[News] Late For Work 12/4: Why Bart Scott Was Hiding In Browns' Bathroom Until Ozzie Newsome Called

[Ravenshine]

@ NFL.com site...About 10 seperate articles on Greenbay dramatic win compared to the one or two articles on our mnf win. Lol, 'balanced' reporting at that site (and others probably). I get that there are more fans overall for a team that has been around longer in terms of years...GB. But these "pumping up some teams and shooting down others" is what keeps everything status quo in who the favorites are vs who barely gets mentioned of the 32 franchises. Obviously we are the "barely gets mentioned" category.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Ravenshine

[rmcjacket23]

Its not that the players are committing more penalties its that the refs are throwing more flags. I like what one retired ref said about throwing flags . "let the penalty speak for it self? A lot of these refs are flag happy and that is ruining the game and the sometimes costing a team a W. That's my point refs should take a back seat and manage the game to keep it in hand and let the players decide the out come not the zebras.

But that's not really true, because when they are evaluating the flags being thrown, they are largely agreeing that infractions did in fact occur.

 

Whether they should be called or not is the definition of subjectivity that no replay challenge or review will solve, and its the same questions people having been asking for decades... that's not new.

 

You could make an argument that penalties are up because 1. players are actually committing more fouls, because they are and 2. officials are flagging fouls that they previously didn't do. I agree that #2 might be a bit excessive at times, but you also have the players and fans to thank for that in certain regards.

[rmcjacket23]

@ NFL.com site...About 10 seperate articles on Greenbay dramatic win compared to the one or two articles on our mnf win. Lol, 'balanced' reporting at that site (and others probably). I get that there are more fans overall for a team that has been around longer in terms of years...GB. But these "pumping up some teams and shooting down others" is what keeps everything status quo in who the favorites are vs who barely gets mentioned of the 32 franchises. Obviously we are the "barely gets mentioned" category.

Game between two teams competing vs game between two teams not competing.

 

There's the difference.

[Ravenshine]

Game between two teams competing vs game between two teams not competing.

 

There's the difference.

It's like this for us a long while now...not just this year. Probably this year is the worst. And what's odd to me is a team that been in playoffs the majority of this decade of football is so rarely talked about. Period.

[rmcjacket23]

It's like this for us a long while now...not just this year. Probably this year is the worst. And what's odd to me is a team that been in playoffs the majority of this decade of football is so rarely talked about. Period.

But what's the reason to talk about us more? Because we win?

 

Winning isn't what gets you talked about.

[Ravenshine]

I just see 32 franchises, and every team has things happening game to game...so more articles on us would be nice, and more positive articles because the ones there usually are not positive. The one I read Tuesday said "the hated Ravens beat the Browns" and left it unclear as to why we were called "hated" by Browns fans I assumed but it was pretty ambiguous as to who hates us...other NFL team fans or what? Just sayin, doesn't seem like balanced...maybe tv commentary is better. Hope so.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Ravenshine

[reed20fence]

But that's not really true, because when they are evaluating the flags being thrown, they are largely agreeing that infractions did in fact occur.

 

Whether they should be called or not is the definition of subjectivity that no replay challenge or review will solve, and its the same questions people having been asking for decades... that's not new.

 

You could make an argument that penalties are up because 1. players are actually committing more fouls, because they are and 2. officials are flagging fouls that they previously didn't do. I agree that #2 might be a bit excessive at times, but you also have the players and fans to thank for that in certain regards.

The premise is true. Fans complain as part of homerism. No denying it. They also complain when teams they don't like benefit from calls or lack thereof. I think the new territory we're entering however where the NFL and Blandino are coming back the day after a game and admitting the win/loss outcome should have been different is interesting. And the next step down the ladder is penalties that aren't necessarily on the final plays of games but near the end of games that significantly alter down and distance or put teams into or out of field goal range. We've seen both this year.

Change is dependent on critical mass. If enough owners feel that that the fate of games and thus playoff fates are being impacted, change will happen. If on the other hand a majority of them don't care, or feel that the cost of negotiating larger broadcast slots with the networks or employing the refs full time (never really understood this one and why it matters) isn't worth it, change won't happen. It's a business decision.

[reed20fence]

Just throwing a hypothetical out there. Most of us are still peeved about the simple loss to Jacksonville at the moment. But imagine if we somehow manage to finish 9-7 or even 8-8 and come up one game shy of the final playoff slot. What happens then? The playoff fate of a team would have been determined by a no-call that the NFL saw fit to admit the refs got wrong... one they unequivocally admit would have altered the outcome of the game.

Edited December 4, 2015 by reed20fence

[Jim Giampaoli]

After 2012 Super Bowl, the pundits over at nfl wrote almost only on how Kaepernick played so well in the second half and Jim Harbaugh ranting on the sidelines coaching his team on to win. The Ravens won it but Frisco got the write ups. I was amazed. So get use to it. It won't ever change.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Jim Giampaoli

[Ravenshine]

After 2012 Super Bowl, the pundits over at nfl wrote almost only on how Kaepernick played so well in the second half and Jim Harbaugh ranting on the sidelines coaching his team on to win. The Ravens won it but Frisco got the write ups. I was amazed, so get use to it. It won't ever change.

Exactly. But on it not changing...Hope one day we'll be so obvious they can't ignore us anymore tho. Our 2013 season was a decline losing many to retirement, others to teams so the pundits easily swept our SB under the rug for good...after our season opener loss @ Denver...which didn't help since we played 'at the scene of the crime' from year before, so to go back in and let them get their revenge Thursday night football...more ammunition for the journalists to keep us in irrelevance.

[ellicottraven]

For Russell Report to find that idiotic dolphin hunting Ravens with a water gun hilarious, just tells me either the guy who wrote wrote that is a teenager or his sense of humor is crass and infantile.

[mettro79]

I've always liked Bart Scott, and now I think I like him a little bit more. The story is funny, but it highlights a really good point. Players, past or present, rarely if ever say anything negative about our organization. That even goes for those who have left and new veterans that come in. I think it's that level of respect and camaraderie that helps us stay resilient, even during IR-laden seasons like this.

[Moderator 3]

1. No, what you see doesn't matter at all, because you've got no yellow flags and no striped jersey to wear. The ONLY thing that matters is what the officials on the field see. There is literally nothing less relevant than fans (including mine) opinions of what is and isn't a penalty. Those OPINIONS are literally the definition of "talking heads". We, as fans, are the talking heads.

 

2. My comment regarding error rate has nothing to do with the number of flags being thrown. Penalties are up because players are committing more penalties. The misconception is that officials are making more mistakes, which when judged by people who are qualified to make those judgments, isn't true. Those statistics were straight from Dean Blandino himself.

The article I saw said Blandino set the error rate at 4.5 errors per game, not 4.5%. I think that's a big difference. If I only worked 3 hours a week and made 4.5 errors during those 3 hours, I'd be damn well fired. Even though that rate has been fairly consistent for a few years, it is just plain too high. In fact, the complaints have been going on for quite a while. They're getting "louder" now because nothing has been done to correct the problem.

[reed20fence]

The article I saw said Blandino set the error rate at 4.5 errors per game, not 4.5%. I think that's a big difference. If I only worked 3 hours a week and made 4.5 errors during those 3 hours, I'd be damn well fired. Even though that rate has been fairly consistent for a few years, it is just plain too high. In fact, the complaints have been going on for quite a while. They're getting "louder" now because nothing has been done to correct the problem.

I've heard the "human error is just a part of the game" argument from several people now. But the human error should come from the athletes, not those administering a fair competition. A RB picking the wrong hole is innate error. A QB making a wrong and hasty read under pressure is innate human limitation (It's what differentiates a Manning from a Leaf). But you can't have refs out there at a Hall of Fame level and some that just can't hang it. Not when your duty is to ensure clean and just competition. And if there is no such thing as a perfect ref, then we need to start arming these folks with the tools to administer the game properly. It's the flippin' 21st century and a Hundred Thousand fans in the stadium along with the teams are watching an HD jumbotron that shows a blatant foul or no foul but the refs aren't allowed to look up? Cmon.

Edited December 4, 2015 by reed20fence

[sami]

I'm a little stunned that the Ravens Christmas tree isn't purple and gold.

[rmcjacket23]

The article I saw said Blandino set the error rate at 4.5 errors per game, not 4.5%. I think that's a big difference. If I only worked 3 hours a week and made 4.5 errors during those 3 hours, I'd be damn well fired. Even though that rate has been fairly consistent for a few years, it is just plain too high. In fact, the complaints have been going on for quite a while. They're getting "louder" now because nothing has been done to correct the problem.

Well, technically you are correct, but it goes against your point. It is 4.5 errors per game...with an average game having 160 plays from their sample. So that's actually a 2.8% error rate.

If you had a 2.8% error rate in most jobs, you'd be considered a great employee

[rmcjacket23]

I've heard the "human error is just a part of the game" argument from several people now. But the human error should come from the athletes, not those administering a fair competition. A RB picking the wrong hole is innate error. A QB making a wrong and hasty read under pressure is innate human limitation (It's what differentiates a Manning from a Leaf). But you can't have refs out there at a Hall of Fame level and some that just can't hang it. Not when your duty is to ensure clean and just competition. And if there is no such thing as a perfect ref, then we need to start arming these folks with the tools to administer the game properly. It's the flippin' 21st century and a Hundred Thousand fans in the stadium along with the teams are watching an HD jumbotron that shows a blatant foul or no foul but the refs aren't allowed to look up? Cmon.

1. That's a sport in general problem, not an NFL problem. The human element can't be eliminated from officiating in any sport.

2. They can review and correct every play if you really want them to. You just have to commit more time to it, which nobody wants.

[bmoraven]

Bart Scott cracks me up. The wizard of OZ really worked some magic that day. Talk about Dropping the Deuce.

[balfan23]

As indicated by McFarland, it is not only critical that we effectively reduce Flacco's cap number, but it is critical that it is done in a timely fashion. Getting the deal worked out in late March isn't going to help us.

 

Also, 3-7M is a big spread. Obviously, we really need to be on the upper half of that range for the move to have the needed effect. While I see some cuts that can provide cap relief, there aren't many that will provide a significant reduction in cap. 

[cobrajet]

Wow, the Castle is nice! I would really like to take a nap on that couch with the Christmas tree all lit up and the fire going in the fireplace with the picture of Art hanging over the mantle. I just hope I do not snore too loud, because it would probably really echo off those marble floors.

Edited December 5, 2015 by cobrajet

[gabrielgrissom]

I read in the Baltimore Sun that they sat Carl Davis to get a good look at Brent Urban.

yeah but I mean I don't know why his strong play early has deteriorated