[News] Eisenberg: 6 Unanswered Questions As OTAs Kick Off

[stixfix69]

rmcjacket23 I agree, the organization isn't going to give up on a 1st round pick in his 3rd year, and if anything if he has a decent camp, he could be used in a trade to get something out of him...But i don't see Elam getting cut....or going anywhere this year...

[rmcjacket23]

rmcjacket23 I agree, the organization isn't going to give up on a 1st round pick in his 3rd year, and if anything if he has a decent camp, he could be used in a trade to get something out of him...But i don't see Elam getting cut....or going anywhere this year...

Trade seems borderline impossible to me as well. He certainly wouldn't get traded if he did WELL in camp, because then you'd probably be selling low on his value AND if he does well in camp than the franchise would obviously love to keep him.

 

It would only be if he has a monumentally awful offseason that he would get traded, and it would likely be for a mid-to-late round draft pick, which doesn't really benefit us, since we already have a lack of depth/skill at the safety position anyway. So its borderline impossible to get accurate trade value for him.

 

He's here this season 100% of the time, and I'd be shocked if he didn't at least complete his entire four year contract before we make a decision on his future.

[huntrgathrr]

In short yardage I expect Taliaferro to be on the field. When Forsett needs a blow both Allen and Taliaferro will willing and able.

Pitta is just an unknown. No use even speculating as it is exactly 50/50, yes or no. So I look for Gilmore and Williams to get the TE snaps. If Pitta can contribute then fine and if not then that is fine also.

You can bank on Perriman and Smith to be #1 and #2 and not in that order necessarily but what does that matter. Perriman, just by his presence, changes what a defense can do. Hard to put 8 in the box with him on the field. In 3 and 4 WR sets I expect Brown and Waller to see the majority of snaps. Waller will exceed everyone's expectations. Trestman and Flacco can make this guy a star. There just are not too many guys that are 6'6, 240 lbs that can run a 4.4 40. He is athletic and contests very ball. Predraft comments stated he could be a "TD machine in the NFL" and "...back shoulder throws were nearly indefensible". Sounds a lot like Anquan Boldin when he was paired with Flacco. Flacco gets extra out of all his receivers due to his arm strength. He did this with Marlon in his rookie year. He didn't need Marlon much last year and probably won't this year either. But the guy is a very good receiver. We are just loaded at WR now.

By signing Lewis, Ozzie was basically throwing in the towel on Elam. Lewis was not signed for depth. If Elam blossoms great. My guess is that this is his last year as a Raven if he makes the team.

Kick returner is a good question. They won't take a chance on Webb if he is healthy and playing back to his old form at corner. If he's still weak at corner they might as well let him return. Jackson, Carter and Campanaro will all get solid looks as return men. Should be a good competition.

They will keep 9-10 O linemen. The rookie they drafted plus the 7 that played last year makes 8. This may be the year that Reid and/or Jensen gets cut. They had some nice UDFA's in camp.

On paper this is the best Ravens team as far as talent and depth is concerned. They will be a tough test for any team they face.

[Tenacious Faulker]

My thoughts on thos eposition battles are as follows: Justin Forsett will begin the season as the starter and the real battle will be LT vs Buck. Smart money for me is on LT to be the immediate back-up. Only injury or unexpected poor performance will change that. At receiver, Perriman will start the season as the 3rd receiver, maybe fourth, but expect him to work is way up the depth charge as the season goes on. Marlon is looking good and while he's not as fast he does get open and catches everything. Kamar has looked a little Boldin-like at times. He and Marlon will battle for #2 and the loser will either end up 3rd or 4th in depth. If Pitta is ready to come back, i'm really happy for him and the team. The TE depth chart all depends on his recovery. If he gets injured or calls it a career he'll the depth chart will simmply be Williams, Gillmore and Bolye. The OL is healthy and set - no changes there. The KR duties will be Asa and Camp. Webb will not see the field as a returner having popped both ACLS doing that not to mention he's not nearly as quick as he once was. Leave that to the younger guys.

[huntrgathrr]

Why all the fuss over Elam? I hope for our sake he is not on the field this year. Signing Lewis was his death knell, cut or not. He is useful now only for depth and hopefully he never sees the field. I just don't see a miraculous transformation where he could beat out Lewis or Hill. He just isn't athletic enough and doesn't have the "smarts" to be a good NFL safety. He missed too many tackles as well.

[budman]

While I agree that's the current intent, I honestly don't see it happening.

 

I still don't believe that Marlon/Aiken will carve out a big enough role through their play in camp/preseason where they will honestly consider reducing SSS snap count significantly enough to rest him. I think they will realize early on that there is still a decent talent/skill gap between those kinds of players, and I think SSS will take on a bigger role than the Ravens current will want. He hopefully will have a reduced production role, indicating that others are contributing to the offense more, but I just don't see the snap count decreasing significantly unless its literally forced by the coaching staff, which could be detrimental to the offense.

 

In particular, while we all want to believe that Perriman is going to be a stud, he's a rookie. There's a learning curve with 100% of rookie WRs, and I'm not expecting him to light the world on fire right out of the gate. So, at best, we head into the season with a WR core with major question marks up and down the roster, and the only "rock" in that is SSS.

While I agree that there is a learning curve for all rookies, that doesn't mean that he can't "set the world on fire". Look at last years WR class. Evens, Beckham etc. I would like to think (and hope) that Perriman has that kind of production in his first year also.

[hen826957]

I don't care I'm not giving up on Elam or any player everybody could contribute. So prove everybody wrong Matt I believe you can turn it around just like Jimmy.

[RavensBaltimore]

I like the by-committee approach with the WRs. It worked very well in the playoffs last year, and it makes it hard for defenses to prepare for us. I also like Campanaro getting a lot of snaps in the slot, as that seems like a perfect complement to Perriman's speed on the outside.

[RRRRRavens]

As to the running back position I think most anybody could run behind our O-line using the Kubiak system. That happened when Kubiak was at Houston and Forsett ran for a personal record here last year. So the running ability in the running backs does not particularly concern me. They all seem adequate. What does concern me is their ability to block during blitzes on Joe in a passing play. Fortunately Forsett is excellent in this area. Hopefully Allen will be just as capable.

[allblackraven]

These 6 are all valid questions but the big one for me is - how do we adjust after losing Ngata and McPhee?

[757RavensFan]

One major question that needs to be answered, How will this offense run under Trestman?

Edited May 26, 2015 by 757RavensFan

[Maryland]

I wouldn't even say Perriman is a shoo-in to be the clear-cut #2. Torrey Smith had to wait to claim that spot as a rookie, and he did so in-part because Lee Evans got injured.

[allblackraven]

I wouldn't even say Perriman is a shoo-in to be the clear-cut #2. Torrey Smith had to wait to claim that spot as a rookie, and he did so in-part because Lee Evans got injured.

Perriman is much better player coming out of school than Torrey was. He becomes our #1 at some point this season.

[RavensBaltimore]

I wouldn't even say Perriman is a shoo-in to be the clear-cut #2. Torrey Smith had to wait to claim that spot as a rookie, and he did so in-part because Lee Evans got injured.

There are some major differences. First of all, Perriman doesn't have an established veteran ahead of him like Torrey did. Once Torrey got the chance, he immediately produced and kept his spot as the #2. Perriman, a #1 draft pick, who was apparently in the top 15 on the Ravens' board, will get an opportunity right away to be the #2 receiver. He doesn't need anyone to get injured. Perriman is bigger, faster, and more willing and able to go up and catch passes in traffic than Torrey was/is.

 

That being said, I don't think Perriman is a shoo-in for that #2 spot, either. He will have to earn it, but he has the talent to do so, and I think he is the obvious, clear cut favorite to do it. The same couldn't be said about Torrey at this point in his rookie year.

[Mystigo_Dragon]

There aren't any pressing questions to be answered in the near future so give us a break!

 

Would like, however, to see what WRs pick up the playbook the quickest! That's where the "Pro-style" schools' kids have an advantage, but not much!

Edited May 26, 2015 by Mystigo_Dragon

[RavensBaltimore]

I mean he is old but Steve Smith is pretty established.. He had a better season last year than Anquan did in two seasons... and he is older! Their numbers are almost identical. 

Yeah, but I was talking about Perriman's chances to be the #2 receiver, and at this point, Steve Smith is our top receiver, and there isn't an established veteran ahead of Perriman at the #2 spot. 

 

When Torrey was a rookie, we had Boldin as our #1 and Evans as our #2. Evans had multiple 1,000 yd seasons, and he was the clear-cut favorite to be the #2 receiver. As far as that starting spot along side Steve Smith goes, Perriman doesn't have anyone to compete with who's ever come close to 1,000 yds in their career, let alone a single season. 

[Pharaoh]

My answers to all six of Eisenberg's questions.

 

Who backs up Justin Forsett? Buck Allen while Taliaferro gets more goal line snaps.

 

Who is the No. 3 receiver? IMHO the number 3 receiver will be played by committee with Brown getting slightly more snaps than the others.

 

How do things shake out at tight end? While I like Pitta and I hope this isn't true, but I just cant shake the feeling that his days are numbered.

 

Can safety Matt Elam reclaim a bigger role? At this point I want to say no but I had my doubts about Jimmy Smith and was proven very wrong.

 

Is the OL healthy and good to go by September? I think the OL is one of our biggest strengths.

 

Who returns kickoffs and punts? There are plenty of players on the 90 man roster to do it, however don't count on the Ravens to risk a CB injury by returning kicks after last season.

Edited May 26, 2015 by Pharaoh

[J.O.14]

I wouldn't sleep on Kamar Aiken. I could see him being our number 2 if Perriman isn't ready. I think he will definitely see a lot of snaps no matter what. He came on strong at the end of the year last season. I think Perriman will be the number 2, but if he struggles a little I think it will be Steve Smith then the rest will be by committee. Brown, Aiken, and Camp all showed promise last year. Gonna come down to who shows they deserve more in the next 3 months

[cobrajet]

I was never comfortable with Webb returning punts either.

[stampedehero]

The punt returner is a crucial position.  Eisenberg should have addressed that in more detail.  Since we have a huge bundle of quality recievers I can foresee a few of them challanged to accept that role. SSS is out. Brown, Aiken and your number one Draft pick are second tier to that proposal.  I think Camp.  He can't explode on the field like Jacoby did but if he can avg 20 yards a return that may be acceptable.  One of the other smaller more elusive compact players like Camp will take that job.   Perhaps Toussaint will try his hand.  Buck has all the skillsets to perform as a returner due to the way he slices and makes instant decisions off a nearby blocker.. The punt returner is a topic worth churning around    

[ALSKAN RAVEN FAN]

Time for the competition to commence. Lets get it up....

[Joey Flac]

Yeah, but I was talking about Perriman's chances to be the #2 receiver, and at this point, Steve Smith is our top receiver, and there isn't an established veteran ahead of Perriman at the #2 spot. 

 

When Torrey was a rookie, we had Boldin as our #1 and Evans as our #2. Evans had multiple 1,000 yd seasons, and he was the clear-cut favorite to be the #2 receiver. As far as that starting spot along side Steve Smith goes, Perriman doesn't have anyone to compete with who's ever come close to 1,000 yds in their career, let alone a single season. 

 

If Perriman is touching 1,000 yards then he would be considered a #1, but I don't see a major drop off from what Torrey gave us last year. Minus the touchdown production of course cause that was just crazy.. Torrey frustrated me more than ever last year, he should of been a 1,000 yard receiver and was thrown to for most of Joe's picks last year.

 

I hear you though, Perriman is already slotted to be in the mix for a #2 or even the #1 if he can produce out of the gate. Torrey was probably behind Jacoby too at that point. 

[rmcjacket23]

The punt returner is a crucial position.  Eisenberg should have addressed that in more detail.  Since we have a huge bundle of quality recievers I can foresee a few of them challanged to accept that role. SSS is out. Brown, Aiken and your number one Draft pick are second tier to that proposal.  I think Camp.  He can't explode on the field like Jacoby did but if he can avg 20 yards a return that may be acceptable.  One of the other smaller more elusive compact players like Camp will take that job.   Perhaps Toussaint will try his hand.  Buck has all the skillsets to perform as a returner due to the way he slices and makes instant decisions off a nearby blocker.. The punt returner is a topic worth churning around    

Not really that important of a position. In most cases, you're looking at 40-50% of all punts ending up as fair catches, meaning the only requirement is to catch the ball.

 

The best of the best punt returners average about 10-12 yards returned per punt, which is great, except that really only equates to 25-30 yards per game at best. Even the the below average punts returners are still going to get you 6-8 yards, meaning the difference between a good and bad punt returner is less than 20 yards of field position a game.

 

Its why we let go of guys like Jacoby, and why there's very, very, very few teams in the league that employ players specifically as return specialists, because there value just isn't that high. Most teams are completely content with gaining five yards on a punt return, and just not fumbling.

 

That's the whole concept with special teams... you don't have to be great on ST to win a SB. You just simply can't suck at it.

[January J]

It may not be as crucial as others- but every position is of importance. Also- ofcourse anything is possible , but I definitely can't see Aiken getting cut. If so it would be a mistake. He clearly developed a report with flacco last year and came through in almost every single opportunity he was givin. Though the number 3 spot is certainly up for grabs - wouldn't surprise me at all if by years end he is the clear cut #3.

[Jim Giampaoli]

I don't ever want to see Webb returning punts. I have my fingers crossed for Pitta. He's taking a big chance trying to come back.

Edited May 27, 2015 by Jim Giampaoli

[Crusader]

Sure is a lot of questions to be answered. Webb returning punts. Now that's funny. Can he do it with bubble wrap on him? How about Matt Elam returning punts that way all he has to do is run forward cause he sure can't run sideways, backwards, or change direction.