Ravens to sign CBs Dominique Franks and Aaron Ross

[rmw10]

Having Webb as the oldest guy with only, what, five years of experience prior? That's huge to have someone like Ross who's got 8 and two rings

 

And it's not like Ross is a terrible player either.  He's probably hovering around average at this point in his career, but sometimes you need some of those veteran intangibles as well and I think that's where his value lies.  He's played in big situations before.

[52520Andrew]

I actually don't know much about him as a player, but hopefully he's like Steve Smith and is just very willing to help

 

That would be great, it looks like we will be counting on him to at least help the younger players. Hopefully Ozzie has done it again.

[BmoreBird22]

And it's not like Ross is a terrible player either.  He's probably hovering around average at this point in his career, but sometimes you need some of those veteran intangibles as well and I think that's where his value lies.  He's played in big situations before.

He's started two big Super Bowl upsets, so can't get much better than that in this league

[BmoreBird22]

That would be great, it looks like we will be counting on him to at least help the younger players. Hopefully Ozzie has done it again.

Ozzie always seems to find a way

[rmw10]

He's started two big Super Bowl upsets, so can't get much better than that in this league

 

And that's the kind of stuff that's overlooked a lot of the time.  Is he the best player?  Absolutely not.  However, it's hard to rely on young guys at all times.  Sometimes you need experience, even if he's not always deserving of a spot on the team based solely on play.

[BmoreBird22]

And that's the kind of stuff that's overlooked a lot of the time.  Is he the best player?  Absolutely not.  However, it's hard to rely on young guys at all times.  Sometimes you need experience, even if he's not always deserving of a spot on the team based solely on play.

Experience and leadership alone could earn him a spot because this is a very young secondary

[cobrajet]

Franks is a young guy who could give good competition and Ross brings the leadership and experience. I like both these signings.

[Tru11]

ross is a 2 time SB winner and he was a starter both seasons lol.

he cant be that bad.

[Bltravens]

Are we certain Ross can play in this scheme?  Giants in his day were pretty much a cov 2 scheme.

[bMore Heathen]

I honestly think Gillmore would had been gone by the time we picked in the fourth round. Alot of people seem to think he was a prospect that was going to be there in fifth or sixth round but that's not the case at all. Even if we had drafted Desir we probably would had end up signing two veteran cornerbacks any way to add more competition and depth before training camp started .

Most rookie cornerbacks aren't ready to start or contribute right away on defense .I think getting a capable blocking tight end that is very important for Gary Kubiak offense by the way is alot more important than getting a rookie cornerback whom may be just a special teamer in his first year.

Even if we weren't able to get Gillmore in the 4th, there was still Lynch, who was more productive in college. And the contributions will be similar. It's not like Gilmore is going to come in and contribute heavily this year. Desir is going to be an impact player IMO, weather or not it takes a year or 2. I wish we could have come away with him.

[flynismo]

Are we certain Ross can play in this scheme?  Giants in his day were pretty much a cov 2 scheme.

Are we certain that Ross can still play, period? I'm not 100% sure about that

[jazz1988]

Even if we weren't able to get Gillmore in the 4th, there was still Lynch, who was more productive in college. And the contributions will be similar. It's not like Gilmore is going to come in and contribute heavily this year. Desir is going to be an impact player IMO, weather or not it takes a year or 2. I wish we could have come away with him.

 

I don't know if  their contributions would be similar. The Ravens must view Gilmore as the much better blocker/receiver and he definitely has more height and weight over Lynch. Gilmore overall has more upside than Lynch . We may not use Gilmore heavily but Gary Kubiak loves to use three tight ends at times and i wouldn't be surprised if we see Gilmore on the field more than we think this year.  

 

I like Desir and even  more after reading his life story from the time he was a teenage and etc. It sucks we wasn't able to get him because I thought he was truly a cornerback the Ravens would liked but it seems alot of teams weren't really that high on the cornerback class after the first round.

[ravensnick]

I'm talking about our 3rd comp. I don't think it would have been a substantial reach at 99, but that's just my opinion. FWIW I was a big fan of Watkins too and thought that'd be a great pick. Would have been fine with Gillmore/Lynch at the next pick too.

Ik, i was saying desir was probably a reach at 99.

[Ravensfan23]

I really like the signings of both his and can see how both could be contributors to this team. I really like Franks as a reserve DB who will also add to ST. He's a guy who was never really able to carve out a role in ATL. In a phone interview he mentioned how our scheme is very similar to what he did in Oklahoma and that helped him play fast in mini camp try outs. For whatever reason our defensive scheme seems to allow guys to come in and play fast early. I liked Franks coming out of Oklahoma in 2010 and wanted to draft either he or Chancellor with our 5th pick but they didn't last. If this system is similar to what he didin college then he may have justfound a home. At only 26 the guy is at that prime age to come into his own. I could really see him carving out a role on ST and in sub packages on D.

Ross is just the opposite. He's a old guy who brings experience and familiarity with Spagz. We have a really young secondary, even Webb at only 28 could benefit from having a guy like Ross around. I think Brown's job and place on this team could really be in jeopardy. He definitely has the potential to be a good player, but he seems to have mental lapses at the worse time. If both Ross and Franks performs well along with 1 or 2 of the UDFA CBs who have been performing well thus far, I could see Brown cut.

Some might think these signings were just for depth, but I don't think so. I think much like Wagner the Ravens were more then willing to allow Chykie to "fail on the field" as Ozzie said and that's exactly what I think he's doing right now. I've heard he's lining up wrong on practice, no playing with a lot of confidence and in most cases getting out played by younger, less experience guys. So seeing hisppractices, I think the coaches felt he needed competition and he might be on the hot seat.

[rmw10]

I really like the signings of both his and can see how both could be contributors to this team. I really like Franks as a reserve DB who will also add to ST. He's a guy who was never really able to carve out a role in ATL. In a phone interview he mentioned how our scheme is very similar to what he did in Oklahoma and that helped him play fast in mini camp try outs. For whatever reason our defensive scheme seems to allow guys to come in and play fast early. I liked Franks coming out of Oklahoma in 2010 and wanted to draft either he or Chancellor with our 5th pick but they didn't last. If this system is similar to what he didin college then he may have justfound a home. At only 26 the guy is at that prime age to come into his own. I could really see him carving out a role on ST and in sub packages on D.

Ross is just the opposite. He's a old guy who brings experience and familiarity with Spagz. We have a really young secondary, even Webb at only 28 could benefit from having a guy like Ross around. I think Brown's job and place on this team could really be in jeopardy. He definitely has the potential to be a good player, but he seems to have mental lapses at the worse time. If both Ross and Franks performs well along with 1 or 2 of the UDFA CBs who have been performing well thus far, I could see Brown cut.

Some might think these signings were just for depth, but I don't think so. I think much like Wagner the Ravens were more then willing to allow Chykie to "fail on the field" as Ozzie said and that's exactly what I think he's doing right now. I've heard he's lining up wrong on practice, no playing with a lot of confidence and in most cases getting out played by younger, less experience guys. So seeing hisppractices, I think the coaches felt he needed competition and he might be on the hot seat.

The last portion was referring to Marlon Brown, not Chykie. Marlon is the one that's had the rough go of it in terms of lining up in the wrong spot.

With that being said, I don't think Chykie is in great jeopardy. We were comfortable enough to go with him as the 3rd CB for this long. It's still not out of the question that he gets that spot. Even if he misses out, he's still a great #4 option.

Another thing that will keep Chykie around is comp picks. Ozzie loves them. If we cut Chykie before the season, we get nothing out of him. If he sticks around, we could pull out something for him.

At the end of the day, I think it's one of Ross or Franks that makes it. I give Ross the edge due to experience. I think Franks definitely has a shot, but I think Chykie definitely has a large edge over him right now.

[Ravensfan23]

The last portion was referring to Marlon Brown, not Chykie. Marlon is the one that's had the rough go of it in terms of lining up in the wrong spot.

With that being said, I don't think Chykie is in great jeopardy. We were comfortable enough to go with him as the 3rd CB for this long. It's still not out of the question that he gets that spot. Even if he misses out, he's still a great #4 option.

Another thing that will keep Chykie around is comp picks. Ozzie loves them. If we cut Chykie before the season, we get nothing out of him. If he sticks around, we could pull out something for him.

At the end of the day, I think it's one of Ross or Franks that makes it. I give Ross the edge due to experience. I think Franks definitely has a shot, but I think Chykie definitely has a large edge over him right now.

Can't remember which report I got that from but I definitely could be wrong.

I agree that Chykie has a edge over both Ross and Franks because he's been in the system longer, but that doesn't make him safe. Again I like Chykie and think he should do well in the nickle back role. I wouldn't put too much stock in the fact that the Ravens have gone with Chykie this long as the Nickle back, after all this time last year we all were under the impression that the Ravens felt comfortable enough with Doss to trade Boldin and we see how that turned out for Tandon.

I'm not even confident enough to say Franks is a better player then Chykie, my point was that Harbs has proven to be a guy who allows his to earn their place on the team. If both Franks and Ross play well, them you have at least one UDFA play well and Chykie just continues to show flashes or has a rough preseason, much like Doss he could go from a guy we are high on to a guy out the door.

Also think of this, Doss was cut in favor of two rookie guys who were dug either drafted late or not at all and did nothing in this league. Chykie is now competing with guys who have at least showed some potential in this league and in Ross' case had a great deal of success. I think Chykie better be on his a game in camp.

[rmw10]

Can't remember which report I got that from but I definitely could be wrong.

I agree that Chykie has a edge over both Ross and Franks because he's been in the system longer, but that doesn't make him safe. Again I like Chykie and think he should do well in the nickle back role. I wouldn't put too much stock in the fact that the Ravens have gone with Chykie this long as the Nickle back, after all this time last year we all were under the impression that the Ravens felt comfortable enough with Doss to trade Boldin and we see how that turned out for Tandon.

I'm not even confident enough to say Franks is a better player then Chykie, my point was that Harbs has proven to be a guy who allows his to earn their place on the team. If both Franks and Ross play well, them you have at least one UDFA play well and Chykie just continues to show flashes or has a rough preseason, much like Doss he could go from a guy we are high on to a guy out the door.

Also think of this, Doss was cut in favor of two rookie guys who were dug either drafted late or not at all and did nothing in this league. Chykie is now competing with guys who have at least showed some potential in this league and in Ross' case had a great deal of success. I think Chykie better be on his a game in camp.

 

Understandable.

 

Once it's all said and done, I'm expecting the CB depth chart to read...

 

Lardarius Webb

Jimmy Smith

Aaron Ross

Chykie Brown/Dominique Franks

Asa Jackson

Deji Olatoye/Sammy Seamster (if we want to carry 6)

[Ravensfan23]

Understandable.

 

Once it's all said and done, I'm expecting the CB depth chart to read...

 

Lardarius Webb

Jimmy Smith

Aaron Ross

Chykie Brown/Dominique Franks

Asa Jackson

Deji Olatoye/Sammy Seamster (if we want to carry 6)

Yeah I definitely agree with that. Ross really eases my concern about our depth at CB. As you mentioned I like his experience in the league. If our front 7 can get constant pressure like it did early last season, Smith, Webb and Ross could get their hands on a lot of balls.

Its funny how we both think Asa is safe and he's done the least out of the top 4 guys fighting for that #3 spot. I think Asa will really shine with an opportunity to play with the first and second team defenses. From a talent stand point, he might be the best of the reserve CBs fighting for a spot. It's just all about him putting it on the field.

[rmw10]

Yeah I definitely agree with that. Ross really eases my concern about our depth at CB. As you mentioned I like his experience in the league. If our front 7 can get constant pressure like it did early last season, Smith, Webb and Ross could get their hands on a lot of balls.

Its funny how we both think Asa is safe and he's done the least out of the top 4 guys fighting for that #3 spot. I think Asa will really shine with an opportunity to play with the first and second team defenses. From a talent stand point, he might be the best of the reserve CBs fighting for a spot. It's just all about him putting it on the field.

 

I think one of the biggest things that makes Asa, and maybe even a UDFA, safe is the fact that they are controllable for more than 1 year.  Ignoring the UDFAs for now, Aaron Ross, Chykie Brown, and Dominique Franks are all under contract for 1 year.  There's even the question with Webb.  If he doesn't return to form, his cap number is very high and he could see himself as a cap casualty.  It's not too far out of the realm of possibility that Jimmy and Asa are the only CBs under contract next year.  That's a big reason why I think he's safe.  We need some semblance of home grown talent under contract next year with how much uncertainty this group will face once again next year.

[Bltravens]

Are we certain that Ross can still play, period? I'm not 100% sure about that

Lol, also a fair question.

[radicals]

Franks is an interesting player. Similar to Graham when we signed him.

[rmw10]

Aaron Wilson ‏@RavensInsider 

john harbaugh 'aaron ross tore his Achilles running conditioning test dominique franks hasn't passed his conditioning test'

[berad]

Tough break for Ross, that is awful

[rmw10]

Tough break for Ross, that is awful

 

Absolutely awful for him.  I wonder if we'll on the lookout for another vet at this point.

[berad]

Absolutely awful for him.  I wonder if we'll on the lookout for another vet at this point.

 

Maybe hawking for a late cut during TC

[Mt. Crushmore]

Awful news for him

[blitzking33]

That sucks for Ross.. if we can't get another vet CB.. I'm sure Sammy Seamster will make the team.

[rmw10]

Maybe hawking for a late cut during TC

 

Not much out there worth it at this point either, so I tend to agree.  It does give Olatoye and Seamster additional reps and see if they can handle the job, though.

[Token]

What are the odds..

[rmw10]

I'd still like some vet depth, but this is encouraging...

 

WNST ‏@WNST  1m

John Harbaugh says the third CB is expected to be an incumbent Raven-meaning Chykie Brown or Asa Jackson.