How will we address each of our areas of greatest need (DB, WR and TE)?

[stampedehero]

Even with the CB injuries last year the secondary was just "ok"

 

Jimmy Smith - Top Tier if he can stay healthly

 

Webb - Appears pretty injured and clapped out.

 

Jackson - another injury prone/one suspension away from long term

 

Elam - Waste products

 

Hill - Quality but one suspension away from long term

 

Miles - Special Teams nothing more

 

Stewart - Below average starter

 

Even with every one of them healthy thats not a quality secondary.

+> Thats a fair assessment.

[stampedehero]

We'll do the same thing we do every year - wait for the dust to settle, then go shopping out of the bargain bin.

Are we the Walmart of the league?  

[stampedehero]

Hearing that Scott Chandler was cut today...

I kinda like the idea of the 6'7" Pass catching TE here....

He is 29yrs old (younger than OWen Daniels), and allows Pitta to take his time comming back.

+> Hear Ya          Oz   Make that call

[hawkprey]

Are we the Walmart of the league?  

Pretty much. They might not be players anyone wants, but they're 8 for a dollar.

[stampedehero]

I just checked out Kenny Stills   He is worth your look  That guy is awesome.   The OZ has got to consider him  

[H8ME]

The answer to receiver might already be on the roster. I'm excited to see what a healthy Jeremy Butler can do.

[Mad Puppy]

The answer to receiver might already be on the roster. I'm excited to see what a healthy Jeremy Butler can do.

Me too

[cushrinada1986]

I would like to see Bowe in a Ravens uni next year but the cap just may not be there depending on the moves Oz may want to do. I can see us picking up a cheap TE in FA, then from there picking up maybe some more dlinemen as well. When it comes to the draft I think we could definitely double dip, given that we would have Flacco and Smith Sr to provide the leadership roles on offense. We trade back to the 2nd round, that gives us an extra pick to move up and down the board. Looking at some of the WRs this year, I like a couple of sets of WRs we could possibly grab this year:

 

This is in the case of Melvin and Gurly already being gone by our pick as well as possibly Strong and Smith;

 

Devin Funches(2nd)/ Justin Hardy(3-4th) - Hardy on tape has shown great ability to get open which is something we seriously needed last year from our WR's and the other you can play in the slot, on the outside, anywhere there's a mismatch and just let him go over it(the knock on the hands can be a problem but TC can fix that).

 

Philip Dorsett(2nd)/Darren Waller(7-FA) - Dorsett can definitely replace Torrey as the deep threat on the team but what a value would it be to have a 6-6 240lbs WR that can run 4.4 speed and be a huge target in the red zone. Waller may be raw but the upside of being able to mold someone with his skills could make real dividends in the future.

 

Tre-Mcbride(3rd) - Chris Conley (5th) - saw some tape of Tre and there is a lot of what I see in Smitty, a WR that plays bigger than his height, can locate the ball at its highest point and attack it, and can play inside and out, great value for the round. Conley was a freak at the combine and alot of those skill can and will show up at the next level if he is trained well and I believe our coaches could make  serious weapon out of someone with that much raw talent.

 

Dont think DGB is a option due to his record, CB is a choice but we have the ability to sit a young DB this year if Web and Asa and Smith comes back and can stay healthy(along with Melvin in the mix as well as Levine). WR is a different issue, we will definitely someone that can  cause match up problems and those sets of WR could surely do just that along with SSS, Aiken, Camp, and Marlon on the field in 2015.

[TDubbs]

The way our offseason is shaping up so far, I believe we will be taking a WR in the 1st round. Potentially even moving up to grab one of the big guys.

[polynesian15]

Kenny Stills will do the burning and Parker will be our AJ Green. Maybe a Diggs for big plays and return ability.
Perhaps we'll also have money for Housler or Chandler. How much would it take to get one of those guys for 4 years or so?
 

[ellicottraven]

The way our offseason is shaping up so far, I believe we will be taking a WR in the 1st round. Potentially even moving up to grab one of the big guys.

Only if the best available player on our board at the time happens to be a WR. I firmly believe this.

[JoeyFlex5]

The answer to receiver might already be on the roster. I'm excited to see what a healthy Jeremy Butler can do.

 

Me too

would you guys be on board with ignoring wr in the draft for the very very small chance that jeremy butler can be anything more than a camp body?

[Shammy]

Rob Housler  TE from AZ has a lot of upside ,  Maybe take a chance on Steve Johnson at WR

[Ravens1991]

what do you guys think the saints will ask for Stills?  I assume higher then the 5th that they picked him with. I would send a 4th for him. 

[PurpleCity5]

what do you guys think the saints will ask for Stills?  I assume higher then the 5th that they picked him with. I would send a 4th for him. 

I think it would be as high as a 3rd. He's young, talented, and has a low cap hit, I think they want something good in return, clearly they're building through the draft and want as much picks as they can get. 

[redlobster]

would you guys be on board with ignoring wr in the draft for the very very small chance that jeremy butler can be anything more than a camp body?

 

They CANNOT go into the season with a WR corps of : Smith Sr, Aiken, Butler, Camp, Brown . 

[bMore Heathen]

would you guys be on board with ignoring wr in the draft for the very very small chance that jeremy butler can be anything more than a camp body?

Lmao!!!!!!

[itscbm5042]

They CANNOT go into the season with a WR corps of : Smith Sr, Aiken, Butler, Camp, Brown . 

They know that - I am totally confident we will come away with one of the top available FA receivers and I think there is a STRONG trade possibility as well.

[JoeyFlex5]

They CANNOT go into the season with a WR corps of : Smith Sr, Aiken, Butler, Camp, Brown . 

that was kinda my point

[The Raven]

The answer to receiver might already be on the roster. I'm excited to see what a healthy Jeremy Butler can do.

 

I think that's why Ozzie isn't panicking over WR. He really believes in our young guys like Aiken, Camp, and Butler.

[BOLDnPurPnBlacK]

I think we go WR in the draft, and I wanted to dispel a common myth among ravens fans regarding Ozzie and drafting WR's in the 1st round.... Enjoy:)

---

 

I always hear this thing about us rarely taking WR's in the 1st round... but when you look at it we're coming up on 20 drafts. We havent had a 1st round pick in all of them and 2 picks in others, so its actually 19 first round draft picks.

By my calculations you've got about 14 general positions (OT, OG, C, WR, TE, RB, FB, QB, DT, DE, OLB, MLB, CB, S).

Now granted certain positions are valued more highly and are therefore taken more frequently in the 1st round and some less so (taking a fb rd 1 would be considered insane) so take it out youre still left with 13 draftable positions.

 

There are actually 2 positions the Ravens have never used a 1st round draft pick on - a 3-4 DE and a FB. (I guess you could argue Ngata is a DE but was a DT coming out of college. and if thats the case then we've never drafted DT in the 1st).

We've taken 2 receivers in the 1st round I believe (taylor, clayton). So with 19 1st round picks and a potential of 13 different positions could come from, having one position represent 2 of those picks is actually a pretty high percentage.

By comparison, i think we've only taken 2 MLB's in the 1st (Lewis, Mosley).  We've only taken 2 OLB's in the 1st (Suggs, Boulware). We've only taken 2 OT's (Ogden, Oher). 2 Safeties (Elam, Reed). 2 QB's (Flacco, Boller). 

 

We've only taken 1 DT (Ngata), 1 TE (Heap), 1 RB (lewis) and 1 guard (Grubbs). So, by the numbers Ozzie is actually more prone to taking a WR in the 1st than he is a DT, TE, RB or OG. 

 

IN FACT, the only position that we've drafted MORE OFTEN than WR is CB... which we've done 3 times (Smith, McCalister, Starks)

SO i think its kind of a misconception that Ozzie shies away from drafting WR's in the 1st round. Actually his draft history shows he's only more likely to take a CB, and just as likely to take a wr as MLB, OT, QB, or OLB. 

 

What may have some truth to it is Ozzies track record of drafting WR's in general, regardless of round. So... just hope this dispels that notion that Ozzie wont go WR in the 1st round bc he never does. That's completely false.

[flynismo]

Only if the best available player on our board at the time happens to be a WR. I firmly believe this.

Same here. I think we have a lot of faith in Aiken and Campanaro developing into quality players, and Marlon has shown he can be productive as a role player as well. We aren't as bad off at WR as it may look on paper....although I do also believe we take one somewhere in the first three rounds

[flynismo]

would you guys be on board with ignoring wr in the draft for the very very small chance that jeremy butler can be anything more than a camp body?

Depends on what we are getting while bypassing WR...more specifically, who we are getting. We would be fine as long as we are adding impact players at other positions; I think SSS has one more solid year left in him, and at least one of the young guys will step up (Aiken / Camp / Butler....they can't ALL be "busts" right? Right??)...and I'm sure we will be adding one or two solid veterans at WR/TE via free agency

[flynismo]

what do you guys think the saints will ask for Stills?

I'm guessing Ellerbe and a 3rd

[JoeyFlex5]

Depends on what we are getting while bypassing WR...more specifically, who we are getting. We would be fine as long as we are adding impact players at other positions; I think SSS has one more solid year left in him, and at least one of the young guys will step up (Aiken / Camp / Butler....they can't ALL be "busts" right? Right??)...and I'm sure we will be adding one or two solid veterans at WR/TE via free agency

it was a bit of a rhetorical question for them, saying they both believe butler is the answer to our wr problems. 

 

i dont believe there is any reason, whatsoever, to not address wr early in the draft. idc what value you are seeing from other players, unless you have a guy like eli harold or michael bennett or kevin johnson/pj williams falling to our 2nd round pick which seems unlikely anyway. 

 

im just not seeing anyone on the free agent market at WR that can bring what we have needed for so long, youth and stability and continuity. eventually the wr carousel has to stop and we need to make joe more comfortable. on the flipside, there isnt any TE in the draft i really want and i love the free agent market there. maxx williams isnt worth a 26th and he wont fall to our 2nd rounder, and im not big on clive walford or any TE following him.

[Mad Puppy]

would you guys be on board with ignoring wr in the draft for the very very small chance that jeremy butler can be anything more than a camp body?

Nope!

[stampedehero]

The answer to receiver might already be on the roster. I'm excited to see what a healthy Jeremy Butler can do.

That is a good thought.   All of us overlooked him

[JoeyFlex5]

I think that's why Ozzie isn't panicking over WR. He really believes in our young guys like Aiken, Camp, and Butler.

he isnt "panicking" because hes smart, trust me when i say ozzie isnt comfortable moving forward with this wr corps, there are just no wr's on the market that are worth anything and he is being patient. 

 

we tried a similar situation in 2013 and it was an absolute disaster and this wr corps is even worse.

[RavensFanMania]

That is a good thought.   All of us overlooked him

Actually Aldrick Robinson may be able to make the team as well.  He's very fast, sometimes too fast as he ran his routes too fast with not enough depth.  Also has issued being jammed at the line, but he's got some serious speed. 

[Ravenslifer]

That is a good thought.   All of us overlooked him

 

For good reason - I'm not saying he couldn't be good or I'm not rooting for him, but I've watched this franchise a very, very long time and I can probably name 10 guys - wait, let me try - Butler, Billy Davis, Marcus Smith, Eron Riley, Tommy Streeter, Demetrius Williams, Clarence Moore, James Hardy, Marlon Brown, Justin Harper, Ron Johnson - every one of these guys were late round or UDFA type receivers, and every single offseason we here how "this guy is lighting it up" or "this guy is showing flashes" in preseason or OTAs - some of them looked better than Butler in preseason and TC, and I'm thinking of Marcus Smith in particular - he looked like a stud for 2 offseasons.  And out of that list, only Marlon has done ANYTHING of note at the NFL level, and he's in fact unique because he was rated as a 3rd-5th round prospect, only went undrafted because of a season-ending injury.  There is a reason guys go undrafted, an a reason why people look like geniuses when they uncover a UDFA.  Because the chance of success from someone like that is astronomically small.  So to say anybody is being overlooked at that level to me, is not reflective of what this franchise's history has shown.

 

Not trying to ruffle feathers, but it kind of sickens me when (not pointing anyone out in particular) I keep hearing "draft a corner, we don't have any" and "we're fine at receiver" when 2 of our top 3 targets are now gone, and the guy we thought would be the number 1 target might never play again.  In the meantime, we still have Webb, Jimmy will be back off injury, at some point we'll get Brooks back, I think we'll easily resign Melvin, Jacobs, and Hill, not to mention Aaron Ross will probably be back next season.