[News] Pro Bowl Safety Eric Weddle To Join Ravens

[thecommish]

This is not a log jam at S.... Weddle and Will Hill will be the starters. Webb can provide depth at S or CB especially in the slot... or in nickel and dime defenses. Elam and Brooks are still projects who are developing... and who better to develop under but Hill and Weddle with Leslie Frazier coaching you? The only odd man out is KLewis... and he may clear some more cap space for us??? Pees has no excuses now!

Pees better not offer any excuses now. He hasnt had safeties perform since he arrived here... now with Will Hill-Weddle and Webb... if he cannot produce... Pees gotta go!

[HoldingCall]

Now That's a waste of money!.......All i remember about him is getting KO'd by Anquan Boldin for that last yard for Ray Rice.......we will see!

Yeah, it's a curious move. I didn't expect this since the secondary played better late in the season after player position adjustments. Someone back there clearly doesn't have the vote of confidence from the GM and/or coaches.

[birdseye]

Fantastic move... just look at his coverage grades by PFF over the past 8 years... even playing through a groin strain (the most serious injury he's had in his career if im not mistaken) and he still graded out as one of the top coverage safeties in the NFL.

essentially a 2 year deal worth 13 mill... that is perfect especially because if he plays anywhere near his level before 2015 (hell even during 2015) he will be a difference maker for us. I can remember plenty of games against SD when he made plays that used to frustrate the hell out of me. at 31 i view this signing in a very similar light to the SSS signing...

[birdseye]

This was definitely a good pickup. The people questioning it need to remember how bad our secondary was last year. All the depth in the world means nothing if they aren't producing. Weddle is without a doubt a big upgrade. He and Hill will be a stout backend. Now, Oz needs to get Wallace to throw on the other side of SSS and we can keep our fingers crossed that Perriman ends up being the burner we need that can stretch the field. Wallace would be a good catalyst. Then in the draft hope for Buckner and if he is off the board I'd trade back for Hargreaves. I personally like Buckner over Bosa. Bosa is a 4-3 guy imo and Buckner is a 3-4 5 tech all day. I personally know Deforest and he definitely fits the mold of a Raven. The things I've heard about Bosa off the field do not reflect a kind of guy we want on our team. I've heard that weed is the last thing to worry about with him. 

dont know about what kind of a person Bosa is, but the rest of your post I think is spot on.. praying Buckner falls to 6

[jlswartzii]

I don't think it is a logjam. I think Lewis is gone for sure, probably as a post June 1st designation or just waiting until after June 1st to release him because that will save us more than cutting him now would. Elam probably stays because we won't save much at all by releasing him so he can play backup and develop in his contract year and see if he's worth resigning next year. I don't see Brooks going anywhere. Last season I believe we started the season with 9 DBs on the roster, 5 of which were safeties, and then ended the season with 12 DBs on the roster, 5 of which were safeties(6 if you include Webb). So once Lewis goes, there will be Hill, Webb, Weddle, Elam(Probably), Brooks(maybe), and Levine there, so it would be 6 safeties again. At CB, Smith and Wright are gonna be on the roster, and Arrington is as close as you can get to being a lock without actually being one. Trawick might be back for special teams if no one ends up being interested in him, so that could make 7 safieties. A corner will almost certainly be added during the draft at some point(Hopefully VH3). Tray Walker was just selected last season, so he stands a good chance to be on the final 53 unless offseason/preseason don't go well, then he'd probably go down to the practice squad. So that would put us at around 12 DBs total, 2 of the safeties are primarily special teamers, so realistically there would be 5 safeties in the mix for playing time. With Webb having the flexibility to cover slot if need be, he might as well be considered a CB/FS now that Weddle is here. I could see us going into the season with 10-12 DBs this year. Most of them are probably already on the roster, and I don't see us adding more than 4 new players to that mix. Weddle might end up being the only new starter for our secondary, unless we draft a CB early enough and he earns the starting job over Wright, which means we would be going into the season with 5 of the 6 key DBs that started gelling during the second half of the season and finished very strong. Pees could design some packages that have Smith, Wright/Draft Pick, Arrington/Wright, Weddle, and Webb(Instead of Hill) all out there at the same time. To me, that combination sounds like it has the potential to be a great 3rd and long/obvious passing situation lineup. Of course, all of that is assuming no injuries to any of the aforementioned players happen between now and the start of the season. If our secondary can pick up where they left off last season(the second half of the season) and then improve even more, our secondary would be in great shape. Depending on how the draft goes, I think we could have a shot at being a top 5 defense this season.

[Brunson529]

I agree with everyone's comments Weddle was a great pick up. If we cannot get a Play-maker at Defense, I would shock the league and grab a Pro Bowl type RB. I'm just not that comfortable with the four on board today. When the Ravens won both Super Bowls we had a Play-maker at RB, and a strong Defense. Just Saying.

[usmccharles]

28 minutes ago, Brunson529 said:

I agree with everyone's comments Weddle was a great pick up. If we cannot get a Play-maker at Defense, I would shock the league and grab a Pro Bowl type RB. I'm just not that comfortable with the four on board today. When the Ravens won both Super Bowls we had a Play-maker at RB, and a strong Defense. Just Saying.

While I agree with you that we need a playmaking RB like Rice was, I just don't think we can take Elliot at 6.  When you take a guy as early as we are picking, your in the mindset that hes going to be with the organization for a long time.  RB shelf lives and cost to benefit ratio just isn't there anymore when it comes to resigning them at there current prices when you can find guys later in the draft.  But im with you on wanting one....

[BigUgly]

With Weddle, the Ravens will have further increased their NFL-leading commitment of $17M in cap money to the safety position. Now they are really out of whack. Where does Webb go now? He's too hobbled to play corner any longer, and the dead money tied to his contract should he be cut is too high.

[usmccharles]

Just now, BigUgly said:

With Weddle, the Ravens will have further increased their NFL-leading commitment of $17M in cap money to the safety position. Now they are really out of whack. Where does Webb go now? He's too hobbled to play corner any longer, and the dead money tied to his contract should he be cut is too high.

So because we had money invested in something and it wasn't working out we should ignore it? great way of upgrading your roster

[Tru11]

27 minutes ago, BigUgly said:

With Weddle, the Ravens will have further increased their NFL-leading commitment of $17M in cap money to the safety position. Now they are really out of whack. Where does Webb go now? He's too hobbled to play corner any longer, and the dead money tied to his contract should he be cut is too high.

he could easily play nickle corner or play deep with weddle in cover 2 for instance.

we play nickle and sub packages a lot.

[BigUgly]

  1 hour ago, BigUgly said:

With Weddle, the Ravens will have further increased their NFL-leading commitment of $17M in cap money to the safety position. Now they are really out of whack. Where does Webb go now? He's too hobbled to play corner any longer, and the dead money tied to his contract should he be cut is too high.

So because we had money invested in something and it wasn't working out we should ignore it? great way of upgrading your roster

No. I'm suggesting that adding additional resources to what looked to be an at least average safety situation doesn't make sense if it comes at the expense of bolstering a below-average left side of the OL and suspect WR corps. The secondary actually showed signs of improvement last year down the stretch yet we again start a season with numerous question marks surrounding our massive investment in Flacco.

[BigUgly]

  1 hour ago, BigUgly said:

With Weddle, the Ravens will have further increased their NFL-leading commitment of $17M in cap money to the safety position. Now they are really out of whack. Where does Webb go now? He's too hobbled to play corner any longer, and the dead money tied to his contract should he be cut is too high.

he could easily play nickle corner or play deep with weddle in cover 2 for instance.

we play nickle and sub packages a lot.

$9+M is a lot to pay a possible nickel CB (who got torched covering the slot last year). At this point, the Ravens may cut him to nab the $3.6M in cap savings, even though the dead money hangover would be tough to swallow for a couple of years.

[ravenwildman]

Weddle is a playmaker! The Ravens needed that threat to keep QB's honest, this.....is going to be a great year! Welcome to the Ravens Eric. One things for sure, the Ravens are a family organization, so if his daughter dances at halftime you can bet he can watch her dance this time without reprisal. GO RAVENS!

[Ravens Raver]

So if it's legal for a defender to bring down a receiver by the dreadlocks, is it legal for a receiver to take down a defender by the beard?

Edited March 15, 2016 by Ravens Raver
fixed typo

[riseNConquer81]

So if it's legal for a defender to bring down a receive by the dreadlocks, is it legal for a receiver to take down a defender by the beard?

a defender with the ball in his hands isnt a defender, he's a ball carrier. and yes it is. as long as you dont reach into the facemask to do it.