don't even bother anymore. Don't get me wrong, they try to do some things some of the time. But when push comes to shove, they fold.

This is where #52 is sorely missed. Harbaugh is not capable of motivating the team enough. He can't get the players fired up and HUGNRY for that W.

Hopefully during the bye week every man on this team takes a serious look into the mirror and asks himself if he wants to be on this team and if he even wants to play football (especially Ngata who started talking about retirement already last season). And if not, step down and give your spot to the guys who actually want to play Ravens' football.

What do you guys think? Is lack of motivation the big enemy for Ravens this year?

 

[MrPlankton]

I'm not sure how Jimmy Smith falls into that category at all.

[GrimCoconut]

Yes, yes. You nailed it. Jimmy Smith is a bum!!!

[rmw10]

I'm not sure how Jimmy Smith falls into that category at all.

 

More baseless hate for a guy that is arguably one of our top defenders this year.

[billick]

The problem is 3-4.  Winning may not be everything, but losing is nothing.

[RaRaRavens]

I'm not sure how Jimmy Smith falls into that category at all.

You may be right, J.Smith may not fall into this category, but at times it seems he is not trying hard enough. It's easy to say watching from the couch and may be it's not true, but at times it just looks like it. However, my point remains the same.

[Ravenseconbeast]

Probably the main thing troubling the ravens is the run game.   

 

Mainly O-line, the run coordinator(juan), and the RBs.     Run game had been our bread and butter.  Something we've done well consistently every year.

 

Wiping out something that worked last year, and pulling our players out of comfort zone and trying schemes that didn't needed to be implemented in the first place took us out of loop.   

[billick]

Thank you, MVP.

[rmw10]

You may be right, J.Smith may not fall into this category, but at times it seems he is not trying hard enough. It's easy to say watching from the couch and may be it's not true, but at times it just looks like it. However, my point remains the same.

 

Clearly you're not watching then.  Jimmy is playing great.

[CalvinSmoke]

I think our only problem is that our team changed but our philosophies didn't. 

[AsianRice]

Probably the main thing troubling the ravens is the run game.   

 

Mainly O-line, the run coordinator(juan), and the RBs.     Run game had been our bread and butter.  Something we've done well consistently every year.

 

Wiping out something that worked last year, and pulling our players out of comfort zone and trying schemes that didn't needed to be implemented in the first place took us out of loop.   

Yeah, that's the main problem that our offense have suffered significantly since the beginning of the season.

 

Castillo needs to go; he is not fitted in our offense.

[allblackraven]

I see two major problems: tight ends and secondary incapable of making turnovers.

 

Tight ends are not catching enough passes to move the chains and/or score. Torrey and Jacoby are running more short routes then they ever did, so we kind of lose a lot on deep plays. They (TEs) are also atrocious in blocking to the point of unsettling the O line and completely screwing our run.

 

Secondary seems to be leaving lot of empty space in the middle and corners are not playing tight enough. Even when we stop the run, short passes over the middle and out wide are killing us, allowing opposition to drive for extended periods. This is where we lost the most with Ray and Ed departing - we play a drawn up defense, not adjusting well to what actually goes on.

[izvoodoo]

We're 26th in rushing offense.  It's the run blocking guys.

Plain and simple.

[DomMcRaven]

I have seen one thing during this whole season that is causing all of our problems -

 

the players aren't motivated. They aren't ambitious, determined, "hungry", driven. They don't want to win as bad as the guys on other teams do. And sometimes it seems as if they don't want to win games at all.

Ngata, Rice, Dickson, J. Smith, the whole O-line and many others seem to have gotten what they wanted - SB ring. And now they don't even bother anymore. Don't get me wrong, they try to do some things some of the time. But when push comes to shove, they fold.

This is where #52 is sorely missed. Harbaugh is not capable of motivating the team enough. He can't get the players fired up and HUGNRY for that W.

Hopefully during the bye week every man on this team takes a serious look into the mirror and asks himself if he wants to be on this team and if he even wants to play football (especially Ngata who started talking about retirement already last season). And if not, step down and give your spot to the guys who actually want to play Ravens' football.

What do you guys think? Is lack of motivation the big enemy for Ravens this year?

 

 

 

This 1000%. Our bye week and our two matches against the Browns and Bengals will tell us a lot about these Ravens. Don't get me wrong, I will always love my Ravens but a small part of me wants them to miss the playoffs so they can get that hunger back yet a LARGE portion of me wants them to make the playoffs to prove all haters and "experts" alike wrong. As long as we stay healthy for the most part (that's a reach), we're making the playoffs. We have the talent and I have stood by this statement before preseason........and I will continue to end of the season, unless something terrible happens. 

[PurpleCityLights]

Harbs>>>>>Castillo

[balimore]

If you ask me what is troubling the Ravens:

 

#52- we have leaders but dam Ray Lewis makes me believe I can fly every time I listened to his motivational speech. You did not want to disappoint him. People forget he was pretty much a coach as much as a player. 

 

Solid special team players- We won a lot of close games last year where we had kick off returns. Those helped a lot. 

 

Got comfortable- Lets be honest it's called a superbowl hangover for a reason. Even I haven't been getting mad when we lose cause I'm still happy about the superbowl. 

 

the trenches - Very hard to win games if you lose in the trenches. Dline is too inconsistent, stopping the run is #1 priority. I believe Oline needs better chemistry, it seems as Joe Flacco is more confident in the oline than the oline is in itself. Back to the basics because they look confused every time Flacco is sacked. 

 

And finally and Most importantly: 

Coaching - The coaching decisions this season have been more mind boggling than ever. Why not call more deep throws or screens, mix it up? If the defense is letting slow drives happen all game, why not throw something in crazy like an All out blitz or something to get some momentum going. Need to find a balance Harbaugh, either too aggressive and costs us crucial points Or too conservative and allow to keep running on first down till we fall behind -,-

 

Momentum is very important in football. All the coaches have been doing this season is killing it. 

[codizzle]

Yes, yes. You nailed it. Jimmy Smith is a bum!!!

Knew you'd come around ;)

[Sunday QB]

Yeah, that's the main problem that our offense have suffered significantly since the beginning of the season.

 

Castillo needs to go; he is not fitted in our offense.

 

I agree the O-Line is having a hard time. I don't know why, maybe the new O-Line coach. I do not think Gino is ready. Harbaugh said he will do whatever it takes to get better, well we need a new center who can push back. Also I think Ray Rice needs to go on a diet, he looked a little heavy Sunday. 

[jimmypowder]

Successful play action calling is where Joe shines .You can't have success with this if you can't run the ball with our awful offensive line . I guarantee you Joe would be lighting up the NFL if we had a decent run game like the last several years . And we would be 6-1 instead of 3-4 going into the bye week

[AsianRice]

I agree the O-Line is having a hard time. I don't know why, maybe the new O-Line coach. I do not think Gino is ready. Harbaugh said he will do whatever it takes to get better, well we need a new center who can push back. Also I think Ray Rice needs to go on a diet, he looked a little heavy Sunday. 

Yeah, Rice looks too big; he needs to go back to his old 2011 form. I know why he wanted to bulk up cuz he wants to limit his injury but it costs him quickness and swift cut.

 

He needs to drop weight for sure......

[SizzleSuggs55]

People talk about all these close games we've been in, but they wouldn't have been close if we didn't get gashed by the run. It is the biggest problem by far IMO. I think Joe can still win games for us if the o-line is so so. We wont win a lot more games if the run D doesnt change.

[OLD SCHOOL SMASH BALL]

I have seen one thing during this whole season that is causing all of our problems -
 
the players aren't motivated. They aren't ambitious, determined, "hungry", driven. They don't want to win as bad as the guys on other teams do. And sometimes it seems as if they don't want to win games at all.
Ngata, Rice, Dickson, J. Smith, the whole O-line and many others seem to have gotten what they wanted - SB ring. And now they don't even bother anymore. Don't get me wrong, they try to do some things some of the time. But when push comes to shove, they fold.
This is where #52 is sorely missed. Harbaugh is not capable of motivating the team enough. He can't get the players fired up and HUGNRY for that W.
Hopefully during the bye week every man on this team takes a serious look into the mirror and asks himself if he wants to be on this team and if he even wants to play football (especially Ngata who started talking about retirement already last season). And if not, step down and give your spot to the guys who actually want to play Ravens' football.
What do you guys think? Is lack of motivation the big enemy for Ravens this year?

How much is this attitude attributed to winning a SB, or the blunderous moves since then from the coaching staff?

[frozen joe flacco fan]

You have identified one of the reasons why we are not winning the close games but it is not IMHO the main reason. If your premise is correct, I think you need to call out the coaching staff as well as the players. It is true that a hungry dog hunts best and complacency can be contagious. Its just human nature. I do think some of our players are just going through the motions. In other words, some are not playing like Ravens. When complacency does set in, its up to the HC to provide an environment that is conducive to self-motivation. That's all he can do because motivation comes from within. However, great coaches like Bobby Knight and his good friend Bill Parcells were able to do it when their respective teams needed a swift kick in the butt. I have seen nothing to make me think that John Harbaugh is providing an environment that is conducive to motivation. At least, it isn't evident when he stands on the sidelines with a finger in his mouth.

It is difficult to put a finger on the main reason we are losing because its a bunch of little things. I think even Coach Harbaugh would agree with this. As I have said before, there is very little difference between a team with a 6-10 record and a 10-6 team. The difference is just a bunch of little things.

[baltimoreravensfan4life]

Not sure where Jimmy Smith fits into this. He's been arguably the best player in the secondary and one of the top defenders on the defense, which is saying something with the way Daryl Smith, Terrell Suggs, and Elvis Dumervil are playing.

[GrimCoconut]

Not sure where Jimmy Smith fits into this. He's been arguably the best player in the secondary and one of the top defenders on the defense, which is saying something with the way Daryl Smith, Terrell Suggs, and Elvis Dumervil are playing.

People irrationally hate him and I don't know why

[baltimoreravensfan4life]

 

People irrationally hate him and I don't know why

He's always been my favorite player, personally. I think people get a preconceived notion in their head, such as Jimmy should have been Revis from day one, and when he wasn't, he was a bust. Despite outplaying Webb, no one would ever admit to that. That would mean.... *gasp* they're wrong.

[Purple_ICE 81]

Lack of weapons on offense...Joe Flacco is the only 100 million dollar QB throwing to scrubs besides Torrey Smith. If you look at all the other big name QBs their front offices invested heavily on weapons for them... and its time for Ozzie to load Flacco up with weapons. Maybe go out and invest an early draft pick on a top rookie WR, Maybe go out and get a Hakeem Nicks or Erik Decker or some big name WR in free agency. We essentially have a  Ferrari (Flacco) that is running on fumes...time to pump the gas already, our offense needs serious stimulation we cant keep relying on young "so-so" guys to try and get the job done.

[gabefergy]

First half offense. We have been awful in the first half of games and then awesome in the second halves. I have no answer for why this is the case, probably a mixture of poor play-calling, penalties, bad execution, and lack of urgency. If our offense can come out after the bye and play like they have been in the second halves of these games for a full sixty minutes, I fully believe we can go 8-1 or even better. Let this defense play with a lead!!

[The Raven]

First half offense. We have been awful in the first half of games and then awesome in the second halves. I have no answer for why this is the case, probably a mixture of poor play-calling, penalties, bad execution, and lack of urgency. If our offense can come out after the bye and play like they have been in the second halves of these games for a full sixty minutes, I fully believe we can go 8-1 or even better. Let this defense play with a lead!!

 

I agree. If we can just simply get a first half lead and let our defense go to work, we could go 9-0 in the rest of the season. Tough, to be sure, but not far-fetched.

[Gordo52]

The problem is 3-4. Winning may not be everything, but losing is nothing.

Winning is the only thing